ABC TUNE PLAYER - FIDDLE / BANJO / MANDOLIN - FIDABC  v1.4 (March 2003)
 (v1.4 plays and displays long rolls for abc code ~x3)

Hello fellow fiddlers, tenor banjo players and mandolin players.
                             
This program plays most tunes, from any abc tune file, at a selected
tempo, displays the abc code and displays the notes on the screen on a 
fiddle/banjo/mandolin fingerboard. 

I created this program just to see if I could do it, so it has no specific
purpose, for the moment, other than as an alternative to other abc players
such as abc2win and abcplayer. It hasn't been tested thoroughly, or totally
fine-tuned, so I can't guarantee that it will play 'every' abc tune 'properly'
or, as well as they might sound using other players. However, I have
played 100s of tunes and they sound reasonably good to my ear.  

HERE ARE SOME NOTES:

(1) Run SETUPnnnn.exe from the floppy or CD or from the downloaded zipfile. 
This will create a folder C:/PROGRAM FILES/ABCFIDDLER, will copy in the files and will create a shortcut in your START menu.

(2) Click START, then PROGRAMS and then click on ABCFIDDLER to run the program.
If it doesn't run and you get a message about not having  a VB file, then you 
will need to rename file "vbrun60sp5.txt" to "vbrun60sp5.exe" and run it (one of
the files copied in). Click on the shortcut again and the program should then 
start by drawing the screen. Maximize your screen.

(3) Select and click on the tune file 'ABCTUNE2' using the on-screen directory 
(or any other file on your pc containing abc tunes) and the tunes will load into the on-screen tune list. If it is a big tune file, be patient. It may take 20-30 secs to load in. This tune file will have been copied to your C drive in folder C:/PROGRAM FILES/ABCFIDDLER, but it is also on the CD or the floppy.

(4) Click on a tune in the tune list and then click on start.

(5) You can change the tempo or the instrument anytime or select a new tune, while a tune is playing but, the number of replays MUST be set BEFORE you start a tune.

(6) To load a different tune file, click the window close box WHILE a tune
is playing.

Here are a few other notes for students of abc:

(1) The program stops reading the tune text once it encounters ""Va""
(and all combinations of upper/lower cases). Also, it ignores any abc code
for key variations. (I will eventually modify the program to handle this code)

(2) Most keys are handled, but I may have missed some obscure ones.

(3) The program ignores all left repeat code and stacatto code i.e. "|:" and
".".

(4) Ornamentation isn't fully handled in the program yet but, version 1.4 
handles most cuts and long rolls. 

(5) I haven't played around much with the midi velocity and duration 
 parameters (or the "delay parms" which I had to create) for the note displays,
in order to get the best celtic sound/rhythym. I do increase the velocity for
the first note of each bar, but I not sure it's distinguishable.

(6) A 'full tune' coded repeat may not play, in some situations, (perhaps
where the tune contains  multiple endings within the tune itself). I used the
code denoting multiple endings to trigger repeats and  may have discarded some 
right repeats ":|" which seemed superfluous. You can use the REPEAT  slider to
replay the same tune.

(7) I have included a file 'ABCTUNEv4' containing many of the tunes we
pay at our local seisiuns. It also contains a tune file for practising rolls.

Thanks to Anna for putting up with the lack of company, while I worked
on this "little" project, that grew and grew and, a special thanks to
JWCS.Net Ltd 2002, a contact I found on the internet,  for the use of
their midi control.

I am interested in determining whether this program is helpful to students
in learning tunes on their instruments. If you have any suggestions or
comments that will make this program better, please email me. Also, if
you have any problems installing it, please email me and I will respond
quickly. Feel free to pass this program on to others who might be interested.

I hope you have some fun with this program and will look forward to
your comments and suggestions. Check my webpage from time to time for
any new enhancements.

Mike Casey
Toronto, Canada
September 2004
caseyml@sympatico.ca 

p.s. If you encounter a tune that doesn't play in the right key,
       please email me the tune name and the key shown on the screen.