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Lesson 10: Breaking a Long Pattern into Patterns with Variations

The imported DemoMIDI pattern consists of 12 measures of song material plus a one-measure ending. The first four measures are actually two slightly different phrases, each two measures in length. In other words, they are variations on a two-measure phrase. The next set of four measures also consists of two slightly different phrases, as does the third set of four measures. The final measure of the imported MIDI data serves as an ending for the entire piece.

The following illustration is a graphic representation of the imported DemoMIDI file, broken into phrases and variations.

Breakdown of DemoMIDI pattern

The phrases of a style are usually divided into separate patterns. The green lines along the top of the figure represent the divisions between logical patterns in the example. In this lesson, you will create patterns consisting of individual phrases with variations. By doing so you will create a style that takes the form shown in the following figure.

Style derived from DemoMIDI pattern

Note   By working through the following steps at least once, you will learn valuable techniques for creating patterns. However, you don't have to repeat the steps for every pattern. For your convenience, a finished style containing all the patterns and variations is already in the project as DemoStyle.stp.

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