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11-22-2023, 08:17 AM
(This post was last modified: 11-22-2023, 08:19 AM by DavidBoothe.)
A useful technique while practicing difficult passeges is to practice the passage repeatedly with the metronome, slowly at first, then gradually increasing the tempo by 1 or 2 BPM.
The current metronome interface, while comprehensive, is too clumsy to invoke then dismiss repeatedly, after only a few repititions of the passage each time. Part of this exercise is to get into a "groove" or mindset, which invoking the current metrnome UI interupts. It also takes up too much screen real estate and is not movable.
It would be much more convenient to have a smaller metronome UI, with only the essential controls, that can me moved to a different part of the screen as required.
For this exercise - and much other work with the metronome as well - the only things really needed are start/stop buttons, a tempo display, the +/- buttons and maybe the tempo slider, although the last is not really essential. Any other changes that the normal UI allows, are made much less frequently, and so do not need to be on the mini UI.
Thank you.
dB
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You can move the metronome to the very top of the screen (display Settings on the Metronome screen then press the "hills in the square box" - I use LEDS with a vertical offset of -35)
From your post, it sounds as though you are trying to reduce the number of presses required so this won't help that but it does allow you to hide the big metronome dialog
Geoff
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Fwiw - I use a separate metronome app (TE tuner in my case) that has a whole tool box of ways to mess with the beats, when I need to do the ramp-up exercise on something.
As you say, it'll only be for a passage, so I don't need the whole score visible and can use either split screen or, eg on the Chromebook, the TE as a floating window.
Seems to me MS is more performance oriented than learning (what I use it for) oriented... Which is fine, and sometimes other apps that specialises in some functions are useful
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Thanks for the suggestions. Manipulating the visual metronome doesn't really solve the problem.
For this practice technique, I can keeip using a metonome app on my phone next to the tabiet. The UI I suggested seems a bit more elegant. The existing UI is fine for everything else.
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Fair enough.
I have, on various occasions, wished the metronome window worked like the media player window.. movable and with a compact option.
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I'll certainly look into providing either a redesigned/improved metronome that includes the multiple layouts and the ability to be moved, or a separate movable window that can be used to start/stop and quickly change the tempo without any of the other options. This is not going to be higher on the priority list though, as I have other promised features that I have to deliver first.
Mike
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Thanks, Mike.
I realize other things have priority. I wanted it to be considered as I think it would improve the usefulness of the metronome.
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Hey Mike,
I just wanted to add that when you take a look at changing/updating the metronome UI, you could perhaps also improve the way presets are saved for a song. There are often songs with several or even many different tempos. When I practice them in a lower tempo, then I directly change the saved tempo. That is unpractical, because I only temporarily want to change the tempo. It would clog up the list of tempos if every tempo had multiple practice tempos saved with them, e.g. 50%, 70%, 80% and 90%.
Perhaps you could find a way to make it easier and more comfortable to save the tempos as presets that we really need and at the same time create an opportunity to change the tempo while practicing without saving it as a permanent preset.
Additionally there could be easier methods to change between saved tempos in a song for example with a SmartButton or automatically on a new page.
Thanks in advance!