For the most part, the term “patch” indicates the musical instrument selected to play in a specific track. There is no enhancing of a track if the wrong patch is chosen. Hardly anything can ruin your day more, when you're expecting a soft cello passage, and the cannons start exploding.

Normally, if you are dealing with the 128 General MIDI patches (pianos, vibraphone, organs, guitars, basses, strings, etc.), life should be calm and peaceful. It's when you add another synthesizer (e.g., a sound module), and you must now confront multiple banks, that anxiety seems to increase. Multiple banks are like household appliances--they have the capacity to please (when they work) and annoy (when they don't). An alternative bank may offer a delightful sound combination (e.g., “muted bone”), provided your sequencer and your local guru help you find that patch.

One ought to be confident that the patch selected really sounds like a trumpet, tenor sax, bassoon, flute, etc. Here's where a tin ear can be a bit awkward, since one is limited in comparing a MIDI patch to an audio compact disc, the sounds of an acoustic musician living nearby, or Microsoft's CD ROM Musical Instruments.

Most impartial people, if they take the time to listen, are likely to find the instrumental sounds in General MIDI impressive--thanks to advances in the technology of sampling. Some patches are downright spooky, meaning virtually acoustic: vibes, the flute, some guitars, the acoustic bass, the orchestra hit. As always, there's an element of personal perception here, beauty being in the eye...

The purity of the sound of any patch will, of course, reflect the caliber of the synthesizer. Moreover, no patch will sound authentic unless it's in the correct register--a subject that we will discuss later, in the section on Pitch. And, incidentally, the reset function may be the most important procedure in MIDI-computing. All sequencers have a reset switch. But, just in case your external sound module is not resetting (Heaven forbid!), try powering if off, then back on. The missing cello may reappear.

Copyright © 1995 Eugene A. Confrey, PhD. All rights reserved.