Bank Street Music Writer is an application for composing and playing music for the Atari 8-bit computers,[1][2] Apple II,[3] Commodore 64[1] and IBM PC.[4][5] It was written by Glen Clancy[6] and published by Mindscape. The original Atari version, developed under the name "Note Processor", was released in 1985 and uses the computer's on-board sound chip to produce four-voice music recordings. The Commodore 64 version also uses that system's sound hardware, while the Apple and IBM PC versions require a sound card which was included in the retail box (a clone of the Mockingboard), or alternately use the three-voice sound chip standard with all Tandy and IBM PCjr computers.
| Original author(s) | Glen Clancy |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Mindscape |
| Initial release | 1985[1] |
| Platform | Atari 8-bit, Apple II, Commodore 64, IBM PC |
Users can input sheet music (up to four voices on the Atari version and six on the PC) with the keyboard and play back the results or print them. The program includes several pre-entered songs, including an excerpt from the Nutcracker Suite and "On Top of Old Smoky", which form the basis of the tutorial.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Games Exhibit Innovations By Scott Mace, InfoWorld, 9 Jul 1984, Page 37, Mindscape, of Northbrook, Illinois, showed Bank Street Musicwriter. The program developed by the Bank Street College of Education, which also developed Bank Street Writer...the program will be available in September...for Atari and Commodore 64...with Apple and IBM PC to follow...
- ^ Music Buyer's Guide, By ANITA MALNIG, ANTIC VOL. 3, NO. 8 / DECEMBER 1984, BANK STREET MUSIC WRITER This new program lets the user explore and compose music. Four voices can be programmed to play at once and simple editing modes let the user save and print the music. $49.95. Mindscape, ... 48K-disk.
- ^ Bank Street Music Writer 8-bit Sound & Fury, Bank Street Music Writer allows you to write, edit and play back music using the Mockingboard sound card, Apple II Sound & Music Software
- ^ The PC Mockingboard, 2011/09/09, Oldskooler Ramblings, If you can't wait and want to hear what it sounds like right now, you can check out both a sample file that came with BSMW, or a piece of music I transcribed myself
- ^ Bank Street Music Writer Sparks the Creativity of Buddy Composers By Jonathan Matzkin, PC Mag, 29 Nov 1988, Page 486, For years the Bank Street College of Education has lent its name and expertise to software that educates and stimulates creativity...
- ^ Bank Street Music Writer by Glen Clancy, ISBN 9780870871139 - Biblio.com
External links
edit- ABBA - Eagle (Bank Street Music writer, ATARI800XL) on YouTube
- Review: Bank Street Music Writer - Home of the Underdogs
- BANK STREET MUSIC WRITER Documentation