Instructions for Using Keykit as an Accompanist

1. Starting Keykit:

To start Keykit, double-click on the Key icon on the desktop.

After a little while, you should see the following window.

2. Starting the Group Tool

Next you need to start the group tool. First click the left mouse button on the area above the command box and you should see the root menu with an item called Tools1. Click on Tools1 and you should see the following screen.

After selecting “Group” from the submenu, Keykit will be waiting for you to draw a box where the group tool will be. Click and drag the left mouse button to draw a box and you will see the group tool appear.

3. Starting the Tempo Tool

Most likely the tempo of the MIDI file you will be playing is not what you want. To change this, you place the tempo tool on the screen. You need to bring up the root menu that you saw when you started the group tool. To do this, you have to click on the area that does not have a tool residing. (as indicated above)

Grab the scrollbar on the submenu and pull it down until you see Tempo in the submenu. Selecting Tempo will cause Keykit to wait for you to draw another rectangle for the tempo tool.

Your screen should look something like this now.

4. Loading MIDI file

To load your file, select the “File” menu on the top left corner of the group tool and select “Standard MIDI file” from the submenu.

a file browser will appear after selecting "Standard MIDI File"

After picking the file you want, click on “Open” and you should see something like this.

The view is somethings like a piano roll spread out.

5. Starting to play

Notice the button at the top called "Aud Sweep". That means that your left mouse button is used to sweep an area on the screen to use as an "Audition". If you sweep the whole piece, you will hear the whole piece when you click the right mouse button called "Aud Play". So by default, you sweep an area with your left mouse button and play the area that you just swept with the right mouse button. You can change the function of the left and right mouse button by changing the buttons. To change the buttons, left click on the button and pick the new function.

Some things are a little backward such as getting menus by clicking the left mouse button. In time it is possible to get used to the little ideosyncracies of keykit. It's worth knowing how to use Keykit. It's a very useful tool.