A Guide to Using JUMP

What's New

If you have never used a previous version of JUMP then you might like to skip this topic and go straight to About JUMP.

JUMP Version 1.21 (20th March 2007) update...

MIDI CC step sequencing has been added to the Lead/Bass Motif Editor, the Chordal Motif Editor and the Rhythm Motif Editor.
The Save As and Export to MIDI File functions now remember the last directory used.
Long songs containing very large numbers of events per track no longer cause crashes.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The introduction of MIDI CC step sequencing enables certain creative effects based on rhythmic changes to synthesizer controls. The Save As and Export file dialogs now operate in a more familiar manner. The "MAX_MIDI_EVENTS exceeded" event overload problem has been fixed.

Copies of JUMP prior to version 1.21 do not support the CC step sequencing feature and so will ignore any CC settings. This means that song files saved with version 1.21 (or later) might not play correctly when loaded by earlier versions. You should therefore ensure that both parties have the latest version of JUMP when exchanging song files.

JUMP Version 1.20 (16th February 2006) update...

Generate Motifs 2,3 & 4 from Motif 1 and Generate Theme functions have been added to the Section Page Motif Arrangement Menus.
An Alberti fill function has been added to the Pitch Menu of the Lead/Bass Motif Editor.
Fill with Long Chords, Fill with Half Speed Chords, Silent Down-Beat and Boston functions have been added to the Action Menu of the Chordal Motif Editor.
Alberti , Oom-Pah and Monophonic Randomisation functions have been added to the Voicings Menu of the Chordal Motif Editor.
Several randomisation functions have been improved.
The Export to MIDI File function now uses correct end of track timestamps.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The Generate Motifs 2,3 & 4 from Motif 1 function automatically generates multiple variations of a motif. The Generate Theme function creates a random motif, generates variations then fills the track with a repeating pattern that switches between variations. The new fill functions make it easier to create certain common accompaniments. The improved randomisation produces slightly more musical results than previously. A MIDI file problem that caused some MIDI programs to overestimate the length of songs exported by JUMP has been fixed.

JUMP Version 1.19 (23rd May 2005) update...

No longer crashes when Playlist uses Selected Section and Section Page I, J, K or L is selected.

This update fixes a bug that caused problems when using I, J, K or L in the authorised version.

JUMP Version 1.18 (4th March 2005) update...

Four new Section Pages have been added (authorised version only).
New I, J, K, L Keyboard Shortcuts have been added (authorised version only).
New display motif 1, 2, 3, 4 Keyboard Shortcuts have been added.
A Transmit Reverb/CC91 on/off function has been added to the Options Menu.
Buttons that are disabled in the demo version are now indicated by greyed-out text labels.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The addition of four new sections increases the scope for authorised users to create more complex songs. The new display motif 1, 2, 3, 4 keyboard shortcuts provide a quick way to change which of the four motifs (of a particular section and track) is being edited. This makes some common editing operations much easier to perform. The new Transmit Reverb/CC91 on/off option is useful for fixing problems caused by synthesizers that map CC91 to something other than reverb.

Unfortunately songs that use sections I, J, K or L will not work correctly with versions of JUMP prior to 1.18. You should therefore ensure that both parties have the latest version of JUMP when exchanging song files.

Songs that use sections I, J, K or L can be loaded and played back by the demo version of JUMP (1.18 and later) but these sections can't be edited.

JUMP Version 1.17 (6th January 2005) update...

An Insert Selected Section function has been added to the Playlist Menu.
Switching between Custom and Selected Section options in the Playlist has been improved.
More/Less Seventh Chords functions have been added to the Chord Arrangement Menu.
Chord sequence generation has been slightly improved.
The Radar Chromatic view now no longer overflows when Key Overrides are used.
The Info display and the blue "LED" indicating the current bar in a section now refresh properly after being obscured.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The Insert Selected Section function and it's CTRL left click shortcut provide a quick way to insert a new section into the Playlist. The Custom playlist dialog now always "remembers" the previous playlist after a temporary change to using the Selected Section option. The new More/Less Seventh Chords functions allow a section to be easily "jazzed up" by the addition of seventh notes or simplified by their removal. The improved chord sequence generation produces a slightly wider range of chord arrangements. The problem with the Radar Chromatic view overflowing when using Key Overrides has been fixed. Other minor display problems have also been fixed.

JUMP Version 1.16 (10th December 2004) update...

A Key Override control has been added to the Section Pages.
Two Chromatic display modes have been added to the Radar.
The Info display now shows which chords are used in the previous, current and next bar (measure).
The section Reset action has been modified.
Track one's Humanise Menu button now no longer interfers with the 8th Note Swing function.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The new Key Override control allows a section to use a different key to the rest of the song. This makes it possible to create key modulations and increases JUMP's musical range by making available a much wider choice of chords. The new Chromatic Radar display modes show the details of how chords and key modulations are constructed at the semi-tone (half-step) level. The new chord info is useful for both live accompaniment and ear training. The section Reset action now uses the same default motif arrangement as was introduced in version 1.13. The problem with Track one's Humanise Menu button interfering with 8th Note Swing has been fixed.

Although song files saved by any version of JUMP can be loaded by any other version, copies of JUMP prior to version 1.16 do not support the Key Override feature and so will ignore any Key Override settings. This means that song files saved with version 1.16 (or later) might not play correctly when loaded by earlier versions. You should therefore ensure that both parties have the latest version of JUMP when exchanging song files.

JUMP Version 1.15 (25th November 2004) update...

An 8th Note Swing control has been added to the Humanise Page.
Straight/Swing Toggle, Halve Tempo and Double Tempo functions have been added to the Options Menu.
Straight/Swing Toggle (F6), Halve Tempo (F7) and Double Tempo (F8) Keyboard Shortcuts have been added.
The Rhythm Voice instrument defaults have been changed.
Randomisation has been slightly improved.
The Rationalise Song option has been improved.
Function keys now work when an editor window has keyboard focus.
Some new demo material has been added.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The new 8th Note Swing control enables the timing ratio between pairs of 8th notes to be adjusted in order to create swing/shufflle grooves. The Straight/Swing Toggle shortcut provides a quick way to set the swing to 2:1 and to do quick comparisons between straight and swung grooves. The Halve/Double Tempo functions are useful for practice and live work. The new rhythm voice defaults offer a different selection of instrument sounds for each of the three rhythm tracks (the original selection is still available on track 11). The improved randomisation produces slightly more musical results than previously. The improved Rationalise Song option does a better job of cleaning up. The problem with function keys not responding when an editor had keyboard focus has now been fixed.

Although song files saved by any version of JUMP can be loaded by any other version, copies of JUMP prior to version 1.15 do not support the 8th Note Swing feature and so will ignore any Swing settings. This means that song files saved with version 1.15 (or later) might not play correctly when loaded by earlier versions. You should therefore ensure that both parties have the latest version of JUMP when exchanging song files.

If you have customised your setup using Save as Default... in the Options Menu then you will need to use the Reset Defaults... option to take advantage of the new default settings.

JUMP Version 1.14 (12th October 2004) update...

A Set Number of Steps for 3/4 Time function has been added to the Options Menu.
Reverse, Rotate Left and Rotate Right functions have been added to the Action Menu of the Lead/Bass Motif Editor.
Reverse, Rotate Left and Rotate Right functions have been added to the Action Menu of the Chordal Motif Editor
Reverse, Increase Strengths and Decrease Strengths fuctions has been added to the Rhythm Voice Menus of the Rhythm Motif Editor.
A Rest Every Other Bar function has been added to the Section Page Motif Arrangement Menus.
A Transmit MIDI Clock Sync on/off (F5) Keyboard Shortcut has been added.
Section Randomisation have been slightly improved.
Some minor improvements have been made to the User Interface.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The new Set Number of Steps for 3/4 Time function makes it easier to create material with 3 beats per bar by changing the default number of steps in all the motifs. The new Reverse, Rotate Left and Rotate Right functions make it easier to rearrange the timing of motif actions. The new Increase Strengths and Decrease Strengths functions make it easier to adjust the relative strengths of rhythm voices. The Rest Every Other Bar function makes it easier to create certain arrangement patterns.

JUMP Version 1.13 (6th September 2004) update...

A new Develop button has been added to the Section Pages.
A new Rationalise Song function has been added to the Options Menu.
The Patch and Motif Arrangement default settings have been changed.
Some new functions have been added to the Lead/Bass Motif Editor Pitch Menu (Invert, Reverse, Rotate Left, Rotate Right).
Section and Rhythm Motif Randomisation have been improved.
New Help (F1), Rationalise Song (F2), Cancel All Track Mutes (F3) and Cancel All Track Solos (F4) Keyboard Shortcuts have been added.
Some minor improvements have been made to the User Interface (e.g. wider Radar).
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated.

The new Develop button condenses a common series of actions into just one click, making it easier than ever to reuse and develop material. It searches for an unused section, copies the currently selected section to this section, appends this section to the playlist and leaves the new section selected - ready to be modified. The new Rationalise Song function allows you to automatically discard all unused material, convert empty motifs into rests, mute unused tracks and reset all unused controls. This house-keeping function can reduce the size of JMP files and also makes the Radar Track View much more useful. The new default settings help make things a little more consistent. The new pitch menu functions make it easy to apply certain melodic transformations. The improved randomise functions produce slightly more musically useful results than previously.

If you have customised your setup using Save as Default... in the Options Menu then you will need to use the Reset Defaults... option to take advantage of the new default settings.

JUMP Version 1.12 (3rd August 2004) update...

A new Transmit MIDI Clock Sync on/off function has been added to the Options Menu.
Some new functions have been added to the Section Page Motif Arrangement Menus (Rest for 4 Bars, Rotate Arrangement, Raise/Lower Content Pitch and Copy Track).
Some new functions have been added to the Lead/Bass Motif Editor Pitch Menu (+/- 2nd, +/- 3rd and +/- Octave).
The Randomise and Fill Double Speed functions in the Lead/Bass Motif Editor Action Menu have been improved.
The Randomise functions in the Rhythm Motif Editor have been greatly improved.
New Copy (CTRL+C), Paste (CTRL+V) and Panic (CTRL+P) Keyboard Shortcuts have been added.
The Guide to Using JUMP (this document) has been updated and improved.

The new MIDI Sync feature enables synthesizers, drum machines, sequencers, etc to synchronise with JUMP. The new Copy Track, Rotate Arrangement and Raise/Lower Content Pitch functions simplify the creation of things like ensembles and canons. The new pitch menu functions make it easier to perform manual pitch shifting of motifs. The improved randomise functions produce more musically useful results than previously.

JUMP Version 1.11 (28th June 2004) update...

A new Shift on/off button has been added to the Lead/Bass Motif Editor and the default behaviour for bass motifs has been changed to take advantage of this new feature.
The Rhythm Motif Editor now defaults to a more user-friendly 16 steps with a full size window.
A new Top of Song Keyboard Shortcut has been added.
A new MIDI Panic! function has been added to the Options Menu.
Other minor improvements.

The most important change is the addition of the Shift button. This new button works in conjunction with the existing Fit on/off button to control how a lead or bass motif's pitches are affected by the current chord, as decribed below...

Manual The pitches are not affected by the chord, any scale tone can be picked manually.

Fit The pitches are adjusted to use the nearest chord tone. (Lead Motif Default)

Shift The pitches are shifted up the scale to follow the chord root. (Bass Motif Default)

Shift and Fit The pitches are shifted up the scale to follow the chord root and then are adjusted to use the nearest chord tone.

Bass motifs now default to the new Shift mode (instead of the previous Fit mode). This makes it far easier to create conventional basslines that play mainly the root note of the current chord. To reproduce the previous behaviour simply click on both buttons to turn Shift off and Fit on.

Although song files saved by any version of JUMP can be loaded by any other version, copies of JUMP prior to version 1.11 do not support the Shift feature and so will ignore any Shift button settings. This means that song files saved with version 1.11 (or later) might not play correctly when loaded by earlier versions. You should therefore ensure that both parties have the latest version of JUMP when exchanging song files.

Next topic: Contents > Getting Started > About JUMP

		Manual	The pitches are not affected by the chord, any scale tone can be picked manually.
		Fit	The pitches are adjusted to use the nearest chord tone. (Lead Motif Default)
		Shift	The pitches are shifted up the scale to follow the chord root. (Bass Motif Default)
		Shift and Fit	The pitches are shifted up the scale to follow the chord root and then are adjusted to use the nearest chord tone.