About This File
This one is maybe a bit too ambitious, but here it is. There are two stage settings and two phrases. The second stage setting is specifically for the bridge.
One of the two phrases is set to the main phrase player for percussion. The other is mapped to the arpeggiator in zone 1. The latter is used for the percussion intro for the song.
Instead of a quick sample MP3, I've included the whole song as I would play it live (hopefully, without the cringey mistakes) so you can see how it all fits together.
Verse/Chorus Stage setting (Rio_____.ZPF):
1. The random arpeggiator uses the top E, F#, and B
2. Intro percussion is started by pressing the lowest C# (or lower) key. Start the main percussion (pedal 2) on the first downbeat of measure 5. Make sure when installing the files that the zone 1 arpeggiator points to the RIOINTRO.ZPH phrase.
3. Distortion guitar is in octave 5
4. Chorus "strings" synth is octave 3&4
5. At the beginning of the chorus, "reset" the percussion by pressing the stage setting button again. This compensates for the extra two measures in the song (the percussion phrase is four measures long). If you don't do this, the percussion won't feel right because it will be two measures off.
Bridge stage setting (RioBridg.ZPF):
1. Originally, this was set to switch from the main stage setting with the pedal using a CC, but it turns out there is a problem with this. A non-hex-tone will sustain over a stage-setting change, but only if it's changed with a Program Change. The CC method of changing stage settings apparently doesn't work like this, so I had to time the switch just right so that the bass didn't cut out. instead, I gave up on that and just change it with the normal stage setting buttons.
2. This was a lucky bonus: the arpeggiator continues playing across a stage setting switch! So the "swirling" synth in the background makes use of the arpeggiator from the previous stage setting and you don't have to do anything to trigger this.
3. The voice for the solo I didn't want to sound too much like a saxophone, because... well... I'm playing a keyboard, not a sax, so I don't feel like it would have come across that well. There's a sax in one of the hex layers to at least suggest a sax lead. The synth also swells slowly for the last note held from the solo. I put Pedal 1 on sustain so you can either play a snare (which I decided I didn't like, but it's in the MP3 anyway), or get ready to switch stage settings.
4. When you switch back to the first stage setting, the arpeggiator switches back to the random pattern. I love my PX-5S!