KEYS
WHEN YOUR KEYS SOFTWARE CRASHES | David Pfaltzgraff
It ’ s a nightmare you hope never comes to pass . There you are on stage , halfway through that epic bridge . As you smoothly fade the mod wheel into full position you simultaneously nail that tricky octave lead line in your right hand and smile to yourself . As the underlying eighth note Arp locks in perfectly with the hi-hat and your subtle shimmer pad twinkles just right in-between the margins left by the electric guitarists you can ’ t imagine a moment where you feel more in the groove .
Then , suddenly the unthinkable happens .
You ’ re jarred out of your worshipful reverie by a sudden emptiness in the mix . In a horrifying moment you realize that the unexpected absence stems from your position . Frantically glancing over to your laptop your worst fears are realized as you see not your worship keys software onscreen , but rather that picture of your dog that you set as your desktop wallpaper a couple years ago and keep forgetting to change , accompanied by the dreaded spinning beach ball where you ’ d expect your mouse cursor to be .
In that moment you realize your keys software just crashed during a setlist on Sunday morning .
Most of us have either experienced the above or fear its assured arrival , but the fear of computer issues doesn ’ t need to be a primary concern if you take some proactive steps to prepare . Today we ’ re going to talk about what to do before your software crashes and what to do when ( heaven forbid ) it actually does .
TWO PARTS OF ONE WHOLE
Before we talk about when a crash happens it ’ s important to discuss why . In my experience ninety-nine out of a hundred crashes happen because a user asks their computer to do more than it ’ s capable of doing . Whether that ’ s filling your software with too many sounds and CPUheavy plugins at a time or setting your audio preferences more aggressively than necessary , I ’ d posit that there ’ s almost always simple optimizations available that can help to ‘ crash proof ’ your computer .
It ’ s also important to acknowledge that some computers just aren ’ t as capable as others . If you want to run all the latest and greatest software but refuse to update that 2009 MacBook you ’ re going to get 2009 results more often than not .
Hand in hand with the computer you choose is the hardware keyboard you connect to it . If you have reason to be concerned about software crashes on stage , one option to consider is making sure the keyboard you use also has a passable selection of built-in sounds that you can revert to as a backup in those worst-case scenarios . This is an especially good option for churches who also want a computer-free alternative for the occasional guest musician , wedding or funeral solo , etc .
Having a hardware keyboard with built-in sounds always connected to a separate channel on the soundboard means that in the event your computer completely drops out you can be back to at least piano and pad within a few seconds , instead of waiting until you can get your computer to cooperate again .