Roland Bk7m names of the styles

[Valski]

I have decided to use my Bk7m more often when practicing songs. There are a lot of styles to be played however some of the names seem to be vague and are not descriptive. Does anyone have any tips on how to decode the names so that I can quickly select some backing rhythm to use. Suggestions are appreciated and I tried looking for a forum but didn't find anything that seemed applicable.

 

[JerryPH]

Well my friend, you are not going to like my suggestion... find the general area and basically listen briefly to each one and note down which ones you like best for each song... or learn how to create a performance list that matches a specific song you want to play... that is what I do.

 

[davidplaysaccordion]

Unfortunately you pretty much have to listen to each one.

 

[Valski]

Unfortunately you pretty much have to listen to each one.

Unfortunately that is what I have been doing. I have some of these figured out but the names and even the classification of the tracks is all over the map so it's hit and miss and confusing. I have been keeping notes and it helps but I thought that surely someone has worked this out. You never know if there is help available unless you ask.

 

[davidplaysaccordion]

I think there’s a list of names and time signatures in the manual but that’s about it for Roland doc.

 

[Valski]

I think there’s a list of names and time signatures in the manual but that’s about it for Roland doc.

Thanks David, I've seen this but was hoping that these names might be categorized a little better. Some of the names seem evasive so they take a lot of searching before it's possible to settle on something appropriate. I know that it's up to me to choose the best backing track.

 

[JerryPH]

One of the reasons that I don't use the BK more than I do is because of this very same reason... to spend 15-60 minutes per song sorting through the patterns/rhythms is daunting, but in all fairness, I did that very same thing with all the other arrangers that I have every used.

No matter what the name, at least initially, it never clearly tells you what that pattern is... until you hear it and decide whether it is a good fit with the song you have in mind... so that is why at least in the case of the BK-7m, it is so important to use a performance set, so that with a USB drive plugged in to the back of it, you can create an "entry" that shows you the name of your song and mates it with the exact chosen rhythm pattern, speed, starting and ending sequences and so on, so, basically you never need to do that process again unless you wished to make any changes.

This is definitely where if I had more time (that sorry old excuse of mine again), I'd like to do more listening and expanding, adding more presets, and thus more variety to my repertoire. Honestly I am already spreading myself thin with 8-10 hours of work per day and 30-60 minutes on the Free Bass studies, but perhaps I should take at least some time and work on this too, it is, after all, supposed to be about the fun of it, and it really is hard to beat just picking up the 8X and BK and moving from song to song quickly and easily... once you have done the process once earlier.

 

[Valski]

One of the reasons that I don't use the BK more than I do is because of this very same reason... to spend 15-60 minutes per song sorting through the patterns/rhythms is daunting, but in all fairness, I did that very same thing with all the other arrangers that I have every used.

No matter what the name, at least initially, it never clearly tells you what that pattern is... until you hear it and decide whether it is a good fit with the song you have in mind... so that is why at least in the case of the BK-7m, it is so important to use a performance set, so that with a USB drive plugged in to the back of it, you can create an "entry" that shows you the name of your song and mates it with the exact chosen rhythm pattern, speed, starting and ending sequences and so on, so, basically you never need to do that process again unless you wished to make any changes.

This is definitely where if I had more time (that sorry old excuse of mine again), I'd like to do more listening and expanding, adding more presets, and thus more variety to my repertoire. Honestly I am already spreading myself thin with 8-10 hours of work per day and 30-60 minutes on the Free Bass studies, but perhaps I should take at least some time and work on this too, it is, after all, supposed to be about the fun of it, and it really is hard to beat just picking up the 8X and BK and moving from song to song quickly and easily... once you have done the process once earlier.

As someone who sometimes skims through large technical user guides I was hoping that I had missed some small piece of information and that there was a more logical way to approach finding the best backing sounds. I too much prefer picking up my FR8X and just playing but having resolved to use the BK7M more am a little frustrated with my progress. I have saved some of my songs in a performance list but still have a long way to go.

When the pandemic started I imagined that there would be so much more time to master the Bk7m and play my accordion more. It's gives me a sense of accomplishment to report that I've managed to almost double my playing time, but was also hoping to master the module. This discussion makes me feel better about my technical skills and had hoped that perhaps some of the professional musicians among us might have some secrets to share.

 

[Giovanni]

Hello Valski there is a site dedicated to to Bk-7m module ,,,,,,,,,,,,https://groups.io/g/BK-7M/topics

good luck ......................the advice you have been given by other members is correct .................When you find a style that you like and it seems to fit a certain tune .......Always remember to name the tune for example "in the mood " and all the registration changes etc and SAVE IT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
to the USB stick you will soon build up a useful songs list ...............it's really the only way, you have to put in the work and save save Save !!
I've used many modules and yes i did own a Bk7-m .........................a long time ago

 

[Valski]

Hello Valski there is a site dedicated to to Bk-7m module ,,,,,,,,,,,,https://groups.io/g/BK-7M/topics

good luck ......................the advice you have been given by other members is correct .................When you find a style that you like and it seems to fit a certain tune .......Always remember to name the tune for example "in the mood " and all the registration changes etc and SAVE IT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
to the USB stick you will soon build up a useful songs list ...............it's really the only way, you have to put in the work and save save Save !!
I've used many modules and yes i did own a Bk7-m .........................a long time ago

Thanks Giovanni, I checked out the Bk7m forum and it pales in comparison to this forum. I guess that this makes sense for a discontinued product. I did see a person in the UK selling two BK-7m that were essentially purchased for some sort of project then never used. This was posted in the spring.

 

[jimgansett]

I don't know if any of these two documents help, I remember downloading them a long time ago, can't vouch if they are accurate or not but I will upload them and if anyone wants to check them out, fine. I haven't used the BK in a very long time