Sonar features request

[Cobus Prinsloo]

Hi, two requests, please:

1. (Pic 1): Can Sonar automatically generate a chord name corresponding to the chords played in the left hand, instead of going through the list of hundreds of different chord names? It will be especially helpful for guys like me who can barely read music notation.

2. (Pic 2) Please -- add the option to display horizontal grid lines in the Velocities section.

[57Gregy]

On 3/21/2025 at 2:42 AM, Cobus Prinsloo said:

1. (Pic 1): Can Sonar automatically generate a chord name corresponding to the chords played in the left hand, instead of going through the list of hundreds of different chord names? It will be especially helpful for guys like me who can barely read music notation.

A perennial request. 
Can anyone who has Sonar tell me what the "chord track" is/does and why we need it? I have yet to invest in Sonar.

[Cobus Prinsloo]

7 hours ago, 57Gregy said:

Can anyone who has Sonar tell me what the "chord track" is/does and why we need it? I have yet to invest in Sonar.

It can be beneficial for a band, say, for the guitarist.

[msmcleod]

9 hours ago, 57Gregy said:

A perennial request. 
Can anyone who has Sonar tell me what the "chord track" is/does and why we need it? I have yet to invest in Sonar.

A chord track does two things essentially:

1. Detects the chords of existing material, showing the chords in a "project track" (as Cakewalk would call it) at the top.
2. Allows you to change those chords, which will automatically change those chords to the new ones in real-time.  Some DAW's will even suggest alternative chords for you.

So for example your recorded performance could be C, Am, F,  G.   You could change those chords in the chord track to Am, C,  Dm,  E and your performance would be  played using the new chords.

IIRC,  Cubase will only alter MIDI tracks; Studio One does both MIDI and Audio.

It's something that has been discussed for Sonar, but although some research has been done, nothing definite has been scheduled.

Why would you need it?

Songs with the same chords repeating can sound somewhat boring.  Even using the same theme over a slight difference in chords the second time around can make your song sound more interesting, and can lead to different ideas.

Speaking personally, despite playing guitar for over 40 years, I'd still not call myself a guitarist.  It takes a good bit of time to learn a part to play it well enough to record (although this process is still much quicker than using a Guitar VST!).   With a chord track, I could try out different variations quickly - then spend the time learning the one I like best to perfection.

[GodinLG]

Yes, having a Chord Track would be useful.. Lots of other DAWs already have a Chord Track .. I've been using Cakewalk for many years, but starting to feel it's falling being other DAWs in terms of functionality .. Hopefully it will catch up ..

[57Gregy]

On 3/23/2025 at 4:00 AM, msmcleod said:

A chord track does two things essentially:

1. Detects the chords of existing material, showing the chords in a "project track" (as Cakewalk would call it) at the top.
2. Allows you to change those chords, which will automatically change those chords to the new ones in real-time.  Some DAW's will even suggest alternative chords for you.

So for example your recorded performance could be C, Am, F,  G.   You could change those chords in the chord track to Am, C,  Dm,  E and your performance would be  played using the new chords.

IIRC,  Cubase will only alter MIDI tracks; Studio One does both MIDI and Audio.

It's something that has been discussed for Sonar, but although some research has been done, nothing definite has been scheduled.

Why would you need it?

Songs with the same chords repeating can sound somewhat boring.  Even using the same theme over a slight difference in chords the second time around can make your song sound more interesting, and can lead to different ideas.

Speaking personally, despite playing guitar for over 40 years, I'd still not call myself a guitarist.  It takes a good bit of time to learn a part to play it well enough to record (although this process is still much quicker than using a Guitar VST!).   With a chord track, I could try out different variations quickly - then spend the time learning the one I like best to perfection.

My apologies. I mistakenly thought Cakewalk Sonar already had a chord track feature. Thanks for the explanation, though.