This is a virtual instrument for creating and perfecting concert setlists. With the Running-order desk, you create a concert program simply by clicking on repertoire cards with your mouse (or typing in the repertoire directly from your computer keyboard if that’s faster). It manages things like tuning changes, how long each song is, and energy level. It also gives you audio cues for when to practice moving between songs.
The widget displays your songs in a row of cards on the left-hand side of the screen. The card for each song includes the song’s name, length, tempo, energy rating, and required tuning setup. Clicking on the card add the song to your set list. Or simply hit the keyboard number buttons (1-8) and relevant song will be added immediately. Cards that represent songs you have in your setlist will appear dimmed out so you don’t duplicate songs.
How to Use the Setlist Tool
After booking songs, they’ll show up in the Stage column on the right under Program. The circular grips with numbers on their left let you reorder these by dragging them into place. If you’re having trouble dragging items, just tap the Cue later or Cue earlier buttons that sits beside each song’s title to push it up or down within the list. The Return button will let you take any song out of the setlist at any time, returning it to the repertoire catalog.
It also features several tools within the widget that allow you to mold the performance as desired. For example, if you want to build up some more momentum early on, or use a recovery song in the middle and peak out at the end, then clicking the Shape a three-act night button will sort the songs into a balanced arc based off their energy level. This is handy if you have a bunch of songs but need some structure to start with.
Often there are cues needed by the stage crew or band when transitioning from one song to another. Enter these in the Handoff note text fields under every song. Then activate the Hum the key handoffs button to hear an audio cue of each song in the set to get a sense of the music flow and how the keys relate. You won’t have to play through the whole song.
A key to any live show is to know when it’s going to end. The widget figures out how long your set will run by summing up the length of each song plus twenty seconds for changeover time between songs. Want a twelve minute interval? Click the Stage a 12-minute interval button. This breaks up your songs at the point where they’re most likely to be lowest energy and adds the break time to your total duration. The interval button will toggle on and off so you can visualize the impact of the break on the overall timing.
How does this vary depending on the kind of venue? Pacing and length varies depending on each venue type. Choose between Intimate café, Seated theatre or Standing club from the Venue brief dropdown to see how long your setlist is different than the recommended range for that venue. It will highlight any tuning change required between one song to the next so you can plan for a capo adjustment or setup swap.
The bottom bar chart shows you the energy arc of the way your setlist sits now. For power users, there’s also keyboard shortcut support. To run the three-act shaping algorithm, press S. To listen to the full setlist’s key handoff cues, press K. To turn the twelve-minute interval on or off, press I. All of the sound cues will be quiet while working so that they’re not in the way, and can be made louder using the master volume slider up top.
The set list has clearly defined encores, too. Highlight the last song in your show by clicking the Circle final song as the encore button. This shows the production team and band that the main set is ending and they will be returning for an encore. Once you mark this, you’ll be able to rearrange/remove it just like any other song and the widget will move the marker accordingly.
To help you get started quickly, the widget will adjust itself based on your preference and screen size. The Fullscreen button lets you expand the interface to make more room to edit in detail. And the How to play button shows a help panel that walks through each of the keyboard, touch, and mouse input types in detail. Customize your view and refer to them when you need it.
To get started, book a handful of songs from their catalog of songs and observe the resulting energy and timing metrics. Build a balanced flow by experimenting with the shape tool. Fine-tune the order with the move buttons or a simple drag-and-drop function. Include handoff notes to help explain the transition to your bandmates. Make sure the musical progression flows naturaly with the key cue.
It is designed to be an easy and efficient setlist building tool regardless of experience level. It could of been better if it was more moddern. You should of checked the tunes first.