..Kar-A-O-KAY on your computer

An Easy and Cost Effective Way to Make a Fool of Yourself!

Karaoke originated in Japan, and the term means "empty orchestra" in Japanese. Today, almost everybody knows that karaoke refers to a system of playing music and displaying lyrics, so that anyone can become a singer.
You can spend a lot of money on a special karaoke system, but you don't have to.

Any computer can play MIDI files and can also play MIDI karaoke files, with the lyrics displayed on the screen as the music plays.

Most MIDI Karaoke files end with .kar, and in order to play them properly you will need a special player. Mac owners can use QuickTime, and Windows karaoke players can be downloaded from the Net. Most are free!

One of the best is the vanBasco Karaoke Player, available from vanBasco Software, which plays both MIDI and .kar files. It correctly interprets MIDI controller messages, so karaoke files sound better. This program used to be shareware but is now completely free! The vanBasco site also offers a karaoke song search engine so you can find some tunes to play.

Another free player is available from WinKaraoke. The WinKaraoke player features a "bouncing ball" which follows the lyrics. Also available on this site is the WinKaraoke Creator which enables you to take a regular MIDI file and add lyrics to make a karaoke file. Both the WinKaraoke Player and WinKaraoke Creator are free, but the author requests you send him a postcard from where you live. He calls the software "postcard-ware."

Once you have a player you will want to find some .kar files to play on it. FREEKaraoke.com is a great place to start and offers 1,780 pop and rock songs, categorized by artist. Another good site is Computer Karaoke Homepage, with a wide selection of karaoke singles and albums.

If you still want to know more about karaoke, MidiKaraoke.com can help. This is a non-profit educational resource covering all aspects of MIDI karaoke, including how to make .kar files. It includes links to lyrics archives and karaoke players for the non-Windows crowd.

Another great resource is the Computer Karaoke Homepage. Its list of frequently asked questions provides useful advice on finding, playing and creating karaoke files. It offers quick links to karaoke player software and song downloads, though some of the information is a little out of date.

So, now you know what to do for your next party. Have fun singing!......Next Page