​FluidSynth is a free and efficient SoundFont player for many platforms. We recommend it for Linux and MacOS.

Initial setup

1. Download JJazzLab-SoundFont.sf2 from the Musical Artefacts web site

2. Install a virtual midi port

   $ sudo modprobe snd-virmidi midi_devs=1

   ​⚠ Previous command will work for the current session only. If you want to permanently add the virtual midi device (jack users on Debian/Ubuntu/Mint), edit the /etc/modules file to add snd-virmidi, and create a file /etc/modprobe.d/snd-virmidi_options.conf with the content options snd-virmidi midi_devs=1.

   If you list the connected ports, you should see a new Virtual Raw Midi entry like below:

   $ aconnect -lo  
   client 14: 'Midi Through' [type=kernel]  
       0 'Midi Through Port-0'  
   client 20: 'Virtual Raw MIDI 1-0' [type=kernel,card=1]  
       0 'VirMIDI 1-0'

3. Install FluidSynth and QSynth, its graphical user interface (tested OK on Linux Mint, if problem please consult the FluidSynth documentation)

   $ sudo apt-get update -y            # Get latest packages info
   $ sudo apt-get install fluidsynth
   $ sudo apt-get install qsynth

4. Start QSynth

   qsynth &

   ​

5. Load the JJazzLab SoundFont and adjust FluidSynth settings

6. Connect the virtual port to FluidSynth You should see a new port, like in the example below:

   $ aconnect -lo
   client 14: 'Midi Through' [type=kernel]
       0 'Midi Through Port-0'
   client 20: 'Virtual Raw MIDI 1-0' [type=kernel,card=1]
       0 'VirMIDI 1-0     '
   client 128: 'FLUID Synth (Qsynth1)' [type=user,pid=3099]
       0 'Synth input port (Qsynth1:0)'

   Connect the Virtual Port to the entry of the FluidSynth:

   $ aconnect 20:0 128:0      # Values might be different on your system

   ​⚠ This connection needs to be restored each time the FluidSynth engine is restarted.

7. In JJazzLab go to Options/Midi and select the first virMIDI out device

8. Go to the output synth editor and apply the preset FluidSynth ​