Asked and answered!
Re: cm-32l and lapc-1

TLDR; potentially depending on the game and the MPU-401 interface used to connect to the external module. LAPC-I and SCC-1(A) cards incorporate intelligent mode interfaces, just like the genuine MPU-401. The RAP-10 and pretty much all sound cards do not.

Games like Frederick Pohl's Gateway require a genuine Roland MPU-401 or compatible while Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis does not. What game are you having trouble with and what do you use to connect with your MT-32?

What is the situation in which the music for Frederick Pohl's Gateway fails to work when it should?

^ not having an "intelligent mode" MPU will make it produce an error and not play music at all.

Does it work correctly with the LAPC-I?

yes

Does the music work if you have a mt-32 connected to the PC via M-Audio Uno instead of Roland MPU-401?

nope, it needs an ISA MPU which supports intelligent mode, here is a great guide: http://nerdlypleasures.blogspot.gr/2010/03/tu … land-mt-32.html

These are all topics which are discussed in other threads. Great Hierophant's article is an excellent place to start. In fact, please browse his blog on general principle, as it's full of great information.

TL;DR: It works with DOSBox but not pure DOS as long as your MIDI adapter isn't costed down to the point where it's incompatible (as is often the case with many $10 eBay specials). Devices from M-Audio, Roland, Yamaha, and any other reliable audio manufacturer will work great.

There's a Pohl Gateway game? I've heard the book is decent, so a game sounds interesting. The MT32 is for background music, I presume, if it's interactive fiction?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MPU-401