I think what you need is MIDI player for DOS, although I don't know where can you find MT-32 specific MIDI songs you want. Still, GM music generally sounds better on MT-32 than on Sound Blaster FM IMO.

Also, among SB Pro utilities there is a neat command line application named MUSIC.EXE, which resides in SBPRO\SBSIM directory. For example, if you want to play a MIDI file named ABBA.MID which resides in C:\MIDI directory, then you just need to type this:

C:\SBPRO\SBSIM\MUSIC.EXE /PLAY:C:\MIDI\ABBA.MID

If you want to play more than one songs, I think you can make the following .BAT file:

C:\SBPRO\SBSIM\MUSIC.EXE /PLAY:C:\MIDI\ABBA.MID /WAIT:0
C:\SBPRO\SBSIM\MUSIC.EXE /PLAY:C:\MIDI\PIANO.MID /WAIT:0
C:\SBPRO\SBSIM\MUSIC.EXE /PLAY:C:\MIDI\MINUET.MID /WAIT:0
C:\SBPRO\SBSIM\MUSIC.EXE /PLAY:C:\MIDI\JAZZ.MID /WAIT:0

The /WAIT:0 parameter tells the application to return after the music is complete.

The SB Pro manual says it only works with .CMF music, but I swear I was able to play .MID music in the background while writing my highschool term paper with Chi Writer back then.

Prior to running MUSIC.EXE, you would need to run SBMIDI.EXE instead of SBFMDRV.COM to play .MID music (instead of .CMF music). However, I don't know if SBMIDI support external MIDI device instead of Sound Blaster's own FM synthesizer. Anyone?

I don't have those files anymore, though. Maybe you should try Malik, it seems he has the largest collection of Sound Blaster drivers and files. Good luck!

Waidda minute.

Apparently SBMIDI can use external MIDI module instead of Sound Blaster's own FM synthesizer. This is from a page named "Power Worm manual" (whatever the game is).

-I have a wavetable/MPU401 device and I get synthesizer/no music.
Run SBMIDI /3

So, apparently, SBMIDI /3 tells the driver to use external MPU401 device to play MIDI music. My knowledge regarding SBMIDI is rather vague though. Weird. The SB Pro manual mentions about SBFMDRV.COM, but it doesn't mention about SBMIDI.EXE at all - not even in the PLAYMIDI section. Yet, the file SBMIDI does exist. I discovered its use through experimentation, yet I didn't have external MIDI device at that time, so I was never be able to discover whether it works with external MIDI device such as Roland MT-32.

Good luck and have a nice holiday!

Update: d'oh! I didn't read Malik's thread before posting here. Apparently he has uploaded Sound Blaster drivers and files to Vogons Drivers, here. I think you can find MUSIC.EXE and SBMIDI.EXE in Sound Blaster Pro installation disks.

So i can better use a Yamaha DB60XG or a roland MPU board instead?? So it should hard to get it worked on a MT-32 synth?

I neither have nor had a XT machine. However, I think this (complicated enough) scheme should work:

1) find yourself a MIDI track with christmas music
2) find a MIDI file containing SYSEX messages to initialize MT-32 into General MIDI mode. I attached one that I previously found somewhere here at vogons.
3) download AIL version 2 - you'll need the real-mode drivers (*.adv), MIDIFORM and XPLAY
4) use MIDIFORM tool to convert your christmas MID to XMI
5) xplay.exe ini-gm.xmi mt32mpu.adv
6) xplay.exe xmas.xmi mt32mpu.adv

Also, I've found these funny videos: 1988 and 1992. If you find that 'Sierra Online Christmas cards', you won't need any screwing around, just have a beautiful EGA and VGA Christmas shows accompanied with MT-32 music.

Here, I found those Sierra christmas demos:

they're at the bottom of page

AGI-XMAS (1986) supports only PC Speaker.
SCI-CARD (1988) supports Adlib, MT-32, IMFC and PC Speaker.

1990 cards (EGA and VGA) support Adlib, Game Blaster, MT-32, MT-32 with CMS Soundblaster (how on earth are they combined?), and PC Speaker.

1992 card (VGA only) supports Adlib, PAS, MT-32, General MIDI and PC Speaker. It also provides digital speech using Sound Blaster, PAS, Thunderboard or DSS.

thanks for the links, will be fun to run them on xmas 😁

Very thanks for the help bristlehog and the time for searching this information.. I like the sierra online christmas card.. But its only a little bit limited on songs.. I guess its `only` five songs.. If i hear those all of the time then it would getting boring..

But i was more looking like a player so i can list those songs and plays them automatic so i have to do nothing.. And its more for having background tunes in the living room..

If you need something like playlist, I have little to offer. Still there's a possibility to do it, provided that XPLAY works on your XT at all. The trick is that XPLAY invokes another command.com instance after starting XMIDI playback, so you can't make yourself a .BAT file and live with it as an improvised playlist. However, AIL 2.0 comes with C source code:

1   AIL_start_sequence(hdriver,hseq);
2
3   strcpy((char far *) 0x000004f0,"XPLAY");
4
5   printf("Launching DOS shell.  Type 'EXIT' to stop playback ");
6   printf("and exit XPLAY.");
7   spawnlp(P_WAIT,"command.com",NULL);
8
9   //
10   // Shut down API and all installed drivers; write XMIDI filename 
11   // to any front-panel displays
12   //
13
14   strcpy((char far *) 0x000004f0,"        ");
15   printf("XPLAY stopped.\n");
16   AIL_shutdown(argv[1]);

You might modify XPLAY source to get rid of command.com invocation, and play until any key is pressed or automatically exit upon playback end. Should be something like that:

1  AIL_start_sequence(hdriver,hseq);
2
3  strcpy((char far *) 0x000004f0,"XPLAY");
4  printf("Press any key to stop playback.\n");
5
6  while((AIL_sequence_status(hdriver, hseq) == SEQ_PLAYING) && (!kbhit())) 
7  {
8  }
9
10  strcpy((char far *) 0x000004f0,"        ");
11  AIL_shutdown(argv[1]);

It's not MT-32 but it's definitely both retro and christmasy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MUffsaGWsg

There should be an IBM version somewhere, according to the Computer Chronicles episode it was featured on (1985 episode 4).

Ok, here I modified XPLAY to get rid of command.com spawning (now you can make an improvised playlist of a .BAT file). I also removed extra console output. Hope it works on your XT.

If you hook up a GM device, you may still run 'xplay blah.xmi mt32mpu.adv', it will work normally (provided that your XMI is GM-compatible). For a MT-32 you need either MT-32 compatible XMI or init your MT-32 into a GM mode as I described earlier.

Now, concerning MUSIC.EXE utility that Kreshna mentioned. Here are the SB Pro drivers. You indeed can use MUSIC.EXE to play GM music through external synthesizer. However, I can think of no way to make .BAT playlist since music is played in background mode by resident driver SBSIM.COM, while MUSIC.EXE itself terminates instantly after starting the playback.

Oops! I forgot about clearing keyboard input buffer at startup. Without that any key pressed stops not only current XPLAY instance, but also subsequent XPLAY instances run from .BAT file.

Attached is the fixed version.

The bad news are that XPLAY is unsuitable to play GM files on a MT-32 as it is. It seems that MT-32 gets reinitialized to normal mode each time XPLAY is run.

The yet other good news are that there are two good MIDI players found at queststudios. Check out PlayMid (simple) and GSPlay (powerful with tons of settings). Also get yourself a MT2GM pack, you'll need MTGM.MID from there to turn on GM mode (of a MT-32) if you want.

I am not sure about PlayMid, but GSPlay claims XT support (you have to edit its settings file for it).

Since MT-32 is not adapted well enough to GM music, even if you switch it into a GM-alike mode, you might just hook a GM device and use a GM driver.

My suggestion would be to play GM Christmas music through a SC-7/55/88 instead. I am not aware of MIDI files written for MT-32 really. I could be wrong of course. 😁

Which things do i need when i want to use a roland CM-300?

CM-300 is a GM device, pretty similar to SC-55. You simply get yourself some MIDIs and play them, be it with GSPlay, or PlayMid, or even MIDIFORM/XPLAY/GENMIDI.ADV. Whatever does it for your XT.

So then i dont have the convert the midi files to rolands midi standard?

No, you don't.

I think iam not going further on this, so no music on christmas sadly.. I have enough to do with my retro computer to repair and build them.. So i dont have no to also check how it needs to function.. I will do later if i have more time left, and almost every system is finished.