Keyboard Patch Program?

So I'm playing Synthesizer for a production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. I have to program the sounds for the show, and I can't find a program that will allow me to program the patches ahead of time, and cycle through them during the performance. I'm hoping to find a software or windows app that will allow me to do such. My show doesn't have the budget to get the rental company's program, and I need to get something that is supported on a PC. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.

trpguyy has it right. Forte is the way to go for Windows. It's more work than renting the MTI package, but you have a lot more customization.

I will say I've had very good results renting the Keyboard Patch Solutions from MTI in the past. They do a nice job on shows that have very weird sound descriptions in the books. I'm talking things like Seussical or Aida where there's no rhyme and reason beyond the original MD's own MIDI setup. You can pretty easily program your own setup for ...Spelling Bee and get the right sounds for the show.

Good luck. Make sure you have enough time to practice and adjust for any delay. I've been stuck using a pretty beat up computer before and having to anticipate the beat for fast runs before to be in time with the rest of the orchestra. It's not fun. Make sure you exceed the suggested requirements for the Forte software and any external hardware you're using to run the sound through.

Also make sure you practice with whatever keys you program to advance through the effects. It's no fun jumping cues during a performance and scrambling through the setlist on the computer to go back if you reach for the wrong key. Make sure you program to keys you are not otherwise using for the performance.

This also leads us to the discussion of compensation. In the professional world, keyboard programming is the job of at least one person. In regional/stock/educational situations, that person is often the keyboard player, but s/he should be compensated for the (substantial) time it takes to program the book.

Right now it seems that you'll purchasing the software and VST libraries out of pocket, potentially purchasing an audio interface and additional pedals (if you don't already have them), and then volunteering your time to program it all. If you're fine doing this and see it as an investment in your own future, then that's awesome. But if you're doing it just to save the producers a couple bucks, it might actually be cheaper for them to rent the keyboard patch solutions from MTI.

If you're on Facebook, there's a group called Theatre Music Directors - the folks there will be able to help out a lot with guidance both on the keyboard/programming aspect of this as well as the "business" side.

Everything that has been said is true (and I also didn't realize how many MDs/keyboardists there were on this board!), but I'll also add that Spelling Bee is a MONSTER of a keyboard book, in terms of programming. If you're not familiar with Mainstage or Forte, it could take you DAYS of programming, possibly even weeks. And yes, you'll definitely need a patch change pedal, so make sure the keyboard you're using has enough input jacks for that.

Without knowing more specifics it's hard to give you advice (what rig you'll be playing on, what the budget/professional level of this production is, etc.), but the bottom line is that this will be a tough show for you to dive into keyboard programming on. I recommend seeing if the theatre will spring for the Keyboard Patch Solutions that trentsketch mentioned. Then after this show closes you can learn Mainstage or Forte on your own time and be ready for the next one!