What Instruments would you use for like a basic snare or bass drum?
Depends. MIDI channel 10 is devoted to percussion, but the drum kits vary according to what sound card/synth/set of sound fonts you're using. On that channel, each note of the staff is a separate instrument, so you can create a test staff, assign it to Ch 10, and try various notes until you find a drum sound you like.
Hope this helps....
Bill
Yea, thanks that did work.
If you go to |File|Open Samples...| there is a NWC file called "Drumref" - this will give you lots of good info.
Also, as William said, each synth will have it's own set of samples and configurations, but generally if you select patch 0/1 (depending on whether your synth is 0 or 1 based (Grand Piano) in any synth setup, you will get the basic GM percussion set.
Additionally, IIRC patch 40/41 is a usually brush set, 32/33 is usually a jazz kit.
Of course, this is dependant on MIDI channel 10 being selected.
This site has a Roland table that is useful: http://www.voidaudio.net/percussion.html
Other useful tables:
http://www.ski.org/Rehab/DBGilden/JWilliams/appxC.html
http://www.youngcomposers.com/articles/Percussion-Staves-in-Finale#GM_Percussion_Patches
Select Trumpet for a bit of fun, like trains, helicopters and more. Try and have fun!