Software idea, MIDI recorder event trigger playback thing

[zlemflolia]

Have an idea for a piece of software I want to create but if it already exists in some capacity I might not bother. Forgive me for my ignorance on the topic if this thing already exists somewhere else obvious

 

Software would be sort of a MIDI recording workstation:

 

-Read live MIDI events from a MIDI controller plugged into computer via USB or whatever.

-Also read "live" MIDI events from a MIDI file (I assume MIDI files just contain a list of MIDI events and timing information?)

 

-Be able to set up two type of "listeners":

 

Listener type 1) MIDI stream recorder

 

Records input MIDI events like described above and store them in an internal data format which can be serialized to a file for saving it. It only records the inputs and saves them if you want, it doesn't actually do anything musically in response to them, but it can also:

-Filter events to ignore irrelevant ones and for instance only keep key press and release events

-Quantize event timings to snap them into place at desired granularity

 

Listener type 2) MIDI stream interpreter

 

Takes an input "MIDI stream" (this is opaquely either a MIDI file being fed into it or realtime MIDI events off a controller) and interprets it. This means for each type of MIDI event maybe a particular note or pad on a drum pad thing, it does something in response. This something is either:

-Playing a sample stored on computer

-Sending a "MIDI stream" to the MIDI input of an attached controller/synth, or to another Sequence interpreter listener

 

You can have tracks of MIDI streams where you visually see the MIDI events and can move them in time by dragging them or click on them to change a parameter. Can choose an output device for each stream, with an output device being a MIDI stream interpreter's output routed to a hardware MIDI device attached to computer, or even a MIDI stream interpreter routed to another MIDI stream interpreter, or multiple, where the results of pressing one key on your hardware may result in many key presses and parameter changes on another (and this can be recorded too instead of sent directly to another hardware device in realtime so you can record a sequence from hardware, save it, and go back and route the output back to the same hardware)

 

Can also create MIDI tracks on the computer itself for instance a string of MIDI events making a sin wave oscillating slowly to sort of simulate an LFO and lock this LFO onto another MIDI parameter like cutoff to sort of simulate an LFO for hardware that lacks a large quantity of them

 

And it's all organized in this way sort of done recursively so an input MIDI sequence read from a hardware device can trigger other MIDI sequences which are sent to another hardware device, and it can be recorded and played back later

 

And just building up this I think you could create arbitrarily complex arrangements of effects happening as a result of each other. Could even create other MIDI stream generators maybe random ones as opposed to the LFO described above and create generative combinations of MIDI stream intrepreters etc.

 

Does this exist because it's what I want and if it doesn't I'll make it

[mcbpete]

I think you've just described a sequencer!

[Silent Member]

Yeah, sounds like any modern DAW to me.

[sweepstakes]

The trigger / listener idea is cool. I'm allergic to MIDI files though.

 

Have you played with any modular or scriptable MIDI environments? I've had some good times with this in Renoise (with the Lua interpreter) and Max.

[Lucas]

what about Reaper? it has a great MIDI implementation. Not sure it has everything you described but I assume it does

[mcbpete]

The tech is nearly there MGF (ffwd to 3m20) -

 

[sweepstakes]

what about Reaper? it has a great MIDI implementation. Not sure it has everything you described but I assume it does

Doing real time MIDI processing in their JS language was rotten last time I tried it. Flaky timing and dropped messages all over the place. And the language itself is awkward and anachronistic.

[zlemflolia]

thx i guess ill abandon the idea and play with daws. might still consider tho they dont meet my intents which is largely based around the interpreter thing branching out in responses recursively, which yeah seem like they can be probably emulated by renoise if theres that lua interpreter mentioned

 

thx

[TubularCorporation]

PD, Max/MSP and Usine Hollyhock seem like the most likely candidates for what I think is being described here.

[Hodorsbn]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSwqnR327fk

(sorry)

[zlemflolia]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSwqnR327fk

(sorry)

 

holy lol

[sweepstakes]

PD, Max/MSP and Usine Hollyhock seem like the most likely candidates for what I think is being described here.

Usine is another good one, I got much better performance out of it. Another weird language though, Pascal iirc.

[TubularCorporation]

I think you could do a lot of MIDI processing in Usine without actually coding though. I haven't really given it nearly enough attention, right after I got it I went almost completely over to hardware.

[Guest]

I NEEED THE CINCO MIDI ORGANIZER DEVICE OMG

[Lucas]

 

what about Reaper? it has a great MIDI implementation. Not sure it has everything you described but I assume it does

Doing real time MIDI processing in their JS language was rotten last time I tried it. Flaky timing and dropped messages all over the place. And the language itself is awkward and anachronistic.

 

 

ok, didn't know that. Always thought Reaper is very good for MIDI but I just do the classic stuff you would do with a MIDI sequencer there.

[TubularCorporation]

I NEEED THE CINCO MIDI ORGANIZER DEVICE OMG

 

I've actually got an old KVM switch box lying around that has the exact same enclosure (keeping it because a 24-pole, 4 throw switch is expensive and some day I might need one), I wonder how much of a hassle it would be to stick an old aruino inside and make it into some kind of basic, standalone sysex librarian.