{"id":15509,"date":"2014-03-17T16:33:14","date_gmt":"2014-03-17T20:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/noelborthwick.com\/cakewalk\/?p=15509"},"modified":"2014-03-17T16:33:14","modified_gmt":"2014-03-17T20:33:14","slug":"faq-midi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/noelborthwick.com\/cakewalk\/2014\/03\/17\/faq-midi\/","title":{"rendered":"First Time DAW Users: Frequently Asked Questions about MIDI"},"content":{"rendered":"

MIDI, or Musical Instrument Digital Interface<\/strong>, is a language by which computers, virtual instruments, and hardware samplers\/synthesizers can communicate. It’s a way to give instructions to music production software like SONAR X3<\/a> to play, control, and program your own tunes. Even touchscreen tablets have the ability to generate and accept MIDI information. MIDI is a great way to work with music and has powerful capabilities that appeal to users of all levels. There are a lot of unfamiliar terms and concepts in the MIDI world so let\u2019s take a look at a few questions that I typically hear from first time users.<\/p>\n

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1. What is MIDI, can I hear it?<\/h3>\n
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MIDI by itself is data and is inconceivable to the human ear. It is a universally accepted standard for communicating information about a musical performance. It encompasses both hardware and software components, and though it could be used for sending information about many other things, such as the control of lighting in a theater, or even to control your coffee maker, it was developed to transmit instructions about music. Like a musical score, on which notes and other symbols are placed, MIDI data carries instructions that allow MIDI capable instruments to produce sound.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Where did MIDI come from?<\/h3>\n

MIDI was born in the early 1980’s when electronic instrument makers, primarily in the US and Japan, recognized that their instruments must be able to talk to one another. After the details were worked out, manufacturers soon began to include electronic circuitry in their equipment that allowed them to understand MIDI. Before long, nearly every instrument manufacturer in the world had adopted the standard. There have been refinements and modifications to MIDI along the way but even the earliest MIDI instruments are still capable enough to be used today. MIDI has dramatically changed the way music is created, performed, and recorded.<\/p>\n

3. How Does MIDI Work?<\/h3>\n
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A MIDI transmission consists of a series of signals called bits. These represent binary digits that pass through a MIDI cable or virtual MIDI port. This data communicates with software programs on synthesizers, virtual instruments, computers, and digital audio workstations and when the data reaches it\u2019s destination the software interprets it as a series of instructions that usually result in the production of a sound.<\/p>\n

4. How do I create MIDI and program sequences?<\/h3>\n

There are ultimately two ways to create MIDI. The first involves performing your music on a controller that is connected to a computer running a virtual instrument (often within a DAW). This could be drums, keyboard, strings, or even sound effects. The DAW will record the data outputted from the controller much like it would capture audio from a guitar or microphone. After that you can edit and modify the data utilizing the tools found inside the DAW.<\/p>\n

The second involves manually entering data into various MIDI compatible views within a DAW. SONAR has a few different views that give users tons of options when working with MIDI.<\/p>\n

Track\/Main View<\/strong><\/p>\n

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This is probably the easiest and most basic method for constructing MIDI sequences. Users can record their performances into this view or drag other previously recorded information in from the Media Browser. Here you can cut and paste sections, loop sections, or comp together different takes of the same performance for one overall flawless take.<\/p>\n

Piano Roll View<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Piano Roll views generally display bars and beats across the top and a keyboard with associated notes along the left side. Using a cursor and a series of tools users can manually construct their MIDI sequences from the ground up and adjust several types of controllers and MIDI messages within one view. Here users can make major alterations to performances they\u2019ve made and quantize their out of time sequences. The Piano Roll View is probably one of the most used views these days for constructing sequences.<\/p>\n

Staff\/Notation View<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Some DAWs allow for MIDI sequences to open up within a notation editor. Translating this information to this kind of a view is powerful for songwriters, composers, and people that need their music printed for session players and conductors.<\/p>\n

Step Sequencer<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Step Sequencers are based off of sequencer modules that have existed in a hardware format for many years. Step Sequencers have cells that run from left to right. Like the Piano Roll View, each row of steps are associated with a single note of an assigned synth or drum machine. Typically these steps represent subdivisions of measures like 16th notes and 8th notes. The advantage is that there is less work involved in constructing a sequence in comparison to views like the Piano Roll View where nothing is loop based and there are way more options for editing.<\/p>\n

Matrix\/Loop Player<\/strong><\/p>\n

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DAWs like SONAR X3 have other useful MIDI tools to construct performances on the fly. The Matrix View allows users to drag and drop MIDI loops into cells that are assigned to different instruments. In addition, users can map the cells to MIDI controls simply by right clicking and \u201clearning\u201d the cell to a MIDI controller key.<\/p>\n

5. What\u2019s the difference between a MIDI Controller, Hardware Synthesizer, and a Virtual Instrument?<\/h3>\n

MIDI is a lightweight protocol that can be used in just about any paradigm these days. The problem is that things can become confusing if you\u2019re not hip to the nomenclature used in today\u2019s pro audio websites and magazines. Some websites outline specifications well, but others can be vague. Here are some differences:<\/p>\n