![]() ![]() The other important aspect is something called grid snap or snap-to-grid (in Cubase, it’s simply called Snap). It’s crucial when you’re editing to see where, say, each quarter-note or eighth-note falls in a measure. Depending on how you set it, you’ll see each measure subdivided by that setting. How you set the grid depends on the rhythmic content of the track. For eighth notes, you’d get eight equal sections, and so forth. If you set the grid for, say, quarter notes, each measure in the editor will be split into four equal sections. It’s particularly useful on music that was recorded in time with your DAW’s click track or metronome. The grid provides the rhythmic contours of your song. Understanding the grid is critical for successful MIDI editing - and audio editing, for that matter. Still, they’re handy if you prefer working in notation, and you can easily switch back and forth between a score editor and other MIDI editors. Powerful as they are, score editing windows are not as fully featured as dedicated notation programs such as Steinberg Dorico. To do this in Cubase, use the Score Editor: The Cubase Score Editor. In a lot of DAWs, you can also edit MIDI in standard music notation. Drum editors are most valuable when working with quantized parts, such as those commonly found in genres like EDM. You can even change the grid value for each drum independently. With the grid snap on (more on this in the next section), it’s easy to manually enter drum notes or move notes from one drum or cymbal to another, and they’ll all be on the grid. When fully quantized (see the “Timing It Right” section below), they also sit on the grid lines instead of between them, like they do in the Key Editor. It’s not all that different from the Key Editor, except that the notes are depicted as diamond-shapes and, since they represent drum hits, are all one length. In Cubase, it’s called, not surprisingly, the Drum Editor. Many DAWs also provide a specialized editor interface for MIDI drum parts. The notes in the list are shown as slashes going from left to right as time elapses, and top to bottom with each successive note: The Cubase List Editor. You can also select notes and events directly from the event list.Ĭubase’s List Editor is unusual in that it also provides a graphic section. In many DAWs (including Cubase), if you select an event in any other MIDI editor (such as a piano roll), you’ll also find it highlighted in the event list, where you can input changes numerically to any of the fields. This lets you edit events precisely, using numeric values. (In Cubase, it’s referred to as the List Editor.) The basic idea is to display a list of every MIDI event, including note-ons and note-offs, as well as Velocity and controller events such as Pitch Bend or Modulation. Other ViewsĪnother type of MIDI editor offered by many DAWs is called an event list. Just select the note or notes you want to transpose and drag them up or down until they’re at the desired pitch. Transposing MIDI notes is simple in a piano roll editor too. Additionally, you can also drag on one end of a note to lengthen or shorten its duration. In this editor, you can use standard cut, copy and paste operations to manipulate notes, or you can click on a note (or notes) and drag it to another location or another pitch. Elapsed time (usually expressed in bars and beats) is shown on the horizontal axis, while note pitches are shown on the vertical axis, with the duration of notes corresponding to their length. ![]() The concept is relatively simple: MIDI notes and data are displayed on a grid, somewhat reminiscent of a old-fashioned player piano roll, hence the name. The most commonly used and versatile MIDI editor is known as the piano roll (in Steinberg Cubase, it’s called the Key Editor). In this article, we’ll look at some of the most common ones, and show you how to use them. Every DAW gives you plenty of options for viewing, changing and perfecting your MIDI tracks. In addition to their sonic flexibility, MIDI recordings are freely editable. Because MIDI recordings consist only of data that tells your DAW which note to play and when (along with other performance-related information), you can assign any MIDI track to any virtual instrument in your DAW, or to a connected MIDI synthesizer or drum machine. Among other things, it gives you the ability to record performances into your DAW from a connected MIDI keyboard or other “controller” instrument. ![]() MIDI (short for “Musical Instrument Digital Interface”) is a digital “language” that allows electronic instruments to control each other and communicate with computers. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |