Separate Chord Notes to Channels (note: not possible (yet) )

normen · March 2, 2020, 2:15pm

Heres a MIDI machine I created that separates the notes of chords to MIDI channels so that separate pitch bend signals for every string are possible.

gist.github.com

https://gist.github.com/normen/959d09cdd0e1d6586ad8aff9a21ce8af

Split Notes To Channels.lua

channels = {} -- save pitch per channel#
channelNo = {} -- save channel# per pitch

function GetFreeChannel()
    for i = 1, 16 do if channels[i] == nil then return i end end
    Print("Error: ran out of channels")
    return 1
end

function OnNote(channel, pitch, velocity)

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Paul · March 2, 2020, 2:20pm

MG will switch off pitchbends when you play more notes at a time. So the script will not actually be very usefull out of the box. Nice script though! good example for LUA coding for others.
We plan on supporting MPE, which is the new standard for having multibends and more expressive freedom: for now it is only mono bends.

normen · March 2, 2020, 2:32pm

Mh, darn it, I just did this with no real multichannel synth at hand, the midi log data seemed to suggest that the bends were still assigned per channel but yeah, there was some funny-ness.

Yeah, MPE… “Coming Soon” My old Ensoniq SQ-1 synth solved the problem this way, it has a special “multi-channel” mode for the “classic” Guitar-To-MIDI systems which all split the separate strings over multiple channels. I thought I could re-create my old Axon-based setup this way

Paul · March 2, 2020, 2:39pm

MPE is actually just a refined reissue of good old MIDI mode 4 (omni off, mono), which didn’t catch on, because guitarsynth and multibend/multiaftertouch controllers weren’t interesting commercially.
ROLI (Seaboard) helped establish MPE by acquiring JUCE, the mulitplatform code library for audio. So the rollout of MPE options is now facilitated on the coding side of things, and the Seaboard creates a multibend market on the keyboard side.

normen · March 2, 2020, 2:59pm

Yeah, what I mean is that the software / hardware still has to implement it. I don’t worry too much about the current DAWs but some old synth plugins and especially hardware will probably never support it. As you said, it’s basically been around for ages.

Paul · March 2, 2020, 3:17pm

true… now the balance has shifted, because multitouch ipads are perfect for creating multibends, and they are affordable enough for most musicians.
The Ifretless guitar & bass multitouch apps for ios are excellent examples.
In the older days, practically nobody had a multibend capable controller device, but now nearly everyone has one. This ofcourse opens up a new market.