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What are Events?
Events are the individual MIDI "actions" that make up a song. They include notes, controller changes, pitch-wheel movements, lyrics, etc. You can open the Events View by using the View menu, or by using the Ctrl+2 keyboard shortcut:
Only the events from tracks which are selected in the Track View are displayed in the Events View. Like the Track View, the Event View works like a spreadsheet--you may click on any cell, and then use the arrow keys to move the cursor. To change a value, just begin typing. Click on a rectangle in the first column to "select" an event. Hold down the Shift key to select a range of events, or hold down the Control key to select or unselect individual events:
When selected, the rectangles in the first column change to reflect each event's track color. In the Event View, use the Insert key to add a new event, or select one of more events and use the Edit/Properties command (Alt+Enter shortcut) to see this window:
Double-clicking an event also works to open its event properties window.
What are the properties of a note?
For a note, you may set the pitch (either by entering the note name or a number 0-127), the velocity (0-127), and the position. The duration is shown as a number of ticks if it is less than the measure's meter (quarter note, eighth note, etc), otherwise is is shown in B:T format, when B is the number of beats and T is the number of ticks. When entering a duration, you may enter a whole number of ticks, a number in B:T format, or a number of beats in decimal format (for example, 0.5 for half a beat, and 1.25 for a beat and a quarter). For 1 beat, enter either "1:0" or "1.0" (entering just "1" will give you 1 tick).
What other MIDI event types are there?
Available event types are Note, Aftertouch, Controller, Patch Change, Channel Pressure, Pitch Wheel, System Exclusive, Meta, RPN, and NRPN. A Note event has a note number, a velocity, and a duration. Aftertouch events are produced by keyboards which sense the amount of pressure applied to individual keys while you are holding them down. Controller events include such things as Expression and Brightness. Patch Change events cause the track to change to a new instrument (although you should allow MIDI Maestro to do this automatically by using a separate track for each Patch). Channel Pressure events are similar to Aftertouch events, but they affect the entire channel, not individual keys. Pitch Wheel events are usually generated by using a keyboard's "Pitch Bend Wheel" while recording. Pitch values range from -8192 to 8191, where 0 is "normal pitch." System Exclusive events are blocks of information that are transferred to and from a keyboard, often containing keyboard setup information. Meta events include a variety of miscellaneous text messages. RPN (Registered Parameter Number) events include tuning, fine tuning, and pitch bend range specification. Fine tuning and pitch bend range may be specified on the Track Properties - Advanced window. NRPN (Non-Registered Parameter Number) events are specific to the synthesizer that you are using. They offer a way to expand the the number of available controllers to include those specific to the synthesizer.
How do I insert a SysEx (System Exclusive) event?
Here's an example of a System Exclusive Event in the Event Properties window:
The Value window expands to allow a large input. If you enter the SysEx data manually, you must use "hex" digits ranging from 00 to 7F. The easier way is to have your synthesizer "upload" the data. Just initiate transfer on your keyboard (see your keyboard's documentation). MIDI Maestro will automatically populate the Value window. |
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