StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Discuss Lemur and share techniques.
frankfurter
Newbie
Posts: 17
Joined: 21 Nov 2014 02:47

StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by frankfurter »

is it possible to assign more than 1 note/pitch to the StepNote pitch expression? ala using only one StepNote to sequence the chord?

i'm using a vector to dynamically select my pitches.
i've tried something like "vector.x[0,3,7]"
but this changes the pitch to the next value in the vector every time a step passes that is turned on.
kind of like a broken c64 / gameboy chord/ arp. which is cool, but not what i'm after.

i also tried "vector.x[{0,3,7}]" but this only gives me the first note/position in the vector.

then i tried to use a script that will send out the other notes in my chord using the noteout command (note on) every time a step == 1 (step is turned on)
and a noteout command w/ velocity = 0, (note off), everytime a step == 0 (step is turned off)
w/ the root of my chord, assigned via the pitch expression box.

this sort of works, but is wonky w/ my pads that also play the chords (if the sequencer is running, the pads don't work very well, as the sequencer is constantly sending noteouts w/ velocity 0. and cutting off the pads.
if i take out the note off piece, i get a lot of hanging notes (obv).
and I lose note length functionality for my extra notes to boot.

would make it nice and easy to be able to assign all my notes to the pitch expression box, but i can't figure out how.

my next thought is to maybe try StepSwitch

thanks!
tmjorud
Newbie
Posts: 5
Joined: 12 Nov 2014 12:48

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by tmjorud »

Hi there.

I may be completely off here, but I'll give it a go. I havent tried the StepNote Object just yet, but I'm working on a template at the moment that triggers chords. What I've done is creating a separate method (script) for triggering chords. Something like this:

triggerChord(notes, velocity)

The Methods takes to parameters, a note vector which contains all the pitches in the chord, and the velocity value.

Then in the script I do a loop through the vector, playing the pitches that is stored in it, something like this:

decl i,size = sizeof(notes);

for(i = 0; i < size; i++) {
noteout(0,notes,velocity,1);
}

If you set the excecution to Manual, you can trigger this method evrytime you want to trigger a Chord anywhere in your template, just send a vector with pitches and a prefered velocity value. This should work.

Hope it helps

-
Terje
frankfurter
Newbie
Posts: 17
Joined: 21 Nov 2014 02:47

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by frankfurter »

hey Terje, thanks for the reply.

i tried something like that, where a script will trigger the noteout command for every pitch in my chord vector, every time the current step = 1.
i couldn't really get it to work super reliable enough tho. sometimes the chords were spit out weird or a note or two was missing. sometimes it worked great.
i think the tricky part is when i tried to add some note off logic & w/o it, i was getting a lot of hanging notes.
the note off stuff was causing me all sorts of problems & headaches.
frankfurter
Newbie
Posts: 17
Joined: 21 Nov 2014 02:47

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by frankfurter »

man i just figured this out! StepSwitch is more suitable because u can get at the .out parameter

no more crossing note outs
tmjorud
Newbie
Posts: 5
Joined: 12 Nov 2014 12:48

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by tmjorud »

Good stuff frankfurter! Happy to hear you solved it :)
frankfurter
Newbie
Posts: 17
Joined: 21 Nov 2014 02:47

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by frankfurter »

so i just wanted to update this thread.

that while i got it to work, the timing on the explicit note out messages firing off the stepswitch is pretty wonky. like a drunken sequencer.
def not as tight as the built in StepNote.

i read somewhere on here i think, that while timing on the new sequencer functions and all that stuff is improved and very tight (which i would totally agree w/) that any non built in messages fired off them still fall under the realm of lemur as a whole, so they are not affected by the improved tightness.

i think it would be really cool to add this as a built in feature w/ step note or something.
the ability to send more than 1 note via the pitch expression.
ndivuyo
Regular
Posts: 278
Joined: 23 May 2014 00:24

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by ndivuyo »

I quite agree, I turned to Max for my synced sequencer projects. Usually am doing something else together with m4l anyway though, but the rhythm sync is tight because it's done in max and not on the lemur itself.
frankfurter
Newbie
Posts: 17
Joined: 21 Nov 2014 02:47

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by frankfurter »

ah ok… dang, so i'm not the only one. was hoping someone would be like 0_______o

for now, i've gone in a different direction w/ my chord page. so its all good.

also on a step note related topic, legato seems to work really wonky for me? like it doesn't legato, it more like sputters out the notes. and barely plays any of the steps after the first one. doesn't string consecutive steps like i thought it should. gunna try a simple patch and see if it does the same thing

wassup w/ that tho?
ChiLam
Newbie
Posts: 42
Joined: 02 Dec 2014 18:51

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by ChiLam »

Does this mean you have abandoned chords from the StepNote objects?

Thats a shame - I was hoping someone would shine a light on this too!

I am using four parralell StepNotes together to achieve this but would be chuffed if it could be done with just one. I don't have any timing issues with it as it stands so I imagined it should be do-able.

Which direction have you gone with the chords?
frankfurter
Newbie
Posts: 17
Joined: 21 Nov 2014 02:47

Re: StepNote :: chords // sending multiple midi notes

Post by frankfurter »

yea at least for now. i couldn't get the notes to fire off tightly w/ step note or step switch.

i thought about using individual step notes for each note in the chord, but it would have gotten really messy where i was at in my patch, and kind of hard to edit on the fly i thought. i also have some other pages w/ sequencers that i could do this w/ so i didn't go that route.

instead i made a chord memory box kind of thing. where you can select from a box of different chord types, root, octave, and then save that chord to a pad.
save different chords to different pads, and u got a nice lil progression type thing. more live playing than sequencing.

ATM, i'm working on adding a drone switch, where the notes will play indefinitely until u either press the pad again or turn the drone off.

anyone have any insight to the legato being weird?? does it work for u?
Post Reply