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Midi arpeggiator triggered by a single note

Hallo! I would like to find an arpeggiator which (from a given scale) arpeggiates a chord by just receiving a single midi note.

For example:
In D minor scale, you play note F and it plays F major (also adding inversions or sevenths).

It would be great if it has different types of arpeggios, chords, one time, etc.

I love the arpeggiator from Thumbjam, but I need to activate the arpeggios with just one midi note from my keyboard.

Anything out there capable of this?

Thanks in advance!

Comments

  • Maybe Mozaic by Bram Bos would do this, and even if there isn't an existing script you could write your own.

  • Great to know! It looks interesting. I just wanted something working out of the box, but this app looks really interesting!!

  • You can use a chord app for the one-finger chords, and route the output to an arpeggiator to get the same effect. There are many options for chord apps on iOS.

  • There's a thread where you can ask Mozaic developers to work with you to build a custom app.

    https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/35167/request-new-mozaic-scripts-here

    It's worked out a few times and your ask is pretty open ended. I suspect someone has made
    an arp app already but users always want extras so just ask and work with one or more scripters to
    get what you envision.

    There's also a thread to kick start you on the path to scripting an arp yourself:

    https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/36604/learn-to-program-midi-by-typing-in-mozaic-scripts

  • edited June 2020

    Changeling would have done that - but it seems to have vanished....

  • wimwim
    edited June 2020

    I may get slapped for saying this but ... Drambo can do this.

    I still think the most effective solution is just to route a chords app into an arpeggiator. I can’t say I recommend resorting to Mozaic for this unless you’re itching to get into coding rather than itching to make music, which maybe you are. ;)

  • A Mozaic script shouldn't be too difficult if the aim is to play diatonic chords for a particular key. Assuming you limit it to Major and minor, the intervals are the same in each key, and you can offset for relative minor if you script it for Major.

    Inversions wouldn't be difficult, as you could just offset the root and 3rd for first and second inversion respectively. 7ths would increase the complexity overall and add another inversion, but it still wouldn't be that difficult.

  • wimwim
    edited June 2020

    @michael_m said:
    A Mozaic script shouldn't be too difficult if the aim is to play diatonic chords for a particular key. Assuming you limit it to Major and minor, the intervals are the same in each key, and you can offset for relative minor if you script it for Major.

    Inversions wouldn't be difficult, as you could just offset the root and 3rd for first and second inversion respectively. 7ths would increase the complexity overall and add another inversion, but it still wouldn't be that difficult.

    The Chordulator Mozaic script will play chords from a single note input. It’s not an arpeggiator however. It does have some strumming and humanization adjustments though. There are several other chord generating and playing scrips on Patchstorage.com. Just go to the Mozaic section and type “Chord” into the search box. “Arpeggiator” will yield some results as well.

    The main challenge with scripting something in Mozaic would be making a good arp design, not so much with the chords. With so many great arps already available and so many great chord apps available, I personally wouldn’t take the time to script something that wouldn’t be likely to be better than what’s already available ... unless I had some unique idea to implement.

  • Right, I hear you, but I was thinking about the process of feeding notes to an arp, as that would involve defining the scales, inversions, extended notes, etc. I know the arp wouldn't be trivial, but I was thinking that code probably exists somewhere already. Maybe not though.

  • wimwim
    edited June 2020

    @michael_m said:
    Right, I hear you, but I was thinking about the process of feeding notes to an arp, as that would involve defining the scales, inversions, extended notes, etc. I know the arp wouldn't be trivial, but I was thinking that code probably exists somewhere already. Maybe not though.

    Sure, I was just thinking out loud, not discounting your thoughts. I can’t seem to help but go into “design strategy” mode every time someone mentions Mozaic. 😂

    Anyway ... The Chordulator script does the “scales, inversion, extended” notes to some degree, and could be used as a starting point if someone wanted to make a bespoke app. I’m sure there are others as well.

  • Maybe it's just a question of refining something that already exists? To be honest it's been a while since I looked to see what scripts are out there and what kind of functions people have already built.

  • @michael_m said:
    Maybe it's just a question of refining something that already exists? To be honest it's been a while since I looked to see what scripts are out there and what kind of functions people have already built.

    That could be one way to shortcut the process. But building things from scratch is fun as well. Anyway, generating chords from a single note is indeed pretty easy to do. It's the opposite direction, detecting incoming chords, that can become very challenging.

  • McDMcD
    edited June 2020

    FYI: @_ki wrote an Mozaic arp script:

    In-Order ARP v1.0

    available at https://patchstorage.com/in-order-arp/

    Does it act like you want? That's will require someone to test it.

    You can also daisy-chain Mozaic apps and get great results:

    @wim's The-Chordulator (one note becomes a chord)

    @ki "In-order ARP V1.0" (chords are converted to arpeggiated "broken chords" sync'ed to the DAW).

    I tried in it AUM and one finger produced this output.

    I used 2 "In-order ARP v1.0s" scripts and pulled one down an octave in AUM and targeted to instances of the piano app.

    Like @wim many Mozaic scripters will consider the "arp" as being a solved problem.

    But if you ask... someone might help build one to match your needs just for the fun of crafting a script
    that someone would use and provide feedback. Mozaic programming is usual done for personal use in most cases or to solve specific problems.

    The arp in Reason Studios "Reason Compact" Europa Synth is cool. Making any similar in Mozaic would be a true gift to IOS users. I'm sure there are dozens of similar "arp" functions in existing apps
    that could also server as tools to describe behavior you'd like to have isolated into a MIDI FX unit.

  • Perhaps a combo of Suggester with midi triggers enabled , and Rozeta Arpeggiator?

  • edited June 2020

    @wim said:

    I may get slapped for saying this but ... Drambo can do this.

    I still think the most effective solution is just to route a chords app into an arpeggiator. I can’t say I recommend resorting to Mozaic for this unless you’re itching to get into coding rather than itching to make music, which maybe you are. ;)

    Wasn't sure if it could... so I made it :)

    @ecce_cello Do you have Drambo? I can upload the project file for you. 1 finger chords in D minor going to an arp. Basic triads. Can be set to 7ths, 9ths or whatever. Currently 1 octave mapped, but can be expanded easily by copying and pasting the current settings.

    PS
    I agree with Wim. A chords app like ChordPolyPad into an arp would be the best solution. Each pad can be triggered by an assignable midi note. The pads can contain any chord or inversion you wish - easy to map a bank of pads/chords to a scale.

    edit: the more I think about this.. inversions, suspended, 7ths, etc can absolutely be done on the fly with scenes A-P. If there's interest I'll give an expanded version of the project a shot.

  • McDMcD
    edited June 2020

    Thanks for posting the question... my experiments led to this:

    It's all one-finger input but using the "Latch and Hold" so for a lot there are really
    multiple notes but each was turned on/off one finger at a time.

  • @aleyas said:
    @wim said:

    I may get slapped for saying this but ... Drambo can do this.

    I still think the most effective solution is just to route a chords app into an arpeggiator. I can’t say I recommend resorting to Mozaic for this unless you’re itching to get into coding rather than itching to make music, which maybe you are. ;)

    Wasn't sure if it could... so I made it :)

    @ecce_cello Do you have Drambo? I can upload the project file for you. 1 finger chords in D minor going to an arp. Basic triads. Can be set to 7ths, 9ths or whatever. Currently 1 octave mapped, but can be expanded easily by copying and pasting the current settings.

    PS
    I agree with Wim. A chords app like ChordPolyPad into an arp would be the best solution. Each pad can be triggered by an assignable midi note. The pads can contain any chord or inversion you wish - easy to map a bank of pads/chords to a scale.

    edit: the more I think about this.. inversions, suspended, 7ths, etc can absolutely be done on the fly with scenes A-P. If there's interest I'll give an expanded version of the project a shot.

    There's interest.

    I can learn a lot from your project.

  • Woowwww
    So much stuff guys. Thanks a lot.
    I need some calm to go thru it. I actually bought Mozaik and need to go deeper into it.

    It never stops amazing me all you can do with these devices.

  • @aleyas I don't have Drambo ... and it seems too big app buying option for just this functionality. Thanks anyway. I'm gonna give it a more simple try.

  • edited June 2020

    Sure thing. It’s a bit of a niche function you’re after, so there’s gonna be some fiddling and workarounds required. Look into ChordPolyPad and StepPolyArp - the two of these were almost made for what you’re looking for. The manuals are short and well written, and should give some insight into how you can achieve what you’re after.

    @ecce_cello said:
    @aleyas I don't have Drambo ... and it seems too big app buying option for just this functionality. Thanks anyway. I'm gonna give it a more simple try.

  • Yes, Drambo can do it by using chord module followed by arp.

  • @McD said:
    Thanks for posting the question... my experiments led to this:

    It's all one-finger input but using the "Latch and Hold" so for a lot there are really
    multiple notes but each was turned on/off one finger at a time.

    This is really beautiful. What's the synth?

  • What I really want is Karma for iOS, not just arps triggered by one note, but a rhythmic, voiced-in-harmony response to the notes you hold down. I used to have a Korg Kronos, and jamming with Karma was really great. It's got to be possible for iOS....

  • @McD said:
    Thanks for posting the question... my experiments led to this:

    It's all one-finger input but using the "Latch and Hold" so for a lot there are really
    multiple notes but each was turned on/off one finger at a time.

    I like this one a lot. It’s great that we can be inspired by other people posing questions. Saw this in another post I think. Is this one of your available Mozaic scripts? Sorry if you mentioned this before but I can’t find the other posting.

  • @ecce_cello said:
    @aleyas I don't have Drambo ... and it seems too big app buying option for just this functionality. Thanks anyway. I'm gonna give it a more simple try.

    It might be too big for just this functionality but how do you know it won’t cover 90 other functionalities you will require in the future?

  • @aleyas said:
    @wim said:

    I may get slapped for saying this but ... Drambo can do this.

    I still think the most effective solution is just to route a chords app into an arpeggiator. I can’t say I recommend resorting to Mozaic for this unless you’re itching to get into coding rather than itching to make music, which maybe you are. ;)

    Wasn't sure if it could... so I made it :)

    @ecce_cello Do you have Drambo? I can upload the project file for you. 1 finger chords in D minor going to an arp. Basic triads. Can be set to 7ths, 9ths or whatever. Currently 1 octave mapped, but can be expanded easily by copying and pasting the current settings.

    PS
    I agree with Wim. A chords app like ChordPolyPad into an arp would be the best solution. Each pad can be triggered by an assignable midi note. The pads can contain any chord or inversion you wish - easy to map a bank of pads/chords to a scale.

    edit: the more I think about this.. inversions, suspended, 7ths, etc can absolutely be done on the fly with scenes A-P. If there's interest I'll give an expanded version of the project a shot.

    This is interesting. How do you tell Drambo which chord to play before it goes to the arp?

  • I'm using a midi filter for each note of the d minor scale. The filtered note feeds its own chord module. The output of the chord modules is combined using a midi mixer, which goes into the arp. Using scenes A-P it'll be possible to lock the chord intervals to different inversions and add 7ths etc. I'm going to work on it as a personal project and upload in a week or two.

    @jameslondon74 said:

    @aleyas said:
    @wim said:

    I may get slapped for saying this but ... Drambo can do this.

    I still think the most effective solution is just to route a chords app into an arpeggiator. I can’t say I recommend resorting to Mozaic for this unless you’re itching to get into coding rather than itching to make music, which maybe you are. ;)

    Wasn't sure if it could... so I made it :)

    @ecce_cello Do you have Drambo? I can upload the project file for you. 1 finger chords in D minor going to an arp. Basic triads. Can be set to 7ths, 9ths or whatever. Currently 1 octave mapped, but can be expanded easily by copying and pasting the current settings.

    PS
    I agree with Wim. A chords app like ChordPolyPad into an arp would be the best solution. Each pad can be triggered by an assignable midi note. The pads can contain any chord or inversion you wish - easy to map a bank of pads/chords to a scale.

    edit: the more I think about this.. inversions, suspended, 7ths, etc can absolutely be done on the fly with scenes A-P. If there's interest I'll give an expanded version of the project a shot.

    This is interesting. How do you tell Drambo which chord to play before it goes to the arp?

  • I will look forward to a nice Drambo ARP. Examples always help lead the way.

  • Ah I see. So each note has a bespoke chord that plays?

    You have basically directed C to the C chord, etc etc?

  • edited June 2020

    Correct. It could be simplified by sending specific notes to a ‘major’ chord generator a ‘minor’ generator, and a diminished generator. But then you lose some flexibility for creating extended chords that have different interval relationships with parameter locks and scenes.

    edit: actually, there’s a lot of ways to achieve similar results in Drambo. For instance, you could use a knob module as a ‘macro’ and use it to adjust the 3rd of each chord module. Adjusting a small negative or positive mod depth and you can turn all chords into suspended 2nds. Create another macro knob for suspended 4ths, etc. Then you wouldn’t even need to use scenes. And the macro can be p-locked. Or, you could replace the knob with a cv sequencer, and scale it correctly so that at ‘full’ cv depth on the sequencer, it jumps to the correct interval on the chord module. Tons of options.

    @jameslondon74 said:
    Ah I see. So each note has a bespoke chord that plays?

    You have basically directed C to the C chord, etc etc?

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