Mission 034
MIDI Explained
The language that instruments use to talk to each other.
MIDI isn't audio — it's instructions for instruments. Note on, note off, velocity, that's it.
+40 XP
// WHAT IT DOES
(Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a protocol for sending performance instructions: which note, how hard, when on, when off. It's not sound — it's data telling a synth or what to play.
Because MIDI is just data, you can edit it forever without quality loss. Change the notes, transpose, quantise, swap instruments — the underlying performance information is preserved.
Audio = the recorded sound itself. MIDI = the score that produces the sound. Both have their place; modern production uses both heavily.
Think of it like → MIDI is sheet music for robots. Audio is the recording of that music being played.
▸ WHY YOU CARE
- • Infinitely editable — change anything anytime.
- • Instrument-independent — same MIDI, different sound by swapping synths.
- • Tiny file size — easy to share and version.
// SEE & HEAR IT
MIDI CLIP
NOTES + INSTRUCTIONS
Stores: pitch, velocity, length per note. The instrument creates the sound at playback. Editable forever.
AUDIO CLIP
RECORDED WAVEFORM
Stores: a sample. Pitch is baked in. Transpose & stretch are post-process — you can hear artifacts.
TRY THIS: change the MIDI instrument — same notes, totally different timbre. Then transpose the audio clip — hear the artefacts? That's why MIDI is editable forever and audio isn't.
▸ HOW IT WORKS
▸ Signal flow — watch the dot
▸ SIGNAL FLOW
Glowing dot = your signal travelling through Live.
▸ LISTEN FOR
- • affecting both volume and .
- • MIDI editing preserving original performance feel.
- • Instant swap of instruments while MIDI stays.
▸ WALKTHROUGH (5 steps)
- 1. DO: Record a MIDI clip with a soft synth.▸ LISTEN: Notes captured as data, not audio.
- 2. DO: Swap the synth for a different one.▸ LISTEN: Same notes, different sound — proves MIDI is instrument-independent.
- 3. DO: Change a few velocities.▸ LISTEN: Dynamics change without re-recording.
- 4. DO: Map a CC1 (mod wheel) move to a with MIDI Learn.▸ LISTEN: Real-time expressive control over a single parameter.
- 5. DO: Use Live's Scale device above an instrument to constrain notes to A minor.▸ LISTEN: Wrong notes simply can't happen — useful for improv recording.
▸ COMMON MISTAKES
- ✗ Quantising velocity along with timing.
- ✗ Recording MIDI and bouncing too early — loses editability.
- ✗ Not freezing CPU-heavy synths for performance.
// QUIZ (QUICK)
Question 1 / 40 correct
MIDI stores