An Introduction to MIDI Magic

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Welcome to our brief introduction to MIDI, an essential tool for composers. Let’s dive in!

MIDI is an acronym for Musical Instrument Digital Interface. Much like sheet music is used to communicate information between musicians, MIDI was created to communicate musical information between digital devices such as synthesizers, samplers, controllers, and computers.

MIDI data can be created using a DAW or notation software, or it can be recorded by a musician performing with a MIDI controller such as a digital keyboard, electronic drum kit, or electronic wind instrument.

Music that was created in notation software can be exported to a DAW to be edited and mixed, and MIDI recorded in a DAW can be sent to notation software and transformed into sheet music to be read by musicians.

MIDI is also useful in performance. A musician with a MIDI controller can perform expressively using a variety of synthesizers and samplers.

Composers can use MIDI to automatically perform interesting and musical computations such as inversion, retrograde, rhythmic augmentation and diminution, diatonic and non-diatonic transposition, and much more.

Regardless of how MIDI data is created, it will look the same in your DAW. For example, note duration is determined by the arrival of Note On and Note Off messages and intensity (or dynamic) of each note is expressed in a parameter called velocity. These two parameters: note duration and velocity represent MIDI data in its most basic form. However, there are even more parameters that can be used with these to convey expressive and nuanced music.

Due to its simplicity, flexibility, and ubiquity in music technology, MIDI is an efficient means of communication for instruments and devices, as well as a tool for creative expression.

In future videos, we’ll learn more about how MIDI works in detail.

Thanks for watching and happy composing!