Making Music with Google Sheets and Internet MIDI API
Are you aware that the trendy net browser can entry actual musical devices? With the assistance of Web MIDI API, we will create an online utility that may entry MIDI gadgets related to our laptop. On this article, I’ll clarify how I exploit Google Sheets as a music sequencer for composing and enjoying ambient music with a {hardware} synthesizer.
What’s a music sequencer?
A music sequencer is a tool or software program that may report, edit, and play again musical information corresponding to notes, chords, velocity, or any occasions to automate the method of music creation or music efficiency. It sends the musical information to musical devices to supply sound, usually by way of MIDI, CV/Gate, or OSC protocol.
Lately, I’ve been all for a music sequencer in a tracker type. It’s a kind of music sequencer generally used within the 80s and 90s. It’s a grid-based music sequencer that makes use of a vertical grid of columns. Every accommodates a number of rows and columns to signify totally different musical information and occasions. It’s just like a spreadsheet.
There are trendy music sequencers that use a tracker type, corresponding to Renoise (software program) and Polyend ({hardware}). Nevertheless, I need to attempt to construct an easier model of it.
Why Google Sheets?
Now, I perceive {that a} music tracker is just like a spreadsheet. So, I need to use a spreadsheet as a music tracker and sequencer. Google Sheets is ideal for that. It’s free, and we will lengthen its performance with Google Apps Script. It’s a serverless JavaScript runtime the place the developer can add customized features to Google Sheets. The nice factor is that it may entry any browser API, together with Internet MIDI API.
To simplify the event, I exploit these 2 JavaScript libraries:
- WEBMIDI.js, it’s an abstraction layer for Internet MIDI API. It simplifies the utilization of Internet MIDI API, corresponding to getting the checklist of MIDI gadgets, sending MIDI messages, receiving MIDI messages, and many others.
- Tone.js, it’s an abstraction layer for Internet Audio API. I exploit it just for looping the notes and velocity. Tone.js gives a world transport that can be utilized to synchronize the timing of the notes.
I constructed the net app to play and cease the sequence as a customized sidebar UI of Google Sheets. On this sidebar, all Internet MIDI API and Tone.js features can be found. I additionally added a customized perform to Google Sheets to ship MIDI messages from the spreadsheet cells.
In case you are within the code, you’ll be able to check out my GitHub repository: Google Sheets MIDI Sequencer.
The demo video
Lastly, right here’s the demo video of the Google Sheets music tracker and sequencer. I exploit it to compose and play reside ambient music with my Arturia MicroFreak synthesizer. I hope you get pleasure from it.