Hey guys, in this video we’re going to cover how to record and edit MIDI in Cakewalk by
BandLab.
If you haven’t checked out the previous tutorials on this software, I recommend doing
that before moving on.
This video goes into detail on creating MIDI tracks, adding MIDI VST instruments, inputting
MIDI manually, recording MIDI from a MIDI instrument, and editing MIDI with the different
build-in tools.
First let’s go to the Edit menu and select Preferences.
Go to MIDI devices and set your MIDI inputs and outputs.
We need to make sure we can select the Akai MPD218 as our input device on a new track.
Now we need to add a MIDI track for our instrument.
Right click on the blank tracks area and select Add Instrument Track.
For this example, we’ll set our instrument to the SI-Drum Kit.
Once this is done it will launch the drum kit.
If we accidentally exit out of the drum kit window, we just click the little instrument
icon to the left of the track name to open it up again.
Don’t worry too much about how to use all the different virtual instruments, I’ll
go into each of these in more detail in the next video.
For now, it’s enough to know that we have a few sample beats we can test on the left,
and then click and drag these onto the MIDI track to add them to the project.
You can pick different beats, combine them, and drag the ends of the clip to extend them
creating a loop.
We can do the same thing with different instruments, such as the bass.
The virtual bass instrument also has sample MIDI tracks we can add and extend to create
a beat.
Ok so now let’s cover how to add MIDI notes manually.
Keep in mind this process can be very time consuming, and I usually like to use a MIDI
controller instead.
First we need to open the piano roll view.
Right click on an empty MIDI track, and select View Piano Roll under the View menu.
The first problem we’re going to have is that zoomed out too far.
Every number you see at the top is a measure.
Zoom in using the button in the bottom right corner.
Now we can draw notes.
With the Smart Tool enabled, just click on the piano roll grid to add notes, and drag
them for whatever length you want them to be.
If you need to delete a note, just right click on it.
The bottom part of our Window has the velocity control.
You’ll see a vertical bar displayed for each note.
Drag it up to increase the velocity, or down to decrease it.
If there are two notes playing at once in a chord, the two velocities will be overlaid
and you can see which one you’re adjusting when you click on it because the note will
become highlighted.
Instead of the Piano Roll view, you can also use the staff view.
This is great for people who are familiar with writing sheet music, but the process
is much more difficult in Cakewalk.
If you prefer this sort of view, I think it’s actually better to use a different program
such as Musescore, then export the MIDI file and import it to Cakewalk.
Regardless of which way you created the MIDI file, we can make a short section and cause
it to loop.
To do this, make sure your clip is as long as you want the loop to be.
Then go to the Clip menu on the left side.
Under Groove Clip, enable Looping by checking off that box.
Then just stretch the clip as long as you would like it.
Now let’s cover how to record MIDI with a MIDI instrument.
First off, there’s really only two ways you’ll connect the MIDI instrument.
First is with MIDI cables to your audio interface.
In that case, set the input on your channel to Omni for your audio interface.
This will take all the MIDI inputs to your audio interface and record them.
If you have multiple MIDI input devices, you’ll need to specify a channel.
Otherwise for just one, Omni will work fine.
The other option is to set up a USB MIDI interface like this drum pad I’m using.
When properly connected and configured in the Preferences menu, the MIDI controller
will show up as an input device.
Once you’ve set the input, just make sure you have a virtual instrument on that track
enabled.
Also press the red button to arm the track for recording.
Then press the keys on your MIDI device to hear what sound they make.
Some MIDI instruments, like the one I’m using, will have their own software to reconfigure
what MIDI event is triggered by which pad.
This is important for drums, but not so much if you’re using a keyboard.
Now that you’ve set it up, just press the record button and record the MIDI track just
like we did in the last video for audio.
The last thing we need to look at are the controls for adjusting MIDI events.
First is the quantize tool.
This is used to lock the MIDI events to the grid.
When you record with a MIDI instrument, chances are it won’t lock perfectly in time.
It’s especially difficult to do this with a finger drum pad.
The quantize tool will fix this automatically for us.
When we open it, we’ll have a few options.
First is Starts Times or Duration.
Start times locks it on the grid at specific time values that fit to the resolution down
below.
Durations makes the entire duration of a MIDI event fit the resolution.
The strength option does exactly what it sounds like.
If set to 100%, the notes will strike with perfect timing.
However, this isn’t always ideal, since music isn’t this perfect, and it actually
sounds a little weird.
The swing tool distorts the spacing of the notes and gives the entire project a swing
feel.
50% is the neutral value with no swing.
Above 50%, the first note gets shorter and the second note gets longer.
Below 50%, the opposite is true.
The window tool is basically the sensitivity of the tool.
At 100%, all notes will be shifted to the nearest value.
At 50%, notes within 25% in either direction will be shifted.
Those outside will be left untouched.
Offset can be used to shift all the notes slightly out of time with the project.
I don’t normally use this option.
Last we have the random option, which shifts the notes around randomly up to a certain
amount, which you can control with the slider.
This adds a little bit of error, since perfectly timed music doesn’t sound very good.
Next is the transpose tool.
This will shift the pitch of all the MIDI notes on the track it is applied to.
This is a pretty simple tool to use.
The last tool we need to cover is the velocity tool.
With this, you can adjust the velocity of all the notes in a clip at once.
You can set them all to the same value, change them by a certain amount, scale them by a
percentage, or limit them within a certain range.
They can also by changed gradually throughout the music, or be made somewhat random to change
it up a little.
The Akai MPD218 is a USB MIDI controller for creating drum beats.
It features 16 velocity-sensitive pads for finger drumming, as well as knobs for controlling
different settings within your digital audio workstation.
The MPD218 can be easily remapped to work with plenty of different VST instruments,
and using it to create drums beats allows for faster note inputting time compared to
the traditional piano roll view.
Check out the link in the video description to get your own.
Thanks for checking out this video on recording and editing MIDI in Cakewalk by Bandlab.
If this video helped you out, don’t forget to give it a like and subscribe to the channel.
Also check the video description for products linked in this video, and our social media
links.