Main application window
with trackname fields, mute switches and workspace
(1) Tempo
button
(2) Cursor
(3) Mute switch
(4) Measures with MIDI events belonging to a MIDI channel not
defined as a drum channel
(5) Measures with MIDI events belonging to a drum channel
(6) Trackname
(7) Info window : Type of currently open MIDI file
(8) Info window : Current MIDI mode of your MIDI device
(9) Meter button
(10) Key button
(11) MIDI channel for record
(12) Track number
Tracks and measures
If you open a MIDI file, it's contents is shown track separated
and measure summarized in the workspace window.
Each track should contain MIDI events of one instrument, but you
are not forced to do so. A track can contain events of any type
(Sysex, Control changes, Note Ons...) and any MIDI channel 1 -
16. And of different types and channels at the same time. The
first track (somtimes called mastertrack) is usually only used
for text and sysex events. But you may use any event.
In other sequencer software, some special events which control
tempo, key and meter are placed in that mastertrack. Inside MIDI
Locator these events are hidden to you as MIDI events and
shown as little tempo, key and meter buttons
above and underneath the measures where they occur. So the mastertrack
often looks like it is empty and a nice place to fill in a new
track for the song. But you should keep the mastertrack clean
of other events but sysex and text events. MIDI Locator will later
merge the tempo info etc. back to the mastertrack, if you save
your file. And a sequencer software, which doesn't hide the meta
events would suddenly show meta and Note On events terrible mixed.
It seems like track 1
doesn't contain events, but many tempo buttons are in the ruler
part of the MIDI Locator workspace. Here are tempo settings
which are later saved by MIDI Locator as tempo meta events
in track 1
Own key and measure settings are not used very often, so they
can be found at the bottom of the workspace :
Meter and key buttons
Measure summarized
view
Measure summarized means, that if a measure contains at least
1 MIDI event, a colored rectangle is painted. One measure could
contain any number of single MIDI events.
Single measure
In the picture above you see that a track contains at least one
MIDI event in measure 16. If there stand many rectangles together
side by side, because of many MIDI events spreat out over many
measures, the event's belonging program (instrument selection,
program change event) is shown as text (e.g. Trumpet) in the measure's
rectangles. The actual program change event which is responsible
for the instrument here may stand far away in front of this measures.
Many measures with events
of one MIDI channel show the program selection (instrument) of
that channel
If one measure contains events of many MIDI channels (which
could have different program selections) a unique color or text
could in many cases not be found, or in other cases worry you.
So those measures are shown with 3 color rectangles :
Measures with events
of different MIDI channels
A MIDI file of older specification SMF0 must only contain one
track, and all channels are merged in that one track. So if you
open such file only one track is shown and it is 3 colored. MIDI
Locator immediately jumps to it's split
channel events function when opening such file to ask
you if it should split each channel into a separate track.
Drum measures
Measures with events
of a MIDI channel defined as a drum channel
If events in measures only belong to a MIDI channel which is defined
as a drum channel, the measures are painted dark grey, and the
program name of the drum set is shown as instrument text.
By default the only drum channel in a GM, GS or XG sound module/sound
card is MIDI channel 10. But GS and XG allow further channels
to be drum channels or channel 10 to be set to a normal instrument
channel. To make another channel than 10 a drum channel, a privious
sysex event (use for rythm part) is needed.
Example of a set use
for rythm part sysex event in the MIDI editor
Please note that MIDI Locator uses drum instrument names
(KICK1, SNARE1, CRASH 2...) instead of notes (C 0, C#0,D 0...)
everywhere you could choose a Note On value for drum events.