iCreate - UK (2019-08)

GarageBand

Using the Piano Roll Editor

A

fundamental aspect of GarageBand to master is the

handling of its two main track types. You can of course

record and edit real audio and waveforms as one half of

the app’s capabilities, but also simulated, software-based tracks

too. Here GarageBand supports MIDI, or Musical Instrument

Digital Interface, and the green-coloured regions that permit

significantly greater levels of manipulation. In editing terms, MIDI

notes can be added or ‘drawn’ into the track, dragged out for

sustained length and easily moved in terms of timing and pitch.

This provides an incredible level of versatility, with GarageBand’s

own Piano Roll Editor keepingthingsintuitiveenoughforusersof

all levels. In this guide we’llexaminethispartof theinterfaceand

explain the most importanteditingactions.

Learn how to add and edit notes within software instrument regions

Roll with it

The most prominent elements inthePianoRollEditor

Piano Roll

The left edge contains a keyboard

strip that references the vertical

lines denoting pitch within the Piano

Roll Editor, with the horizontal lines

signifying time positions divisible by the

timeline ruler shown above.

The playhead

The Piano Roll Editor has its own

playhead that you can drag within the

display area to cue project playback

from that point. This is obviously

convenient and useful for previewing

the impact of note edits.

MIDI notes

Notes are shown as small green strips

that are ‘drawn’ into the region within

the Editor’s display area. From here

they can be selected, deleted, resized

in length, or dragged horizontally and

vertically to alter timing or pitch.

The Inspector

This panel consists of two

control tabs for either the region

or just selected notes. Crucially

the sliders they house adjust time

quantisation, pitch (transpose),

and velocity in terms of how

hard/loudthenoteis sounded.

With GarageBand’s versatile MIDI capabilities notes can be

drawn in, dragged out and moved around...

Note velocity

MIDI notes display a line inside, relative

to its overall length. This denotes

velocity, which rates how hard the

piano key was struck when it was

played, commonly affecting volume.

This would be implicitly captured if you

used a MIDI instrument but can also be

defined and adjusted using the Notes

tab in the Piano Roll Inspector.

Knowledge base

10-25

Time needed

Developer

Apple,Inc

Difficulty