To work with MIDI messages, you’ll need a basic understanding of programming concepts. Here are some key concepts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Variables<\/strong>: Store values in memory using variables (e.g.,
velocity = 100<\/code>).<\/li>\n\n\n\n- Data Types<\/strong>: Understand the types of data your language supports (e.g., integers, floats, strings).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Control Structures<\/strong>: Use if-else statements, loops (for, while), and conditional statements to control the flow of your program.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Functions<\/strong>: Define reusable blocks of code that perform a specific task.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
MIDI CC Messages<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
To transmit MIDI Control Change (CC) messages, you’ll need to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Create a MIDI message<\/strong>: Use your programming language’s MIDI library or create a custom message structure.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Set the control number and value<\/strong>: Specify the CC control number and its corresponding value (e.g.,
control_number = 7<\/code>,value = 127<\/code>).<\/li>\n\n\n\n- Send the message to a MIDI port<\/strong>: Use your programming language’s MIDI output function to send the message to a MIDI port.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
Example Code<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here are some examples of how to code and transmit MIDI CC messages in different programming languages:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Python (using PyMIDI)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
import pymidi\n\n# Create a MIDI output port\noutport = pymidi.open_output()\n\n# Set the control number and value\ncontrol_number = 7\nvalue = 127\n\n# Create a MIDI Control Change message\nmessage = pymidi.Message('b', control_number, value)\n\n# Send the message to the MIDI port\noutport.send_message(message)\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nJava (using JavaSound)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
import javax.sound.midi.*;\n\n\/\/ Create a MIDI output port\nMidiChannel channel = MidiSystem.getSynthesizer().getChannels()[0];\nchannel.open();\n\n\/\/ Set the control number and value\nint controlNumber = 7;\nint value = 127;\n\n\/\/ Create a MIDI Control Change message\nShortMessage message = new ShortMessage();\nmessage.setMessage(ShortMessage.CONTROL_CHANGE, controlNumber, value);\n\n\/\/ Send the message to the MIDI port\nchannel.send(message);\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nC++ (using PortMIDI)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
#include <portmidi.h>\n\n\/\/ Initialize PortMIDI\nPm_Init(NULL);\n\n\/\/ Open a MIDI output port\nPm_OpenOutput(0); \/\/ Replace with the desired MIDI port number\n\n\/\/ Set the control number and value\nint controlNumber = 7;\nint value = 127;\n\n\/\/ Create a MIDI Control Change message\nPm_Message msg = Pm_CreateControlChange(controlNumber, value);\n\n\/\/ Send the message to the MIDI port\nPm_WriteShort(msg, 0); \/\/ Replace with the desired MIDI channel number\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nThese examples demonstrate how to create and send MIDI CC messages using different programming languages. You can modify these examples to fit your specific needs and transmit MIDI messages to control external devices or synthesizers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
LFO to alter the value of CC data<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ml7el7wijicz.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-6.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nTo program an LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) to alter the value of CC (Control Change) data, you’ll need to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Choose a programming language<\/strong>: Select a suitable language for your project, such as C++, Python, or LabVIEW.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Understand the MIDI protocol<\/strong>: Familiarize yourself with the MIDI protocol and its message structure, including control change messages (CC).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Implement an LFO algorithm<\/strong>: Write code to generate a sine wave or another type of oscillation that will modulate the CC value.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
Here’s a simple example in C++:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#include <iostream>\n#include <cmath>\n\n\/\/ Define constants for MIDI CC and LFO parameters\nconst int CONTROL_NUMBER = 7; \/\/ Choose a control number (e.g., pitch bend)\nconst float MIN_VALUE = 0.0f;\nconst float MAX_VALUE = 127.0f;\n\n\/\/ Define the LFO function\nfloat lfo(float frequency, float amplitude) {\n static float phase = 0.0f;\n phase += frequency * (M_PI \/ 180.0f); \/\/ Convert frequency to radians\n return sin(phase) * amplitude + MIN_VALUE; \/\/ Modulate CC value\n}\n\nint main() {\n \/\/ Initialize MIDI output port\n int midiOutPort = Pm_OpenOutput(0);\n\n \/\/ Set the control number and initial value\n int controlNumber = CONTROL_NUMBER;\n float initialValue = lfo(1.0f, 64.0f); \/\/ Initial LFO value\n\n \/\/ Main loop: send CC messages with modulated values\n while (true) {\n \/\/ Generate a new LFO value\n float newValue = lfo(1.0f, 64.0f);\n\n \/\/ Create and send the MIDI control change message\n Pm_Message msg = Pm_CreateControlChange(controlNumber, (int)(newValue + 0.5f));\n Pm_WriteShort(msg, midiOutPort);\n }\n\n return 0;\n}\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nIn this example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- We define constants for the control number and LFO parameters.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The
lfo<\/code> function generates a sine wave with adjustable frequency and amplitude.<\/li>\n\n\n\n- In the main loop, we generate a new LFO value using the
lfo<\/code> function, create a MIDI control change message with the modulated value, and send it to the MIDI output port.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\nNote<\/strong>: This is a basic example to demonstrate the concept. You may need to modify it to suit your specific requirements, such as adding additional parameters or handling errors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To implement this in other programming languages, you’ll need to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- In Python: Use libraries like
mido<\/code> orpython-midi<\/code> for MIDI communication andnumpy<\/code> for numerical computations.<\/li>\n\n\n\n- In LabVIEW: Use the built-in MIDI functions and control structures to generate the LFO and send the CC messages.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Remember to adjust the code according to your specific needs and programming language.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Programming concepts and and how to code and transmit MIDI CC messages Programming Concepts To work with MIDI messages, you’ll need a basic understanding of programming concepts. Here are some key concepts: MIDI CC Messages To transmit MIDI Control Change (CC) messages, you’ll need to: Example Code Here are some examples of how to code […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":709,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"dsgo_overlay_header":false,"dsgo_overlay_header_text_color":"","dsgo_overlay_skip_top_bar":false,"_designsetgo_exclude_llms":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,43,48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-midi","category-music-technology","category-synth-school"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=647"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":650,"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647\/revisions\/650"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=647"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=647"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ministryoftunes.com\/121-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=647"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- In LabVIEW: Use the built-in MIDI functions and control structures to generate the LFO and send the CC messages.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- In the main loop, we generate a new LFO value using the
- Understand the MIDI protocol<\/strong>: Familiarize yourself with the MIDI protocol and its message structure, including control change messages (CC).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Set the control number and value<\/strong>: Specify the CC control number and its corresponding value (e.g.,
- Data Types<\/strong>: Understand the types of data your language supports (e.g., integers, floats, strings).<\/li>\n\n\n\n