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Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pm
by LeftyChris
I have a question about the onscreen MIDI keyboard layouts. Is it possible to move or resize the onscreen string layouts in the same way that this is done with the onscreen piano keyboard? In other words, is it possible a) to move the onscreen fretboards horizontally to access more notes and b) to make the frets wider or narrower?

Judging from the manual, I think it is probably not possible to do this, but maybe I am missing something:

“Keyboard - The keyboard layout is a piano keyboard. The bar at the top can be used to move the keys horizontally. It also allows for making the keys wider or narrower using two fingers.

Guitar, Bass and Violin - The string layouts offer horizontal strings with frets. You can play a note by pressing a string (place your finger between two frets). String layouts can be capoed using the Options button.”

If it is not possible, I wonder if this is something that could be added to MultitrackStudio. It would be quite helpful for being able to access a wider range of notes when using the string layouts. It would thereby make the string layouts more useful musically and more flexible.

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Sat May 21, 2022 2:17 pm
by Support
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmis it possible a) to move the onscreen fretboards horizontally to access more notes?
That's what "String layouts can be capoed using the Options button" does. You can put a guitar capo on it, so to speak.
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmb) to make the frets wider or narrower?
That's not possible. I'm not sure if that would be very useful. Perhaps12.9" iPads could have one or two more frets.


Giel Bremmers

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Mon May 23, 2022 5:52 am
by LeftyChris
Support wrote: Sat May 21, 2022 2:17 pm
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmis it possible a) to move the onscreen fretboards horizontally to access more notes?
That's what "String layouts can be capoed using the Options button" does. You can put a guitar capo on it, so to speak.
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmb) to make the frets wider or narrower?
That's not possible. I'm not sure if that would be very useful. Perhaps12.9" iPads could have one or two more frets.


Giel Bremmers
Ah, I see. I misunderstood what “capo” would mean here. I was picturing putting a capo on a guitar and thereby having access to fewer notes, like when you put a capo on a guitar at, say, the 7th fret and you then do not have access to those lower frets. I did not realize that it would actually allow me to access •more• notes!

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Fri May 27, 2022 8:23 am
by LeftyChris
Support wrote: Sat May 21, 2022 2:17 pm
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmis it possible a) to move the onscreen fretboards horizontally to access more notes?
That's what "String layouts can be capoed using the Options button" does. You can put a guitar capo on it, so to speak.
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmb) to make the frets wider or narrower?
That's not possible. I'm not sure if that would be very useful. Perhaps12.9" iPads could have one or two more frets.


Giel Bremmers
Have you considered adding an all fourths Linnstrument style layout as an onscreen MIDI keyboard? The Linnstrument layout is becoming increasingly popular and it’s used in a number of great iOS apps, including two of my favorites, GeoShred and ExpressionPad. And although I am not a Bitwig user, I have read that the onscreen Bitwig keyboard is now the perfect fourths Linnstrument layout.

It would of course be similar to the bass guitar layout in having all fourths, but such a layout could have more “strings,” which would be quite useful.

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Fri May 27, 2022 7:56 pm
by Support
How many strings should such a layout have?

Giel Bremmers

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Fri May 27, 2022 10:54 pm
by LeftyChris
Support wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 7:56 pm How many strings should such a layout have?

Giel Bremmers
The Linnstrument has eight “strings” but for a 12.9 inch iPad, even 9 or 10 may be possible. Another good iOS app that includes the fourths string layout, GridInstrument, manages to fit 9 rows on a 12.9 inch iPad and it works very well.

Thanks for considering my idea!

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Sat May 28, 2022 9:21 am
by Support
The MultitrackStudio string layouts have guitar-style string bending (vertical movement on the iPad). Geoshred, which you mentioned, has horizontal violin-style glides from one note to the next. Is that an important feature of the type of keyboard you're after?

Giel Bremmers

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Sun May 29, 2022 9:08 am
by LeftyChris
Support wrote: Sat May 28, 2022 9:21 am The MultitrackStudio string layouts have guitar-style string bending (vertical movement on the iPad). Geoshred, which you mentioned, has horizontal violin-style glides from one note to the next. Is that an important feature of the type of keyboard you're after?

Giel Bremmers
I actually did not know that about the guitar-style string layouts. That is very cool. I really like the horizontal glides in GeoShred, but for me personally, I’m really most interested in the layouts themselves. But my guess would be that most other people would really want those horizontal glides of the sort available in GeoShred. Anyone recording any kind of legato instrument would really benefit from it.

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 8:13 am
by LeftyChris
Support wrote: Sat May 28, 2022 9:21 am The MultitrackStudio string layouts have guitar-style string bending (vertical movement on the iPad). Geoshred, which you mentioned, has horizontal violin-style glides from one note to the next. Is that an important feature of the type of keyboard you're after?

Giel Bremmers
In terms of important features, I should have said that a Linnstrument style layout should allow one to play more than one note per “string.” This opens up the possibility of a lot of great chord shapes that are not possible on an actual stringed instrument tuned to all fourths.

Anyone interested in learning about these chord shapes can look on YouTube for videos about them on the Linnstrument and on the Synthstrom Deluge, which also has an all fourths tuning.

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 8:50 am
by Support
OK, thanks for the info.

You can load an AU keyboard plugin in the MTS onscreen keyboard by the way.


Giel Bremmers

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2022 10:50 am
by LeftyChris
Support wrote: Tue May 31, 2022 8:50 am OK, thanks for the info.

You can load an AU keyboard plugin in the MTS onscreen keyboard by the way.


Giel Bremmers
I’ll try that, thanks.

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Sun Jul 16, 2023 11:15 pm
by LeftyChris
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 8:23 am
Support wrote: Sat May 21, 2022 2:17 pm
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmis it possible a) to move the onscreen fretboards horizontally to access more notes?
That's what "String layouts can be capoed using the Options button" does. You can put a guitar capo on it, so to speak.
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 20, 2022 8:38 pmb) to make the frets wider or narrower?
That's not possible. I'm not sure if that would be very useful. Perhaps12.9" iPads could have one or two more frets.


Giel Bremmers
Have you considered adding an all fourths Linnstrument style layout as an onscreen MIDI keyboard? The Linnstrument layout is becoming increasingly popular and it’s used in a number of great iOS apps, including two of my favorites, GeoShred and ExpressionPad. And although I am not a Bitwig user, I have read that the onscreen Bitwig keyboard is now the perfect fourths Linnstrument layout.

It would of course be similar to the bass guitar layout in having all fourths, but such a layout could have more “strings,” which would be quite useful.
I just saw that MTS 4.7 for iPad added a fourths keyboard layout! Thanks so much for implementing that! I can’t wait to use it.

I guess I should have read the release notes so I would have known earlier! :lol:

Re: Onscreen MIDI keyboards - the string layouts

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2023 11:14 pm
by LeftyChris
LeftyChris wrote: Sun Jul 16, 2023 11:15 pm
LeftyChris wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 8:23 am
Support wrote: Sat May 21, 2022 2:17 pm
That's what "String layouts can be capoed using the Options button" does. You can put a guitar capo on it, so to speak.


That's not possible. I'm not sure if that would be very useful. Perhaps12.9" iPads could have one or two more frets.


Giel Bremmers
Have you considered adding an all fourths Linnstrument style layout as an onscreen MIDI keyboard? The Linnstrument layout is becoming increasingly popular and it’s used in a number of great iOS apps, including two of my favorites, GeoShred and ExpressionPad. And although I am not a Bitwig user, I have read that the onscreen Bitwig keyboard is now the perfect fourths Linnstrument layout.

It would of course be similar to the bass guitar layout in having all fourths, but such a layout could have more “strings,” which would be quite useful.
I just saw that MTS 4.7 for iPad added a fourths keyboard layout! Thanks so much for implementing that! I can’t wait to use it.

I guess I should have read the release notes so I would have known earlier! :lol:
Would you consider adding an all perfect fifths layout as an onscreen MIDI keyboard too?

My understanding from the Linnstrument forum is that perfect fifths is the second most popular layout after perfect fourths among Linnstrument players. I like it quite a bit.

And of course it would just be a kind of larger extension of the violin/cello layout that you already have in MTS.