Making Microtonal Music is Easier Than You’d Think: Difference between revisions

'''Before editing, please read [[Talk:Making Microtonal Music is Easier Than You’d Think|the top part of this article's Talk page, here]].'''   

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'''METHOD 1:''' '''USING A FREE BROWSER-BASED MICROTONAL SYNTHESIZER'''  

There you can pick a microtonal tuning (circled in red on the right of the image when expanded here), and play the notes with your computer QWERTY keyboard. (the thing you type articles on, not a musical keyboard.) It's even polyphonic.  

This is a great resource; it's a way to dip your toe in the microtonal waters without even buying anything at all.  

Scala Workshop is also browser based, also polyphonic, and also played with your QWERTY keyboard. It's not as pretty as Offtonic, but so what? While it is a tiny bit more complex to use, it does have some good sounds, several sound options, + it can make, import, and export Scala files too. (More on Scala, and on Sevish, in a bit.) It even has the ability to add some delay.  

This one is polyphonic, has support for different synth sounds, and can be played with a QWERTY keyboard. But it can also be played with a MIDI controller, if you're using Chrome, and you reload the page after plugging in the keyboard.  

[https://biptunia.com/?p=4055 Simple Microtonal Synth] has a free Mac version.  

'''SFORZANDO''' This is good, free, and works in Windows and Mac. It will even work in Pro Tools on a Mac, which very little microtonal software will do.  

Sforzando [https://www.plogue.com/products/sforzando.html is free from Plogue]. It's not primarily microtonal, but can import .scl tuning files from Settings / Scale File / Set:  

You can download a bunch of .scl files [http://www.huygens-fokker.org/scala/downloads.html#scales free, here]. And [http://www.huygens-fokker.org/docs/scalesdir.txt here's a list of info] on each of the files.  

Reaper is free to try a full-featured version, and only 60 dollars US to register. (225 for commercial license, but it's the same program.) And it's updated far more often than the DAW you're probably using now.  

I made this to be the easiest to use microtonal VST, ever. Plus, it's free, and it's the only free '''64-bit''' microtonal polyphonic VST. [https://biptunia.com/?p=3990 Get it here, and the simple directions are on that page too].  

The first VST soft synth I made is called '''Microtonal Poly Worms'''. You [https://biptunia.com/?p=3045 can download it free, here].  

This is the more straightforward in sound of the two. It sounds a lot like an old Moog. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt-LGslXAF0 Here's a YouTube video] with a run-through of the sounds.

Another free microtonal polyphonic VST I made is called Microtonal Polyphonic Shiny Dirt. [https://biptunia.com/?p=3360 You can download it here].

Microtonal Polyphonic Shiny Dirt is a bit more experimental and freaky than Microtonal Poly Worms'''. '''It's been called "a very musical homage to circuit-bent analog synths.'

inside your DAW's VST folder. In 64-bit Reaper, the presets will show up in a second window, like this, with the pre-sets in a separate window:

''(^ If the preset window on the right isn't wide enough to see all the preset names, you can grab either side of it with your mouse, hold down the left mouse button, and drag the window wider. This is at 2:20 in my [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt-LGslXAF0&t second run-through video].)''

If you can't even see the main colorful window with the kitties, click the button on the VST picker that says 'Show UI' (user interface):

'''GETTING TO KNOW Microtonal Polyphonic Shiny Dirt'''  

If you read about a tuning you like and want to try it, you can click the file picker icon in the bottom right of the User Interface, circled here in blue:

From there, click on the file icon to use the scale. (Where it says hulen_33' in the above image. But that will be replaced by the name you searched.)

Scala is also great for analyzing microtonal tuning systems, if you want to delve into the maths. Just create or import a scale file, then try the different options from the choice at the top of the menu file. Or you can just hit F7, F8, and F9 keys on your computer keyboard.

Note that you can play a scale in Scala with your mouse, to get a feel for it. You can do this in Chromatic Clavier (F4 key), or Tonality Diamond (CTRL + F9) + sound button. Also in Triad Player (F9) and a few other of the functions. Sounds are basic, Piano, Organ, etc, but are not bad sounding, and you can pick from a few sounds.

'''In fact,''' ''an ability to create compelling music with a tiny bit of understanding of microtones will go much further than the opposite. ''