Re: Adding MIDI APIs to Audio WG Charter (was: MIDI enumeration (was: Re: getUserMedia use cases))

Hi,

Here's a use case scenario:

I'm currently writing music scores in SVG containing embedded MIDI 
information at the chord level. These scores display fine in most 
browsers [1].  In principle, any music notation software that can both 
print and create MIDI info could write files in such a format.

The embedded MIDI info in my files can be extracted and stored in a 
Standard MIDI File, but what I'd really like to do is respond to clicks 
on chords (SVG objects) in the score, playing the score back from that 
point, or sending just that chord's MIDI info to an audio renderer 
(synthesizer) somewhere, etc.
This is not just a simple case of playing back a Standard Midi File. I 
would need access to a default synthesizer, and (if users have any 
special synthesizers) some way for individual users to tell the browser 
where else it should send the MIDI info.

Tom White said:
> I'm thinking about applications that use MIDI because they want MIDI, such
> as music creation programs, music scoring programs, music 
> training/education
> programs, etc. Some of those may need custom sound renderers, but others
> have been able to get by just fine with GM... and since GM renderers 
> already
> exist on hundreds-of-millions of Macs and PCs (including all new ones 
> being
> sold) I think browsers should expose them.
Hear, hear! MIDI is important because its the link between notation 
(User Interface) and the logical content of the events.
I suppose it would be possible to associate a small audio file with each 
of my chord objects, but it would be much more difficult to realize 
transformations of the logical content if things were done that way. 
Tempo changes, transpositions etc. are a breeze in MIDI...

Chris Wilson said
> The best way to advocate for support for playing SMFs is to have a
> rock-solid scenario, that isn't clearly addressable some other way, for
> doing so, and taking it to the vendors.
Maybe if we had the level of support I describe above, it would be much 
easier to implement the playing of SMFs.

All the best,
James Ingram

[1] http://james-ingram-act-two.de/compositions/study2/study2b/Study2b3.html

Received on Thursday, 2 February 2012 11:19:32 UTC