Additional Step Editing modes

[Alphons]

Ok, prefacing this, I have been playing the piano way longer than I have been making music electronically.
I've enjoyed using the step editing mode for usage for making chords on the spot, although I don't really think that the current way it works is a "one fits all" solution.

I would like to suggest a few additional modes that the step editing mode could function depending on the use case and why I think they would be useful additions.



Staccato / Arpeggiation mode:
Means that the step editor will add one note at a time.
This means that once a note start signal is sent, the note will be placed without waiting for the note stop signal.
If another note is played while the first one is still held down, the second will be placed like the first one has been already stopped.

If 2 notes are input on the same tick of the midi clock, add a ruleset that will just have a bias in one or another direction or something.

Use case:
I could play legato Arpeggios as fast as I want (as long as I'm not tooo sloppy with my timings) and I would still be getting single notes.
An issue I'm often facing when trying to use the step editing mode is that 2 notes will be on the same time and form a chord.
I've looked for external ways to fix this by routing Midi through a separate software first to just send staccato stuff, but that would have been a bodge ¯\_(ツ)_/¯



Printing mode:
Instead of creating steps when releasing every key, it would create the step when pressing the sustain pedal (or similar input).

Use Case:
I have suggested this as a separate feature at some point, but I was quickly shunned down to just use the step editor.
Although its far better than nothing, for some workflows or use cases the default method is just not ideal.
One thing I have heard from other composers is that they don't want to use a keyboard or record midi/note data because they don't feel confident enough to get the timing right.
And although I have now grown accustomed to just pressing R and Space to be able to record in an instant, for some users,
especially for people who are using a keyboard for the first time, the thought can be a bit scary.
One thing that this would be useful for is allowing the user to try out a bunch of chords before settling on the one they are playing at that moment.
Something like this might give users the breathing space, while not slowing down their creative process.

Furthermore, on lower end keyboards, especially with non-weighted keys, users are bound to hit a wrong note every now and then.
Being able to change stuff before parsing it through would give users more control over what they are playing.
Even if it's not that hard to replace a step, being able to just control when the chord will be parsed might be a better alternative for some.
An added benefit would be that it allows you to keep your hands on your keyboard.



Voicing Mode:
Simply changes the midi channel of the notes in a chord from the bottom up.
Meaning the lowest would be Midi Channel/Colour Group 1, next note up would be Midi Channel/Colour group 2, and so on up to 16.

Use Case:
2 Things.
Slide notes for stock plugins and the sampler, making things like Sliding a single note in a cord really easy.
This would really bring variable and complex ambiences with pads to the next level.
Second thing: exporting to any Sheet Music/Score format.
I can export a midi file from FL and import the individual channels in something like Muse score and have them all in their separate sheet music systems.
I can already do that by just recolouring stuff manually with ALT+C, but this would save a lot of time for this use case.

Additionally, it would serve for a really great visual aid for composing with voicing in mind in general, since its more apparent at first sight which voice is which.
Maybe this would be an interesting tool as well.
Allowing you to change the midi channel/Colour group of notes that are overlapping.



Sustained / Hold Mode:
Will lengthen or double the length of the chord when held for longer than x amount of time without any notes being added or removed.

Use Case:
The way the traditional step editing handles note length is by using the Main/Piano Roll snap length.
Additionally, there are the buttons * to double the length when pressed.
This is already pretty useful but requires me to take my hands from the Keyboard/Midi Controller.
Not that I am an advocate for Midi controller focused workflows, but this is one time where it annoys me because It will "reset" my hand position.
One of the biggest upsides to the step editing mode is that I can create progressions way faster then I could have with traditional recording.
Not for stuff that is realistic, but especially for synths stacks where the "human" timings are sometimes irrelevant.
It means that I can keep the distance between my hands and the voicings and how I am fingering and still have some control over the length before editing it in post.



Rhythm Mode:
Have steps with a varied length that will follow a rhythm or a varying predetermined pattern.
This could be done similarly to how the Quantization templates are handled.
For example, one could set a pattern that will put every even step to 1.5 Bars, and every uneven step to 2.5 Bars.
Or alternatively something with pauses between steps.
If possible let users create their own patterns as well somehow

Use Case:
I have a few things I often have to do after Step editing, and that usually is setting the timing.
Besides the point that its a bit clunky to use the Snap settings, since they don't really have the lengths that you would usually use for a chord.
If I need half a bar I'll usually just use a full bar or a beat and then either halve or double the length in post.
But the next thing is usually patterns like the usual shifted chord starts in Dance Music where the second chord is a bit longer than the first.
Or house patterns where you shift between a syncopated dotted half note pattern and then a few straight 4ths
After that, what about the use cases for sequencing drums?
This could allow you to select a drum pattern that will appear in front of your eyes and still have full control of velocity while playing,
or which drums come on which hit while making grove patterns or something.


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These are all just ideas that I'm throwing against the wall that would serve an interesting niche or fix some holes in my endless lust for workflow.
I think the most useful ones would be the Staccato/Arpeggio Mode, the Voicing mode.
The most interesting one would be the Rhythm mode, but personally just because I would be curious to see what users could come up with.
I hope that some of these things will be brought into consideration and maybe see the light of day at some point.

In the end, all I can do is write my ideas down. It's up to you if you want to implement any of them.

[Leon_The_Loverr]

There should be a command for quantizing...... ...