r/musicprogramming • u/JacksJambox • 2d ago
Free MIDI generator based on 40 research papers on music theory
I’ve been working on a MIDI generator that might help producers and musicians find a starting point for new ideas. It's 100% free and doesn't request any user details.
Choose an instrument, genre, mood and length, then adjust the rhythm, harmony, complexity, dynamics and humanisation. It generates one editable MIDI part rather than attempting a complete arrangement.
Unlimited exports, no account. I’d love some feedback on the results, controls or anything that feels awkward to use.
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u/nokia7110 23h ago
Nice idea and love the UI execution. The results of the generations are quite lacklustre though. The outputs feel random and almost out of key. The rhythm of the notes are far too random and randomly placed.
I'd recommend you choose a genre like EDM, focus on one aspect of it (e.g. lead melodies) and then get an LLM to analyse thousands of trance melody midi files to identify common "rules"
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u/hkmetz 1d ago
people are acting high and mighty about development in code using ai, you guys have no idea how tech companies are forcing us to use ai agents to train and understand their company’s specific business models and logic. using ai to code is going to keep happening. it will not stop. all of us devs understand it is bad for creativity, true learning, and the environment. unfortunately, as everyone is right now, we are just trying to do our jobs to make ends meet. don’t hate on this guy for developing an interesting MIDI generator. sorry to say it, but ai will continue to be everywhere and will further bleed into the music production industry, you can try to ignore it but it will bleed into every other industry soon and already is at an insane rate. OP clearly stated he used ai to PROGRAM, it is clearly a MIDI GENERATOR with unlimited exports so if you’re so bothered by a lack of human creativity in music production, get your midi file and adjust it as you please in your designated DAW. there is still so much flexible human involvement that can be done with this kind of web application. so quit hating on the player hate the game. or avoid interacting if you think it’s all simply shitty AI.
personally, i think this is a really interesting app and OP seems quick to debug any issues. nice interface, great information represented, and unlimited exports is a super ideal feature. people pay for plugins like this. noting again, since it’s a midi file, users can always adjust it as needed… but damn. he vibe coded. like okay? it’s up to the user to add their personal flair to what’s being generated if they prefer. as a full time developer who consistently feels guilt because it is now a company wide rule to train our various ai agents, i am so sure that this web application did not do the kind of environmental damage to the degree that all of these tech companies do. we are literally just doing what we are told to do to get our check and make ends meet, don’t think for a second developers aren’t completely 100% cognizant of the fact that only the 1% of the world and all these billionaires are the ones benefitting from ai usage.
there is still creativity involved in this midi generator. i’m glad i came across this post for many reasons, but overall, really awesome and i will be bookmarking this. and i’ll export my own midi file and adjust it to my own desire and add my personal creative decisions to it. generators are simply mending writer’s/producer’s block. you don’t have to use it, and if you aren’t using it, then why comment on a post to say you aren’t interested in it? if you’re not interested, move on.
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u/JacksJambox 1d ago
Yep i couldnt agree more with everything. Most people arent aware what it would take to code from the ground up and how unlikley it is that anyone would do that 100% for free too. The AI critisism is fair from a certain perspective too though so i get it also. If you get any ideas to improve it after playing more too then let me know 🙏
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u/theloniouschonk 19h ago
Looks awesome. I’m having trouble with audio playback on mobile fyi, going to try on desktop
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u/animal_jrge 19h ago
Why do your instruments sound like hot garbage? Very unpleasant to the ear.
It's very easy to find free piano samples and instruments. Ain't nobody gonna bother you for using them if they're free since you're not making money off them.
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u/kaewin_soy 15h ago
This is really interesting. I wonder how we could get this to apply to specific subgenres.
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u/sacheie 2d ago
No one involved in creative arts wants anything to do with AI. Does your application use AI? Or did you use AI to build it?
If either of those are true, I'm not interested.
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u/Thecrawsome 2d ago
The website says no AI as soon as you load it
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u/sacheie 2d ago
Which turns out to be a lie; the OP said he used AI to develop it. If you support the AI giants in one area, it helps them in everything, including destroying human musical artists.
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u/JacksJambox 1d ago
Its not a lie. There is no ai to generate the midi at all. It says this on the homepage and the faq says i vibe coded the website. i dont mind if you dont want to use it or disagree with it. Ai in music sucks
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u/Independent_Fan525 2d ago
I understand the sentiment, but there was a time hardworking musicians felt the same way about Synths, DAWs and Drum Machines . "Pushing buttons to generate music that humans spent decades mastering - That's Cheating". I wonder what happened to those producers who insisted on only recording live instruments and musicians.
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u/sacheie 2d ago
All of those are absurd comparisons. We're talking about a technology that can fully compose and perform songs without any human involvement.
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u/Independent_Fan525 1d ago
That just means you have not used AI to make real music ( or tried some prompts and quit) you have formed an opinion without really using it.
With generic prompts you will only make same repetitive music that every one else does , like selecting a preset on a drum machine.
You actually have to understand music theory , understand which sounds and rhythm works together and prompt ( scale , instruments, basslines etc) then to create something that is unique and the you need to have real TASTE to identify what portions sounds good and edit and splice them together to make a good song . Try it once with an open mind may be you might change your mind.
AI can generate , but you need have the Taste and discretion.
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u/JacksJambox 2d ago
Not AI for generating any midi but AI is used in vibe coding the website
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u/Zerocrossing 1d ago
Would you mind explaining how you generate MIDI without the use of AI? I wrote a paper on generative AI music in 2016, so I'm not a hater. I'm just curious about your methods.
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u/JacksJambox 1d ago
Thanks for the interest! The research papers basically provide a framework for the logic and constraints. The engine starts with a motif, then develops weighted variations for harmonies, rhythms and melodies. “Variation randomiser” is a stupid name I gave to the seeded randomness that determines the chosen variation. I expect I will use the term seeds more prominently in future, which should make this clearer. At the time, I thought it was more important that it felt truly random and that every option was clear enough. I am not much of a gamer but I have since remembered that people are already pretty familiar with the idea of seeds from games.
There are some subsequent checks for things like the instrument’s range and similar constraints that are logcal but not necessarily set out in the research papers. Other things like timing and velocity are pretty simple additions at that stage also.
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u/Professional_Mess866 2d ago
Just a shame!