MIDI in This Library

Every track in the library is an id, a path and a stream of parseable MIDI events.

Related

MIDI ProtocolDAWThe MIDI controller

With over a hundred thousand files, a title says little about what is inside. Events and statistics answer the question, and the library turns them into fields.

The problem

Titles often come from file names or collectors, so they say nothing about scoring or content. One piece may exist in several versions with different note counts, durations and licences, and a guess attaches the wrong facts.

Protocol or message

The library stores Standard MIDI Files, and the catalog gives each track an id, title, source, licence, duration and note count. Paths are grouped by source and genre. Parsing reveals tracks, channels, programs, controllers and tempo. Licences fall into main, piano-special and study, and entry examples prefer main.

Settings and practice

Locate a track by id, then read its note count and duration from the catalog. Parse the file when a message needs proof. Explain why an example was chosen instead of quoting its title. When reusing a track across entries, listen for a different detail.

What to listen for

Drums and bass expose differences first when the same file meets another sound source. Note count is not density, since long notes and repeats both count.

Common misunderstandings

Library files are not recordings. An id is not a file name. Catalog duration is computed, not an audio length.

Sources

• 本库 catalog 的字段定义与许可分档，依库内文档核对，未抄文本
• 本库文件的格式与事件统计，由本地 SMF 解析脚本核对，数值随文件而定

Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.