Pitch Bend
Pitch Bend sends a 14-bit offset from centre, and an RPN decides how far that offset reaches.
Related
Pitch Bend is a continuous offset rather than a note. Its centre, range and direction are set by the receiver.
The problem
Guitar bends, string slides and synth dives all depend on it. If the range is mismatched, the same value produces a different interval, and a forgotten return to centre leaves the whole part sharp.
Protocol or message
The status byte is 0xEn followed by two data bytes, low 7 bits first and high 7 bits second, forming a 14-bit value. 0x2000 is centre, 0 is the bottom and 0x3FFF the top. The offset comes from the instrument's range, often two semitones each way. RPN 0 changes that range. Send CC101 and CC100 as 0, then CC6 for semitones and CC38 for cents. A bend affects every sounding note on the channel.
Settings and practice
Match the range in the project and the instrument. Return to centre by sending the centre value. Event density decides how smooth the slide sounds. Use CC1 for vibrato instead of drawing it with bends.
What to listen for
Pulling to the bottom gives a two-semitone slide at the default range. A small bend sounds like drifting intonation, while a large one sounds like a slide.
Common misunderstandings
A bend is not a note and cannot sound alone. The range is not fixed. The centre value is not 0.
Listen in the library
All tracks from midicn-lib — inline badge is the license tier (C1 commercial / C2 non-commercial / C3 study only).
Sources
- MIDI 1.0 规范对弯音消息的 14 位编码，依 MMA 公开规范核查，未抄文本
- RPN 0 的弯音范围设置，依通行合成器文档核查，未抄文本
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.