Steinberg Cubase 7 User Manual

							511
The MIDI editorsKey Editor operations
To view and edit existing Poly Pressure events, proceed as follows:
1.Select Poly Pressure on the “Controller Selection and Functions” pop-up menu.
2.Click on the arrow button next to the note number field to the left of the controller 
lane.
A pop-up menu appears, listing all note numbers for which there already are Poly 
Pressure events.
3.Select a note number from the pop-up menu.
The Poly Pressure events for the selected note number are shown in the controller 
lane.
4.Use the Draw tool to edit the events as usual.
Press [Ctrl]/[Command]+[Alt]/[Option] to edit existing events without adding any 
new ones.
•Poly Pressure events can also be added and edited in the List Editor.
Working with selection ranges
The controller lane editor allows you to perform additional scaling operations for 
selection ranges on existing controller curves.
•To open the controller lane editor, use the Object Selection tool to create a 
selection rectangle on the controller lane, encompassing the desired controller 
events.
For Velocity lanes, press [Alt]/[Option] to get the Object Selection tool.
ÖFor Velocity lanes, the editor also opens if you select multiple MIDI notes in the note 
display.
In the controller lane editor, smart controls appear on the borders of the editor. These 
controls allow you to activate a specific editing mode:
!The controller lane editor is not available for Articulation or Dynamics lanes.
Editing modeTo activate this 
mode…Description
Move VerticallyClick in an empty area 
on the upper border of 
the editor.This mode allows you to move the entire 
curve up or down, which is useful to boost 
or attenuate an otherwise perfect curve. 
Scale VerticallyClick the smart control in 
the middle of the upper 
border of the editor.Use this mode to relatively scale the curve, 
i.
 e. to raise or lower the values in percent 
(not by absolute amounts).
Tilt the left/right 
part of the curveClick the smart control in 
the upper left/right 
corner of the editor.These modes allow you to tilt the left or the 
right part of the curve, respectively. This is 
useful if the curve form is exactly the way 
you want it, but the start or end needs to be 
boosted or attenuated a bit. 
						

							512
The MIDI editorsThe In-Place Editor
ÖIf you hold down [Shift] while clicking on any of the smart controls, you get the vertical 
scaling mode.
•To move the whole selection up/down or left/right, click on a controller event 
inside the editor and drag the curve.
By pressing [Ctrl]/[Command] when clicking and dragging, you can restrict the 
direction to horizontal or vertical movement, depending on the direction in which 
you start dragging.
ÖSnap is taken into account when moving controller curves horizontally.
The In-Place Editor
The In-Place Editor makes it possible to edit MIDI parts directly in the Project window, 
for quick and efficient editing in context with other tracks. 
To open the In-Place Editor for one or more selected tracks, you have the following 
possibilities:
•Select “Open In-Place Editor” on the MIDI menu.
•Use the Edit In-Place key command, by default [Ctrl]/[Command]-[Shift]-[I].
•To open the In-Place Editor for a single MIDI track, click the corresponding Edit 
In-Place button in the track list (if necessary, expand the track list to display the 
button).
Compress the 
left/right part of 
the curve[Alt]/[Option]-click the 
smart control in the 
upper left/right corner of 
the editor.These modes allow you to compress the left 
or the right part of the curve.
Scale Around 
Absolute CenterClick the smart control in 
the middle of the right 
border of the editor.This mode allows you to scale the curve 
around the absolute center, i.
 e. horizontally 
around the center of the editor.
Scale Around 
Relative Center [Alt]/[Option]-click the 
smart control in the 
middle of the right 
border of the editor.This mode allows you to scale the curve 
relative to its center.
StretchClick and drag in the 
lower part of the editor 
(not available for Velocity 
lanes).This allows you to stretch the selected 
controller events.
Editing mode To activate this 
mode…Description 
						

							513
The MIDI editorsThe In-Place Editor
This expands the MIDI track to show something like a miniature Key Editor, allowing 
you to edit MIDI notes and controllers.
•To zoom or scroll the In-Place Editor, point at the left part of the piano keyboard 
display so that the pointer changes to a hand. Now you can click and drag to the 
right or left to zoom in or out vertically, and drag up or down to scroll the editor.
•Clicking on the gray triangle in the upper right corner of the track list for the edited 
track brings up a local toolbar with some settings specific to the In-Place Editor.
For descriptions of these settings, see “The toolbar” on page 484.
Just like in the Key Editor, you can edit controller data and articulations at the bottom 
of the In-Place Editor.
•To add or remove controller lanes, right-click below the controller name field and 
select an option from the context menu.
When you select a MIDI note, the Project window info line shows information about 
that note, just like the info line in the Key Editor. You can perform the same editing 
here as on the Key Editor info line, see 
“Editing on the info line” on page 499.
•The Snap button and Snap Type pop-up menu on the Project window toolbar 
govern snapping in the In-Place Editor, but the snap grid is set using the Quantize 
pop-up menu.
•To close the In-Place Editor for one or several selected tracks, you can use the 
Edit In-Place key command, by default [Ctrl]/[Command]-[Shift]-[I].
•To close the In-Place Editor for one track, you can click the Edit In-Place button in 
the track list or double-click below the controller display in the In-Place Editor.
ÖIf you have opened the In-Place Editor for multiple parts, you can drag and drop notes 
between the parts. 
						

							514
The MIDI editorsThe Drum Editor – Overview
The Drum Editor – Overview
The toolbar, status line, info line, and Inspector
These are much the same as the toolbar, status line, info line, and Inspector in the Key 
Editor (see 
“The Key Editor – Overview” on page 483), with the following differences:
•The toolbar has a Solo Instrument button that allows you to mute all sounds except 
the selected one, see 
“Muting notes and drum sounds” on page 517.
•The Drum Editor has a Drumstick tool (for entering and removing notes) and a Line 
tool with various line and curve modes (for drawing several notes in one go or 
editing controller events).
These tools replace the Draw tool.
•The pitch in the Mouse Note Position display on the status line is shown as a drum 
sound name rather than a note number.
•The Use Global Quantize button allows you to select which value is used when 
Snap is activated – the global quantize value on the toolbar or the individual 
quantize values for the drum sounds.
•There is an Insert Length pop-up menu instead of the Length Quantize pop-up 
menu.
It is used in much the same way, as described on the following pages.
•There are no Scissors and Glue tools in the Drum Editor.
•The status line does not contain a chord display.
The drum sound list
The drum sound list lists all drum sounds by name (according to the selected drum 
map or name list – see below), and lets you adjust and manipulate the drum sound 
setup in various ways.
The drum 
sound list for 
the GM Map
Toolbar
Note display
Controller 
display Inspector
Drum mapInfo lineStatus line
Ruler
Drum sound 
list 
						

							515
The MIDI editorsThe Drum Editor – Overview
The following settings are available in the drum sound list:
Please note the following:
•The number of columns in the list depends on whether a drum map is selected for 
the track or not.
See “Working with drum maps” on page 518.
•You can reorder the columns by dragging the column headings, and resize them 
by dragging the dividers between the column headings.
The note display
The note display of the Drum Editor displays notes as diamond symbols. The vertical 
position of the notes corresponds to the drum sound list to the left, while the 
horizontal position corresponds to the note’s position in time, just as in the Key Editor. 
Note, however, that the diamond symbols do not indicate the length of the notes. This 
makes sense, since drum sounds most often are “one-shot” samples that play to their 
end regardless of the note lengths.
ColumnDescription
PitchThe actual note number of the drum sound. This is what links notes 
on a MIDI track to drum sounds. For example, with the GM Map, all 
MIDI notes with the pitch C1 are mapped to the Bass Drum sound.
InstrumentThe name of the drum sound.
QuantizeThis value is used when entering and editing notes as described in 
the sections 
“Creating and editing notes” on page 516 and “Moving, 
duplicating, or repeating notes” on page 517.
MuteAllows you to mute a drum sound, excluding it from playback, see 
“Muting notes and drum sounds” on page 517.
I-NoteThis is the “input note” for the drum sound. When this MIDI note is 
sent into Cubase, (i.
 e. played by you), the note is mapped to the 
corresponding drum sound (and automatically transposed according 
to the Pitch setting for the sound).
O-NoteThis is the “output note”, i. e. the MIDI note number that is sent out 
every time the drum sound is played back. 
ChannelThe drum sound is played back on this MIDI channel.
OutputThe drum sound is played back on this MIDI output. If you set this to 
“Default”, the MIDI output selected for the track is used. 
						

							516
The MIDI editorsDrum Editor operations
Drum map and names pop-up menus
Below the drum sound list there are two pop-up menus, used for selecting a drum 
map for the edited track or (if no drum map is selected) a list of drum sound names. 
For an explanation of drum maps, see 
“Working with drum maps” on page 518.
Controller display
The controller display in the Drum Editor is the same as in the Key Editor, see “Using 
the controller display” on page 502.
When you select a line in the drum sound list (to the left of the event display), only the 
velocity controller events belonging to the note events on this line are displayed in the 
controller display.
•If you select more than one line in the drum sound list, the controller lane shows all 
velocity controller events for all notes on the selected lines.
This helps you when having to adjust the controller values between different drum 
sounds.
Drum Editor operations 
The basic handling (zooming, playback, auditioning, etc.) is the same as in the Key 
Editor (see 
“Key Editor operations” on page 488). The following sections describe the 
procedures and features specific to the Drum Editor.
Creating and editing notes
The standard way of entering notes in the Drum Editor is to click with the Drumstick 
tool.
The position of the created note depends on the following factors:
•If Snap is deactivated on the toolbar, the note appears exactly where you clicked.
In this mode, notes can be positioned freely.
•If Snap is activated and Use Global Quantize is deactivated on the toolbar, the 
note snaps to positions according to the quantize value set for the sound in the 
drum sound list.
You can set up different quantize values for different drum sounds. You may for 
example want hi-hat notes snap to sixteenth notes, but snare and bass drum snap 
to eighth notes.
•If Snap and Use Global Quantize are activated, the note snaps to positions 
according to the Quantize setting on the toolbar.
The length of the inserted note is determined by the Insert Length setting on the 
toolbar. However, if this is set to “Drum-Map Link”, the note gets the length of the 
quantize value for the drum sound.
•You can quickly audition the drum sounds by clicking in the leftmost column in the 
drum sound list. 
This plays the corresponding note. 
						

							517
The MIDI editorsDrum Editor operations
•Clicking with the Drumstick tool on an existing note removes it. 
This makes drum pattern editing very quick and intuitive.
Selecting notes
Selecting notes is done by any of the following methods:
•Use the Object Selection tool.
The standard selection techniques apply.
•Use the Select submenu on the context menu (see “Selecting notes” on page 
494).
•Use the left and right arrow keys on the computer keyboard to step from one note 
to the next or previous note.
If you press [Shift] and use the arrow keys, the current selection is kept, allowing 
you to select several notes.
•You can also press [Shift] and double-click on a note to select all the following 
notes for the same drum sound.
Moving, duplicating, or repeating notes
To move or copy notes in the editor (to other positions or other drum sounds), you use 
the same methods as in the Key Editor: click and drag, use the arrow keys or Edit 
menu functions, etc. (see 
“Moving and transposing notes” on page 496). To help you 
identify the right notes, the drum sound names as defined in the drum map are 
displayed in the Pitch field in the Drum Editor info line and, when dragging notes in the 
event display, in the text fields displayed next to the mouse pointer.
There is one other thing to note:
If the moved/copied notes have different quantize values and Snap is activated but 
Use Global Quantize is deactivated, the largest value determines snapping. For 
example, if you are moving two notes, with the quantize values 1/16 and 1/4 
respectively, the notes snap to quarter notes (1/4).
ÖYou can also adjust the position of notes by quantizing (see “Quantizing MIDI and 
Audio” on page 134).
Muting notes and drum sounds
You can mute individual notes by clicking or enclosing them with the Mute tool or by 
using the Mute function on the Edit menu (see 
“Muting notes” on page 498).
Furthermore, if a drum map is selected (see “Selecting a drum map for a track” on 
page 520), the drum sound list has a Mute column. Click in the Mute column for a 
drum sound to mute that sound. Clicking the Solo Instrument button mutes all drum 
sounds other than the selected one.
Deleting notes
To delete notes, click on them with the Drumstick or Erase tool, or select them and 
press [Backspace].
!Please note that the mute state for drum sounds is part of the drum map. Therefore, 
any other tracks using the same map are also affected.  
						

							518
The MIDI editorsWorking with drum maps
Working with drum maps 
Background
A drum kit in a MIDI instrument is most often a set of different drum sounds with each 
sound placed on a separate key (i.
 e. the different sounds are assigned to different 
MIDI note numbers). One key plays a bass drum sound, another a snare, and so on.
Unfortunately, different MIDI instruments often use different key assignments. This can 
be troublesome if you have made a drum pattern using one MIDI device, and then 
want to try it on another. When you switch devices, it is very likely that your snare drum 
becomes a ride cymbal or your hi-hat becomes a tom, etc. – just because the drum 
sounds are distributed differently in the two instruments.
To solve this problem and simplify several aspects of MIDI drum kits (like using drum 
sounds from different instruments in the same “drum kit”), Cubase features so-called 
drum maps. A drum map is a list of drum sounds, with a number of settings for each 
sound. When you play back a MIDI track for which you have selected a drum map, the 
MIDI notes are “filtered” through the drum map before being sent to the MIDI 
instrument. Among other things, the map determines which MIDI note number is sent 
out for each drum sound, and so which sound is played in the receiving MIDI device.
A solution to the problem above therefore is to set up drum maps for all your 
instruments. When you want to try your drum pattern on another instrument, you 
simply switch to the corresponding drum map and your snare drum sound remains a 
snare drum sound.
Drum map settings
A drum map consists of settings for 128 drum sounds (one for each MIDI note 
number). To get an overview of these settings, open the Drum Editor and use the Map 
pop-up menu below the drum sound list to select the “GM Map” drum map.
This drum map is set up according to the General MIDI standard. For information on 
how to load, create and select other drum maps, see 
“Managing drum maps” on page 
520.
ÖAll settings in a drum map (except the pitch) can be changed directly in the drum 
sound list (see 
“The drum sound list” on page 514) or in the Drum Map Setup dialog 
(see “The Drum Map Setup dialog” on page 520). These changes affect all tracks that 
use the drum map.
About pitch, I-note, and O-note
This can be a somewhat confusing area, but once you have grasped how it all works 
it is not very complicated. Going through the following “theory” helps you make the 
most out of the drum map concept – especially if you want to create your own drum 
maps.
As mentioned earlier, a drum map is a kind of “filter”, transforming notes according to 
the settings in the map. It does this transformation twice; once when it receives an 
incoming note (i.
 e. when you play a note on your MIDI controller) and once when a 
note is sent from the program to the MIDI sound device. 
						

							519
The MIDI editorsWorking with drum maps
In the following example, we have modified the drum map so that the Bass Drum 
sound has different pitch, I-note, and O-note values.
I-notes (input notes)
When you play a note on your MIDI instrument, the program looks for this note number 
among the I-notes in the drum map. If you play the note A1, the program finds that this 
is the I-note of the Bass Drum sound.
This is where the first transformation happens: the note gets a new note number 
according to the Pitch setting for the drum sound. In our case, the note is transformed 
to a C1 note, because that is the pitch of the Bass Drum sound. If you record the note, 
it is recorded as a C1 note.
For example, you may want to place some drum sounds near each other on the 
keyboard so that they can be easily played together, move sounds so that the most 
important sounds can be played from a short keyboard, play a sound from a black key 
instead of a white, and so on. If you never play your drum parts from a MIDI controller 
(but draw them in the editor) you need not care about the I-note setting.
O-notes (output notes)
The next step is the output. This is what happens when you play back the recorded 
note, or when the note you play is sent back out to a MIDI instrument in realtime (MIDI 
Thru):
The program checks the drum map and finds the drum sound with the pitch of the 
note. In our case, this is a C1 note and the drum sound is the Bass Drum. Before the 
note is sent to the MIDI output, the second transformation takes place: the note 
number is changed to that of the O-note for the sound. In our example, the note sent 
to the MIDI instrument is a B0 note.
The O-note settings let you set things up so that the “Bass Drum” sound really plays 
a bass drum. If you are using a MIDI instrument in which the bass drum sound is on 
the C2 key, you set the O-note for the Bass Drum sound to C2. When you switch to 
another instrument (in which the bass drum is on C1) you want the Bass Drum O-note 
set to C1. Once you have set up drum maps for all your MIDI instruments, you do not 
need to care about this anymore – you just select another drum map when you want 
to use another MIDI instrument for drum sounds.
The Channel and Output settings
You can set separate MIDI channels and/or MIDI outputs for each sound in a drum 
map. The following rules apply:
•When a drum map is selected for a track, the MIDI channel settings in the drum 
map override the MIDI channel setting for the track.
In other words, the MIDI channel setting you make in the track list or Inspector for 
the track is normally disregarded. If you want a drum sound to use the channel of 
the track, set it to channel “Any” in the drum map.
•If the MIDI output is set to “default” for a sound in a drum map, the sound uses the 
MIDI output selected for the track.
Selecting any other option allows you to direct the sound to a specific MIDI output.
By making specific MIDI channel and output settings for all sounds in a drum map, you 
can direct your drum tracks directly to another MIDI instrument simply by selecting 
another drum map – you do not need to make any channel or output changes for the 
actual track. 
						

							520
The MIDI editorsWorking with drum maps
ÖTo select the same MIDI channel for all sounds in a drum map, click in the Channel 
column, press [Ctrl]/[Command] and select the desired channel. All drum sounds are 
set to this MIDI channel. The same procedure can be used for selecting the same 
MIDI output for all sounds as well.
It can also be useful to select different channels and/or outputs for different sounds. 
This allows you to construct drum kits with sounds from several different MIDI devices, 
etc.
Managing drum maps
Selecting a drum map for a track
To select a drum map for a MIDI track, use the Map pop-up menu in the Inspector or 
in the Drum Editor.
Selecting “No Drum Map” turns off the drum map functionality in the Drum Editor. 
Even if you do not use a drum map, you can still separate sounds by name using a 
name list (see 
“Using drum name lists” on page 522).
The Drum Map Setup dialog
To set up and manage your drum maps, select Drum Map Setup from the Map pop-up 
menu or the MIDI menu. This opens the following dialog:
This is where you load, create, modify, and save drum maps. The list on the left shows 
the currently loaded drum maps; selecting a drum map in the list displays its sounds 
and settings on the right.
ÖThe settings for the drum sounds are exactly the same as in the Drum Editor (see 
“Drum map settings” on page 518). As in the Drum Editor, you can click the leftmost 
column to audition a drum sound. 
ÖIf you audition a sound in the Drum Map Setup dialog and the sound is set to MIDI 
output “Default”, the output selected on the Output pop-up menu in the lower left 
corner is used. When auditioning a default output sound in the Drum Editor, the MIDI 
output selected for the track is used, as described in section 
“The Channel and 
Output settings” on page 519.
!Initially, the Map pop-up menu only contains one map: “GM Map”. However, a number 
of drum maps are included on the program DVD – how to load these is described 
below.