Steinberg Cubase Le 8 Manual

							MIDI Editors
Key Editor Operations
451
Events other than velocity values are shown as blocks. The block corresponds to 
the event values. The beginning of an event is marked by a curve point.
NOTE
Unlike note events, controller events have no length. The value of a controller event 
in the display is valid until the beginning of the next controller event.
Key Editor Operations
This section describes the principal editing operations within the Key Editor.
Drawing Note Events with the Draw Tool
The Draw tool allows you to insert single note events in the note display. The 
horizontal position of the note event corresponds to the time, the vertical position to 
the pitch.
When you move the cursor inside the note display, its position is indicated on the 
status line. Its pitch is indicated both on the status line and on the piano keyboard 
to the left.
• To draw a note, click in the note display.
The note event has the length that is set on the Length Quantize pop-up 
menu. 
						

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• To draw longer note events, click and drag in the note display.
The length of the note event is a multiple of the Length Quantize value. If 
Length Quantize is set to Quantize Link, the note value is determined by the 
quantize grid. The Snap function is taken into account.
Drawing Note Events with the Line Tool
In the note display, the Line tool allows you to draw a series of contiguous note 
events along different line shapes.
• To create contiguous note events, click and drag in the note display.
• To restrict movement to horizontal, press [Ctrl]/[Command] and drag.
The notes have the same pitch.
If Snap is activated, the note events and controller events are positioned and sized 
according to the Quantize and Length Quantize values.
RELATED LINKS
The Line Tool Modes on page 452
The Line Tool Modes
The Line tool allows you to create a series of contiguous note events along different 
line shapes. You can also edit multiple controller events simultaneously.
To select a different line mode, click the Line button and select a mode from the 
menu.
The following line modes are available:
Line
If this option is activated, you can click and drag to insert note events in the 
note display along a straight line in any angle. Use this option to edit controller 
data along a straight line in the controller display.
Parabola, Sine, Triangle, Square
These modes insert note events along different curve shapes.
Paint
This mode allows you to insert note events by painting in the note display. 
						

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Moving and Transposing Note Events
There are several options to move and transpose note events.
• To move note events in the editor, select the Object Selection tool and drag 
them to a new position.
All selected note events are moved, maintaining their relative positions. Snap 
is taken into account.
• To allow only horizontal and vertical movement, hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] 
while dragging.
• To move note events via the Nudge Palette buttons on the toolbar, select the 
note events and click a Nudge Palette button.
This moves the selected note events by the amount that is set on the 
Quantize pop-up menu.
• To move note events to the project cursor position, select the note events and 
select Edit > Move to > Cursor.
• To move a note event via the info line, select a note event and edit the 
Position or Pitch on the info line.
• To transpose note events, select the note events and use the up and down 
arrow keys.
• To transpose note events via the Transpose Setup dialog, select the note 
events and select MIDI > Transpose Setup.
• To transpose note events in steps of one octave, press [Shift] and use the up 
and down arrow keys.
NOTE
• When you move selected note events to a different position, any selected 
controllers for these note events move accordingly.
• You can also adjust the position of note events by quantizing.
R
ELATED LINKS
Transpose on page 422
Resizing Note Events
Do one of the following:
• To resize the note event, position the Object Selection tool at the start or the 
end of a note event and drag the mouse cursor to the left or right.
• To move the start or end positions of the selected notes in steps according to 
the Length Quantize value on the toolbar, use the Trim Start/End buttons 
on the Nudge palette.
• Select the note and adjust its length on the info line. 
						

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• Select the Draw tool  and drag left or right with in the note display to draw 
a note.
The resulting note event leng th 
 is a multiple of the Length Quantize value on 
the toolbar.
• Select the Tr
 im tool and cut off the end or the beginning of note events.
R
ELATED LINKS
Using the Setup options on  page  627
Editing in the Info Line on  page  28
Using the Trim Tool on  page 454
Resizing Events Using Time Stretch on  page 117
Using the Trim Tool
The Trim tool allows you to change the length of note events by cutting off the end 
or the beginning of notes. Using the Trim tool means moving the note-on or the 
note-off event for one or several notes to a position defined with the mouse.
PROCEDURE
1. Select the  Trim  button on the toolbar.
The mouse pointer changes to a knife symbol.
2. To edit a single note, click on it with the  Trim tool.
The range between the mouse pointer and the  end of the note will be removed. Use 
the mouse note info on the status line to fi nd the exact position for the trim operation.
3. To edit several notes, click and drag with the mouse across the notes.
By default, the Trim tool cuts off the end of notes. To trim the beginning of notes, 
press [Alt]/[Option] while dragging. When  dragged across several notes, a line is 
displayed. The notes will be trimmed along  this line. If you press [Ctrl]/[Command] 
while dragging, you will get a vertical trim lin e, allowing you to set the same start or 
end time for all edited notes. You can cha nge the Trim tool key commands in the 
Preferences dialog (Editing–Tool Modifiers page).
Splitting Note Events
Do one of the following:
• To split the note at the position that you point, click on a note with the  Split 
tool.
If several notes are selected, they are al l split at the 
 same position. The snap 
setting is taken into account. 
						

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• To split all notes that are intersected by the project cursor position, select  Edit 
> Functions > Split at Cursor .
• To split all notes that are intersected by the left or right locator at the locator  positions, s
 elect Edit > Functions > Split Loop.
Gluing Note Events
You can glue together note events of same pitch.
• To glue note events, select the  Glue tool 
 and click on a note event.
The note event is glued together with the next note event of the same pitch. 
The
  result is a long note event that spans from the start of the first note to the 
end of the second note and with the proper ties (velocity, pitch, etc.) of the first 
note event.
Changing the Pitch of Chords (Cubase Elements only)
You can use the chord type buttons to change the pitch of chords.
PROCEDURE
1. In the  Inspector, open the  Chord Editing  section.
2. In the note display, select the notes that you want to edit.
If the chord is recognized, the root note, chord type, and tensions are indicated in the 
Chord Type field. This also works with arpeggiated notes.
3. In the Chord Editing  section, activate one of the  Triads buttons or  4-Note 
Chords  buttons.
The selected notes are transposed so that they fit the selected chord type.
4. Use the up or down arrow keys on your computer keyboard to change the 
pitch of the chord.
Changing the Voicing of Chords (Cubase Elements only)
PROCEDURE
1. In the  Inspector, open the  Chord Editing  section.
2. In the note display, select the notes that you want to edit.
3. In the Chor
 d Editing section, use the  Inversions buttons and the  Drop 
Notes buttons to change the voicing.
RESULT 
The selected notes are transposed so that they fit the selected chord type. 
						

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Chord Editing Section (Cubase Elements only)
The Chord Editing section in the Inspector allows you to insert and edit chords, 
and change voicings.
Chord Type
Shows the chord type of the selected chords.
Add to Chord Track
Adds the chord indicated in the Chord Type field to the chord track. The 
chord event is inserted at the position on the chord track that corresponds to 
the position of the MIDI notes. Any existing chord events at this position are 
overwritten.
Match with Chord Track
Applies the chord events from the chord track to the selected notes in the 
MIDI editor. The chord event that is effective at the position of the first 
selected note is applied to the selected notes, which are then transposed. 
Only the basic chord type is applied. Tensions are not taken into account.
Only the first effective chord event is applied.
Triads
Allows you to insert triads to the note display. You can also click one of the 
Triads buttons to transpose the selected notes so that they fit to the selected 
chord type.
4-Note Chords
Allows you to insert 4-note chords to the note display. You can also click one 
of the 4-Note Chords buttons to transpose the selected notes so that they fit 
to the selected chord type.
Inversions - Move highest note to bottom
Inverts the highest note of a chord. The corresponding notes are transposed 
by as many octaves as needed. 
						

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Inversions - Move lowest note to top
Inverts the lowest note of a chord. The corresponding notes are transposed 
by as many octaves as needed.
Drop Notes - Move the second highest 
 note an octave lower
Moves the second highest note of a chord down by one octave.
Drop Notes - Move the third highest note an octave lower
Moves the third highest note of a chord down by one octave.
Drop Notes - Move the second and fourth highest notes an octave lower
Moves the second and fourth highest notes of a chord down by one octave.
Make Chords Performs a chord analysis of the selected notes. If nothing is selected, the 
w
hole MIDI part is analyzed.
Inserting Chords (Cubase Elements only)
You can use the tools in the  Chord Editing section of the  Inspector to insert and 
edit chords.
PROCEDURE
1. In the Inspector, open the  Chord Editing section.
2. Select Tool  to the right of the chord type that you want to insert.
3. Click in the note display, drag to the left or right to determine the length of the  ch
 ord. Drag up or down  to determine its pitch.
To change the chord type while you insert chords, hold [Alt]/[Option] and drag up or 
down.
If Acoustic Feed
 back is activated, you hear the chord while dragging. A tooltip 
indicates the root note and chord type of the inserted chord.  Snap and Length 
Quantize  are taken into account. 
						

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Applying Chord Events to Note Events (Cubase Elements only)
You can apply chord events from the chord track to notes in the MIDI editor.
P
REREQUISITE 
Create a chord track and add chord events.
PROCEDURE
1. Open the MIDI editor.
2. In the Inspector, open the  Chord Editing  section.
3. Select Match with Chord Track .
RESULT 
The first chord event of the chord track is applied to the selected notes. Only the 
bas
 ic chord type is applied. Tensions are not taken into account.
Drum Map Handling (Cubase Elements only)
When a drum map is assigned to a MIDI or instrument track, the  Key Editor displays 
the drum sound names as defined by the drum map. This allows you to use the  Key 
Editor  for drum editing, for example, when editing drum note lengths or when 
editing several parts to  identify drum events.
The name of the drum sound is displayed in the following locations:
• On the info line in the  Pitch field.
• On the status line in the  Mouse Note Po
 sition field.
• In the note event if the zoom factor is high enough.
• When dragging a note event.
Editing Note Events via MIDI
Since you can directly hear your editing results. Editing the properties of note 
events via MIDI can be a quick way to, for example, set the velocity value of a note 
event.
PROCEDURE
1. In the  Key Editor, select the note event that you want to edit.
2. Click  MIDI Input  on the toolbar.
Editing via MIDI is enabled. 
						

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3. Use the note buttons on the toolbar to decide which properties are changed by the MIDI input.
You can enable editing of pitch, note-on an d/or note-off velocity. For example, with 
the following setting, the edited notes get  the pitch and velocity values of the notes 
input via MIDI, but the note-off velocities remain as they are.
4. Play a note on your MIDI instrument.
RESULT 
The selected note gets the pitch, velocity an d/or
  note-off velocity of the played note. 
The next note in the edited  part is automatically selected , to allow quick editing of a 
series of notes.
A
FTER COMPLETING THIS TASK 
To try another setting, select the note again and play a note on your MIDI instrument.
Step Input
Step input, or step recording, allows you to enter note events or chords one at a 
time without worrying about the exact timing. This is useful, for example, when you 
know the part that you want to record but ar e not able to play it exactly as you want 
it.
PROCEDURE
1. On the toolbar, activate the Step Input   button.
2. Use the note buttons to the right to determine which properties are included  w
 hen you insert the note events.
For example, you can include the velocity and/or note-off velocity of the played notes. 
You can also deactivate the pitch property, in which case all notes get a pitch C3, no 
matter what you play.
3. Click anywhere in the note display to  set the start position of the first note 
event or chord.
The step input position is shown as a blue line in the note display.
4. Specify the note event spacing and length with the  Quantize and Length 
Quantize  pop-up menus.
The note events that you insert are positioned according to the  Quantize value and 
have the length of the  Length Quantize value.
NOTE
If Length Quantize  is set to Quantize Link , the note length is also determined by the 
Quantize value. 
						

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5. Play the first note event or chord on your MIDI instrument.
The note event or chord appears in the editor and the step input position advances 
by one quantize value step.
NOTE
If Move Insert Mode  is activated, all note events to the right of the step input position 
are moved to make room for the inserted note event or chord.
6. Continue in the same way with the rest of the note events or chords.
You can adjust the  Quantize or Length Quantize  values, to change the timing or 
note event lengths. You can also move the step input position manually by clicking 
anywhere in the note display.
To insert a rest, press the right arrow key on the computer keyboard. This advances 
the s
 tep input position by one step.
7. When you are done, click the  Step Input button again to deactivate step 
input.
Using the Controller Display
The Controller Display displays the contro ller events. By default, the controller 
display has a single lane that shows one event type at a time. However, you can add 
as many lanes as you need. The use of several controller lanes allows you to view 
and edit different controllers at the same time.
Each MIDI track has its own controller lane setup (number of lanes and selected 
e
 vent types). When you create new tracks, they get the last used controller lane 
setup.
The controller display with three lanes.
• To add a controller lane, click the  Create Controller Lane button  or open 
the  Controller Se
 lection and Functions  menu and select Create Controller 
Lane.
• To remove a controller lane, open the  Controller Selection and Functions 
pop-up menu and select  Remove this Lane.
This hides the lane from view. It does not affect the events in any way.