MIDI
CP1 Owner’s Manual
71
Appendix
MIDI
Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) is a global standard designed to allow performance, voice, and other data to
be transferred between musical instruments As such, data communication is assured even between musical instruments
and equipment from different manufacturers.
In addition to data generated by playing the keyboard or selecting a Performance, a wide range of other information
types — such as tempo and instrument controls — can also be exchanged via MIDI. Using the powerful functionality
provided by this technology, therefore, you can not only play other instruments using your CP1’s keyboard and
controllers, but you can also change pan and reverb settings for each part and adjust audio effect settings. In fact,
practically all of the parameters that can be set using the CP1 control panel can also be remotely controlled from another
MIDI device.
In this section, data and values will be displayed in binary, decimal, and hexadecimal formats. In order to indicate
hexadecimal values, an “H” is displayed at the beginning of the data line or after the values themselves. Furthermore, “n”
is used to represent an arbitrary integer (or whole number).
MIDI Channels
Any item of MIDI performance data can be transmitted
and received on one of sixteen MIDI channels. Therefore,
performance data for up to sixteen different instrument
parts can be simultaneously exchanged over a single
MIDI cable.
MIDI channels are very similar in nature to TV channels,
in that each TV station transmits its broadcasts on a
specific channel. Your TV, for example, receives many
different programs at the same time from different TV
stations, and you select which program to watch by
choosing the corresponding channel.
In much the same way, multiple transmitting devices in a
MIDI system can each be set to send data on a separate
channel (i.e., a MIDI Transmit channel), which link with
the system’s receiving devices via MIDI cables. If a
receiving device’s MIDI channel (i.e., a MIDI Receive
channel) matches a MIDI Transmit channel, the receiving
device will produce sound according to the data sent by
the corresponding transmitting device. For details
regarding MIDI Transmit and MIDI Receive channels, see
page 58 of the Reference section.
MIDI Channels & MIDI Ports
While the maximum number of channels supported by
the MIDI standard is sixteen, it also provides for
individual “MIDI ports”, each of which can handle sixteen
channels. Whereas a single MIDI cable is limited to
sixteen channels, a USB connection is capable of
handling far more — thanks to the use of these ports.
With each MIDI port capable of handling sixteen
channels and each USB connection providing for up to
eight ports, you can use a total of 128 channels (8 ports x
16 channels) with a computer. When the CP1 is
connected to a computer or another MIDI device via
USB, a single port is sufficient for the exchange of data,
and therefore, this instrument supports just one port.
Supported MIDI Message Types
Broadly speaking, MIDI messages can be divided into
two groups — channel messages and system messages.
A description of each different type of channel message
and system message supported by the CP1 is provided
below. Further details can be found in the
MIDI Data
Format
and
MIDI Implementation Chart
sections of the
Data List
booklet.
Channel Messages
MIDI channel messages contain performance-related
information, and each one is sent on a specific MIDI
channel.
Note On & Note Off
Note On and Note Off messages are generated when a
keyboard is played. Specifically, a Note On message is
produced when a key is pressed; a Note Off message,
when it is released. Each of these messages contains a
specific note number corresponding to the key that was
pressed, in addition to a velocity value indicating how
hard the key was struck.
MIDI note numbers range from 0 (C -2) to 127 (G8), with
middle C (C3) represented by 60. Velocity values, which
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Weather Report
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MIDI cable
CP1
MIDI keyboard or synthesizer
(such as the MOTIF XS)
