Quantizing tempo of a live recorded MIDI track

[focusonsound]

Hi everybody,

i've got a live recorded piano MIDI track which varies very much in tempo (no click was used while recording). So, quantizing the track is not possible.
Is there any possibilty to fix this and to bringt the track to one tempo withou touching every MIDI note?

I'm using PT LE 7.4.

Greetings from Germany,

Daniel

[Murt]

Originally Posted by focusonsound

Hi everybody,

i've got a live recorded piano MIDI track which varies very much in tempo (no click was used while recording). So, quantizing the track is not possible.
Is there any possibilty to fix this and to bringt the track to one tempo withou touching every MIDI note?

You could try a combination of Identify Beat and Real Time Properties.
Or you could print the midi (record it to an audio track), use Identify Beat/tempo change (double click the small red triangle in the tempo timeline) and then use Elastic Audio to get it on the grid.
Identify Beat will determine an average tempo for you. It may be worth reading up on it first in the manual as it's a fairly long winded description to explain unless someone more eloquent can describe it more succintly.

[stonehenge]

if you just want to 'clean up' the track, then set the track to samples (not ticks) and use 'identify beat' to drop bar markers throughout the track to create a tempo map. you can then quantize the track (or parts of it).

if you want to get rid of the tempo changes, do the above, then... 'export midi' to save a midi file, 'import midi to track' in a new session with "import tempo map from midi file" disabled, set the tempo (in the ruler or transport).

either way, don't let the keyboard player hear it... unless it was you! ha ha.

[Fastermouse]

Could I do something similar with a vocal track? I woke up one day with an idea and laid it down before I forgot it. The sleepy, raspy sound of my voice is perfect for the song, ( and believe me, any vocal performance of mine that even works has to be kept) , but I am sure the tempo is less than perfect. So..?
I was actually planning on this as my next project, so good timing at least is in me somewhere

[Murt]

Originally Posted by Fastermouse

Could I do something similar with a vocal track?

Is it just vocals? or is there some musical or percussive backing with it? You know, something you can at least count bars to.
If you can count along to it (1 and 2 and 3 etc..) then you can identify the beat.
Put your session into Bars:Beats.
Make sure the conductor in the transport is highlighted.
The first downbeat of your song is beat 1 of course and should start at Bar 1 on your timeline.
You can trim the start of the track temporarily so it starts exactly on the first downbeat of the song.
Cut and paste the track so it starts exactly at Bar 1 on the timeline.
Play the track and count a few bars in starting at Bar 1, to say, eight bars in (not to the timeline but to what you count). Place your cursor there, then 'Event' 'Identify Beat' and type 8 into the Location, (or however many bars you choose to count to that point in the song), click OK.
The far left of the tempo timeline should now show the approximate BPM in those first 8 bars.
Click on Bar 1 in the track . Double click the small red triangle in the tempo timeline to bring up the tempo change box and type in the new tempo. This should now give you a grid to work to. Like I said, my description is a bit long winded.

[Fastermouse]

Thanks Murt, I do have an acoustic guitar track that I put down first. I just didn't use a click so the tempo is not right on. I have a decent sense of time but I'm sure there is some, shall we say, flow to it. The existing guitar is crap sounding and I want to add some other tracks.

[Murt]

Should have said, when you identify the beat/bpm, create a click track. At least you got something to play in time with then. And if you add midi drums they will lock to the click.

[ondruspat]

I've had no problem quantizing a "live" (no click) MIDI track with Identify Beats. I've found the trick is to switch the tracks timbase from Ticks (which a MIDI is by default) to samples before placing your bar/beat markers. If you try to do this before switching the timebase the MIDI note slide around.

After placing your bar/beat markers switch the timebase back and you can snap them all to whatever tempo you want. With audio track just put them in Elastic Audio after you mark the bar/beats, switch their timebase to ticks, and they'll follow your tempo changes also.

Conversely, I also use Identify Beats a lot to have MIDI tracks follow live jams (some have too cool of a groove to even want to quantinize them).