Using the MIDI Transposer Plugin

1 Import MIDI file

Import the MIDI file ‘LPX Chromatic Scale. mid’ into a project and assign it a Software Instrument track. Hit ‘Play’ to hear all 12 notes within one octave of the MIDI keyboard.

2 Insert Transposer

In the track’s channel inspector, click on the slot that says ‘MIDI FX’ and choose Transposer from the list. The control panel window pops up.

3 Major change

Switch the Scale selector to Major. Notice how the black keys have gone dark, meaning that they’ve now been removed from the available selection of notes.

4 Play it back

That’s because these notes aren’t in a C major scale. Play the chromatic scale now and we only hear the white notes – the black notes have been ‘quantised’ to the white keys.

5 Get the blues

Try another scale – such as Minor Blues. The display shifts to highlight the notes in this scale that our MIDI part will be corrected to – C, D#, F, F#, G, and A#.

6 Import audio

The plugin works as you play in real time too. To demonstrate, import the file ‘LPX Em Backing Track’ to an audio track. This is a basic track recorded in the key of E minor.

7 For the record

Back on the synth track, click the Transposer’s bypass switch to disable it for now. Press record and play in a random set of notes, like the one above.

8 Oh dear

On playback, it’s obvious that this doesn’t fit with the audio track, as there are loads of notes that aren’t in the scale of E minor, and it just sounds wrong!

9 Minor surgery

Now re-enable the Transposer and change the scale’s Root note to ‘E’ and the Scale to ‘Minor Pentatonic’. Hit play now, and things suddenly sound a whole lot better!