What is MIDI?

MIDI is the acronym for Musical Instrument Digital Interface (file extension .mid, .midi or .rmi). Most people pronounce it "Middy". MIDI files are rather small. They are created with a special General MIDI keyboard. A good keyboard would cost you about $400-$500. This keyboard is plugged into the back of your computer if you have an internal MIDI device, or plugged into an external synthesizer. You need special software to create a MIDI. The sounds for all the instruments and pitches are preset on your sound card's synthesizer. So the sounds of the intruments will vary depending what kind of sound card you have. The way MIDIs are recorded is far different from recording other sound files such as Waves or mp3s. When you hit a key, a message is sent to the sound card saying that particular note is "on". When the key is released, that note is "off" The computer also records how long the note is played for and the velocity (how hard the key was struck). Not all people use keyboard to create MIDIs. Some programs will allow you to use the keyboard input option, or place all the notes and rests yourself on the staves. You can then add reverb or change the volumes. Links: Notation Software Inc. Cakewalk NoteWorthy Software, Inc.