MewMMLPad

Tutorial — your first MewMMLPad session

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This tutorial walks through the basics of MewMMLPad in 7 steps. It assumes the standalone version, but the MML syntax is the same in the VST3.

Step 1: Make your first sound

Type the following into the text area and press the ▶ button.

A T120 O4 L8 V100 CDEFGAB>C
Symbol Meaning
A Channel A (MIDI ch 1)
T120 Tempo 120 BPM (moves the BPM slider in standalone playback)
O4 Octave 4 (middle C = C4)
L8 Default note length set to an eighth note
V100 Velocity (strength) 100
CDEFGAB>C Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Si, then the next-octave Do (> raises the octave)

When playback starts, a colored highlight scrolls across the editor showing which character is sounding right now.

Step 2: Change note length

A O4 C4 D4 E2 F1
Symbol Meaning
C4 Do (quarter note)
D4 Re (quarter note)
E2 Mi (half note)
F1 Fa (whole note)

The smaller the number, the longer the note (1 = whole, 2 = half, 4 = quarter, 8 = eighth …). Setting a default with the L command lets you omit the per-note length.

Step 3: Play on two channels

The letter at the start of each line (A–P) selects the channel. Splitting your music across lines lets channels play simultaneously.

A T120 O4 L8 V100 CEGCEGCE
B      O3 L4 V70  C4 G4 C4 G4

T sets the tempo. Since it affects the entire piece, the convention is to write it on channel A only — there is no need to repeat it on every channel.

Channel A plays a high arpeggio; channel B plays low chord roots.

Step 4: Rests and repeats

A O4 L8 CDER CDER [CDEFGAB>C<]2
Symbol Meaning
R Rest (with no length, uses the L default — here an eighth rest)
[...]2 Repeat the bracketed section twice

Like notes, rests use the L default when no length is given. To specify explicitly, write R4 (quarter rest), R16 (sixteenth rest), and so on.

Step 5: Play chords

The usual way is to use multiple channels, but tuplet notation also lets you pack several notes into one channel.

; A C major chord under the melody
A T120 O4 L4 V100 CDEF
B      O3 L4 V70  C C C C
C      O3 L4 V70  E E E E
D      O3 L4 V70  G G G G

Anything from ; to the end of the line is a comment.

Step 6: Change the built-in synth’s tone

Turn the On button in the header (right side) on to enable the built-in synth. The Settings button opens the synth settings panel, where you can pick a waveform (Sine / Saw / Tri / Square) and an ADSR per channel.

You can finish the piece using only the built-in synth, or combine it with an external instrument in your DAW. See the UI Guide for details.

Step 7: Use the VST3 in Cubase

MewMMLPad is a MIDI-output VSTi. In Cubase, route it like this:

Basic routing

  1. Insert an instrument (HALion, Kontakt, etc.) on an instrument or MIDI track.
  2. Set that track’s MIDI input port to MewMMLPad.
  3. Turn on monitoring (the speaker icon) for that track.
    • With monitoring on, MewMMLPad’s MIDI is delivered to the instrument in real time, whether the transport is playing or stopped.
  4. Press play on the Cubase transport — MIDI is output as written, and the instrument sounds.

Treating it as multi-channel MIDI

MewMMLPad’s channels A–P map to MIDI ch 1–16. To receive A–P on a single instrument track and play each MML channel with a different tone, set the MIDI channel at both ends to “All” (omni).

  • MewMMLPad output ch: set to All → every MML channel flows to the host on its original ch 1–16 (not collapsed onto a single channel).
  • Receiving VSTi input ch: set to All → the VSTi sees every channel that arrives (a multitimbral instrument sounds a different patch per channel).

With this setup, MewMMLPad’s channel A → MIDI ch 1 → VSTi part 1; B → ch 2 → part 2; … you can pour up to 16 parts into a single track.

Conversely, to “play all of A–P with a single tone”, fix the VSTi’s input ch to one channel and every MML channel flows into that tone.

Place MML as a MIDI clip via drag

Drag from the MIDI button in the header onto any track and the MML is placed as a MIDI clip. It is written out as an SMF with each channel on its own track.

The state at the moment you start dragging is used, so it reflects edits you made just beforehand.

Capture MIDI by recording

If you set a MIDI track to record while the transport is playing, MewMMLPad’s MIDI output is recorded onto that track.

  1. With routing in place, arm the MIDI track for recording (red record button).
  2. Start recording from the Cubase transport.
  3. When you stop, the MML’s content is written out as a MIDI clip on the track.

The VST3 has only been verified in Cubase (Windows). Routing in other DAWs has not been tested.

You have the basics down. For deeper expression (pitch bend, glissando, tuplets, key signatures, …), see the full command list in the MML Reference.

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