Download this project! Project Notes
This project produces random rich harmonic music.
Just listen to it, or:
Click on the conductor's hand to turn automatic feature cycling on/off.
Click on each instrument to turn it off/on.
Change the speed using the slider on the bottom.
Click on the metronome to switch between random intervals and ordered measures.
Click on the beat-dots to toggle between 3/4 and 4/4 measure.
Click on the graph-curve to choose melody patterns.
Click on the note symbol to toggle between rich chromatic (jazzy, red), structured diatonic harmony (green, fewer chord forms, romantic), or editor (quill, lets you define your own chord sequences).
Chromatic mode alternates random chords/forms/ornaments displaying standard chord notation. For melodies it only uses harmonic notes.
Diatonic mode shows chords in functional notation, improvises 4 sequences of random structured cadences consisting of 4 measures each, and then modulates to a different key alternating major/minor. For melody it uses the full diatonic gamut.
Composition mode lets you arrange a staff of music consisting of up to eight measures of functional chords. Click on the 'measure blocks' to cycle though the available symbols, choose 'repeat' where you don't need any further measures. Click on the reader to pause. Click on it again to resume. If paused, you drag the reader to any position desired. Click on repeat to move to the beginning.
have fun!
-Jens
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You are amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I ♥ this!
I love the music!
Thanks for the compliment!
So far, this project is so beautiful to listen to that I haven't been tempted to explore all the options you point to!! I can hardly wait to examine the downloaded project! Some people should be promoted to Scratch Masters...and you're one of the very first! Thanks!!
Great addition. Now I can use it as a backing track for my own playing and not have to guess as to what is coming next. Now if you could just write something to improve my own playing!
Wow. Great project with very intuitive interface.
Great! That's again a big improvement of an already amzing piece of software!
I have added the ability to define your own chord progressions.
Nice work! Much more musically complex than my little composer: (link to project)">(link to project) which just noodles around on a single chord.
I implemented some significant enhancements. So, everybody who's using it for background music on their computers please download it again and listen to it. Up until now 'Combo' let several instruments improvise harmonically to complex random chromatic chords, sounding rather 'jazzy'. The new version also features functional harmonic cadences and melodies made up of full diatonic gamuts, resulting in romantic 'song'-like sequences. I have also made a forum entry about this: (link to forums)">(link to forum)
how many million chords. i dont know which is most amazing, your knowledge of music or programming.
I restructured most of the code for better reading and tweaked some settings to improve and fine tune the listening experience.
The new costumes make an already nice program even better. I enjoy it for both background music and for some insight into the underlying music theory.
My piano machines are simple programming but this is true artistry! ... and very musical. Excellent project.
I added and modified some costumes to let the project display more of its underlying music theory (esp. ornaments).
Beautiful. How did you do it. This rocks!
See my posting, (link to forums)">(link to forum) for how to get MIDI output on a PC.
This is excellent - easily as good (if not better) than a lot of random music creation programs like Oblivion. Well done. This is definitely one to study in detail. Have a platinum disc.
It's getting better and better! I'm wondering what's coming next :)
Cool! I love the music!!!!!
I added some more chord variations, 'melody patterns', 'clean' and 'sophisticead' modes, and a metronome. This pretty much finishes it up for now.
Thanks again Martin, for that great idea with the vibraphone! As far as the somewhat boring 'voice'is concerned, I actually designed it that way. There's a quite complex algorithm to find notes in the 'voice' that stay the same, even though the chords change. That way I intend to create the impression of melodic cadences.
Jens: That's real impressive! Thank you for for integrating the vibraphone-sprite-idea and making it perfect with a whole combo. I had a look at your code: Deviding the random-duration by random-beats depending on the instrument is a very good idea to get structure in your music. Constructive criticism: You "voice" instrument 47 (should be "Orchestral Strings") doesn't sound like a typical voice instrument in my scratch and java-player: e.g 42, 49, 53, 54 seem to fit better. Also only one voice-note per duration sounds a little bit boring, whereas the bass and the vibraphone already playing convincing pattern. Last: I agree - It's amazing what you can do with SCRATCH! I hope it influences SQUEAK that way we discussed at: (link to forums)">(link to forum)