INSTRUMENTS
Melody sequencer with scale, key and chord awareness
Twelve keys and ten scales, from Ionian to the pentatonics, with a piano roll that locks to the scale so wrong notes are harder to hit. Import a progression from the Chord Progression Generator and the chord tones light up on the grid while it plays underneath.
Try it
- Pick a key and a pentatonic scale, and write a short melody without leaving the highlighted keys. Then switch to Dorian without erasing anything: the same melody moves into the new scale.
- Go to the Chord Progression Generator, generate a progression and click "Write the melody". Notice the chord tones marked on the grid, and write over them.
- Try a preset's variations by clicking the same pill a few times, then export the melody as MIDI for your DAW.
What to listen for
The same eight notes read as a hook with a pluck timbre and as a texture with a pad. Melody and timbre are not separate decisions, they shape each other. The first note of each chord span is pulled into the chord: the difference between a melody that fits the harmony by luck and one that fits it on purpose.
Harmony first
This tool is about melody. For the harmony underneath, the Chord Progression Generator builds chords in any key and exports them ready to import here.
This tool is one part of the picture. Electronic Music Production for Beginners covers the rest.