Creating Notes

Learn how to add new notes to your composition.

Methods of Creating Notes

Method 1: From the Variable Widget

1. Select an existing note in the workspace
2. Open the Variable Widget
3. Find the "Add Note" section
4. Choose an option:
   • Add at Start+Duration: New note starts when the selected note ends
   • Add at Same Time: New note starts at the same time (for building chords)

Method 2: Load a Module

1. Open the Module Bar
2. Drag a module onto the workspace
3. The module's notes are loaded

Method 3: Edit Module JSON Directly

For advanced users, notes can be added by editing the module JSON:

{
  "notes": [
    {
      "id": 1,
      "frequency": "module.baseNote.getVariable('frequency').mul(new Fraction(3, 2))",
      "startTime": "module.baseNote.getVariable('startTime')",
      "duration": "new Fraction(1)",
      "color": "rgba(255, 100, 100, 0.7)",
      "instrument": "sine-wave"
    }
  ]
}

Note Properties

Every note has these core properties:

Property	Required	Description
id	Yes	Unique identifier (auto-assigned)
frequency	Yes	Pitch as a ratio or expression
startTime	Yes	When the note begins
duration	Yes	How long the note plays
color	No	Display color (default assigned)
instrument	No	Sound to use (default: sine-wave)

Default Values

When you add a note via the Variable Widget, it inherits sensible defaults:

Add at Start+Duration

{
  startTime: selectedNote.startTime + selectedNote.duration,
  frequency: selectedNote.frequency,
  duration: selectedNote.duration,
  instrument: selectedNote.instrument
}

The new note:

• Starts immediately after the selected note
• Has the same frequency
• Has the same duration

Add at Same Time

{
  startTime: selectedNote.startTime,
  frequency: selectedNote.frequency.mul(new Fraction(5, 4)),
  duration: selectedNote.duration,
  instrument: selectedNote.instrument
}

The new note:

• Starts at the same time (for chords)
• Has frequency 5/4 times the selected note (major third)
• Has the same duration

Building Sequences

To create a melody (notes playing one after another):

1. Create the first note
2. Select it and choose "Add at Start+Duration"
3. Edit the new note's frequency
4. Repeat for each note in the sequence

Each note's start time automatically references the previous note's end time.

Building Chords

To create a chord (notes playing together):

1. Create the root note
2. Select it and choose "Add at Same Time"
3. Edit the new note's frequency (e.g., 5/4 for major third)
4. Select the root again and add another note
5. Edit its frequency (e.g., 3/2 for perfect fifth)

All notes share the same start time.

Note ID Assignment

• IDs are auto-generated sequentially (1, 2, 3, ...)
• ID 0 is reserved for the BaseNote
• IDs are stable - deleting a note doesn't renumber others
• References use IDs: module.getNoteById(5)

WARNING

Avoid manually editing note IDs in JSON. Duplicate IDs cause undefined behavior.

Tips

1. Start from presets: Load an interval or chord module as a starting point
2. Use dependencies: New notes automatically depend on the selected note
3. Build incrementally: Add one note at a time, test with playback
4. Check dependency lines: Blue lines show what your new note depends on