Split at selection boundaries?

[LGK_Dude]

I'm looking for a quick way to split at selection boundaries. For example, I have a MIDI note that lasts for 2 bars, but I want to select from 1.3-2.3 and have it create splits in the note at these points. Right now I'm manually moving my cursor to those positions and using the "split at counter" key command, but perhaps there is a way to split at selection boundaries instead?

[Shooshie]

Shooting in the dark, here, because DP isn't open, and I don't want to wait for it to load, but what would happen if you CUT & PASTE? Just Command-X/Command-V?

Would it cut the section out, then replace it in exactly the same spot, but with splits? I don't know, so be sure to save before trying it, though UNDO should fix everything.

Shooshie

[LGK_Dude]

Good idea. Tested and confirmed it works for audio, but unfortunately for MIDI it doesn't seem to do anything (note remains unchanged).

[FMiguelez]

I know you can do this with soundbites... You just invoke the command and the SB splits at the selection boundaries.
There must be another command in the Edit menu with a similar name. Perhaps just plain Split (command-Y)?

I don't know if it will work with MIDI, but worth a try.

Also, check if the pasted MIDI note is behind the long one with the tip Shooshie just gave you. Temporarily move the long note to reveal if the paste was done.

[Shooshie]

Well, I'm not firing on all cylinders today. I completely missed the word MIDI. I thought we were talking audio. Scanning too fast.

That would not work for MIDI. MIDI is a single event that happens at point X, with a length of Y. You cannot select it anywhere but at X. Selecting anywhere in Y brings up nothing, because all the information about that event is back at X, including its length, or when to stop playing it. Maybe some DAW allows you to do that, and interprets it for you, but DP isn't that DAW.

Shoosh

[Robert Randolph]

Is there only 1 note?

Why can't you just create a time selection and split?

I seem to be missing something here maybe?

• I-beam tool
• Select area
• Split (cmd-y)

[Shooshie]

Wow! That's great! If I ever knew that, I've forgotten it.
Kind of assumed that he had tried "Split," and it hadn't worked.
So DP IS the DAW that does that. Man, I thought I knew all the MIDI tricks, but you just taught me one I'd missed. Thanks, Robert!

LOL... that tickles me.

Shooshie

[stubbsonic]

Command-Y works on a MIDI note. That's a new one for me. Not sure how often I'd need that, but I'm filing that in my brain right now!!

[LGK_Dude]

THANK YOU! Split is indeed the key command I was looking for! Dont know how I missed it!

[Shooshie]

I've always used Split Notes in an entirely different context in MIDI. Or am I thinking of something else? If you select a track, or a bunch of tracks, you can split apart lines according to rules you state in a dialog. Apparently if you select a range within a single note, the dialog doesn't even come up. It just splits the note according to the selection. That's fantastic to know! Oddly, it seems familiar, but I just don't remember.

Shooshie

[Shooshie]

It looks like that's another fancy way to cut notes to fit the grid, too. Robert's grid is set to beats, so you can select a single beat, split notes, and you've got your note on the beat grid. That would even work for cutting off the beginning of a note that's before the grid.

Another way to do that is to set your grid constraint to quarter note, or ⅛ note, etc., then drag the scissors over a long note. Maybe you have to hold down the shift or command or option key. I always get it after a couple tries. That gives you a series of cuts on the grid lines. Great for creating a lot of similar-length, pre-quantized notes.

Shooshie

[Shooshie]

Ok... Finally! I'm sitting in front of DP again, and I can speak about the Split conundrum without guessing. There are three Split commands that I can see.

Split: COMMAND-Y
Split at Counter: OPTION-Y
Split Notes: COMMAND-MINUS (works with either keypad or regular minus sign)

1) Split behaves as Robert demonstrated above: it's a time-range or point selection. Select with I-Beam and hit Command-Y to split at selection or selection borders.

2) Split at Counter: Similar to the above, but cuts where the counter is. Option-Y

3) Split Notes: Select one or more track(s), hit COMMAND-MINUS and a dialog opens.

Note that it has instructions for whether to copy or cut, and where to send the notes.

Number 3 (Split Notes) is the one I'm most familiar with. I've edited a tip on Number 1 (Split) in the Tips Sheet, so it's something I've just forgotten over the years, not commonly using it. But I definitely want to remedy that and use it more often now.

As for the trick of chopping a long MIDI note into lots of similar-length notes by dragging across it with the Scissors, the modifier key is OPTION. OPTION-DRAG with Scissors makes notes the size of whatever your grid resolution is set to. If you want...
Quarter Notes, set to 1|000
Eighth Notes, set to 0|240
Sixteenth Notes, set to 0|120
32nd Notes, set to 0|060
64th Notes, set to 0|030
etc.
Works on chords as well as individual notes. Even in multiple tracks at once. Just whatever is selected in the MIDI Window.

Many thanks to Robert for setting us on the right path with the Split command.

shoosh