MIDI

Arkestra has a comprehensive MIDI system via MIDIKit. You can map MIDI CC values and note on/off messages to any parameter, macro, chain selection, scene trigger, or snapshot restore.

Connecting a MIDI device

MIDI devices are auto-detected when connected. Open the MIDI tab (piano keys icon) in the right panel to see connected devices and enable/disable them.

MIDI Learn

The fastest way to assign MIDI:

1. Right-click any parameter → MIDI Learn
2. A “waiting for MIDI” indicator appears
3. Move the knob/fader on your hardware
4. The assignment is made immediately

Manual mapping

Right-click any parameter → Map to MIDI → … to open the MIDI mapping sheet and manually choose:

• Channel (1–16 or Any)
• Message type: CC, Note, Program Change (PC), or Pitch Bend (PB)
• CC number (for CC type)
• Min / Max range scaling

Mapping to non-parameter targets

MIDI can also control:

• Chain selection — trigger a specific chain index on a track
• Scene trigger — fire a scene
• Snapshot restore — restore a snapshot slot
• Track Macros / Chain Macros — macro knob values

All of these use the same right-click → MIDI Learn or Map to MIDI workflow.

Note mapping

When a parameter is mapped to a Note, the mapping sheet offers:

• Note number — the specific note (0–127) to listen for, or Keytrack mode to respond to any note
• Channel — 1–16 or Any
• Mode — Gate (note-on → 1.0, note-off → 0.0) or Toggle (each note-on flips between 0.0 and 1.0)

In Gate mode you can additionally enable:

Option	What it does
Velocity	Drives the value from the note’s velocity instead of a fixed 1.0
Keytrack	Maps the note number to a value — lower notes give lower values, higher notes give higher values
ADSR	Shapes the output contour with an Attack / Decay / Sustain / Release envelope, using a local envelope or a shared Global ADSR

Pitch bend

Pitch Bend (PB) mappings use the pitch wheel on a selected MIDI channel as a live 0–1 control source. Learn it the same way as any other message — move the pitch wheel during MIDI Learn, or choose PB in the mapping sheet and set the channel manually.

Default-to-zero preference

A Default CC to zero toggle in MIDI settings controls what CC, pitchbend, and PC-mapped parameters read before any MIDI data arrives. When on, they show 0 until the first message; when off, they hold their saved position.

MIDI clock

Arkestra can sync its internal tempo to an incoming MIDI Clock signal. Enable this in the MIDI tab (piano keys icon) in the right panel.

See also Ableton Link → for network-based tempo sync.

LED feedback

Arkestra sends MIDI feedback to supported control surfaces. Track fader positions and chain selection states are reflected as LED states on the Launch Control XL and APC40 MkII when set up via the Control Surface section in the MIDI & Sync panel.

The Surface menu next to each device also offers ready-made profiles for the Akai APC Mini MK2, Korg nanoKONTROL2, Novation Launchpad Mini MK3 and Native Instruments Traktor Kontrol F1. These depend on how the hardware is configured, so Arkestra never activates them automatically — pick one from the menu.

Traktor Kontrol F1

The F1 profile matches the default MIDI template in NI Controller Editor (everything on MIDI channel 13). Switch the F1 to MIDI mode with Shift + Browse.

Control	Arkestra
Pads (4×4)	Columns are tracks 1–4, rows trigger chains 1–4
Stop buttons	Next chain on tracks 1–4
Filter knobs	First track macro on tracks 1–4
Volume faders	Track faders 1–4

For colored pads, open Controller Editor and set each pad’s LED to for MIDI In with color mode Indexed. Pads then light in the track’s color — bright for the active chain, dim for the track’s other chains, and off where the track has no chain.