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Tyler Stowe
MIDI is an acronym for Musical Instrument Digital Interface. It is a standard communication protocol for transmitting data between instuments and computers. MIDI does not transmit an audio signal or voltage. It transmits a set of binary values called MIDI Events. These events allow for a musical performance to be recreated by another instrument or be sequenced by a DAW. MIDI Events can be thought of as a representation of notation. These Events include, note pitch, note velocity, after touch, pitch bends, note start and stop, etc.
A MIDI connection typically uses a five pin connector cable. A MIDI connection is capable of transmittting sixteen channels of MIDI data. This data is captured and transformed into binary values called MIDI Events. These events have a possible value between 0-127 for a total of 128 because 0 is considered the first value. There are three types of MIDI Events: MIDI Control events, System Exclusive Events, and Meta Events. System Exclusive Events(SysEx) signals an instument to change sounds or patches in a live performance. Meta Events are about the project itself like song titles and sequence number.
In the late 1970s, a new standard of communication was needed, but more specifically a digital protocol which allowed instruments for different manufactures to synch up and communicate. In 1981, Dave Smith and Chet Wood propsed such an idea at the Audio Engineering Society convention. Two years later the first public connection was made between a Sequential Circuits Prophet-600 and a Roland Jupiter-6 at the winter NAMM show.
