Melodyne - Direct Note Access 

For those of you hating on this program .. Of course there's going to be major labels pumping out mainstream bubble gum garbage with pretty boy and pretty girl singers who can't actually sing - I don't listen to that kind of music and I'm hoping you guys don't either if you actually care about "talent"- but if we toss that aside, there are great applications for this : For one, creating a composition DOES take talent, and there's really no shortcuts around that. If someone is a great composer due to a bunch of time invested in composing, yet their singing isn't 100% on point yet - why hate on them for using this to tweak a few syllables here and there? They're obviously still talented, they just haven't developed their voice enough. Do you think they should wait 2-3 more years to perfect their voice before releasing an album that is completely finished aside from all but their vocals being recorded? That's ridiculous, and is called Stagnation. For two, Melodyne is great for sound design in many ways as well. Especially the new version that allows you to manipulate the harmonics of a sound, and transfer the timbre of one instrument onto another.. It's not JUST for vocal tuning. If any of you think that you can just be a "talentless asshole" and buy Melodyne and become a superstar.. Why don't you all give that a try? I guarantee you will still need to invest years and years before you start cranking out tracks that actually have value - vocal tuning or not. Melodyne, or any other plug-in on the market, is not a magic solution for music. Open your minds to the future of technology and our expanding capabilities as a race. Use your tools tastefully.

still stunning tech 13 years later - real mad scientist stuff

It's incredible. This tool really can make a producer change the melody and music after the recording, saving a lot of time and money.

This is by far the sickest plug-in I've ever seen. I want this so bad.

style is the key though man. You'll never lose your style, that's something the people who've become pros in less than 24 hours will never have. Keep working the way you've been working, and you'll see who comes out on top. Hard work always will pay off.

This is the most profound development musical software I have ever seen. Ever.

Yes, with Melodyne you can also edit the timing of your vocals and line them up.

I have just installed this amazing program and I'm the happiest man on the world right now, This is what I was waiting for for the last 10years! I'm planning to buy their sound banks very soon cos it seems soooooooo coooool and user friendly! Thanx Celemony, YOU ROCK! :))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

I'm completely ignorant as to post production alteration of music, and I still find this amazingly fascinating...

Peter, I am speechless. No matter what any of your detractors say, this is a huge leap forward in music technology. Felicidades. Congratulations. Kudos. Peopple like you make the world turn around. Saludos desde Mexico!

This has to be the BEST PROGRAM EVER INVENTED when you think of how when you play a instrument,it can be moved

Wow...I'm speechless and stunned. Didn't think this was gonna happen that fast.

@TheLily0121: Melodyne can convert an audio file to MIDI, which is a representation of the notes in a "language" that a keyboard can speak. Import that MIDI file into a competent DAW, and it can turn the MIDI file into a score of notes.

This is phenomenal. Absolutely incredible. You can record an entire album from getting someone to play one note. Well, I know that's how indie works anyway, but a GOOD album...

The song is by Nina Deli. In the video you can see her MySpace address while the song is playing.

Check their website, they have already announced their first DNA product at the NAMM Show. It's called Melodyne editor now, but it is basically Melodyne plugin + DNA + a standalone version.

Dude, do you realize that tools like this allow "real musicians" to have an entire new platform for creation and self expression. The old methods are still available, but these new ways of producing open up so many doorways to creativity.

So essentially you could record a single chord of, say, lengthy duration, and a single note of a short duration, once for each instrument you ever come across, and then you can technically write any song with any instruments in the world. It'd take only as long as writing a score out by hand. The two durations and style of note-playing would be required for strum vs. pluck, legatto vs. stacatto, etc etc. Absolutely incredible!!

Okay, I checked out the product's site and it does, in fact, work with Garageband '08. I can't wait to use this.

It does. It's like a godsend for audio editors.

i mean, i'm impressed but i think the potential for this technology has been there...it just took someone who understands musical physics, electrical engineering and programming like tiger woods understands the put, the chip and the drive just gotta wait around for the right two people to initiate mitosis. according to that philosophy, we are waiting for a lot of cool stuff. yesssssssss

JESUS! This is the coolest thing I've ever seen by far! So revolutionary and.. amazing!

This is insane. I've been dreaming this for years. Now it's coming reality. Thanks, Melodyne!

Holy crap. This is amazing!!! Plain amazing!!! Modify the notes within a chord? Wow. I am impressed!

It is a wonderful day indeed when the talent so many musicians like me have strived to attain for so many years can be purchased by any talentless hack off the street for less than a thousand dollars. Thanks, Melodyne!

Exactly. I don't care if someone sucks, if the end product pleases my ear, then they I am happy. 90% of musicians never get heard of. Becoming popular is not about talent as much as image and targetting audiences... I am a artist, not a professional musician. I do music as a hobby and tools like these offer me near limitless possibilities. The ability to turn a monologue into a singing part in a song is incredible... and so on and so forth

it's the same really. spending the extra 1/2 hour to nail it in the studio will not only sound great on the recording, but will also help you to correctly sing it live.

That actually WAS a serious question. You perhaps could have answered, say: considering the tech limitations of RU-vid, I'd cut out a little (say 2 dB) at 3 Khz (medium Q), and perhaps bring in a little high end: shelving, around 6.5 Khz. I'd also cut out a little bottom end, say Hi pass at 120 Hz. I'd also add de-esser to make it sound less hissy. I'm making up this stuff - none of this is really necessary in a RU-vid vid, but the values and names I provided should give you a hint.

The inventor of this software used to be clean shaven but the year he spent locked away programming Melodyne DNA took its toll on him Such is the price of genius. In all seriousness, this plugin will basically become industry standard in basically every studio in existence, so these people are going to make a lot of money. The amount of applications for this kind of tech are limitless. This is huge.

Unbelievable!!! I have been dreaming of this since many, many years. This german inventor is a freakin genius!

My mouth is watering over this

yeah, the tecnology is really amazing

@666CarcassGrinder999: The Melodyne studio bundle includes Melodyne editor. And yes, editor is currently the only product with DNA.

I see this as a time and money saver. Both of which I don't have a lot of. I do a lot of composing in the studio, and this program would allow me to create harmonies and create transitions at home. I could take tracks home from the studio, mess around with them, spark ideas, and bring them back to the studio to record. I wouldn't worry about the artists who use it to auto-tune and Quantize. Just wait till their suckered fans see them live. There's nothing more honest than a live performance.

This is amazing no doubt, and goes beyond autotune applications; we now have the technology to build a REAL MUSIC DATABASE including all pitches and chords of all pieces ever written, and "search by melody" or "find out title of a song by singing it or playing it on piano" that DOESN'T depend on crowd sourcing. We have the ability to build an "anti-plagiarism" check for composers who can check if their melody already exists in the entire human history of music, before forging ahead. We can also have an automated method to find out exactly which songs have the same melody as each other and whether or not songs did plagiarize, because now computers can decipher pitches. Too bad Melodyne is holding onto it as proprietary technology, and these services won't become a reality in the near future!

there are two branches of music; The Album focused music and the live performance music. Personally, I am a big fan of live performance music but I love the studio album and it's perfection. This is an awesome piece of software!

WOW just WOW!!!!! I've dreamt that I can do this with vinyl samples for decades, Now I can!!!!

you are right! -dries a tear-

THIS TAKES SAMPLING TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL! O.O

This is so unbelievably fantastic, it's scary!!

This stuff is wizardry. I saw it work last weekend in the studio.

It's out already. Check the Celemony website and look for "Melodyne editor".

I looked Melodyne up quikc. They offer a studio program that allows you to lay out entire tracks. This particular feature is strickly a melody morphing program, so yes, this video is not about creating songs. But they only show one thing it could be used for. I can think of atleast 12 right now that I could use this for that would be so wicked and don't involve editting a bad recording...

I know i´m a intruder, cuz averyone here love this program, but this thing is killing music, i mean, ANYONE can sing with this, it proffs that SINGERS CANT SING. This guy who you say is a genius had created a program that make everyone sounds perfect. Thanks ``Genius´´

OMG the exmaples in the video don't really show what new oppertunities are now available ... this is awesome

You can use this as a VST plugin within Ableton and most DAW programs...and yes, the pros use this more than we all know.

It will work on a mix as well! Check out the vids to the right, and go to the melodyne DNA preview at music messe march 2008. It is pretty mindblowing!

Its amazing for vocals exceptionally, and good for mistakes or toying around with ideas or writing music.

Both plenty of potential and plenty of conjecture around this software. The caveat is that this demonstration has been carefully prepared to demonstrate it's abilities - that doesn't mean every moron with an interest in making music will be able to make it function the way we see it here in real world circumstances. Take earlier versions of Melodyne as an example. The audio to midi function is fantastic in theory, but unless your input is virtually flawless there is still a lot of work involved.

@rubbernecker1983 Yes, Melodyne can do that. After you have recorded your voice, the program analyses your material and displays it as notes (or "blobs") on your screen. You can even export them to a MIDI file and import them into some notation software. This feature is called Audio-to-MIDI. Check the Celemony homepage for details.

that said, i'm for a little pitch correction. if it's not noticeable, i say use it. if all your vocal parts are blending perfectly you can get the elusive "5th note." it's a 4 part harmony that, combined, creates a 5th part. it's hard to do live, but with pitch correction it's easy. that's why i like the antares software better. you have to be closer to the note, otherwise it's very noticeable.

Witchcraft! Witchcraft, I tell you!

thank you for the quick response. i'm definitely gonna upgrade to Studio One Pro V2 since they have Melodyne integration.

This is absolutely amazing!

Direct Note Access wasn't meant for making an entire song out of one chord. It's original application was for loop libraries for variation in the tracks. But if you put something like this out where anyone can get it, they can use it for whatever they want to.

Thanks man. I think the song is really peaceful.

@bluecafe69: You don't find any info because this feature is not out yet! Beta test is scheduled for late August. Check their homepage and search for "Melodyne editor". That's what the product will be called.

MIDI is a kind of "sound file" that contains only the notes of musical instruments. Midi players then "play" the notes on virtual instruments. If you´re using windows then go ahead and open C:\windows\media\onestop.mid in windows media player =)

I think that any of those artists in todays worl would take advantage of the technology available to them to expand their art to places they never imagined. Musicians are artists... Time is their canvas... In todays world, Technology is as much their brush as the instruments and methods of the old times. Just because you can record something quick and make it sound decent doesn't make you a mozart. There has to be understanding of song composition and an ear for music... That is the talent

Live shows will always be the best judges.

Die deutsche Version ohne englische Übersetzung ist auf der Celemony-Homepage zu finden. Einfach oben links "deutsch" auswählen und im Menü "Melodyne" > "Direct Note Access" anklicken. :)

There will always be new techniques to challenge the old ones - and always has been. And there will always be people who say the new ways are cheating. How ever, no matter how simple some steps in the process of creation may get, you will see that the true artists are those who work hard to push the boundaries even further, no matter what the technique is. Some might have though drum machines would replace real drums. Well, have they? There will always be room for different ways of expression.

I don't think it can get much lower than it already is. I think this is great. I see it as an easier way to explore and find just the right sound I'm looking for. I can play guitar rather well, but my singing is terrible. Of course, I'd love to work on my vocals and get better, but in the meantime, it would be nice to get some of my songs recorded with the vocals I have in mind, rather than the off key garbage that comes from my throat. This tool can be used for good or evil.

this is just genius..can't wait to try it out!

This is absolutely amazing!! Can't wait for the new version :)

es ehrt mich, mit jemandem wie dir gemeinsam auf YT sein zu dürfen! :P

Tested on two simple piano songs and it got almost all of it wrong. Almost got excited for a second there.

if you add the left right signal together and reverse the phase of one channel the lead vocal is often removed

I never like modifying a recording to make it sound right - if I make a mistake in recording I much prefer to just do the whole part again. But apart from that this would be utterly fantastic for making acapellas and instrumentals out of already recorded tracks...

I've read so many comments like "This will make crap musicians/singers good" etc. No-it will not create instant talent. Just like the autotune progs, if it is sung badly-no amount of tuning will fix it. Now, if there's one guitar chord, re-played w/a keyboard, it still takes keyboard chops to pull it off, or if it was programmed-same thing-programming skills would be required. To use this thing, you'll have to know what the heck you're doing. It will require talent.

@CrankCase02 I don't understand your criticism. Currently it clearly says on the front page of their website that 1.3 is the latest version of Melodyne editor (the one with DNA built in). There is also an update check option in the preferences which works pretty well for me. Also, the Melodyne installer from your myCelemony account is always the latest version. And finally, Celemony has a forum and great e-mail support, so there are plenty ways to get the sort of information you are looking for.

Its really smart, but dont fool yourself with the "no sound difference/quality" comment. its simply not true, the notes will get an distorted/warped/chorus-like sound when you move the notes around more drastically, and you would'nt want to use this in song only containing guitar and vocal for instance. But in a mix, this will of course be very hard to distinguish.

I listed 12 things on paper that I would like to use this technique on. I said atleast 12 incase I called on what things I had 12 things to list. I beleive that the possibilities are nearly limitless

Das Video ist aber auch sehr schön gemacht! Respekt an den Videoersteller!

If it isn't a good song then all the technology in the world can't make it any better...

Yeah, they kinda forgot to mention that it needs clear, sharp audio, you can't have anything with soft fades or transitions. I'm sure it just slipped their minds.

i see what people are sayin about it making anyone sound good and it "killing" music. but on the flip side, if the artist or band is not good to begin with, their lack of music skills/singing will show live and that in the end will bit them in the arse. so in my opinion, melodyne is pretty cool

to those saying melodyne killed midi tell me how melodyne will pick up what my master keyboard is sending it. it's about communication not editing

Great, purely and simply awesome.

Lets face it, there are things you absolutely cannot accomplish playing live... I actually saw a whole orchestra play live electronica songs by one musician. There was 30 or 40 people playing at once to achieve what one man did with a computer. It is absolutely incredible, but just because he did it on a computer doesn't make me appreciate it less.

I'm very impressed! Oh my...

MIDI or Musical Instrument Digital Interface doesn't have a sound. It's not a sound file. MIDI emulates an instrument depending what chords your press. MIDI doesn't and never will transmit audio signals, what it is, it's an event. An electronic protocol.

this looks so awesome... and yet I have a feeling it's going to destroy what little is left of modern music.

why do you all hate bout that? it's a nice tool to correct the shit that I cry into my microphone.

This has to be some kind of alien technology

nah they didnt, midi is still, and will most deffo stay, an important part of music- and noiseproduction. but working out the recorded material with this awesome piece of software will make ANY (post-) production MUCH MORE easier... its a freaking revolution!!

I still can't see why I should hold caution over this. I think its awesome that Joe-blow can sound like a professional singer. Or Jane-doe can play a guitar riff and edit out a couple mistakes. It offers ameture artists a ground for improving their sound. In the end, being able to reimagine your recordings leads to creative growth because the artist is motivated to improve To me there seems to be no danger. Truely talented artists still stand out, especially with so many ways to be heard today.

Yes, Melodyne can do that too. It's called "Audio to MIDI".

That's just so amazing! I'm realy impressed. On the other hand: You now do not really need exeptionally skilled musicians, anymore, do you?

and another point of music isnt in just the song itself, its in the performance of the song

melodyne is freaking awesome!!

See my video description, I added a link to Nina Deli’s song.

A producer's job in the studio is to help the band (or singer/songwriter) craft the tune into a "masterpiece" BEFORE it gets committed to tape (or to Hard Disk these days). NOT to cut/paste/digitally manipulate AFTER. Yes, this product is amazing. Yes, it allows for new things to be done. But most of you are so impressed by what it CAN DO, that you won't admit that just it because it CAN be used to do something, does not mean that it should.

haha go on. nothing gets me more than when a producer basically makes the song and the band gets credit for it.

Sorry, I thought I was on a different video. DNA isn't out yet. I was referring to the current Melodyne Studio.

You are officially the World champion in the "Best Comment" category.

wow... rather than outright reject this because it's so offensive, i'd like to see a real artist get his /her hands on it and get creative

Yeah! Now's my chance! Seriously, I don't see this as any more of a tool than a keyboard. I use Vegas, but it doesn't really have any music-making capabilities - - just loop generation. I got a keyboard for that, but there's NO replacement for a tight drum roll and jazz riff -- a trilling trumpet and a long note from a violin. I see this Melodyne tool as just allowing more fine-tuning and post-production editing.

live music is REAL magic

DNA is not out yet. The demo you have is obviously an older version. Look out for "Melodyne editor", the first product with DNA. Beta test is supposed to start end of May or early June.