See how a pattern unfolds, edit a phrase together, and compare the result by ear. Open roll on a notebook pattern or choose Roll in Bay Compose.
Edit a phrase#
Written edits the authored notes. Click a note to select it, Shift-click to add/remove notes, or drag through empty space to select a box. All selects the notes visible in the current written cycle, across lanes.
- Use pitch +/− or Up/Down to transpose. Shift+Up/Down moves an octave.
- Use time ‹/› or Left/Right to nudge by one grid step. Drag a selected group to preview a pitch/time move; release to commit it.
- Duplicate places a copy immediately after the selected phrase. Copy keeps notes, chords, rests between notes and durations in the phrase clipboard. Shift-click empty space to set a destination, then Paste. Cmd/Ctrl+C, V and D work while the roll has focus.
- Vel +/− scales selected velocities. Delete, Backspace or Delete replaces selected authored notes with rests.
Each phrase operation checks the complete candidate source and commits as one undo entry. A held arrow, Delete or Backspace is the exception: its key repeats apply without a compile, and the run is checked once when the key is released — if that check fails, the phrase reverts to its text before the run. Cmd/Ctrl+Z and redo work from the roll; LED views refresh after undo. Keyboard edits belong to the focused roll. A source edit or an undo clears obsolete phrase anchors.
Time moves, duplication and copying require whole, integer-grid terms. Select all members of a stacked chord. Nested groups and alternatives support pitch, velocity and deletion in place; their time structure stays in Source. A move or paste into occupied notes, past the cycle boundary, or onto incompatible subdivisions refuses with an explanation and leaves source unchanged.
Single-note placement, pitch/time dragging, duration editing, right-click deletion and scale lock remain available. Coincident chord members have separate velocity bars. Weighted subdivisions retain their proportions and overlay lanes fill the same cycle width.
Explore the compiled result#
Result shows the consuming track's compiled events, including nested alternatives, Euclid, polymeter, ratchets, degrees, roman chords, randomness and transforms. Expressive literals open here when Written cannot represent them. Computed and arranged Pattern bindings also offer Result.
Choose 1, 2, 4 or 8 cycles, zoom horizontally, and scroll across the window. The window stops at the compiled period. Go jumps to a cycle; clicking or dragging the full-period overview changes the inspection position. Cycle and beat labels use the track's actual base-cycle length, including non-4/4 meters. Partial final cycles stay shaded; held notes retain their tails across windows and the loop boundary.
Sample patterns have lanes labelled with sample names and variants. :? and :* remain explicit runtime selectors. Numeric patterns show their values as horizontal segments. Chooser tracks use the engine-latched alternative, falling back to the initial branch when stopped.
When a pattern feeds several tracks, choose its consumer to inspect that track's transforms and instrument context. An unconsumed pattern offers compile preview: a disposable reference voice or sampler compiles it in the current song's key, meter and seed without editing or installing that program. Numeric previews display values; their audibility depends on a suitable voice.
Hear a range or variation#
Drag across the Result canvas to select a range, or choose window range. Audition range renders the selected track with its instrument, effects and scheduler timing. Repeat range replays that rendered buffer; this is an inspection preview restarted by the UI, not a sample-accurate arrangement loop. Stop preview and transport Stop end repetition.
When the song has a selected range, Use song selection in this roll maps it onto the roll's cycles. Play selection and Loop live tracks hand the roll's range (or its current window) to the song transport and play it live — unlike the preview buttons, these do move the song.
Variation rows use the same offline passage renderer: the base plays A and a candidate plays B, with the same range, source seed and captured macro values. Preview never writes the candidate into the document. Pin retains its verified, single-undo source transaction. Unsupported renders report an error, including hosted plugins that the current offline renderer cannot process.
The existing renderer accepts at most 60 seconds within the first four minutes and at most 128 bars. Inspection itself has no such period limit. A source edit, document switch or another preview taking the render slot retires stale audio. Range inspection and the preview buttons never seek or start the live song.
Inspect a pattern#
Inspector shows event count and density, peak overlapping voices, period, pitch range, consuming track/instrument and the pattern/track expressions. Select a Result event to see its payload, duration, velocity and available controls, plus its authored origin and governing argument when they belong to fresh local source. Generated notes remain projections of their expression.
Track control lanes show their own periods and step values, including cutoff, gain, pan, speed, pitch, variant and push. Units for named voice controls come from the compiler's field schema. These lanes describe compiled controls; playback samples them at event onsets.
Shared inspection#
Rolls, Steps alternatives, Bay period rows, the cycle explorer and the wheel share document/track cycle and source-atom selection. Previous/next and cycle rows inspect without transport commands; Follow resumes the track clock. View choices survive navigation and source anchors expire after edits.
The explorer pages 16 base cycles at a time through the full period. Timeline repeats use the true fractional period, with a labelled density band for sub-pixel repeats. Arranged parts retain local written domains. The wheel's existing lap limit labels truncated folds; use its cycle unit for long periods.
These are shared Rust views in desktop and browser. Related editing tools: Edit music in the notebook. Wheel controls: Read a rhythm as a circle.