Java Midi player

Greetings everyone, I am new to the community but have looked at many other posts and this seems like a very helpful place to newer programmers.

So I am supposed to make a code to output "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" using a loop/array..... I can do this just fine without trying to loop it with an array but when I do(this is the code I have posted) it just seems like the music scales up rather then play the music like I want it too....other then that it runs fine.
Does anyone have any suggestions on what I could do?
Also what would I have to do to play two instruments at the same time for this song?
Thank you.

Code:

---

import javax.sound.midi.*;

public class MusicB

{

            //Method: playNote

            //Description: Uses the MidiSynthesizer to play a single note.

            //Arguments:    int note: note to play (0-127)

            //                      int velocity: the velocity or volume of the note (0-127)

            //                      int duration: length of the note in milliseconds

            //                      MidiChannel: the instruments to play the note

              static void playNote(int note, int velocity,int duration, MidiChannel channels[])

            {


                        //start playing the note using instrument in slot 0

                        channels[0].noteOn(note, velocity);

                        //wait out the duration

                        try

                        {

                                    Thread.sleep(duration);

                        }

                        catch (InterruptedException e)

                        {

                        }

                        //stop playing the note

                        channels[0].noteOff(note);

            }

            public static void main(String[] args)

            {

                        // Initialize the synthesizer

                        Synthesizer synth = null;

                        try {

                                    synth = MidiSystem.getSynthesizer();

                        }

                        catch (MidiUnavailableException e) { }

                        try

                        {

                                    synth.open();

                        }

                        catch (MidiUnavailableException e)

                        {

                                    e.printStackTrace();

                                    System.exit(1);

                        }

                        // Define array for musical instruments / channels

                        int notes[] = {60, 60, 67, 67, 69, 69, 67, 65, 65, 64, 64, 62, 62, 61};
                        int velocities [] = new int [1];
                        int duration [] =  new int [1];



                        MidiChannel[] channels = synth.getChannels();
                        Instrument instruments[] = synth.getAvailableInstruments();
                                                // Then pick an instrument to load.
                                                // The following loads instrument number 101 into channel 0
                                                synth.loadInstrument(instruments[0]);
                                                channels[0].programChange(74);


                                                velocities[0] = 127;

                                                duration[0] = 400;

                                                int stop = 0;


                        // Play notes using the default for the channels

                                                while (stop < 14) {



                        playNote(notes[0], velocities[0], duration[0], channels);
                      stop ++;
                      notes[0] ++;
                     
                       
                }
            }

}

---

Code:

---

        int notes[] = {60, 60, 67, 67, 69, 69, 67, 65, 65, 64, 64, 62, 62, 61};
        int velocities [] = new int [1];
        int duration [] =  new int [1];



                        MidiChannel[] channels = synth.getChannels();
                        Instrument instruments[] = synth.getAvailableInstruments();
                                                // Then pick an instrument to load.
                                                // The following loads instrument number 101 into channel 0
                                                synth.loadInstrument(instruments[0]);
                                                channels[0].programChange(74);


                                                velocities[0] = 127;

                                                duration[0] = 400;

                                                int stop = 0;


                        // Play notes using the default for the channels

                                                while (stop < 14) {



                        playNote(notes[0], velocities[0], duration[0], channels);
                      stop ++;
                      notes[0] ++;

---

I am pretty sure the error must be in this array or loop somewhere....the rest I believe to be right.

Hello there, to be honest I haven't work with midi players before but I read you post and it attracted me, and a question occurred to my mind, in this part of you code

Quote:

---

playNote(notes[0], velocities[0], duration[0], channels);
stop ++;
notes[0] ++;

---

aren't you supposed to move from one note to other ?
does notes[0] ++ allow you to move from one element of the array to the second ? since I was taught to declare an int i=0 and add it by one each time in my while loop,

Code:

---

int i = 0;
while (stop < 14) {
                       
playNote(notes[0], velocities[0], duration[0], channels);
stop ++;
notes[i] ++;
 i++;
}

---

would that cause any problem ?

Thank you very much for your input!
For the first part, I am trying to use the playNote(notes[0], velocities[0[, duration[0], channels);
14 times and just allowing the variable "notes" to run my loop and move up one array value every time.... does that make sense?



I see what you are saying, using the i++ idea changed it but I am still not getting the desired result.... now it sounds as if it plays the first note and then plays the second note for the next 13 notes....

I used your i++ example and also changed it to this....(my int "stop" was meant to fulfill the i++ roll when I made it... I guess I just didn't put it in my code correctly!)

Code:

---

    int stop = 0;

                        // Play notes using the default for the channels

                                                while (stop < 14) {

                        playNote(notes[0], velocities[0], duration[0], channels);
                     
                        notes[stop] ++;
                        stop++;

---

and they produce the same result so I think they perform the same function so that is what I am at right now.

I just spied something else, you are always playing the same note[0]

Quote:

---

playNote(notes[0], velocities[0], duration[0], channels);

---

is what i understand right ? did you try to change the note[0] to note[stop] as well ?
since changing notes[stop] means nothing when you recall notes[0] in calling the method. Did I explained my point clearly ?

Quote:

---

playNote(notes[stop], velocities[0], duration[0], channels);
stop++
;

---

I am now in love with you. Worked great.
That was so simple I can not believe I did not see it.
Both of you thank you very very much for your help!

Now if anyone knew how I would have it use more than one instrument.... haha That question is a little harder I think....Requires more knowledge of the midi player.

you are totally welcome :) at that point i can't help you unfortunately cause I told you I don't have much knowledge about midi :) but I managed to help you with what you were facing :P
But you can sure get answers from Java docs

Haha I do not think many people are experienced with it...it is hard to even find anything on it on the web. That one I'll have to search a while more for.
Do you know how I could make my "int notes" array read those exact same number but just from like a .txt file? I can find lots of ways to do things that that with strings, but not as much with ints...
Is there a way to mark threads as solved or does a mod have to do that?

Code:

---

Scanner scanner = new Scanner(new File("c:\\song.txt"));
int [] notes = new int [14];
int i = 0;
while(scanner.hasNextInt()){
  notes[i++] = scanner.nextInt();
}

                        int velocities = 127;
                        int duration = 500;

                        // Define array for musical instruments / channels

                        MidiChannel[] channels = synth.getChannels();



                        playNote(notes[i++], velocities, duration, channels);

                     
  System.exit(0);
    }
    }}

---

build is successful and it even makes a sound....but it doesn't sound like ANY of the notes. Once again I think its some simple error I am not spotting.

in this you will face many errors I believe, one is that you have to reinitialize i or set another int, since

Quote:

---

int i = 0;
while(scanner.hasNextInt()){
notes[i++] = scanner.nextInt();
}

---

after this i will become 14, thus in

Quote:

---

playNote(notes[i++], velocities, duration, channels);

---

it will start from 14, isn't this right ?

I think you are correct, I originally had it written like

Code:

---

Scanner scanner = new Scanner(new File("c:\\song.txt"));
int [] notes = new int [14];
int i = 0;
while(scanner.hasNextInt()){
  notes[i++] = scanner.nextInt();
}

                        int velocities = 127;
                        int duration = 500;

                        // Define array for musical instruments / channels

                        MidiChannel[] channels = synth.getChannels();

i = 0;

                        playNote(notes[i++], velocities, duration, channels);

                     
  System.exit(0);
    }
    }

---

but that does the same thing, so I removed the "i = 0;" because it didn't seem to make a difference

you seem to perform one playNote since there is not loop over it, it only perform once, with one note, I think you have to put it in a for loop, try that.
One more thing

Quote:

---

notes[i++] = scanner.nextInt();

---

will start filling the array from index 1, thus making notes[0] null, manage to correct that

Another solution for doing this is using recursion method, it is really helpful and easy to do in you case. But do what is easier for you of course :)

Code:

---

Scanner scanner = new Scanner(new File("c:\\song.txt"));
int [] notes = new int [14];
int i = 0;
while(scanner.hasNextInt()){
  notes[i] = scanner.nextInt();
  i++;
}

                        int velocities = 127;
                        int duration = 500;

                        // Define array for musical instruments / channels

                        MidiChannel[] channels = synth.getChannels();
i=0;
                        if (i == 14)
                            return;
                        else

                        playNote(notes[i], velocities, duration, channels);

                        i++;
                        return;

---

look a little better now? hah Good catch with the array starting at 1 not 0...
As you can tell I tried to use recursion but I still have the same error with only playing one note....
Can't believe i didn't notice i forgot to add a loop on this program like I had on the other...but it was late, forgive me :)
I see you must be in a very different time zone hah.

hehe yeh it is 8:10pm at my place :) you ? actually I don't know about midi, so maybe the problem is with the notes you are using, i don't know. I'll check your code again, but i can't see any thing wrong with it, check your file and the notes you are using.

Hah here it is 9:30 AM!
the midi should be okay....just copy pasted from the other code that works and no changes.
the note should look like this right 63,34,64,65,34,23,45
just as an example....so 14 numbers with "," between them?

a great difference :P yes that is right. I don't know actually why is that happening.

Hmm, well I am glad it is so close that both of can not see any error haha, those were all my objectives for this!...Thank you for your help baf06! <3

and You are very welcome :) just a private question if you don't mind, r u a girl or a male ?:) since I sent you a msg that we are born in the same day :P

Maybe the OP is interested in jFugue; I use it myself and imho it's a great library.

kind regards,

Jos