How To Work With MIDI In Logic Pro

When working with digital audio workstations (DAWs), there’s a hidden tissue that bridges the gap between imagination and the creation of musical ideas in the digital world. Short for Musical Instrument Digital Interface, MIDI is a universal language that allows you to use virtual instruments. Like other popular DAWs, Apple’s Logic Pro supports MIDI controllers, allowing you to play endless software instruments within the interface.

One of the most significant advantages of using MIDI is your freedom to edit and make adjustments to various parameters of your instrument, both before and after recording a MIDI section. If you’re new to the world of music production, working with MIDI might be quite overwhelming at first, but don’t worry! In this post, I will guide you through everything you need to know to build a solid foundation working with MIDI in Logic Pro.

Software Instruments Vs. Audio Tracks In Logic Pro

Before you start working with MIDI, you should know what it is used for. Generally, there are two types of tracks in Logic Pro: audio tracks and software instruments.

When working with microphones or electric guitars, you’d want to use audio tracks to use the inputs as your source for audio signals.

To use stock or third-party virtual instruments, you should create a software instrument track:

•  Click “+” at the top-left corner of the track header area.
•  Choose “Software Instrument” and click “Create.”

Software instrument tracks allow you to add various types of digital instruments, samples, and drum patterns to your projects. Besides MIDI sections, Logic also allows you to use the Step Sequencer to trigger notes, which works excellent for adding virtual drum kits.

Using A MIDI Controller In Logic

MIDI keyboard and controller surfaces are some of the most essential pieces of equipment any producer needs in their studio. Generally, these controllers offer a piano roll ranging from one or two octaves to a complete set of 88 keys to trigger notes. Moreover, more advanced models have various faders and knobs to control different parameters of your virtual instrument. In another post, I have listed the best MIDI keyboards for music production for different budgets.

Typically, Logic automatically detects your MIDI controller when you plug it into your computer, and you can start using it immediately. Click here if you have trouble connecting your MIDI controller to your Mac.

Tip: the control bar at the top of Logic’s interface is one of the first things you’d want to adjust upon installing Logic Pro. One of the things I’d like to add to the LCD at the top is the MIDI Activity (In/Out), which shows me which notes or chords I’m triggering on my keyboard in real-time.

What if you don’t have a MIDI controller? Can you still use software instruments in Logic? The answer is yes!

One of the ways you can use virtual instruments is via Logic’s Musical Typing feature:

•  Click “Window” From the top-center of your screen.
•  Select “Show Musical Typing.”

The Musical Typing tool in Logic allows you to use your Mac’s keyboard as a MIDI controller to trigger notes.

Another way to add MIDI notes to your software instruments is by using the pencil tool in the Editor menu, which I’ll explain in the next section.

Editing MIDI And Applying Effects

When you add a new software instrument, Logic loads up the “E-Piano” virtual instrument by default. You can change or make adjustments to your instrument by navigating to the Inspector menu:

•  Click the little “i” in a circle at the top-left of your screen to open the Inspector menu.
•  Click the middle of the instrument slot to make adjustments to the sound of your virtual instrument.
•  Click the right corner of the instrument slot to change your virtual instrument entirely.

Once you’ve chosen your instrument and shaped your sound, you can edit more details within the Editor Menu—press “E” on your keyboard to open the editor window.

If you want to add new MIDI notes to your section, use the pencil tool from the click tool menu at the top of the editor window.

The piano roll grid is the main section that dominates most of the editor window. It shows you where your notes are laid out on the grid. You can click and drag your notes horizontally to move them across the grid. Moving them vertically will change the note they trigger. Moreover, you can drag each end of a note to adjust its length.

From the left side of the editor menu, you can quantize notes so that they fall on the grid right on time. You can also adjust velocity and create interesting dynamics.

More often than not, MIDI sections tend to sound too robotic and monotonic. Thankfully, Logic offers many tools that can help you make MIDI instruments sound more natural.

One of the best ways to add more flavor to your MIDI tracks is using MIDI effects. The arpeggiator, for example, is a simple yet powerful tool that can turn a simple MIDI section into a complex melody and uplift the entire atmosphere of your project. It is one of the most underrated stock plugins in Logic Pro.

Here’s how you add the arpeggiator to a software instrument track:

•  Press “I” on your keyboard to open the Inspector Menu.
•  Click “MIDI FX” to open the pop-up effects menu.
•  Select “Arpeggiator.”

Final Thoughts On Working With MIDI In Logic

Using MIDI instruments opens many creative doors in your projects. Whether you want to add drums, strings, synths, or piano sections to your tracks, you can use MIDI to achieve your goal.

Bear in mind that you should only be working with MIDI instruments while your project is in the production stage. One of the first things you’d want to do to prepare your project for the mixing session is to turn your software instrument tracks into audio tracks. Not only does this create a mental commitment and make you stop endlessly adjusting your track, but it is also a fundamental step towards managing CPU usage in Logic and avoiding system overloads.

If you need more help with production, mixing, and mastering in Logic Pro, I highly recommend downloading my Free 6 Pillars To Learn Logic Pro Faster guidebook.