Quantization (music)
Encyclopedia
In digital
music
processing technology, quantization is the process of transforming performed musical notes (which may have some imprecision due to expressive performance) to an underlying musical representation that eliminates this imprecision. The process results in notes being set on beats and on exact fractions of beats. The most difficult problem in quantization is determining which rhythmic fluctuations are imprecise or expressive (and should be removed by the quantization process) and which should be represented in the output score. For instance, a simple children's song should probably have very coarse quantization, resulting in few different outputted notes. On the other hand, quantizing a performance of a piano piece by Arnold Schoenberg
, for instance, should result in many smaller notes, tuplets, etc.
The most frequent application of quantization in this context lies within MIDI application software or hardware. MIDI sequencers typically include quantization in their manifest of edit commands. In this case, the dimensions of this timing grid are set beforehand. When one instructs the music application to quantize a certain group of MIDI notes in a song, the program moves each note to the closest point on the timing grid.
The purpose of quantization in music processing is to provide a more beat-accurate timing of sounds. Quantization is frequently applied to a record of MIDI notes created by the use of a musical keyboard
or drum machine.
Quantization in MIDI is usually applied to Note On messages and sometimes Note Off messages; some digital audio workstation
s shift the entire note by moving both messages together. Sometimes quantization is applied in terms of a percentage, to partially align the notes to a certain beat. Using a percentage of quantization allows for the subtle preservation of some natural human timing nuances.
In recent years audio quantization has come into play, with the plug in Beat Detective on all version of Pro Tools being used regularly on modern day records to tighten the playing of drums, guitar, bass etc.
The phrase "pitch quantization" can refer to pitch correction
used in audio production, such as Auto-Tune
.
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
processing technology, quantization is the process of transforming performed musical notes (which may have some imprecision due to expressive performance) to an underlying musical representation that eliminates this imprecision. The process results in notes being set on beats and on exact fractions of beats. The most difficult problem in quantization is determining which rhythmic fluctuations are imprecise or expressive (and should be removed by the quantization process) and which should be represented in the output score. For instance, a simple children's song should probably have very coarse quantization, resulting in few different outputted notes. On the other hand, quantizing a performance of a piano piece by Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
, for instance, should result in many smaller notes, tuplets, etc.
The most frequent application of quantization in this context lies within MIDI application software or hardware. MIDI sequencers typically include quantization in their manifest of edit commands. In this case, the dimensions of this timing grid are set beforehand. When one instructs the music application to quantize a certain group of MIDI notes in a song, the program moves each note to the closest point on the timing grid.
The purpose of quantization in music processing is to provide a more beat-accurate timing of sounds. Quantization is frequently applied to a record of MIDI notes created by the use of a musical keyboard
Musical keyboard
A musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument, particularly the piano. Keyboards typically contain keys for playing the twelve notes of the Western musical scale, with a combination of larger, longer keys and smaller, shorter keys that repeats at the...
or drum machine.
Quantization in MIDI is usually applied to Note On messages and sometimes Note Off messages; some digital audio workstation
Digital audio workstation
A digital audio workstation is an electronic system designed solely or primarily for recording, editing and playing back digital audio. DAWs were originally tape-less, microprocessor-based systems such as the Synclavier and Fairlight CMI...
s shift the entire note by moving both messages together. Sometimes quantization is applied in terms of a percentage, to partially align the notes to a certain beat. Using a percentage of quantization allows for the subtle preservation of some natural human timing nuances.
In recent years audio quantization has come into play, with the plug in Beat Detective on all version of Pro Tools being used regularly on modern day records to tighten the playing of drums, guitar, bass etc.
The phrase "pitch quantization" can refer to pitch correction
Pitch correction
Pitch correction is the process of correcting the intonation of an audio signal without affecting other aspects of its sound. Pitch correction first detects the pitch of an audio signal , then calculates the desired change and modifies the audio signal accordingly...
used in audio production, such as Auto-Tune
Auto-Tune
Auto-Tune is a proprietary audio processor created by Antares Audio Technologies. Auto-Tune uses a phase vocoder to correct pitch in vocal and instrumental performances. It is used to disguise off-key inaccuracies and mistakes, and has allowed singers to perform apparently perfectly tuned vocal...
.
Programs Using Quantization
- Power Tracks
- CubaseSteinberg CubaseCubase is a music software product developed by Steinberg for music recording, arranging and editing as part of a Digital Audio Workstation. It is one of the oldest DAWs to still enjoy widespread use...
- Nuendo
- Digital Orchestrator Pro by Voyetra
- Reason
- Pro ToolsPro ToolsPro Tools is a digital audio workstation platform for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, developed and manufactured by Avid Technology. It is widely used by professionals throughout the audio industries for recording and editing in music production, film scoring, film, and television...
- LogicLogic ProLogic Pro is a hybrid 32 / 64 bit digital audio workstation and MIDI sequencer software application for the Mac OS X platform. Originally created by German software developer Emagic, Logic Pro became an Apple product when Apple bought Emagic in 2002...
- SonarCakewalk SonarCakewalk SONAR is a digital audio workstation made by Cakewalk for recording, editing, mixing, mastering and outputting audio. The latest versions of the software are SONAR Home Studio 7, SONAR Home Studio 7 XL, SONAR X1 Producer Edition, SONAR X1 Studio Edition, SONAR X1 Essential Edition, and...
- Ableton LiveAbleton LiveAbleton Live is a loop-based software music sequencer and DAW for Mac OS and Windows by Ableton. The latest major release of Live, Version 8, was released in April 2009. In contrast to many other software sequencers, Live is designed to be an instrument for live performances as well as a tool for...
- RenoiseRenoiseRenoise is a contemporary digital audio workstation based upon the heritage and development of tracker software. Its primary use is the composition of music using sound samples, soft synths, and effects plug-ins. It is also able to interface with MIDI and OSC equipment...
- GarageBandGarageBandGarageBand is a software application for Mac OS X and iOS that allows users to create music or podcasts. It is developed by Apple Inc. as a part of the iLife software package on Mac OS X.-Audio recording:...
- FL StudioFL StudioFL Studio is a digital audio workstation developed by the Belgian company Image-Line. FL Studio features a graphical user interface based on a pattern-based music sequencer...
- ReaperREAPERREAPER is a digital audio workstation created by Cockos. It is distributed with an uncrippled evaluation license with a nag screen explaining the license cost. It is currently available for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X...
- RosegardenRosegardenRosegarden is a free software digital audio workstation program developed for Linux with ALSA and QT4. It acts as an audio and MIDI sequencer, scorewriter and musical composition and editing tool...
See also
- Time signatureTime signatureThe time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
- Note valueNote valueIn music notation, a note value indicates the relative duration of a note, using the color or shape of the note head, the presence or absence of a stem, and the presence or absence of flags/beams/hooks/tails....
- Auto-TuneAuto-TuneAuto-Tune is a proprietary audio processor created by Antares Audio Technologies. Auto-Tune uses a phase vocoder to correct pitch in vocal and instrumental performances. It is used to disguise off-key inaccuracies and mistakes, and has allowed singers to perform apparently perfectly tuned vocal...
- Quantization (signal processing)Quantization (signal processing)Quantization, in mathematics and digital signal processing, is the process of mapping a large set of input values to a smaller set – such as rounding values to some unit of precision. A device or algorithmic function that performs quantization is called a quantizer. The error introduced by...
- Quantization (sound processing)Quantization (sound processing)In signal processing and digital audio, quantization is the process of approximating a continuous range of values by a relatively small set of discrete symbols or integer values...
- Quantization (image processing)Quantization (image processing)Quantization, involved in image processing, is a lossy compression technique achieved by compressing a range of values to a single quantum value. When the number of discrete symbols in a given stream is reduced, the stream becomes more compressible. For example, reducing the number of colors...