159 lines
7.2 KiB
Markdown
159 lines
7.2 KiB
Markdown
+++
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title = "Importing audio and MIDI"
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description = "Importing audio and MIDI files to Ardour tracks"
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chapter = false
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weight = 4
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+++
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You can reuse existing audio and MIDI files by adding them as regions on
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existing or new tracks. To do so, press the **Ctrl+I** shortcut or go to the
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`Session > Import` menu to open the _Add Existing Media_ dialog, pick a file of interest, and import it.
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{{< figure alt="Add Media" src="en/ardour7-add-existing-media.png" >}}
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Some settings are the same for audio and MIDI, some are format-specific.
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## Playing existing files
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Before you import a file, it's a good idea to make sure it's the right one. On
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the right side of the _Add Existing Media_ dialog you will see a section
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allowing you to inspect the properties of the file you selected. Here you will
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see the name, number of channels, sample rate, format and length of the sound
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file, along with any tags you have chosen to add to the file.
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The **Play** button allows you to preview the file. You can also select
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**Auto-play** if you would like to hear a sound file immediately as soon as
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you click on it in the file browser (without having to push the **Play**
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button).
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For MIDI files, you can select a virtual instrument that will be used to play
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the selected MIDI file, although you won't be able to select a particular
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synth patch.
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## Choosing Tracks and Insertion Point
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There are some common scenarios for importing media files: importing multiple
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audio files as new tracks and inserting them into the session start, importing
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multiple audio files to the list of of available sources for later use,
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importing one MIDI file into an existing track at the playhead position, etc.
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So there are two important options here: where to insert a region generally
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(which track, if at all), and which point of the timeline to insert to.
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The _Add files …_ drop-down list if where you choose the former, and the
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_Insert at_ drop-down list is where you choose the latter.
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## Inserting to Sources list
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Let's start with the scenario where you import some audio files into the list of sources.
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{{% notice tip %}}
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If you do not have any suitable audio files on your hard drive to follow these
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steps, visit [freesound.org](http://www.freesound.org/)), where you can find a
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large collection of Public Domain and Creative Commons–licensed samples in a
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variety of sample rates and formats.
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{{% /notice %}}
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Select some files and in the _Add files…_ drop-down list choose _to source
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list_. Make sure the _Mapping_ options says _one region per file_.
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{{< figure alt="Add to source list" src="en/ardour7-to-source-list.png" >}}
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You will notice that the option _Copy files to session_ is checked by default.
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This will make a copy of the imported file(s) into the folder of the current
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session. This is safer, but it uses more disk space. If you uncheck this option
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(not recommended!), Ardour will use the sound file from its current location on
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the hard drive. In this case, if the file is moved to a new location on the hard
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drive, you will run into trouble, because Ardour won't be able to find it the
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next time you open this session. **It is highly recommended that you leave this
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box checked (_Copy files to session_)**.
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Click **OK** to proceed.
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The file(s) you have imported will appear listed in your _Sources_ list. This
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list is located at the far right of the editor window. If you don't see it,
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make sure _Show Editor List_ is checked under the _View_ menu.
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{{< figure alt="Editor List" src="en/ardour7-audio-imported-to-sources-list.png" >}}
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By dragging and dropping an audio file listed on the _Sources_ list onto the
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main canvas, you can insert it in an existing or new track. If you drag it into
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an existing track, it will be added there. If you drag onto the empty space
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beneath existing tracks, a new track will be automatically created to
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accommodate it.
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Release the mouse button to complete the drag-and-drop operation. A new region
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will be inserted at the exact time point where you dropped it.
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{{% notice tip %}}
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If a sound file is selected in the Editor List (i.e., if it is highlighted in
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blue), the next time you click on that file name, Ardour will think you are
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trying to rename the region (the name will become editable). More likely you
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were just trying to click to drag and drop the file onto a track. In order to
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click and drag a previously _highlighted_ region from the list, you need to
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point and click in the empty space right before or after the name.
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{{% /notice %}}
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Important: always make sure you are placing stereo regions on stereo tracks. If
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you drag a stereo file onto a mono audio track, only the left channel will be
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used. In the screenshot below, a stereo file with very distinct left and right
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channels was dragged onto a stereo track and a nono track. Notice that in the
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mono track only the left channel is displayed (and played back).
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{{< figure alt="Stereo Mono" src="en/Ardour4_Stereo_Mono_Comparison.png" >}}
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## Importing Directly to a Track
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As mentioned earlier, the _Add existing media_ dialog also allows you to import
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audio files directly onto tracks.
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Choose _Add files… as new tracks_ to automatically create a new track and add
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the selected file to it. The track will be named after the sound file name.
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{{< figure alt="Add as New Tracks" src="en/ardour7-import-as-new-tracks.png" >}}
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If you have previously selected one or more tracks, the menu will display the
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additional option _Add files… to selected tracks_ to add a sound file into the
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already existing selected track.
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Note that if you import a multitrack MIDI file, Ardour will always create one new track per one existing track in the MIDI file and map them accordingly.
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When adding files as new tracks, note that the _Mapping_ options lets you
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choose between _one track per channel_ and _one track per file_. For the
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purpose of this tutorial, choose _one track per file_, otherwise the left and
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right channels of a stereo file will be split into two separate tracks.
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## Choose Insert Point
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When using either one of the options above (_Add as new track_ or _Add to
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selected tracks_), you should also specify where in the track you want the new
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region to be placed. In the screenshot below, we are choosing _session start_.
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{{< figure alt="Insert At" src="en/ardour7-insert-point-list.png" >}}
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The region appears in a new track in the session. The new track automatically
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receives the name of the imported sound file.
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The sound file will also appear in the _Regions_ list so that it can be
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inserted into other tracks as well by dragging and dropping it.
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## Remove Regions from Tracks
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To remove a region from a track, you can select it with the mouse and use the
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*Cut* function from the menu, the **Control** (or **Apple**) key and the **X**
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key, the **Delete** key or the key combination of **Fn + Backspace** (which is
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used, for example, on a laptop keyboard that does not have a proper **Delete**
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key).
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{{% notice warning %}}
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**Save your work often!** The shortcut **Control + S** is your friend. Use it
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a lot, all the time.
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{{% /notice %}}
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## Continuing
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Now that you have some material in your session, you might want customizing the
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timeline to better suit your needs or jump to recording new material live.
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Next: [SETTING UP THE TIMELINE](../setting-up-the-timeline) or
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[RECORDING AUDIO](../../recording-audio)
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