Pattern tool

The Pattern tool lets you paint with a pre-selected MIDI pattern. To define a pattern, simply select any existing MIDI data that you want to use. The selection can be a clip, a portion of a clip, MIDI events in the Piano Roll view, or a MIDI file in the Media Browser.

The Pattern tool makes it very easy to clone existing data and paint frequently-used patterns.

Figure 200. Use a MIDI file in the Media Browser as a pattern.

A. Drag to the right to paint the selected MIDI file B. Select a MIDI file in the Media Browser

Figure 201. Use existing MIDI notes as a pattern.

A. Selected pattern B. Two repetitions drawn C. Drag to the right to paint the selected pattern

To select the Pattern tool

Do one of the following:

Click the Pattern tool button in the Control Bar.

Press T to display the Tools HUD, then select the Pattern tool.

Press F9.

Note: The F9 shortcut key cycles through all Draw tools (Freehand/Pattern/Line/Sine/Triangle/Square/Saw/Random). If another Draw tool is selected, press F9 again until the Pattern tool is selected.

To paint a pattern with the Pattern tool

1.	Select the Pattern tool .

2.	Locate and select the pattern you want to paint.

In order to use the Pattern tool, you must first define a selection. The selection can be a clip, a portion of a clip, MIDI events in the Piano Roll view, or a MIDI loop in the Media Browser. The most recent selection always defines the current pattern.

To select MIDI notes in the Piano Roll, drag with the right mouse button over the notes you want to select.

3.	Drag from left to right in the Piano Roll view or Track view to “paint” the selected data. When painting with the Pattern tool, the mouse pointer looks like a paint roller: .

The location you initially click to drag defines the first note in the pattern. After the last event end time is reached, the pattern repeats until the mouse button is released.

Using the Pattern tool on MIDI clips

Figure 202. Pattern tool hotspots on MIDI clip.

 

Table 44. Using the Pattern tool on MIDI clips 

Hotspot	Default action	Right-click
A	Click to select clip Drag to select by time	Drag to lasso select
B	Drag right to paint selected pattern	Drag to lasso select
C	Drag to select by time	Drag to lasso select
D	Drag right to paint selected pattern	Drag to lasso select

Using the Pattern tool on PRV notes

Figure 203. Pattern tool hotspots on PRV notes.

 

Table 45. Using the Pattern tool on PRV notes 

Hotspot	Default action	Right-click	+SHIFT
A	Drag right to paint selected pattern	Drag to lasso select	Transpose and paint a pattern based on the earliest/lowest note
B	Drag right to paint selected pattern	Drag to lasso select	Transpose and paint a pattern based on the earliest/lowest note

To transpose MIDI patterns

When painting melodic MIDI patterns in the Piano Roll view, you may want to transpose the pattern while painting. To do so, hold down the SHIFT key while painting. The pitch you click to start the painting gesture defines the first note in the pattern. If the pattern starts with multiple overlapping notes, the pitch you click defines the lowest note.

Figure 204. Hold down the SHIFT key to transpose the pattern while painting.

A. Selected notes B. Hold down the SHIFT key and click where you want the first note to appear, then drag to paint and transpose the selected pattern

 

Tip: You don’t have to select an entire clip when painting a pattern. You can select specific notes within a clip, or, for example, all notes of a specific pitch (click the corresponding key on the Piano Roll view keyboard). You can easily build chords or double percussion instruments by transposing specific notes.

To save MIDI patterns to the Media Browser

If you frequently use specific MIDI patterns, save each pattern as a separate MIDI file that can be accessed from the Media Browser. You can very quickly create your own custom library of favorite and common patterns.

1.	Create a new folder on your hard disk named \My Patterns, then open the folder in SONAR’s Media Browser and save the folder as a Content Location preset (see To save a Content Location preset).

2.	In the Piano Roll view, select or draw the pattern you want to save.

3.	Drag the note selection to the Media Browser.

4.	Rename the MIDI file with a descriptive name, if necessary (see To rename media files in the Media Browser).

The MIDI pattern is saved to the Media Browser and available for future use. Simply select the saved MIDI file in the Media Browser the next time you want to paint that specific pattern.

 

See:

Smart tool

Select tool

Move tool

Edit tool

Timing tool

Comping tool

Split tool

Freehand tool

Line tool

Pattern tools

Erase tool

Mute tool

Scrub tool

Zoom tool