Editing MIDI (section)

==History==
In the early 1980s, there was no [[standardized]] means of synchronizing [[electronic musical instrument]]s manufactured by different companies.<ref name="chadab5100">{{cite journal|last=Chadabe|first=Joel|author-link=Joel Chadabe|date=1 May 2000|title=Part IV: The Seeds of the Future|url=http://www.emusician.com/gear/0769/the-electronic-century-part-iv-the-seeds-of-the-future/145415|journal=Electronic Musician|publisher=Penton Media|volume=XVI|issue=5|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120928230435/http://www.emusician.com/gear/0769/the-electronic-century-part-iv-the-seeds-of-the-future/145415|archive-date=28 September 2012}}</ref> Manufacturers had their own proprietary standards to synchronize instruments, such as [[CV/gate]], [[DIN sync]] and [[Digital Control Bus]] (DCB).<ref name=":152">{{Cite book|last=Kirn|first=Peter|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IbtJAgAAQBAJ&q=%22mark+vail%22+808&pg=PT72|title=Keyboard Presents the Evolution of Electronic Dance Music|date=2011|publisher=Backbeat Books|isbn=978-1-61713-446-3|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201235744/https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=IbtJAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT72&lpg=PT72&dq=%22mark+vail%22+808&source=bl&ots=dOOpEyQGfI&sig=nPF6yAIeQlupw3Pw0Drg6LE34r4&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwir3b7qhsfRAhUFJcAKHfSNCyMQ6AEIHzAB#v=onepage&q=%22mark%20vail%22%20808&f=false|archive-date=1 February 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Ikutaro Kakehashi]], the president of [[Roland Corporation|Roland]], felt the lack of standardization was limiting the growth of the electronic music industry.<ref name=":152" /> In June 1981, he proposed developing a standard to the [[Oberheim Electronics]] founder [[Tom Oberheim]],<ref name="chadab5100" /> who had developed his own proprietary interface, the Oberheim Parallel Bus.<ref name=":02">{{Cite news|url=http://www.factmag.com/2017/04/02/ikutaro-kakehashi-life/|title=The life and times of Ikutaro Kakehashi, the Roland pioneer modern music owes everything to|date=2 April 2017|work=FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music.|access-date=6 September 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=3 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170403005512/http://www.factmag.com/2017/04/02/ikutaro-kakehashi-life/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Kakehashi felt that Oberheim's system was too cumbersome, and spoke to [[Dave Smith (engineer)|Dave Smith]], the president of [[Sequential Circuits]], about creating a simpler, cheaper alternative.<ref name=":02" /> While Smith discussed the concept with American companies, Kakehashi discussed it with Japanese companies [[Yamaha Corporation|Yamaha]], [[Korg]] and [[Kawai Musical Instruments|Kawai]].<ref name="chadab5100" /> Representatives from all companies met to discuss the idea in October.<ref name="chadab5100" /> Initially, only Sequential Circuits and the Japanese companies were interested.<ref name=":32">{{cite web|url=https://www.midi.org/midi-articles/historical-early-midi-documents-uncovered|title=Historical Early MIDI Documents Uncovered|website=www.midi.org|language=en-gb|access-date=18 January 2020|archive-date=29 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929112751/https://www.midi.org/midi-articles/historical-early-midi-documents-uncovered|url-status=live}}</ref> [[File:Dave Smith at Sequential booth - 2 - 2015 NAMM Show.jpg|thumb|Dave Smith (right), one of the creators of MIDI]]Using Roland's DCB as a basis,<ref name=":152" /> Smith and Sequential Circuits engineer Chet Wood devised a universal interface to allow communication between equipment from different manufacturers. Smith and Wood proposed this standard in a paper, ''Universal Synthesizer Interface,''<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Smith|first1=Dave|last2=Wood|first2=Chet|date=1 October 1981|title=The 'USI', or Universal Synthesizer Interface|url=http://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=11909|url-access=subscription|language=en|website=Audio Engineering Society|access-date=18 January 2020|archive-date=5 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805050636/https://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=11909|url-status=live}}</ref> at the [[Audio Engineering Society]] show in October 1981.<ref name=":2">{{cite web |title=MIDI History:Chapter 6-MIDI Is Born 1980–1983 |url=https://www.midi.org/midi-articles/midi-history-chapter-6-midi-begins-1981-1983 |access-date=3 January 2023 |website=www.midi.org |language=en-gb |archive-date=3 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103182245/https://www.midi.org/midi-articles/midi-history-chapter-6-midi-begins-1981-1983 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Huber 19913">{{cite book|last=Huber|first=David Miles|url=https://archive.org/details/midimanual00hube|title=The MIDI Manual|date=1991|publisher=SAMS|isbn=978-0-672-22757-8|location=Carmel, Indiana}}</ref>{{rp|4|date=November 2012}} The standard was discussed and modified by representatives of Roland, Yamaha, Korg, Kawai, and Sequential Circuits.<ref name="chadab5100"/><ref name="Holmes3">Holmes, Thom. ''Electronic and Experimental Music: Pioneers in Technology and Composition''. New York: Routledge, 2003</ref>{{rp|20|date=November 2012}} Kakehashi favored the name Universal Musical Interface (UMI), pronounced ''you-me'',<ref name=":02" /> but Smith felt this was "a little corny".<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://www.keyboardmag.com/gear/dave-smith-the-synth-design-icon-talks-analog-midi-and-more|title=Dave Smith|work=KeyboardMag|access-date=20 October 2018|language=en-us|archive-date=20 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181020095110/https://www.keyboardmag.com/gear/dave-smith-the-synth-design-icon-talks-analog-midi-and-more|url-status=live}}</ref> However, he liked the use of ''instrument'' instead of ''synthesizer'', and proposed ''Musical Instrument Digital Interface'' (MIDI).<ref name=":1" /><ref name="Huber 19913" />{{rp|4|date=November 2012}} [[Robert Moog]], the president of [[Moog Music]], announced MIDI in the October 1982 issue of ''[[Keyboard (magazine)|Keyboard]]''.<ref name="Manning3">Manning, Peter. ''Electronic and Computer Music''. 1985. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994. Print.</ref>{{rp|276|date=November 2012}}

At the 1983 Winter [[NAMM Show]], Smith demonstrated a MIDI connection between [[Sequential Circuits Prophet-5|Prophet 600]] and [[Roland Jupiter-6|Roland JP-6]] synthesizers. The MIDI specification was published in August 1983.<ref name="chadab5100" /> The MIDI standard was unveiled by Kakehashi and Smith, who received [[Technical Grammy Award]]s in 2013 for their work.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.com/news/technical-grammy-award-ikutaro-kakehashi-and-dave-smith|title=Technical GRAMMY Award: Ikutaro Kakehashi And Dave Smith|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822073641/http://www.grammy.com/news/technical-grammy-award-ikutaro-kakehashi-and-dave-smith|archive-date=22 August 2016|access-date=31 August 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.com/videos/technical-grammy-award-recipients-ikutaro-kakehashi-and-dave-smith-at-special-merit-awards|title=Ikutaro Kakehashi, Dave Smith: Technical GRAMMY Award Acceptance|date=9 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141209022049/http://www.grammy.com/videos/technical-grammy-award-recipients-ikutaro-kakehashi-and-dave-smith-at-special-merit-awards|archive-date=9 December 2014|access-date=31 August 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Vail|first1=Mark|title=The Synthesizer|date=2014|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-539481-8|location=New York|page=56}}</ref> In 1983, the first instruments were released with MIDI, the [[Roland Jupiter-6]] and the Prophet 600. In 1983, the first MIDI [[drum machine]], the [[Roland TR-909]],<ref name="russ p66">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_W9Ek2LmPNMC&pg=PA66 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026003043/https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_W9Ek2LmPNMC&pg=PA66 |archive-date=26 October 2017 |url-status=live  |title=Sound Synthesis and Sampling |author=Martin Russ |isbn=0-240-51692-3 |page=66|year=2004 | publisher=Taylor & Francis }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Butler |first=Mark Jonathan |title=Unlocking the Groove: Rhythm, Meter, and Musical Design in Electronic Dance Music |publisher=Indiana University Press |date=2006 |isbn=0-2533-4662-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/unlockinggroover00butl/page/64 64] |url=https://archive.org/details/unlockinggroover00butl/page/64 }}</ref> and the first MIDI [[music sequencer|sequencer]], the Roland MSQ-700, were released.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.roland.com/ca/company/history/ |title=Roland - Company - History - History |access-date=17 May 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170712075811/https://www.roland.com/ca/company/history/ |archive-date=12 July 2017 }}</ref>

The MIDI Manufacturers Association (MMA) was formed following a meeting of "all interested companies" at the 1984 Summer NAMM Show in Chicago. The MIDI 1.0 Detailed Specification was published at the MMA's second meeting at the 1985 Summer NAMM Show. The standard continued to evolve, adding standardized song files in 1991 ([[General MIDI]]) and adapted to new connection standards such as [[USB]] and [[FireWire]]. In 2016, the MIDI Association was formed to continue overseeing the standard.<ref name=":32" /> In 2017, an abridged version of MIDI 1.0 was published as an international standard [[IEC]] 63035.<ref>{{cite web |title=IEC 63035:2017 {{!}} IEC |url=https://webstore.iec.ch/en/publication/31626 |website=webstore.iec.ch |publisher=International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) |access-date=5 November 2024}}</ref> An initiative to create a 2.0 standard was announced in January 2019.<ref name="MIDI2Prototyping">{{cite web|title=The MIDI Manufacturers Association (MMA) and the Association of Music Electronics Industry (AMEI) announce MIDI 2.0™ Prototyping|url=https://www.midi.org/articles-old/the-midi-manufacturers-association-mma-and-the-association-of-music-electronics-industry-amei-announce-midi-2-0tm-prototyping|website=www.midi.org|access-date=20 January 2019|archive-date=10 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190210030409/https://www.midi.org/articles-old/the-midi-manufacturers-association-mma-and-the-association-of-music-electronics-industry-amei-announce-midi-2-0tm-prototyping|url-status=dead}}</ref> The MIDI 2.0 standard was introduced at the 2020 Winter NAMM Show.<ref name="midi2.0">{{cite web|title=An Update to a 37-Year-Old Digital Protocol Could Profoundly Change the Way Music Sounds|url=https://qz.com/1788828/how-will-midi-2-0-change-music/|last=Kopf|first=Dan|date=30 January 2020|publisher=[[Quartz (website)|Quartz]]|access-date=3 February 2020|archive-date=2 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200202012719/https://qz.com/1788828/how-will-midi-2-0-change-music/|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[BBC]] cited MIDI as an early example of [[open-source]] technology. Smith believed MIDI could only succeed if every manufacturer adopted it, and so "we had to give it away".<ref>{{Cite news |date=2012-11-28 |title=How MIDI changed the world of music |language=en-GB |work=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-20425376 |access-date=2022-07-04 |archive-date=27 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427220431/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-20425376 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Impact ===
MIDI's appeal was originally limited to professional musicians and [[record producer]]s who wanted to use electronic instruments in the production of [[popular music]]. The standard allowed different instruments to communicate with each other and with computers, and this spurred a rapid expansion of the sales and production of electronic instruments and music software.<ref name="Holmes3" />{{rp|21|date=November 2012}} This interoperability allowed one device to be controlled from another, which reduced the amount of hardware musicians needed.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Paul|first=Craner|title=New Tool for an Ancient Art: The Computer and Music|journal=Computers and the Humanities|date=Oct 1991|volume=25|issue=5|pages=308–309|jstor=30204425|doi=10.1007/bf00120967|s2cid=60991034}}</ref> MIDI's introduction coincided with the [[History of computing hardware (1960s–present)|dawn of the personal computer era]] and the introduction of [[Sampler (musical instrument)|samplers]] and [[digital synthesizer]]s.<ref>Macan, Edward. ''Rocking the Classics: English Progressive Rock and the Counterculture''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. p.191</ref> The creative possibilities brought about by MIDI technology are credited for helping revive the music industry in the 1980s.<ref>Shuker, Roy. ''Understanding Popular Music''. London: Routledge, 1994. p.286</ref>

MIDI introduced capabilities that transformed the way many musicians work. [[MIDI sequencing]] makes it possible for a user with no notation skills to build complex arrangements.<ref>Demorest, Steven M. ''Building Choral Excellence: Teaching Sight-Singing in the Choral Rehearsal''. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003. p. 17</ref> A musical act with as few as one or two members, each operating multiple MIDI-enabled devices, can deliver a performance similar to that of a larger group of musicians.<ref>Pertout, Andrian. ''[http://www.pertout.com/Midi.htm Mixdown Monthly] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120504055022/http://www.pertout.com/Midi.htm |date=4 May 2012 }}'', #26. 26 June 1996. Web. 22 August 2012</ref> The expense of hiring outside musicians for a project can be reduced or eliminated,<ref name="Huber 1991"/>{{rp|7|date=November 2012}} and complex productions can be realized on a system as small as a synthesizer with integrated keyboard and sequencer.

MIDI also helped establish [[home recording]]. By performing [[preproduction]] in a home environment, an artist can reduce recording costs by arriving at a recording studio with a partially completed song.<ref name="Huber 1991" />{{rp|7–8|date=November 2012}} In 2022, the ''[[The Guardian|Guardian]]'' wrote that MIDI remained as important to music as [[USB]] was to computing, and represented "a crucial value system of cooperation and mutual benefit, one all but thrown out by today's major tech companies in favour of captive markets". In 2005, Smith's MIDI Specification was inducted into the [[TECnology Hall of Fame]], an honor given to "products and innovations that have had an enduring impact on the development of audio technology."<ref>{{cite web|title=TECnology Hall of Fame, 2005|url=http://legacy.tecawards.org/tec/05TECnologyHOFdetails.html|website=TECawards.org|date=2005|access-date=December 12, 2024}}</ref> As of 2022, Smith's original MIDI design was still in use.<ref>{{cite web |last=Stokes |first=William |date=2022-06-03 |title=Dave Smith: the synth genius who made pop's instruments work in harmony |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/jun/03/dave-smith-synth-genius-pop-madonna-radiohead |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=[[The Guardian]] |language=en}}</ref>