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I don't know how popular this is or perhaps it's my own invention. I use it in an application that I'm porting to android. 

The idea is that one chooses a ctrl key on a MIDI keyboard that is rarely used - I use the bottom A. So long as that key is depressed, the other keys are allocated commands and I use them to navigate between songs and set lists, switch banks, adjust volumes, mute the mixer, or pretty much anything you can do with MIDI. 

I'd love to see this in MS and am throwing it out for discussion. 

Terry.

The idea is not new (so, sorry, presumably not an invention ): This method, in a kind of serialized form, is used to trigger patch/instrument changes in the Xpression synthesizer module by an instrument that isn't originally intended to send any control messages at all (EWI-USB).

MSP seems to provide quite a flexible handling for both incoming and outgoing MIDI commands (see the respective sections MIDI TABS and MIDI ACTIONS in the manual). I didn't use them myself so far, though. Maybe they already support what you have in mind?

Cheers,
Petra

If you set up a batch MIDI command under a song, you can require multiple MIDI messages to be received in order before loading that song. This would allow you to implement what you are describing I believe (multiple Note Down messages).

Mike

Mike, 

The Batch MIDI command almost hits the mark. The ctrl key idea is more like a mode shift in that when the control key is held down other keys are assigned functionality until the key is released. In the Batch command the ctrl key needs to be released and depressed again for every command. That makes flicking through a set list rather difficult for instance. 

The problem comes in muting the control key but that can probably be achieved by muting the whole keyboard on first press. 

Petra, thank you for reassuring me that my ideas aren't original :-) 

Kind regards, 
Terry.