Fractal Tune Smithy

John Starrett has announced the program "Fractal Tune Smithy"
earlier already, but I want to do it again.
It was written by Robert Walker, a mathematician and inventor. In
the past several months we exchanged many emails about improving
its microtuning features. Now there is a stable release which is
very worthwhile to be tried:

http://www.robertwalker.f9.co.uk/fts_download.htm

The program is for Windows and shareware. Since Robert is an
independent inventor, he can use the fee if you register the
program, so I want to encourage people to do that if they like it.
The program offers really a wealth of possibilities for
trying out tunings. It can play a scale automatically, in a fractal
way, one can play the notes using the mouse or number keys on the
keyboard, and also via MIDI-in (then it can perform the same
function as Graham Breed's MIDI Relay). It works with all
soundcards and synthesizers. It's also well integrated with Scala.
It can read the scale and mode file formats. If you have created a
scale in Scala, it's possible to start F.T.S. and immediately play
with it. To do so, create the following file and call it
smithy.cmd.

! smithy.cmd
echo Open Fractal Tune Smithy with the current scale
set onerror cont
remove xxx.scl
save xxx.scl
Saved scale from Scala
spawn/detached "c:\program files\fractal tune smithy\fractal tune smithy" xxx.scl

(The last line begins with "spawn" and is long, if the list program
breaks it.) Then type @smithy inside Scala. Conversely, Scala can
also be started from F.T.S. But there are already a lot of scales
built in.
So, try it and don't forget to hit the "Scale" and "Arpeggio"
buttons.

Manuel Op de Coul coul@ezh.nl

--- In tuning@egroups.com, <MANUEL.OP.DE.COUL@E...> wrote:

http://www.egroups.com/message/tuning/12062

Hello Manuel!

Fractal Tune Smithy is really cool. I even got it to open through
Scala with the .cmd file as you recommended.

I bought my Smithy... only $20 for unlimited play time.

Thanks again!

_________ _____ __ __ _
Joseph Pehrson

Yes that would be nice maybe a sysex send in it?

Joe or Robert
can you guys explain the scala access point
i must have missed that thread
and i use Scala frequently

cheers

Pat Pagano, Director
South East Just Intonation Society
http://www.virtulink.com/immp/video/
http://www.screwmusicforever.com/SHREESWIFT/
----- Original Message -----
From: Joseph Pehrson <josephpehrson@compuserve.com>
To: <tuning@egroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, September 23, 2000 7:53 PM
Subject: [tuning] Fractal Tune Smithy

>
> --- In tuning@egroups.com, "Robert Walker" <robert_walker@r...> wrote:
>
> http://www.egroups.com/message/tuning/13328
>
>
> > > Thanks, and glad you like the program
> >
>
> I just wanted to mention that I have *ALSO* been enjoying "Fractal
> Tune Smithy." The "easy and immediate" access to Scala files is a
> great benefit. Of course, for "serious" use, the files really have
> to tune the synth...
>
> Best,
>
> _______ ___ __ __ _
> Joseph Pehrson
>
>
>
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--- In tuning@egroups.com, "shreeswifty" <ppagano@b...> wrote:
> Yes that would be nice maybe a sysex send in it?
>
> Joe or Robert
> can you guys explain the scala access point
> i must have missed that thread
> and i use Scala frequently
>
> cheers
>
>
> Pat Pagano, Director
> South East Just Intonation Society

Hi Swifty...

Well, there's really not much to it, but Robert will certainly
explain more. One can just open a Scala file in Fractal Tune Smithy
and it will immediately play through your sound card... So it turns
all Scala files into IMMEDIATE audio files... but maybe this part you
already know, and you are asking for more... (??)

____________ ___ __ __ _
Joseph Pehrson

>Well, there's really not much to it, but Robert will certainly
>explain more. One can just open a Scala file in Fractal Tune Smithy
>and it will immediately play through your sound card... So it turns
>all Scala files into IMMEDIATE audio files... but maybe this part you
>already know, and you are asking for more... (??)

Yes, you can open a Scala file from "File | Open | Files of type Scales
(SCL)".

You can also make a drop list of all the SCALA scales using "File | Scales
Options | Scala Scales | Make List of scales (LSC file) from all SCL files
in current folder".

Tick the "Add LSC files to More Scales... drop list on Save or Open" first,
and you will be able to get to the new drop list via "Scales drop list |
More Scales..." (scroll down to end of list to find this entry)

See the help for the SCALA Scales window for more (click the blue ? icon in
top right corner).

You can also run SCALA cmd files from FTS - go to the SCALA scales window,
and enter the name of the one you want to use in the "Scala .cmd file to
run" box. So maybe that will answer things to do with retuning sequencers?

The scale is saved first, then the .cmd file is run. It's saved as xxx.scl,
(can be changed in the "Save scale as" box in the SCALA scales window).

Whenever the .cmd file needs to load the scale, it can load it from that
file.

Then click the "Show current scale in SCALA button" to run the cmd file.

Robert

>You're quite welcome, Robert! And thank you for taking some of my
>little suggestions seriously. Also, by the way, I wasn't getting the
>software to immediately interact with my MIDI keyboard (??)

Ah, I wonder why. Maybe if i describe how it should work it could help pin
down the problem.

It's In | Open Now to open MIDI in.

You also need to tick the appropriate device on the In list.

To open MIDI In at start of every session, tick In | Options | Open ... at
start of session. (and make sure you have File | Auto Save Config ticked).

The notes you get depend on the scale / mode selected. So if you choose New,
and have the defaults for the MIDI In options, what you get is 12 tet with
the
pentatonic notes played from on successive white notes of the keyboard, and
the black notes playing some of the in between notes. That's because I
wanted to start with something both familiar and nice sounding, and it's
played on the modern flute, which is quite appropriate for 12 tet.

For a more useful set up for playing from MIDI keyboard, choose one of the
presets from In | Options.

If any of those steps don't work, maybe you could let me know, and any error
messages you may have got, and I'll see if I can figure it out, or to
duplicate it here.

>I am quite amazed by the work that you have done with this... and it
>surely is a great accomplishment. Sorry, again, if I was critical...
>I guess I was just in my own "little world" for a moment, and needed
>the software to do a couple of things that were important to me....
>Just momentary frustation.

>But, good luck with this... and fractals really are beautiful.

Thanks :-)

>Maybe it would be interesting to have an audible display accompanied
>by VISUAL FRACTALS... I could see an art gallery doing this as a
>continuing exhibition. Very hip.

Nice idea...

Could include some Penrose tilings as well - because of the Fibonacci
tonescapes.

I wonder if you've discovered the option to search the SCALA archive
yet? File | Scales Options | Search scales or modes list.

If you show the SCALA drop list (as I described in earlier posting), then
you can search it for a scale that uses a particular interval, or has some
particular word in its description, and (new in this beta) you can combine
the search with setting a particular desired number of notes, or range of
numbers of notes for the scale.

When doing repeated searches, one useful tip is to show the Arpeggio window
first, with the SCALA scales in it, then untick Sync modes, and Sync scale
with m. w., and after each search, click -> Lists to copy the complete list
of SCALA scales back into the main window drop list.

Hope you can get the MIDI in working with FTS!

Has some extras to discover like option to use the sustain pedal to toggle
sharps / flats (see 19 tone preset for instance, and the "In | Options |
Accidentals as" drop list).

:-)

Robert

For those interested in FTS:

New upload of beta now has the record to Wav button. (Needs full duplex
soundcard, i.e. one that can play and record simultaneously).

Also has play buttons for seed, scale and mode.

Tune | Intervals now defaults to show horizontal lines for alternate notes
of mode - natural generalisation of conventional score for 12 t (thinking of
it as lines for alt. notes of diatonic mode) to any mode in any scale.

Lot's more to come before I finish this release, including the help for
these new options...

Robert

http://www.robertwalker.f9.co.uk/fts_beta/fts_beta_download.htm

(Min req Win 95/98 + soundcard)

--- In tuning@egroups.com, "Robert Walker" <robert_walker@r...> wrote:

http://www.egroups.com/message/tuning/14324

>
> http://www.robertwalker.f9.co.uk/fts_beta/fts_beta_download.htm
>

Hello Robert!

I'm really enjoying already the new "beta" version of Fractal Tune
Smithy. I especially like the "scales" button, which is what I
wanted all along. I like to hear the "normal" ascending scale before
I subject it to fractal manipulation!

However, I do have one question...

Next to the nice "scale" button, is the "scale configuration" button
with two little notes on it. It looks as though, in order to get the
program to play an entire scale ascending, I have to enter in the
ENTIRE series of note numbers in it.

For example, if I wanted to hear a slow ascending scale in 31 equal,
I would have to type in all 31 numbers in the "figuration" box.

Is this correct?? or is there a way to get the program to play a
scale "automatically" throughout an entire octave of it without
typing in all the numbers??

I sincerely hope the answer to that is not selecting the option
"endlessly ascending" since every time I do that the program crashes!

Thanks for the help, and congrats on the new version!

____________ _____ __ _
Joseph Pehrson

Hello Joseph!

>Next to the nice "scale" button, is the "scale configuration" button
>with two little notes on it. It looks as though, in order to get the
>program to play an entire scale ascending, I have to enter in the
>ENTIRE series of note numbers in it.

Right,

If the scale is an et one, then the scale is defined by one interval, which
is what FTS plays, e.g. the 1/1 63.1579 cents for 19-tone et.

Problem is, prog. doesn't know where else to stop - could stop at octave,
but then what does one do about et Bohlen-Pierce scale?

However I've just had an idea. If the mode / arp. box shows one of the
modes, then FTS can get the number of notes in the et scale from the mode
box.

I'll think it over some more and do an update.

There is an alternative to entering entire series of numbers for mode /arp
and seed window - you can use "0 to 19" as short cut for "0 1 2 ... 19" etc
(see beta download page). I.e. FTS now recognises the word "TO" in this
context. Doesn't work for figuration box, but I'll add that in for next
update.

>I sincerely hope the answer to that is not selecting the option
>"endlessly ascending" since every time I do that the program crashes!

It's not a crash, though it sounds like one for ET scales I admit.

You can stop it by clicking the pause button (i.e. the yellow square that
the blue triangle turns into).

To get idea of what endless ascending is about, try one of the non et
scales. It is a kind of endless rising staircase effect - like that Escher
print.

Sounds best if you play it slowly, - set time for one note to about a
second. If it is fast, tend to lose the illusion.

However for et scale defined by single interval, it tries to endlessly
ascend on a single note, i.e. just repeats it endlessly, which sounds like a
crash.

Anyway, more later when I do the update, prob. later today,

Thanks for the comments,

Robert

--- In tuning@egroups.com, "Robert Walker" <robert_walker@r...> wrote:

http://www.egroups.com/message/tuning/14336

Hello Robert!

Thanks so much for the constant "improvements" on the Fractal Tune
Smithy!

>
> Right,
>
> If the scale is an et one, then the scale is defined by one
interval, which is what FTS plays, e.g. the 1/1 63.1579 cents for
19-tone et.
>
> Problem is, prog. doesn't know where else to stop - could stop at
octave, but then what does one do about et Bohlen-Pierce scale?
>
> However I've just had an idea. If the mode / arp. box shows one of
the modes, then FTS can get the number of notes in the et scale from
the mode box.

I see what you're saying... that would be a great improvement!

>
> I'll think it over some more and do an update.
>
> There is an alternative to entering entire series of numbers for
mode /arp and seed window - you can use "0 to 19" as short cut for "0
1 2 ... 19" etc (see beta download page). I.e. FTS now recognises the
word "TO" in this context. Doesn't work for figuration box, but I'll
add that in for next update.
>

Great! That would also make things easier, if one has to go about it
manually like that...

> >I sincerely hope the answer to that is not selecting the option
> >"endlessly ascending" since every time I do that the program
crashes!
>
> It's not a crash, though it sounds like one for ET scales I admit.
>

Ummm. In my case it was a "real" crash... "program has performed an
illegal operation..." It had to be shut down each time... it wasn't
just the sound of it...

>
> Anyway, more later when I do the update, prob. later today,
>
> Thanks for the comments,
>
> Robert

It's getting better and better! Thanks so much!

(By the way, I really don't like calling the software "FTS..." It
sounds too much like either "FTP," which is boring or "FTD," which is
fun and colorful, but off topic!" (I like the abbreviation, FractalTS
much better, for what it isn't worth...)

____________ _____ __ _
Joseph Pehrson

Hello Joseph!

>Thanks so much for the constant "improvements" on the Fractal Tune
>Smithy!

It's a pleasure.

>> However I've just had an idea. If the mode / arp. box shows one of
>the modes, then FTS can get the number of notes in the et scale from
>the mode box.
>
>I see what you're saying... that would be a great improvement!

- done now!

Also for case the other way round, where arpeggio repeats several times in
the formal octave, while scale is specified by giving all the notes.

That leaves the case where both scale and arpeggio repeat several times in
the formal octave, e.g. for follow scale for any n-tet scale, or for the
tritone / diminished seventh / whole tone defs in the default 12 t drop
list.

In these cases, one can't work out the formal octave from either of the
lists.

So I've added an option to specify a min top note for the scale / mode. Its
in the Arpeggio / scale playback config window - see "min top note for main
window playback". Repeats the scale or arp. as many times as are needed,
until last note reaches the "Min top note for main window playback" or
higher.

How can TS know what to use for the min top note? Well, I've done a best
guess method for this. When TS opens a list of modes, it sets the min top
note to the interval for the last note of the last mode in the list.

So when you select the et Bohlen-Pierce scale in the Scala Modes list, if
you have Sync Modes ticked, then TS will open the Bohlen-Pierce modes list,
and set the min top note to 3/1, and will use this for playback of the scale
for follow scale.

(this can be switched off by unticking a box if you want to keep to a
particular min top note).

For more details of how it all works, see beta download page.

When the scale doesn't have a list of modes associated with it, defaulting
to the one with things like 0 -1 2 in it, the min top note defaults to 2/1.

If one wants it to be something else, say, for scales defined by repeating
blocks, or whatever, one has to set it oneself by hand. One would then prob.
want to untick the box that tells TS to keep resetting it to 2/1 whenever
you select a scale from the drop lists.

Anyway, the proof of the pudding as they say, look forward to hearing if
this heuristic works okay.

>Ummm. In my case it was a "real" crash... "program has performed an
>illegal operation..." It had to be shut down each time... it wasn't
>just the sound of it...

Ah, sorry about that!

I haven't been able to duplicate it here at all, wonder what it is,...

That message can mean various things, but often is because a variable has
gone out of it's expected range. I've gone through the playback code adding
some extra automatic checks for ranges of variables, in the hope that that
might catch it. If it happens again, could help to know if it just happens
for the main window, or also happens if you press the play buttons for the
Scale, or Arpeggio windows. Could also help locate it to know if TS gets to
play any of the notes, or crashes before it plays any of them.

FractalTS is fine. Or what about just TS when one wants to make it short??

Robert

http://www.robertwalker.f9.co.uk/fts_beta/fts_beta_download.htm

(Min req Win 95/98 + soundcard)

--- In tuning@egroups.com, "Robert Walker" <robert_walker@r...> wrote:

http://www.egroups.com/message/tuning/14366

>
> FractalTS is fine. Or what about just TS when one wants to make it
short??
>
> Robert

I like that! (For what it's worth). I'll try the "new improvements"
and let you know more details about any crashes...

--- In tuning@egroups.com, "Robert Walker" <robert_walker@r...> wrote:

http://www.egroups.com/message/tuning/14366

Thanks so much, Robert, for the "improvements!" I now can play a
"regular" 31-tone scale that actually STOPS at the octave, before I
can listen to the "fractal variations."

TS is getting better all the time! Thanks again!

Joseph

Hi Joseph,

>I like that! (For what it's worth). I'll try the "new improvements"
>and let you know more details about any crashes...

Thanks. I'll prob. change it to TS in the help. One less letter to type...

Yes do say about any crashes...

They are usually fairly easy to fix if reproducible, especially the illegal
operations ones - the debugger will often just take you straight to the line
of code where it crashed, with a record of all the variables to look at, and
it is then usually obvious what has happened..

If I can't reproduce it here it's more tricky, and is a matter of looking
for likely things and fixing them, which I _might_ have done with the
endlessly ascending scale.

Depending on details might fix it just from thinking over description of
what happened.

However there is another alternative too, which is to get TS to keep a log
of where it has got to, and values of variables. This can be a good method
for some types of bug. One would activate it, say, by typing "#debug" into
the time for one note box. Then you would need to send the log file to me
(lot's of boring stuff!), and I'd just need to look at the last line, and
prob. see exactly where it was and what the values of the variables were
when it crashed. Sometimes adding debug code stops the crash - like, it only
happens when you aren't looking kind of syndrome.... Also depends on
narrowing down where it happens to some extent first (e.g., that it crashes
in response to a particular button). So not guaranteed, but a pretty good
method all the same.

Could do that if it is one you find troublesome and that I can't reproduce
here. (I'm always happy to locate any bug in TS, depends on whether you also
were interested enough to want to download debug version, crash it, and send
the log file back to me.)

>Thanks so much, Robert, for the "improvements!" I now can play a
>"regular" 31-tone scale that actually STOPS at the octave, before I
>can listen to the "fractal variations."

>TS is getting better all the time! Thanks again!

Great!

I too find the new scale buttons incredibly useful now that they are there,
and it's great to be able to just play a mode too immediately and hear what
it sounds like. Thanks for suggesting the idea!

N.B. I've just found a bug in the record to Wav button. Sometimes it records
okay first time, but not second time, and you have to exit and re-start
again, Saves in "unrecognised format".

I have just fixed it, and will be done for next upload, either tonight, or
looks more like, tomorrow,

Robert

I have just started updating the FTS beta again.

Now at:
http://members.nbci.com/_XMCM/tune_smithy/fts_beta/fts_beta_download.htm

N.B. this is a new progs download site I'm setting up for bandwidth
reasons in preparation for release of 1.09.

Fixes a number of bugs - see download page for details. Including
all those mentioned earlier on this list.

Relaying from midi In especially will be crisper and clearer. Esp.
for voices like harp that continue to sound after the MIDI note
has been switched off.

-----------------------------]
New version uses least recently used algorithm for pitch bend
channels.

Result is, when using it for relaying from MIDI In, normally you
end up with a channel for each pitch bend, provided you need at most
15 pitch bends (as always will be case for mode of 15 notes or
less repeating at octave, or at most 15 notes with differing pitch
bends sounding at once).

This will also prob. make MIDI relaying crisper in general since
it is common for a voice to resonate quietly for a short while
after it is switched off.

When the pitch bend for a channel does need to be changed,
sends an all sound off message first (old version had bug that
meant it didn't do this when relaying from MIDI in, which meant
it would pitch bend notes from voices such as Orchestral harp
that continue to sound _after they are "switched off"_ - you could
hear the old notes change pitch as they were pitch bent into
12-tet intervals with new notes played).
[-----------------------------

Also other bug fixes, and extra code to help when used to relay
output from another program, e.g. when used to re-tune the output
from Play button of a score editor. One important bug fix - prev.
version of beta would on occasion leave out some of the first few
pitch bends needed in option to save to MIDI file _as you play
along_ - fixed.

New version also fixes the chord and broken chords button pitch
bends bug mentioned before on this list.

Plus two new options that can be switched on:

SCALA decimal point convention when entering new scales as cents.
Skip all patches in MIDI output.

See beta download page for details of these.

This is an especially good time to mention any more bugs found, or
any suggestions.

I plan to release FTS 1.09 v. soon, and start work on a next
version. Main thing still to do is to update the help for new
options.

Next version after this one will have a chords window, used to
find and play chords in any of the scales and modes.

It's inspired by exciting development of the chord recognition and
chords list in the new version of SCALA, and will use this list.
One will be able to use the new chords window to play and select
chords from the SCALA list - idea for this is in sketch form at
present, with some details still to be worked out, however I am
ready to start programming it straight away, as soon as FTS 1.09
is released.

Robert