What is midihub?
Midihub is an intelligent MIDI hub. It has four DIN MIDI inputs, 4 DIN MIDI outputs and a USB port that presents 4 virtual USB MIDI ports. You can use Midihub to route audio between any of the inputs, outputs and USB port, but its real power is in the clever MIDI processing tools it provides you.
For example, Midihub has LFOs (low-frequency oscillators) which generate CC values so you can modulate any parameter on a synth directly. Need more modulation on your gear – if it accepts CC values over MIDI then Midihub has you covered!
Midihub also provides an arpeggiator, note remapper, delay, randomising and a lot of other tools.
Where do I get one?
Midihub is made by Blokas Labs, who are well-known for their Pisound extension for the Raspberry Pi. I backed the Midihub project on Kickstarter in 2019 and was excited to receive my unit a few weeks back. Since then I’ve been digging in to it to understand how I can use it to create generative ambient music.
If you’d like to get your own midihub then visit: https://blokas.io/midihub/
What is generative music?
Generative music is hard to define, but at its core it is music that generates itself, usually morphing and change with little to no human involvement. Brian Eno tends to be the name that jumps to everyone’s mind when they think of this style of music.
To me generative music is fleeting; it is a one-time performance that will never be repeated again. Miss it and you miss it forever. It also requires computational techniques which lets me use my computer science background – education ftw!