Song → Ableton (end-to-end orchestrator)
existing audio ──▶ A. ANALYSIS ──▶ C. HANDOFF ──▶ B. ABLETON (MCP)
stems · bars/BPM/key · chords bars + chords + build/reinterpret:
· bass MIDI · lyrics · drum read drum logic tempo · clips · MIDI
· devices · scenes · mix
ASK FIRST: "Do you want song analysis, Ableton building, or both?" Then route only
to what's needed.
GOLDEN RULE: reason in BARS, never seconds. Every length and position is a bar
count (1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32…). Convert any "first 16 seconds" to bars and stay in bars.
Routing
| Need |
Skill |
| Analyze the recording (tempo/bars, stems, chords, lyrics, drum read, chart) |
song-analysis |
| Drive Live — tracks, clips, notes, devices, mixing; connection issues |
ableton-mcp |
| Arrangement craft — sections, bass/drum patterns, FX chains, dynamics |
ableton-arrangement |
| The user plays bass (or another mono instrument) and wants it as MIDI |
bass-transcribe |
The handoff (analysis output → Ableton input)
| Analysis output |
Use in Ableton |
BPM + num_bars |
set_tempo; size clips in bars (32-bar song = 128 beats) |
chord_proposal per bar/half |
chord clips on a synth/keys track, or a chart for a live band |
| bass MIDI (root line) |
reference clip — or leave the bass slot empty for a live bassist |
| drum-pattern read |
match the original's kick/snare logic (or generate_drum_pattern); never impose a rock backbeat on a non-rock song |
| key/mode |
scale + voicings (mind major-triads-under-minor-melody — Trap 2 in song-analysis) |
| section map |
scenes (jam) or arrangement sections; mirror parallel sections |
Reinterpreting in a new genre: keep the harmonic + rhythmic skeleton (chords per
bar, original drum logic, section lengths) from analysis; change instrumentation and
energy in Ableton. Analysis says what the song is; the build decides how it sounds.
Quickstart
- Drop
<song>.mp3 + lyrics.txt in a song folder.
- Run the
song-analysis pipeline: stems (htdemucs_ft) → foundation (bars/BPM/key) →
bass via CREPE → chords via chroma+bass-root → Whisper on the vocals stem.
- Open Ableton; verify the MCP connection (
health_check — see ableton-mcp).
- Build, e.g.: "At in , build a Session scene with these chords per bar
, a drum pattern matching <kick/snare logic>, and leave the bass slot
empty for me to play."
Troubleshooting (route, don't debug here)
- Noisy bass MIDI → CREPE not basic-pitch; bass bleed →
htdemucs_ft + suppress
pre-bass-entry bars; too few snares detected → delta≈0.15, un-normalized envelope
(all in song-analysis).
- Can't connect / tools missing / device errors →
ableton-mcp
references/troubleshooting.md.
Local environment (this machine)
- Analysis tooling + venvs:
/Users/peripan/dev/abletonAI/audio-analysis/
(.venv-bp, .venv-demucs); song folders live next to it in
/Users/peripan/dev/abletonAI/.
- Ableton MCP configured via that project's
.mcp.json.
1---2name: song-to-ableton3description: Use when taking an existing song end-to-end — analyze a recording (bars, key, chords, lyrics, drum logic) and rebuild or reinterpret it in Ableton Live. Orchestrates the song-analysis, ableton-mcp, ableton-arrangement, and bass-transcribe skills. Ask first whether the user wants analysis, Ableton building, or both.4---56# Song → Ableton (end-to-end orchestrator)78```9 existing audio ──▶ A. ANALYSIS ──▶ C. HANDOFF ──▶ B. ABLETON (MCP)10 stems · bars/BPM/key · chords bars + chords + build/reinterpret:11 · bass MIDI · lyrics · drum read drum logic tempo · clips · MIDI12 · devices · scenes · mix13```1415**ASK FIRST:** "Do you want song analysis, Ableton building, or both?" Then route only16to what's needed.1718> **GOLDEN RULE: reason in BARS, never seconds.** Every length and position is a bar19> count (1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32…). Convert any "first 16 seconds" to bars and stay in bars.2021## Routing2223| Need | Skill |24|---|---|25| Analyze the recording (tempo/bars, stems, chords, lyrics, drum read, chart) | `song-analysis` |26| Drive Live — tracks, clips, notes, devices, mixing; connection issues | `ableton-mcp` |27| Arrangement craft — sections, bass/drum patterns, FX chains, dynamics | `ableton-arrangement` |28| The user plays bass (or another mono instrument) and wants it as MIDI | `bass-transcribe` |2930## The handoff (analysis output → Ableton input)3132| Analysis output | Use in Ableton |33|---|---|34| BPM + `num_bars` | `set_tempo`; size clips in bars (32-bar song = 128 beats) |35| `chord_proposal` per bar/half | chord clips on a synth/keys track, or a chart for a live band |36| bass MIDI (root line) | reference clip — or **leave the bass slot empty** for a live bassist |37| drum-pattern read | match the original's kick/snare logic (or `generate_drum_pattern`); never impose a rock backbeat on a non-rock song |38| key/mode | scale + voicings (mind major-triads-under-minor-melody — Trap 2 in `song-analysis`) |39| section map | scenes (jam) or arrangement sections; mirror parallel sections |4041**Reinterpreting in a new genre:** keep the **harmonic + rhythmic skeleton** (chords per42bar, original drum logic, section lengths) from analysis; change instrumentation and43energy in Ableton. Analysis says *what the song is*; the build decides *how it sounds*.4445## Quickstart46471. Drop `<song>.mp3` + `lyrics.txt` in a song folder.482. Run the `song-analysis` pipeline: stems (htdemucs_ft) → foundation (bars/BPM/key) →49 bass via CREPE → chords via chroma+bass-root → Whisper on the vocals stem.503. Open Ableton; verify the MCP connection (`health_check` — see `ableton-mcp`).514. Build, e.g.: "At <BPM> in <key>, build a Session scene with these chords per bar52 <chord_proposal>, a drum pattern matching <kick/snare logic>, and leave the bass slot53 empty for me to play."5455## Troubleshooting (route, don't debug here)5657- Noisy bass MIDI → CREPE not basic-pitch; bass bleed → `htdemucs_ft` + suppress58 pre-bass-entry bars; too few snares detected → `delta≈0.15`, un-normalized envelope59 (all in `song-analysis`).60- Can't connect / tools missing / device errors → `ableton-mcp`61 references/troubleshooting.md.6263## Local environment (this machine)6465- Analysis tooling + venvs: `/Users/peripan/dev/abletonAI/audio-analysis/`66 (`.venv-bp`, `.venv-demucs`); song folders live next to it in67 `/Users/peripan/dev/abletonAI/`.68- Ableton MCP configured via that project's `.mcp.json`.