MULTI DIMENSIONAL MUSIC
MPE comes of age.
MPE – an expressive, polyphonic take on MIDI control – started life as a niche new tool for keyboard players, but in 2021 it’s being added to some of the biggest DAWs and softsynths. This issue, let’s explore how, and why, you should be using MPE in your music making…
What is MPE…?
Depending on how religiously you keep up with news and developments in music technology, you may have first heard the term MPE some time around five or six years ago. Largely popularised by UK brand Roli, the initialism originally stood for Multidimensional Polyphonic Expression, although in recent years it’s become MIDI Polyphonic Expression after being officially adopted by the MIDI Association.
Despite this name change and ‘going official’ the concept behind MPE has remained unchanged. The idea is to allow for more nuanced and acoustic-like control of electronic instruments, replicating the modulation and articulation applied to individual notes by guitarists or sting players. This is done by sending/ receiving additional control messages along with each note. An MPE controller will transmit multiple ‘dimensions’ of expression alongside each note’s pitch – in the case of Roli gear, these are labelled Strike, Glide, Slide, Press and Lift, but the amount and naming can vary depending on what software and controller you use.