Standard MIDI File

Imagemap

hide

Standard MIDI File

hide

leaf

Created for interchange of MIDI information in a file

leaf

Adds time stamp information to MIDI events

leaf

Provides additional information like grouping events in tracks, and meta events like lyrics, track names, markers, tempo setting, time and key signatures, etc.

leaf

Binary format (information encoded in bytes, rather than human readable text)

hide

hide

leaf

Most significant byte first

hide

leaf

Offset Length Type Description Value

0x00 4 char[4] chunk ID "MThd" (0x4D546864)

0x04 4 dword chunk size 6 (0x00000006)

0x08 2 word format type 0 - 2

0x10 2 word number of tracks 1 - 65,535

0x12 2 word time division

hide

leaf

Offset Length Type Description Value

0x00 4 char[4] chunk ID "MTrk" (0x4D54726B)

0x04 4 dword chunk size

0x08

track event data

hide

Track event data

hide

Start with a variable length delta time stamp

leaf

The delta time represents the number of ticks that have elapsed from the previous event

leaf

They are represented using a variable length format, where the highest value bit in a byte tells whether value continues (1) or ends (0)

hide

Then event type

hide

leaf

Note Off 0x8 note number velocity

Note On 0x9 note number velocity

Note Aftertouch 0xA note number aftertouch value

Controller 0xB controller number controller value

Program Change 0xC program number not used

Channel Aftertouch 0xD aftertouch value not used

Pitch Bend 0xE pitch value (LSB) pitch value (MSB)

hide

e.g Note Off event:

leaf

Note Off MIDI Channel Note Number Velocity
8 (0x8) 0-15 0-127 0-127