First MIDI Song in REAPER - (Part 1/8)

[@Sp00pySparySpeletons]

How you managed to get a whole song set up and use it to teach the basics of Reaper, composition, arrangement, and dozens of useful shortcuts is astounding. Everything is easy to follow and well-rehearsed. It must have taken forever to record all of this. Thanks you for putting so much time into these tutorials.

[@RossOzarka]

I did this tutorial series in January, not knowing anything about composing music, and now it's June, and I wrote the score for a television cartoon, as well as a short film I made! The only thing I did besides this tutorial was practice piano every day for about 20 mins... this teaches you EVERYTHING you need to know!

[@marcgilbert3379]

Where did you download the piano and teh noise maker ? I downlooad them even if I'm not sure if its these but that's not workingg. They don't appears when I go on Track > Insert virtual instrument on new track > Instruments, any ideas why ?

[@Spinxxs]

cool

[@alexxlion8198]

Just wanted to say a MASSIVE thank you for all the time and hard work you have put into creating all these gems for the Reaper community. As someone who is looking to switching to Reaper for work, I cannot honestly thank you enough. Oh, and Happy New Year with tons of great new music!

[@ollivanajas]

I second this. I really am in awe of people like Kenny here who work hard to make these videos and share their knowledge and expertise with the wider world. As with everything worthwhile, we're really seeing the tip of the iceberg. All the hard work, failures, learning, getting up again and again and working hard are all there. And thanks to the tenacity and strength of these people we learn and can - through our own hard work - give to world to the best of our abitlities. Thank you Kenny!

[@MarcusL1995]

Alexx Lion Same

[@arthurmee]

I've just started using Reaper and have not used a DAW before. Your extensive list of videos is a godsend. Thank you so much.

[@pattillo21]

How's it going a year later?

[@itsjustjd9082]

using decent sampler and jon meyer's steinway sample pack worked pretty well in place of piano one

[@nowak93]

How to install on Windows: Copy the DLL file (32 or 64-bit) as well as the INS file into the VST plugins folder. The plugin loads as "NeoPiano mini" and looks very different from the earlier Piano One. The attached screenshot shows the new user interface. IMPORTANT: After loading the plugin, you must click [Piano] to open a pane, click the "Piano File" input field, and use the browser to select the "Piano1.ins" file. Otherwise the plugin will output no sound.

[@nossyra8283]

I needed this. Thank you :)

[@Lucretitia]

You are an absolute madlad. Thankyou!

[@manualvarado2212]

You are a life saver. Thaaaaank you so much!

[@NickHope]

The "subscribe" email from SoundMagic takes a while to come, after a tricky Captcha, then there's a second follow-up email with the link. The installer installs Neo Piano. After installing you must copy Piano1.ins and Piano1.png to C:\Users\Public\Documents\SoundMagic\Neo_Piano\Instruments, not your VST folder. It's a shitload more complex than Kenny's older version, but it does sound good considering it's synthesis-based. It may be easier to install a simpler sample-based piano such as Versilian Studios Upright No. 1 instead.

[@gabsalk]

mah man!

[@fulla06]

You are the GOAT bro. I've been trying to learn this software for a couple days now, and your tutorial was by far the easiest one to follow along with as a complete beginner. Not to mention you've already made me feel like I've created something cool after just watching part one.

[@elephantface5029]

This is absolutely brilliant. Totally going to watch the whole series properly and have a go at making songs!

[@lachinhan]

Kenny....You are my master.. you are my teacher... Thank you so much.

[@nightwintertooth9502]

I think its wise to mention the smooth parameter in the quantize operation to maintain musical expression, change this to around 70-85%. Imperfect music sounds more human and less robotic. Quantize smooth slider is a really valuable little tool to maintain human expression especially in parts like piano. The smooth slider is really great for abstract genres like Jazz or Ska where no off beat is set in stone and the genre is really defined by the human who plays it. Doing this will fix big mistakes while preserving all the little expressions your fingers leave on your piano, such as the staccato notes played with the piano in this video. It sounded almost better prior to quantization...

[@willcohen8848]

So the newest version seems to be SoundMagic: Neo Piano. So the instrument can actually make sound, you need to open up the plugin window and click the blank space next to the "SoundMagic NeoPiano" Icon in the top left. From here you can choose the .ins (instrument file) that the piano will use. I had a hard time installing and using this plugin until I stumbled onto this. IF REAPER DOESN'T RECOGNIZE PIANO1 Go to preferences and make sure that the plugin is in a location that Reaper is scanning for. If it isn't, you can either create a new route in preferences or move the .dll .ins and .png files that come with the download.

[@hansmueller1831]

Wow, not very intuitive. Thanks for the tip!

[@Tobi-oi3uf]

I've changed the route but it still won't show up lmao I wanna die

[@allisond4359]

Thank you for this - clicking the blank space and manually navigating to find the .ins worked. Why in the world it doesn't it link to the .ins by default based on where it was downloaded/installed? Wild.

[@OhhCrumbsGaming]

I was unfortunately unable to download the piano plugin but was able to find another. Excellent tutorial and have learned a lot already!

[@anonym3169]

hey Liam can u tell me which one? piano one isn't available anymore.

[@chizzulwinduh1941]

You truly are a wonderful presenter and tutorial maker. I think you may well be one of the best out there. I also love your voice and way of accenting your words. It's like....being instructed.... to follow instructions, from Christopher....Walken. 🙂

[@GaraGulp]

Sei un grande!! Tanti complimenti dall'Italia, davvero un ottimo lavoro!

[@somekid338]

I had an issue with getting Piano One to show up in the plugins section, it turned out Piano One was being installed into the Program Files/Vstplugins folder which was not by default in Reaper's plugins path list. So adding that path to the paths list allowed it to detect Piano One as Neopiano. However, it installed Piano One into the Program Files folder, not the Program Files x86 folder.

[@GNVS300]

The piano and synths won't come up in the selection; the synth one has some installations but they don't seem to work. What am I doing wrong?

[@niccolodejito5643]

Preferences > Plug-Ins > VST > VST Plug-In Paths check if the folders listed here have the NeoPiano dll file

[@lollollolOHO]

It seems the One Piano plugin isn't there anymore. Is there any way to find it?

[@impalerfelblood1362]

Wait, how do you show your keyboard like that at the bottom? Nevermind, its ALT-B

[@lucbraga]

thank you

[@Sk1pperCS]

This video is brilliant. Thank you very much.

[@roadrunnerplaying]

Teaching is an art, and you’re an artist, dude

[@listlessh]

Been thinking of getting into making music for a while and came across REAPER on Reddit. Thanks for this tutorial - it's really easy to follow and extremely well-produced.

[@rozaldes5364]

I have a lot of latency from the moment I hit the note to when I hear it, how can I fix that?

[@mjargon18]

This is my first MIDI project and when I plugged in the TAL and played it I thought, damn this is awesome. Cool stuff. Thanks Kenny!

[@RyanGaultMusicandSound]

Who made this tutorial, Christopher Walken?

[@irishmusico]

It is Bruce Dickinson, the world famous producer. He puts his pants on one leg at a time and then makes gold records. He teaches us, so we don't fear the Reaper.

[@alexstuetzer6624]

someret*ard... unabletotalk... likea.. normalperson...

[@hankigoe829]

it's joe pesci, fuhgettaboutit!

[@LoganSusnick]

If Christopher Walken and Mitch Hedberg had a son, this is what he would sound like :) I can't listen to any other Reaper tutorials any more! Thanks, Kenny, great job. And more cowbell, please LOL

[@frogspasm2000]

@@irishmusico

[@andrewwalker2888]

I was trying to learn how to setup a MIDI project in Reaper--and then got a whole lesson on MIDI, song writing, and production. Thank you so much!! :)

[@pedroacker8646]

I love you Kenny.

[@coloaten6682]

Kenny, you are amazing. This has to be the most helpful video on YT. You da man! Thankyou!! :)

[@abc456f]

Even though I don't use Reaper, I have Sonar X3 studio, these tutorials are more helpful than anything I've found on KZbin specifically for Sonar. The software has differences, but the basic tasks are the same. Thanks a million for putting in the time to create these.

[@diegoharo9847]

By the way, if you find that there's input lag from the moment you play something in your keyboard to the instance in reproduces in your computer, you might want to install Asio4All, which is great for controlling latency (which causes the lag). It works wonders for me.

[@antonioalejandroaa5699]

If you already copied every file frome the piano one pluggin... > Go to preferences >In the pluggin section go to VST > Click "Edit" (You add the path file where the files are ) >Clear cache / reescan And that should do it. It was a pain to install this thing.

[@antonioalejandroaa5699]

Also.. When the interface appears, click the logo and put the piano1.ins file

[@TPaternite]

Where do you get the Piano One plugin?

[@donkiwi4888]

thank you

[@joel60225]

The Piano One you suggest is not free anymore

[@sckboy6829]

I am an artist using primarily reaper and I would like to say all of your videos are great, easy to follow, and very helpful! Keep it up!

[@meisterdrums7798]

Piano One download is not available from their website rn. Anyone got any external sources?

[@PsyCoCinematics]

Control R to record. That's...ah, that's what wasn't mentioned once in the other videos I've seen so far today. Thank-you.

[@DanielKwan]

How do you get that layout at 3:10 on Reaper 6? Layouts > Track Panel shows a different set of options. None of them seem to make tracks taller.

[@michaelbedward]

I had the same problem. If you select Options -> Themes -> Default_5.0 it will look like Kenny's screen.

[@adamgrimm1523]

Kenny you are the man!!

[@ryanreach3710]

Just watched the whole series, learned a lot, you're a great teacher! Also saw your vids on delay on Groove 3, learned a ton. I'm currently DAW hopping and checking out Reaper. When I that slide over trick for the mixer it only shows the master fader. Any ideas?

[@Guitarray_417]

So the session mixer is not an option. I just downloaded reaper so I don't know if I have to upgrade?

[@karliban1]

Everything is different in ver. 6!

[@johnnymorell4974]

Great series idea. Step-by-step, beginning-to-end, creation of a piece that can be followed precisely. I'm looking forward to watching the series (I watch because there are, usually, some extra tips and shortcuts/workflow methods that I might use and, also, because your tutorials are solid), so, thanks again, for all your effort... up there, with the best videos around, in my opinion. Take care.

[@007graeham]

johnny morell well said

[@johnnymorell4974]

Graeham Smith Thanks. Kenny makes Reaper seem so familiar. Unfortunately, circumstances mean I don't get much time to use it but, due to these videos, it's like I've never been away... and you never forget your first... ; )

[@BarafuAlbino]

"I want you to snap and be perfect" - I am writing this on my next T-shirt.

[@andretavares5424]

I don't have a MIDI controller installed. I just wanted to use the piano roll to make a MIDI track and use a soft synth to make the sound. In my reaper this keyboard doesn't apeear, and I'm trying to find how to open a piano roll but can't find it

[@nunyobidness571]

This could use an update. Layouts in 7 do not appear to behave as you show them in 4:03.

[@Stellarainn]

The piano plugin doesnt show

[@AlanJunior1]

thank you soo much for recording and making in step by step! thank you!!

[@thetechguycpu864]

hi there, I have a question. for the piano part do you need an external keyboard? can you play using keyboard in computer? please reply. thanks.

[@choke-]

for anyone who might wanna know, yes you can use a keyboard. it'll show up under midi devices

[@Lee-anneRussell]

@@choke- so I can't use my computer keypad ??

[@gudivibes]

You are awesome, no words to say how much it is going to help my recordings! Thank you so much brother. I'll share with everyone I know that works with MIDI!

[@benjamindagostino7534]

Hey I'm a big fan of your videos. Sorry if this question is off topic but, how do you make the virtual midi keyboard stay in one place. I use the midi keyboard as a way to map out drum tracks but I'm only able to use the floating keyboard which is kind of a pain to use.

[@yeddiemon7317]

stuck on downloading the piano one and it didnt show up on reaper :( anyone can help? tq

[@sketchdude]

I made it this far on Reaper 6. Piano One is now changed to something like Neo piano and I couldnt get any sound from it so I downloaded Keyzone Classic. TAL is excellent I already spent a couple hours going through the presets and am only a third of the way through.

[@ChaosAngeldj]

YO KENNY!!, i Have a problem. i install the PIano one But it Won`t appear in Reaper? 2019 i know it`s a bit later for watching this But does anyone know how to fix this? i`ve uninstalled an reinstaled the Plug in and it won`t show up when restarting my reaper. I'm using 32bit btw, hope to get some help.

[@FranceOM1]

This may be no big deal, but I'm on minute 3 and already your video is diverging from the current version of REAPER.- It's not at all clear to me how to enlarge the tracks, I tried different options under the new track panel, none of which particularly make any sense or correspond to the old ones in your video, and nothing happened anyway when I click around. I hope the rest of the video makes sense.

[@bzashadows]

Thank you for this beginners friendly tutorial, it is the best one ive come across.

[@GordonHeaney]

Your videos are great. And I love the way....you leave short pauses.....like this.....when you talk

[@pvalenti]

Unfortunately there's a major problem with Piano One...that being that the download doesn't work for either the 32 bit or 64 bit windows versions. The website appears to be broken and all I get is a page full of gibberish. Was really looking forward to following along with this tutorial. But alas...I guess it was not meant to be!

[@skpc3043]

Piano One dont work on my windows 10 tried on 3 computers can I use another plugin

[@nixiontm]

Try Decent Sampler

[@jenskrgaardlarsen9572]

Super, but I can't get just one big mixertrack, at the left. When I move the tracks to the left, the mixer divides into 2 small faders, why is that?

[@crd1098]

In the mixer window, right click and deselect "Show multiple rows when size permits"

[@edermendezyapsam]

this is gold, pure gold. Seriously I love you. This tutorial has opened my mind

[@Vingul]

Gold, Jerry, gold!!

[@iRameshArumugam]

Beautiful ❤️

[@RolandoRamosTorres]

Thanks for this great tutorial!!!

[@REAPERMania]

You are so welcome!

[@RallyDon82]

consistently the easiest to understand and follow tutorials, i learn from every video :). thanks kenny.

[@1elmuz]

Great videos from production, composition and mix, Kenny. I am waiting for more. For example, a composition based only on VSTi Serum. Or based on Free VSTi - Part 1.

[@phillippradoxyz]

Your vocal cadence is killing me lol Good tutorial though, thank you!

[@CHRISTWARD]

I tried do download Piano 1 - getting all kinds of warnings from my antivirus and noticed these on REDDIT as well. Is there another VST that I might use instead? I was able to download from one site but could not open it.

[@no-thanks-d3q]

Hey there, I am trying to follow the step by step but understandably its been 7 years and the piano plugin, 'Piano One' is no longer free, is there a recommended plug in anyone can suggest of a similar tier? Thank you all!

[@dansimmons21]

Hey, I love the video, but I've just downloaded the newest version of Reaper and the settings are all different. Also, I can't download Piano One because it asks for my email address. I gave my email but instead of sending me a download link (which they said would come in the email), they just gave me a link saying 'you are subscribed to our mailing list'. Any chance you could make some more up-to-date videos? Thanks.

[@coleybrown178]

would love to finish this video but i cant get past 2:30. my midi device does not show up? really was hoping for a bit more of an actual tutorial and not some guy showing off his midi keyboard

[@ΛάμπροςΛάμπρου-χ3φ]

When i record with my MIDI I cant hear what im playing and then when i stop recording I cant hear the track that i recorded. I also downloaded a virtual piano and when I enable it in the fx option it says "cannot find any instruments". How can i fix these problems? Thanks in advance!!

[@petercsiszar8081]

Hy, I just installed Reaper and eventhough I don't have a midi device, I tried to follow the tutorial. When I hit play, from the two 1/16 notes only the first one is played back :S I don't know what I'm doing wrong, if I move the second note up or down it is played back without problem. Please someone help XD

[@AngelCarmonaEgler]

You're amazing! Thank you for the effort.

[@kenwolf6293]

Seriously how do I follow that piano pattern lol..I had to make one up

[@arquivosbackup-e1f]

Awesome! I am advanced in Reaper nowadays, specially in MIDI, as I work mainly with vsti. I wish I had have a serie like this (and all other kennie videos) when I started with Reaper years ago! :) Reaper and all this community are the BEST!

[@KevinLopez-rw1zz]

Arquivos Backup Hey, you! You are the guy I want to talk to. It won't take much time. First: Can I create music with and only with reaper and its tools? Without any real instrument recordings? I want to know how and what I need to learn. I've been doing a little research and besides looping, MIDI (whatever that is) and vst instruments, I think this series is what I'm seeking for. I'd appreciate your help.

[@angelleemacias6377]

Why won’t reaper see my plug ins I already scanned them in my preferences and restarted reaper I even moved the plugins file to the reaper plug ins help please

[@ignacygolab9039]

i have the same problem :C

[@IAMUNDEREIGHTEENYO]

@@ignacygolab9039 me three. did you ever fix it?

[@mounir9311]

hi is there a way to like unglue an element like to modify freely the notes afteryou glued the notes together

[@talkingsense7067]

You have not kept any option open for pc keyboard as midi keyboard.. very frustrating.

[@greatusername6326]

Layout settings are changed. What am i supposed to do now?

[@jasonwilliams8393]

This tutorial is out of date (sadly) - that piano VST website no longer exists and what is there doesn't seem to work well. Pity.

[@CHRISTWARD]

Am I doing something wrong? After Midi setup which I am not sure is correct, you show how to set up somethings in Options Layouts. I do not have the Options Layouts options that you select. Is there a way I can set these up?

[@hzmzkhd]

It'd be nice if would explain how he got that piano down there. Reaper does not open with a piano at the bottom. I guess he expects you to know that part.

[@huagrapo]

He mentions at the start what the piano is for at the bottom and how it is not necessary for the viewer to have on their own screen....

[@darcy6874]

Hi guys. when I try to record a melody on piano one like in your example from 8:37 to 8:42 Reaper dosn't appear to be drawing in the notes ( despite the melody being recorded ) also whrn I double click on the recording to edit the notes it doesnt show up to give me the option to quantise the work I done, can amyone give me any pointers? thank you

[@marvelousdetermination]

problem solved?

[@kenwolf6293]

done that bit bu when you close into the left size size the mixer splits into two parts..possibly due to the upgrade

[@SamoylovaAlisa]

It doesn't really work on my laptop:(((( The only way I was able to record any music was to manually drag the pencil instrument in the edit mode. For example, the pad addition - it doesn't automatically play the melody like in the tutorial. I have to edit it, and it's a LENGTHY process...

[@taliabrahamson8581]

Hi, I’m wondering if anyone can help me. I’ve been working on a project for three hours now without success. I downloaded the TAL audio however, when I open it in reaper it is not allowing me to Choose a sound and co to you sly says no presets available. Is anyone able to assist?

[@Pixel_Track]

Hello there. I wanted to try Reaper as my bandmates use it mostly. I am more into EDM music production with ~4 years with Ableton, and the very first question I asked myself - how do you select multiple notes in midi editor? Like I found that you can point to note, than press shift, than point on next note and press shift again. That looks inefficient to say at least. Is there a way just to select notes by selecting them with the mouse like in Ableton or in any modern file system?

[@67madchops]

How do you get your virtual keyboard to show the keys you're playing on the controller? Mines do not light up in Window 10

[@FilizCuvalciFizi]

Thank you very much Kenny

[@eduardodiaz7339]

Men, thanks for the video. But in my Reaper nothing appears in "MIDI devices". What I do? Please help, this is not a meme.

[@LunarEclipse1984]

Thank you! Which kind of keyboard do I need to input the notes I want? Is it the only way to create the melody/chords or can I use something else? Can I write the notes on a sheet instead?

[@BJ-fj6jw]

I am a musician who knows zilch about making music using a DAW... You are a godsend! Thank you. Guess which DAW I'm going to start off with?

[@benminhanh5926]

Can we midi for one time all the knobs in any instrument plugins?

[@thenocopyrightchannel4314]

hey sir thank you for this help bu my midi has no sound what should I do?

[@edwardmorris3453]

Grab this tab right here and move it to the left side. Nice. Okay, what tab is that? The one that is nowhere to be found in MY Reaper?

[@antonioPaulino]

Please help me. When I'm creating notes with the mouse and using Kenny's example the two C5 notes are two individual notes that also sound like that. when I place them like his example I only hear one note, the first one. The play head passes over the second consecutive C5 but doesn't play it. To test this I placed 5 C5 notes next to each other on the grid and the head only plays the 1st ignoring the rest. If I change the note's pitch I can hear them individually but not if they are the same notes. What am I doing wrong?

[@DaPotato6996]

There is nothing in my Instruments tab, I have already downloaded the Piano and Noise maker, but nothing shows. What gives?

[@skylinkdave]

The PianoOne VST is no longer free, and at $300, there's no way in hell I'm buying it. Do what I did and go to the DSK Music website and get their free Piano VST - The Grand.

[@DaPotato6996]

skylinkdave even if I buy a free one though, it still does not show up in my instruments tab

[@skylinkdave]

Sorry, I think I misunderstood your question. If none of the VSTs you downloaded and installed are showing in the instrument tab, in Reaper go to Options - Preferences - Plug-Ins - VST and make sure that the "VST Plug-in Paths" field near the top has the path to where the VSTs are installed. You might be able to click "Auto-detect" and have the program find your VSTs for you. Be sure to close and restart Reaper.

[@DaPotato6996]

skylinkdave ohh ok I’ll try that, I’ll update after a while if it works, thanks

[@baron_shiro9877]

Links start at 5:24 if you're looking for the plugins used in the tutorial.

[@miquelyoutube2110]

Thank you!

[@TheFiercestGrape]

I've been stuck on the installation of Piano1, I've followed the video step by step and I just cant seem to get it onto Reaper. Ive been at this all day and any help would be greatly appreciated :) However I have managed to get a file called NeoPiano onto Reaper from the Piano1 file I installed though I would like to be able to follow your video step by step.

[@REAPERMania]

I've heard that others have had similar issues. Sorry about that. Use any piano you want. It won't change the tutorial at all. Thanks.

[@BlazertronGames]

I know it's been 10 months, but you have to load the piano1.ins file inside of neo piano, for some reason they scrapped the original piano one plugin.

[@justintyler9191]

I appreciate you man. Thanks for the tutorials.

[@eastvilrunners]

Piano one is no longer free. What should we do instead?

[@huagrapo]

You can still get Piano One for free by subscribing to the newsletter on the neovst website (Google neovst piano one), then they will send you two emails immediately, the second one containing a link to a Dropbox where you can download the Piano One files for Mac and Windows. Or just find another piano plugin on KVR Audio. I'm on Linux so Piano One is no go for me anyway.

[@Lee-anneRussell]

Can I make music only using the keyboard already on my laptop or I need a physical instrument ???

[@TheDeathknight23]

woah loving the new intro dude :)