09b Random Canon

Description

Here we create a 2-voice canon whose pitch interval is up one octave and whose time interval is 1 sec (1000 ms). The patcher is explained in bullet-point fashion below.

• The tempo object is set to 120 b.p.m. The constant pulse is set to 1/8 notes (= 500 ms).
• Pitches are selected randomly from from 8 equally-weighted pitches.
• The pitches form a diatonic scale on C4: 60, 62, 64, 65, 67, 69, 71, 72.
• The current pitch is displayed in a number box and then is sent over to the makenote object via a send-receive pair ('pitch').
  
• The default arguments to makenote are: Velocity = 90, and Duration = 2000 ms.
• Because makenote's default duration (2000 ms) is 4 times greater than the pulse duration (500 ms), notes events overlap in 4-note grouping to create a sense of harmony.
• To create Voice 2, a pipe object delays each Voice 1 pitch by 1 sec. (1000 ms) and then transposes it up one octave (see + 12), and then sends it to make note.
  
• The pitches of each canonic voice are visually displayed in real time using two kslider objects.
  

Object Reference

• +
• kslider
• makenote & noteout
• random
• select
• send & receive
• tempo
  

Further Reading

• Wikipedia, Canon
• Wikipedia, Diatonic scale

Updated: 9/24/25