Here’s a rewritten version of the article with a unique voice and style:
Unlocking the Power of Web Audio and MIDI APIs
As I delved into the world of Web Audio API, I was amazed by the endless possibilities it offers. But what really caught my attention was the potential to combine it with the Web MIDI API to create something truly remarkable. In this article, we’ll explore how to harness the power of these two APIs to build a virtual piano that’s not only visually stunning but also interactive and accessible.
Crafting an Accessible UI
Most virtual piano examples I came across used float properties and separate containers for black and white keys, which isn’t very accessible. Instead, I opted for a simple wrapper containing all the notes within <button> elements in the correct order. This approach allows users to tab through the notes and trigger their playable state with a click event.
Connecting Real Devices
To take it to the next level, I wanted to connect real USB-connected MIDI keyboards and detect their events in the browser. Using the Web MIDI API, we can do just that. We’ll explore how to render virtual pianos in various sizes, representing typical MIDI keyboard sizes, and connect them to real devices.
Rendering Markup with JavaScript
Manually typing all the <button> elements and their frequencies would be a nightmare. That’s why we’ll use JavaScript to generate the markup. We’ll define a method to get the frequency for a given note and create an array of objects, each representing a note on the piano.
Styling Our Keyboard with CSS
Now it’s time to get creative with CSS! We’ll use grid columns and rows to style our keyboard, making it responsive and visually appealing. We’ll also add some common styles and custom properties to make our keyboard shine.
Making the Keyboard Playable with Web Audio API
It’s time to bring our keyboard to life! We’ll use the Web Audio API to create an oscillator that produces sound. We’ll add event listeners to all the keys and create methods to handle noteon and noteoff events.
Attaching a MIDI Device with Web MIDI API
MIDI, or Musical Instrument Digital Interface, is a communication protocol for electronic musical instruments. We’ll explore how to connect a real MIDI keyboard and attach it to our virtual piano using the Web MIDI API.
Creating a Chord Visualizer Tool
In the final part of this tutorial, we’ll create a tool that helps us visualize and play all kinds of chords in any key. We’ll define an array of chord types, create additional markup to select the key and chord type, and render the chords as a list of options in a <select> dropdown.
Try out the demos and experiment with the code to unlock the full potential of Web Audio and MIDI APIs. Who knows what amazing creations you’ll come up with?