The built-in chromatic keyboard layout on the Launchpad Mini Mk3 is useful but a bit limited – if you want to change the octave range or add scales you have to customise it with the Components software. Unfortunately, Components is not available for iOS, which means connecting it to a PC or Mac every time you want to change something – not ideal for an iOS musician. So I wrote this Mozaic script (versions available for Mini Mk1/2 and Mini Mk3) which displays the same 4-octave keyboard, but the octaves can be shifted up and down over a 10-octave range (C0-C9). Also, by selecting a scale and root note, any notes not in the current scale are dimmed on the Launchpad, and by turning on Scale Quantize, any wrong notes played will be pitched up to the next in-scale note. In addition, the AUM transport controls are duplicated on the Launchpad top row (enable MMC).
Changelog:
v1.1 – Added note hold functionality – see script instructions
IMPORTANT: the destination app midi input MUST be filtered to the correct channel or stray notes will play.
NOTE: the script hasn’t been tested on the Mini Mk2, but should work fine – according to the Novation website the differences between Mk1 and Mk2 are cosmetic only.
Full instructions for routing and explanations of the controls are in the script description.
Quick start:
– Connect Launchpad Mini to iPad and launch AUM
– Load Mozaic into a midi channel
– Add an audio channel and load a destination synth app
– Route Mozaic to Launchpad midi in, synth app, midi control
– Route Launchpad midi out to Mozaic
– Filter the synth app to channel 2 only (synth app hamburger menu, next to app icon)
– Enable MMC in AUM: Menu/Midi Control/Transport parameters
– Load the Scale Keyboard script in Mozaic
– Pick a synth patch – polyphonic or monophonic
– Play!
– Knob 1 changes the root note
– Knob 2 changes the scale
– Knob 3 displays the octave of the bottom keyboard on the Launchpad. The octave can be shifted up and down with the GUI pads, knob 3, or the top and bottom buttons (A&H) on the Launchpad right-hand column. The lit leds in the right-hand column represent the current octave range
– Knob 4 changes the global pad velocity (the Launchpad Mini pads are not velocity sensitive). Note: the amount of difference the velocity control makes varies from patch to patch
The SHIFT button resets the Launchpad Mini Mk1/2. If the transport is playing this button is locked.
TIP: Route and filter the script into, for instance, Tonality Chord & Scale Identification to see what chords you are playing. The midi output can also be sent to a midi recorder (eg. Atom, Atom2, MIDI Tape Recorder) – route from Mozaic to the recorder and filter to the same channel as the synth app.
