MIDI input on Android

[gilijev]

I am having trouble enabling MIDI input in EarMaster lessons and exercises on the Android app.

I looked at the video tutorial on "how we can use a MIDI controller to answer the ear training exercises of the app" from the official EarMaster youtube channel:


This is what the exercise settings sidebar looks like in the video:


And this is what the exact same screen looks like in my Android app:


I know that the video shows an older version of the app. However, the "MIDI in" switch does not exist in the sidebar settings of my app at all, nor can any similar settings be found in the main settings screen (the one that is accessed from the app's home screen).

I know that the issue is not in my MIDI controller, in the way the MIDI controller is connected to the Android device, nor in my Android device's general MIDI support. Other music apps using the same controller and device ask for permission to use the MIDI USB interface and then correctly register and respond to key presses on the MIDI controller.

Does the Android version of the EarMaster app support MIDI input? If yes, what are the steps to enable MIDI input?
If not, I would feel quite disappointed that the Android version of the app is the only one that lacks support for it.

I'm hoping that I just overlooked something trivial and we can resolve this quickly. : )

[Quentin]

Hi,

You are looking for MIDI Input the right place, but unfortunetely it's not availlable on Android. It is planned, but I am not sure where that feature is placed on the developers' roadmap.

[gilijev]

You are looking for MIDI Input the right place, but unfortunetely it's not availlable on Android. It is planned, but I am not sure where that feature is placed on the developers' roadmap.

Hi Quentin, thank you for the reply!

That is unfortunate, the other two piano input methods have considerable drawbacks:

• The on-screen piano lacks the tactile properties of real keys and accurately performing the required melody becomes very difficult once you go beyond very simple examples.
• The microphone listening to notes played on a piano picks up environmental sound. Providing feedback to the student as they're performing the exercise interferes with the exercise input.

I would consider adjusting the wording EarMaster uses about the Android version. The official reply on the Google Play store says that the "Android version includes just as many features" as desktop and iOS which I would consider slightly misleading in this case.


Is there another support channel (forum, email, development board etc.) where I could ask where this feature is on the roadmap and advocate for adding it?

[Quentin]

Yes, you are absolutely correct, this wording is not accurate in this case. I will make sure it is fixed.

You can suggest new features by reaching out directly to the development team at feedback@earmaster.com

[gilijev]

Hi Quentin, thank you for all the help, that answers all my questions. : )

[Maxime]

Hi,
I'm reviving this discussion because I'm experiencing the same problem, except that I'm using Earmaster (full version, 7.9.93, with a monthly subscription) on a Windows 10 Pro tablet. It is puzzling me, since Quentin said that the option is missing only on Android devices. I have activated the MIDI Input in the general preferences from the main menu, making sure that my Yamaha DGX-640 is recognized, with these settings :

https://ibb.co/PGrfXLCM (I've also tried to desactivate the "note by note insertion" , see below "EDIT")

but I don't see any MIDI option on the settings of the particular exercices, for example the settings in melody reproduction look like this (it's the same problem in the other exercices) :

https://ibb.co/d40ps1tN

Did I miss something in the general settings ? I use my keyboard as MIDI input in other softwares with my windows 10 tablet so the problem does not come from it.

Thank you for your help


EDIT : I tried the following operations but I still got the problem :

- I read in another topic that Quentin recommanded to desactivate the Note-by-note insertion. Done : https://ibb.co/bRXzhPcP You can see the greenlight in the screenshot that shows Earmaster well recognizes the note I play with my Yamaha DGX-640, at least in the general settings.

- I reinitiazed the parameters to the default ones, both in the "reinitialization/reset" tab (réinitialisation in french) and in the "development settings" (paramètres de développement), cf screenshot of the development settings : https://ibb.co/bRXzhPcP

- I used the button "repair results" (résultats de la réparation) in the reinitialization tab

- I tried to plug my midi Keyboard on another device with earmaster, a computer (not a tablet) with Windows 10 family, and I got the same problem, so it is not my tablet too.

[Maxime]

I have another question: once a MIDI keyboard is connected (if I can manage it, given the problem I described in the previous post), is it possible to use the melodic dictation exercise with multiple notes per voice? It seems that currently, with the latest version of Earmaster, you can do melodic dictations with two or more different voices (which is indeed a great feature), but each voice can only play one note at a time. In other words, it's impossible, for example, to do a melodic dictation with a MIDI keyboard where you play triads with the left hand. Such a feature would be a huge plus for future updates if it's not implemented yet.