USER MANUAL

CONTENTS

1. Foreword 4
2. Introduction ...5
2.1. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS ................6
2.2. NOTE FOR VERSION 1.4 USERS ...........6
2.3. installation notes..7
2.3.1. Windows 7
2.3.2. Mac OSX ..7

3. quick guide .8
4. General View ..9
5. Navigation ........11
6. Menus and buttons 13
6.1. File menu .........13
6.2. Edit menu .....13
6.3. Options menu ....14
6.3.1. preferences .15
6.4. Help menu ....16

7. Phrase Editor .17

7.1. Phrase grid ...17
7.2. Velocity grid .19
7.3. Phrase end selector ..19
7.4. Editor Menus ....20
7.4.1. Phrase editor Options21

8. Browser ....23
9. RANDOMIZER ...25
.....27
9.1. Chord / Bass
9.2. THE 303 ....29
9.2.1. GENERATOR ..30
9.2.2. MUTATOR ..31
9.3. MUTATE ...33
10. PATTERN EDITOR .....35

2
 10.1. Channel selection menu and effects for every track 38
10.2. MIDI LINK ENVIRONMENT .38

11. TRACK CONFIGURATION WINDOW ........42

11.1. pitch SCALE SELECTOR .44

12. PLAYLIST .....45

12.1. PLAYLIST CLIPS .47

Appendix ..48
(A) How to install NORA .48
(A.1) REAPER .....48
(A.2) FL STUDIO .....49
(A.3) ABLETON LIVE .....50

3
 1. Foreword

Thank you for purchasing NORA.

Prepare yourself for a line of products that will completely change live & studio
editing tools as you know them. We hope you enjoy it!!

To make sure you are getting the best out of your experience with Nora, we beg
you to read this manual thoroughly. It will not take long and will be very useful.

Software: Juan Juez-Sarmiento

Oscar Zarate

Concept art: Diego Campos

Manual: Oscar Zarate

Translation: Oscar Zarate

Jose Solorzano

Release: 2.5.5

Revision Date: 14.07.2015

We would like to thank: Josu Galdiano

Enrique Zuniga
Soundcase
Kick101

Copyright 2014-2015, SQUAREDHEADS MUSIC SOFTWARE S.L

VST is a trademark and software of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH

Audio Unit is a trademark of Apple, Inc.

4
 2. Introduction

NORA is a groundbreaking MIDI toolset that employs advanced grid editing

tools to create MIDI phrases with ease.

90% of modern music is composed by pattern repetition or motifs throughout

the verses and chorus.

The point is, repetition within a melody is important. The repetition of a motif
creates a cohesive melody and it helps the listener to remember the melodic
line. That is, repeating the important line(s) in order to establish the musical
theme of a piece.

Nora has been created as a product to facilitate immensely the work of

harmonizing a chord base, creating motifs, verses or polyphonic choruses. All
of this allows the creating of arpeggios or melodic phrases in a very simple and
intuitive manner.

NORA features:

- Advanced polyphonic phrase arpeggiator with 8 operation modes

- Sample accurate premium MIDI engine
- Real-time effects
- 4 random engines to generate phrases
- Playlist that might optionally work as a chainer
- Pattern editor with 64 patterns per track
- 8 independent tracks
- Complete real-time edition
- Intuitive tools, including zoom to any point and auxiliary mouse locations
to define note start and note end.
- Highly customizable interface with over 400 parameters to edit
- MIDI learning for pattern-changes

Through chapters 3 to 12 the user will get to know, in a simple yet meticulous
manner, the functionalities of NORA.

The last part of this manual comprises an appendix which guides the user
through operating NORA in the different DAWs that are available.

5
2.1. System requirements

WINDOWS:

- Windows XP, Vista, 7 or 8. (32/64-bit supported)

- VST 2 host with MIDI routing capabilities.
- Low audio latency drivers. (Not necessary but recommended)

MAC:

- OS X 10.8 or higher. (32/64-bit supported)

- VST 2 or Audio Units host with MIDI routing capabilities.
- Low audio latency drivers. (Not necessary but recommended)
- Note for Logic Pro X users: Please use the provided MIDI FX version.

2.2. NOTE FOR VERSION 1.4 USERS

NORA 2 will load any project form previous versions. But because of the drastic
changes included in this version, there are some things that must be fixed
manually:

Since the harmonizer is now attached as a different product (NORAHarm), if you

were using the harmonizer then you must save the (.has) file from version 1.4
and open it with NORAHarm. All data from the arppegiator will be loaded in the
new version.

- Depending on latency and the buffer you were using, Nora 2 might sound
differently (Longer notes) because of changes made to the time engine. If
you want to recover the original sound then shorten the notes slightly.

- The default presets folder has changed paths to the application data of
every operating system.

6
2.3. INSTALLATION NOTES
Note: This manual is written using the windows version of NORA as reference. The Mac
version is similar except for the fact that the Alt key in Windows corresponds to the
Command key in Mac OSX.

2.3.1. Windows

In Windows, Nora is installed to user specified location.

Presets, Mods, Manual are installed in the common application data directory of
the system and subfolders.

2.3.2. Mac OSX

In Mac VSTs are installed in /Library/Audio/Plugins/VST folder and AU/MIDI FX

plugins are installed in /Library/Audio/Plugins/Components.

Note: If you are a Logic Pro X user, please use MIDI FX format.

Presets, Mods, Manual are installed in /Library/Audio/Squaredheads/ and

subfolders

Even though we supply both VST and AU formats, we recommend that you only
use VST whenever possible, because apart from being much simpler to use, AU
plugins are not in perfect sync with the host application because of latency.

When a NORA AU instance is inserted in the host a virtual MIDI input is

generated. This MIDI input is called *Nora x input* where x is the instance
number starting from 1.

7
 3. QUICK GUIDE

NORA is a MIDI effect, i.e it gathers MIDI data from the DAW and returns the
MIDI data transformed. Therefore, it is placed before a synthesizer, software or
hardware, unlike audio effects, which are placed after.

We are going to follow some simple steps to begin using Nora. For more
detailed information on some specific Hosts please consult the Appendix A:
How to install Nora :

- A) Create an instance of Nora in your sequencer or Host and create an

instance of a virtual instrument or connect an external synthesizer

- B) In the host, assign a free output port or MIDI channel to NORA

- C) Assign in the Host, the same port or input channel to the instrument

- D) In the host, add a progression of chords to the input of Nora

- E) Add some notes in the Phrase Editor of Nora

- F) Press play and enjoy the experience

8
 4. General View

1 3 2 4

Figure 1: General view of Nora

The general view of Nora displays five main parts: (See figure 1)

Browser (no.1): The browser allows you to load data that was previously saved.
It also allows you to save documents that are being edited.

Phrase Editor (no.2): Allows you to create melodies and accompaniment bases
from input chords coming from the DAW. It consists of two main areas: The
upmost part where notes and chords are added, and the bottom one is where
their velocity is set.

Menus and buttons (no.3): The menu and button bar (Toolbar) include basic
actions such as copying/pasting notes as well as loading and saving changes.

9
Pattern editor (no.4): It allows you to organize patterns to be played live in the
desired order. Triggering of such patterns might be executed by the mouse or
MIDI messages.

Playlist (no.5): Allows you to organize clips for their sequential reproduction.

10
 5. Navigation

3 2

Figure 2: Generic active window with zoom/scroll elements

As a general rule, all windows inside Nora allow zooming and scrolling, except
those in which the infrastructure and functionality make no sense for them to
support this behavior. (See figure 2). If a window is active (is focused) its
corners will appear marked (no.3)

Zoom, both vertical and horizontal, is always calculated from the point where
the mouse cursor is positioned in relation to the screen.

The different actions that can be used on the different elements of a window are
as follows:

- Horizontal Scroll: Moving the mouse wheel horizontally

- Hor. Zoom: Ctrl+Moving the mouse wheel horizontally, Ctrl+Alt+Moving
the mouse wheel vertically
- Vertical Scroll: Moving the mouse wheel vertically
- Vert. Zoom: Ctrl + Moving the mouse wheel vertically, Ctrl+Shift+Moving
the mouse wheel vertically

11
 - Linked Zoom (vertical-horizontal): Ctrl+Alt+Shift + Moving the mouse
wheel vertically

Free navigation: Scroll in both directions

- Linked movement: Right click + drag (in both vertical and horizontal
bars) (no.1).
- Centre button click + drag
- Shift+Centre button click + drag

Zoom button (no.2):

- Zoom to the center of the window: Left click + drag

- Zoom-to-fit: Right click

12
 6. Menus and buttons

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 11

9 12

Figure 3: Menu and buttons bar (Toolbar)

The upmost part of the general view in NORA displays the following options:
(See figure 3). Any option within menus and toolbar may appear enabled or
disabled, depending on which window has focus (See section 4). We have
designed this way so future versions may have many more windows.

6.1. File menu (no.1)

New: New project

Open: Open project
Save: Save current project
Save as: Save project as a new file

6.2. Edit menu (no.2)

Undo: Undo last action. Ctrl+Alt+Z. Same as (no.5)

Redo: Redo last action. Ctrl+Alt+Y, Same as (no.6)

13
Cut: Cut selected notes from editor. Ctrl+Alt+X. Same as (no.8)
Copy: Copy selected notes from editor. Ctrl+Alt+C. Same as (no.7)
Paste: Paste already cut/copied notes to cursor position. Ctrl+Alt+V. Same as
(no.9)
Delete: Delete selected notes. Delete. Same as (no.10)
Unselect all: Unselect all elements
Select all: Select all elements
Make unique: If you selected a phantom copy in the Playlist or Pattern Editor, it
will become independent.

6.3. Options menu (no.3)

Show browser: Shows/Hides the browser (see figure 7)

Show pattern editor: Shows/Hides the pattern editor (see figure 14)

Show Playlist: Shows/Hides the Playlist (see figure 19)

Dock Playlist: If it is enabled the Playlist will be displayed as a docked panel on

the main interface.

Show midi link environment: Shows/Hides the MIDI link environment Same as
(no.11). (See section 10.2).

Pattern mode: Toggle between operating mode with pattern and the playlist
Same as (no.12)

Load mod: Load a mod from a file

Load default mod: Load the default mod

Enable developer mode: Enables / disables the mod developer mode for Nora:

- Enable: The following options are available in the menu:

o Save Mod as: Save the current mod to a file
o Size editor: Open the sizes editor
o Color editor: Open the colors editor
o Image editor: Open the images editor
o Font editor: Open the fonts editor
o Cursor editor: Open the mouse cursors editor

14
 Note: Squaredheads Music Software S.L is not responsible for the use of
images, fonts and cursors with copyright in the creation of Mods, as well as the
free distribution of such. It is also not responsible for the problems caused by
the malfunction of User-created mods, because the user is free to adjust every
parameter of every editor to their liking. All of this could lead to a malfunction
in Nora, or cause it to freeze. We also dont guarantee that mods are 100%
compatible between versions. Squaredheads Music Software S.L is not
responsible for none of the malfunctions described above.

- Disabled: Disables all previous options in the menu

Preferences: Opens the preferences window. (See section 6.3.1)

6.3.1. PREFERENCES

All preferences are shared for all open Nora instances. Also, such preferences
are automatically saved after they have been changed. It consists of two tabs:
General and File:

General: Consists of:

- Show playlist contents: Shows/Hides in the Playlist window the

representation of notes that compose a pattern.
- Show playlist Phantom Frames: Shows/Hides Phantom Frames.
Phantom Frames are a visual aid to see which clips share the same
sequence.
- Show playlist time helpers: Shows/Hides the time/bar of a clip. (Figure
20,no.4)
- Show pattern editor phantom frames: Analogous to the previous version,
but associated to the pattern editor.
- Show pattern editor names: Shows/Hides the names in the pattern
editor.
- Prevent feedback from control notes:
o Enabled: MIDI messages assigned to trigger a pattern will not be
processed by the Phrase Arpeggiator
o Disabled: There are no filters for MIDI messages

15
 - Mouse cursor compatibility mode: Some hosts may provoke the mouse
cursor to return to its default state (arrow icon) on any VST, making
difficult to work with Nora. If you enable this option, Nora will force the
cursor to be calculated on each mouse movement.

File: Opens the preferences window where you can change the paths for
different data types to be shows in the browser: Phrases, Quantizer.

Available actions are:

- Open the browser to select a folder: Left click on the browse button
- Switch between absolute and relative paths: Right click on the browse
button

6.4. Help menu (no.4)

Contents: Manual

Enable tooltips: Enable/Disable tooltips

Inline help: Enables or disables additional help. If this option is enable, a new
floating window will popup, showing the description of different elements of
Nora while you hover over them.

Record MIDI out: If it is enabled Nora will self record its own MIDI Output when
the DAW starts playing. Notice that the recording time is limited by the host
arrangement end. When you disable this option you will have the chance to save
this MIDI file.

Panic: Sends Note Off messages to every MIDI channel.

Note: This command should never be used. If you needed to use it because a note got
stuck (the note is sounded but never turned off), please contact us by sending an email
to support@squaredheads.com

About ...: Credits

16
 7. Phrase Editor

7 2 8 3 1 6

Figure 4: Phrase Editor

The Phrase Editor consists of two main areas: The Phrase Grid and the Velocity
Grid. They are described below (See figure 4):

7.1. Phrase grid

This is the main area of the editor. This is where phrases are built, length is set
and the whole editing process takes place.

The available actions are:

17
Over the empty area (no.1):

- Add note: Left click. Optionally, if you don't release the mouse button, the
note can be moved around
- Add multiple notes in a continuous manner: Shift + Left Click (while
moving the mouse)
- Activate the selection lasso: Ctrl+Left click (while moving the mouse)
- Unselect all: Right click
- Free edition: Ctrl+Shift+Left click (+optional drag)] Adjust the height
(number) of the closest note freely. If there are one or more notes
selected, only the note number of such notes will be modified. If none is
selected, all notes are modified.

Over the inserted note (no.2):

- Delete: Right click, Edit menu -> Delete (section 6.2)

- Multiple delete: Right click (while moving the mouse)
- Select: Left click. The selected note will display as described in (no.3)
- Move: Left click + drag (On note center)
- Make copy: Ctrl (while moving the note)
- Ignore grid-snap: Alt (while moving the note or resizing)
- Cut, copy, paste: Edit menu -> Cut/Copy/Paste (section 6.2)

Note: Pasted notes are positioned right after the cursor (no.7). The
cursor (no.7) can be moved by Left clicking over the TimeLine (no.8)

- Resize: Left click + drag (On note edges)

- Change pitch: Shift + Left click + drag up/down
- Reset pitch: Shift + Double left click

Note: The pitch of a note (no.9) is the number of half tones that a note
will be transposed by. Use this along with scale selector in the track
configuration window (section 11).

Split notes:

- Shift + Right click: Divides a note on the spot where the mouse cursor is.
- Shift + Right click + Drag: Creates a cutting-line. When the mouse click is
released, all intersected notes will be cut.

Keyboard cursors: Move notes on screen through the grid

18
Note: If one or more notes are selected, moving would only apply to such notes. If no
notes are selected, all the notes that have been inserted into the grid will be moved.

7.2. Velocity grid

This is the area where velocity for the inserted notes is set (no.4).

The available actions are:

- Unselect all: Right click

- Free edition: Left click (while moving the mouse). Adjust the velocity of
all notes freely
- Linear edition: Ctrl+Left click (while moving the mouse). Adjust the
velocity of all notes linearly)

Note: Both in the free and linear edition modes, if there is one or more notes
selected, only the velocity of such notes will be modified. If none is selected, all
notes are modified.

7.3. Phrase end selector

Points out the end of the phrase. It consists of:

Vertical bar (no.5): Indicates phrase length

Triangle (no.6): Allows to manually adjust the end of the bar if the auto end
toggle IS NOT active.

The available actions are:

- Activate/Deactivate: Editor Menus > Toggle Auto End (section 7.4)

- Move: Left click + drag. Also allows you to ignore snap. (See section 7.1)

19
7.4. Editor Menus

They contain, amongst other things, options to modify the amount of notes in
the chords, the amount of octaves and selecting the bar and snap. (See figure 5)

1 2 3 4 5

Figure 5: Phrase Editor menus

Phrase editor options (no.1): (See section 7.4.1)

Phrase name (no.2): Name of the current phrase. Click on it in order to edit it.
You can drag and drop it into any other related Nora window (Playlist, Pattern
editor) or save the phrase (Browser).

Note: When loading a phrase created with version 1.4 or previous, the name of the
phrase will match to the filename. If you want to, you can edit the Phrase Name to your
liking after loading, it can be any name that isnt related to the saved file.

Time Signature Options (no.3)

- X: Remove time signature from the list (Click again to confirm)

- a/b: Select time signature
- New: Create new time signature

Snap Options (no.4)

- Auto: Adjusts snap according to zoom scale

- None: No snap
- X: Remove snap from the list. (Click again to confirm)

20
 - a/b: Select snap
- d: Select a/b dotted snap
- t: Select a/b triplet snap
- New: Create new snap

Toggle Auto End (no.5): End of phrase selection

- On: Automatically adjust to phrase length (Measured by complete bars)

- Off: Manual adjustment

7.4.1. Phrase editor Options

Open ...: Open phrase and replace the active one with it. Same as dragging from
browser (figure 7, no.1). Changes can be undone.
Save as ...: Save phrase as a new file.
Randomizer ...: Open the Randomizer section (see section 9)
Import MIDI file rhythm ...: Allows importing the rhythmic base of a (*.mid ) file.
This means that numbers of notes and their velocities will be ignored, but times
and lengths will be kept.
Export as quantizer data ...: Export the sequence as quantizer data, which can
be loaded by dragging and dropping from the browser (section 7) into the
configuration section of every track (see figure 18. no.4)->Shuffle
Open arpeggiator settings ...: Opens/closes the configuration window for the
track. (See section 11)

Phrase Options ...: Grid options (See figure 6)

21
 1

Figure 6: Grid options

Octaves (no.1): Increase/decrease the amount of octaves (1-5)

Notes (no.2): Increase/decrease notes per octave (1-7)

22
 8. Browser

2 1

Figure 7: Browser

23
It displays the folders and different types of data files and allows you to save
and load any of them (See figure 7)

Available actions are:

Select file type / update file tree:

- Phrase Editor: Left Click on the button (no.2) to update and select the list
of files on the Phrase Editor
- Quantizer: Left Click on the button (no.3) to update and select the list of
quantization patterns
- NORA project: Left Click on the button (no.4) to update and select the list
of NORA projects

Replace active data with data that was previously saved: Drag and drop saved
data (no.1) into the editors (Figures 4, 14, 19). Changes can be undone, except
when loading a NORA project.

24
 9. RANDOMIZER

Consists of different sections that modify the content of sequences and whose
functionalities are classified as: Generator and Mutator. (See figure 8). All
engines calculate each note separately, which means that, for example, a knob
with a very high value is no guarantee that high values will be generated for all
notes. After all, RANDOM MEANS RANDOM.

Generator: This is the name for sections that generate random sequences from
a seed. The following are available: Chord & Base (no.3), 303 Generator (no.2).

Mutator: This is the name for sections that modify already existing data in the
Phrase Editor, randomly. The following are available: Mutate (no.1) , 303
Mutator (no.2).

1 2 3

5 6 7 8

Figure 8: Main window of the Randomizer, displaying available sections and the shared
options bar

25
All sections have a series of shared options:

Reset: Click on it (no.5) to restore different parameters to their default settings.

Regen: Click on it (no.8) to execute the engine with the current parameter
configuration.

Random: Click on it (no.7) to randomize all non-blocked parameters (you can

enable/disable it by the lock icon (no.4)) and then execute the engine.

Note: Ctrl + Left click on a lock icon will make all the same locks change their status

Snapshot: Click on it (no.6) to take a snapshot of notes in the Phrase Editor and
use it as a reference point at the moment of modifying several parameters.
When the button is disabled is it not necessary to take a snapshot, whether it is
because it is not required or because you just took one.

We will now describe each of the available sections:

26
9.1. Chord / Bass

1 2 3 4 13

10
11
12

5 6 7 8 14

Figure 9: Chord + Bass Section

It works as a generator. Generates a chord-line in the central octave and a

bass-line in the immediately-inferior octave .( See figure 9)

It consists of the following parameters:

Density (no.1): Relation between notes and silences to be generated in the

sequence

- Low value (Low settings) - > Low note density

- High value - > High note density

Musicality (no.2): It indicates the variation of notes in the generated chords.

Such effect will only be visible if the number of chord notes (no.12) is lower than
the number of notes per octave available in the grid.

27
 - High musicality -> High variation of notes in the chords.
- Low musicality -> No variation of notes in the chords.

Length (no.3): It defines the standard length for generated notes

- Less than 50% -> notes shorter than the size of the snap
- Greater than 50% -> notes longer than the size of the snap

Velocity (no.4): Random variation of velocity in the sequence

- Low value -> Variation of velocity is almost non-existent. Only a slight

*Human touch*
- High value -> Much more noticeable changes of velocity.

Balance (no.5): Relation between bass notes and chord notes

- Low: Almost all generated notes will be from the bass-line

- High: Almost all generated notes will be from the chords-line

Bass (no.6): Musicality (Number of notes in different lines) of the bass

- Low value -> Sharper bass-lines, with no tone variation.

- High value -> More musical bass-lines, with tone variation.

Dynamics (no.7): Variation of notes length. It adds a number of whole snaps to

the length of notes.

- Low value -> Little variation to the length of notes

- High value -> Substantial variation to the length of notes, generating a
more dynamic sequence

Gate (no.8): Subtracts a fraction of snaps to the notes

- Low value -> Slightly pronounced effect

- High value -> Noticeable reduction of the length of notes

Icon 1 (no.9): Indicates that no notes will be written in the inferior line of the
central octave.

Icon 2 (no.10): Bass velocity attenuation. Decrements the presence of bass

- Normal: No effect
- Attenuated: It will soften bass velocity

Icono3 (no.11): Macros

- Disabled: Random notes will be generated

28
 - Enabled: Notes will be generated according to rhythmic patterns with
repetitions and *Motifs*. Such patterns will have structures such as
ABAB, AAAB, etc...

Note: Because of the complexity of macros, these will only work with bars of length
1,2,4 or 8.

Chord size (no.12): Increments/Decrements the number of notes of generated

chords (1-5)

Drama (no.13): Indicates the probability that a chord sounds with slightly
different pitch.

- Low value -> Less probability

- High value -> More probability

Feel (no.14): Indicates the probability that a bass note sounds with an altered
pitch.

- Low value -> Dull bass-lines

- High value -> Juicy bass-lines

9.2. THE 303

It is a section that will generate monophonic phrases. It can operate in

Generator and Mutator mode (See figures 10 and 11). Selectable via the button
(no.18.)

29
 1 2 3 4 13 14 15 19

9
10

11
12 18

5 6 20 7 8 16 17 21

Figures 10, 11: Views of the 303 section in Mutator and Generator modes

9.2.1. Generator

The Generator mode consists of the following parameters:

Density (no.13): Number of generated notes

- Low value -> Few notes are generated

- High value -> Many notes are generated (Heavy bass-lines)

Mid Line (no.14): Height at which notes will be generated

- Low value -> Notes below the central line

- High value -> Notes above the central line

Note: If we are using 5 octaves, there will be no notes generated in the inferior one, as
in most 303 emulations.

Expression (no.15): Note dispersion. Indicates the deviation of height of notes in

accordance to the Mid Line parameter.

- Low Value -> Notes will appear close to the Mid Line

30
 - High value -> Notes will ignore the Mid Line parameter and might
appear anywhere.

Accent (no.16): Probability of accentuated notes

- Low value -> Few notes will be accentuated

- High value -> Many notes will be accentuated

Slide (no.17): Probability of a *legato* effect in notes

- Low value -> Few notes with legato (Similar to the opposite effect,
known as staccato)
- High value -> Many notes with legato

Transp [no. 19]: Probability that a note may be transposed into another octave.

Pitch (no.21): Probability that a note is being played with a different pitch

- Low value -> Nice variations of the incoming chord

- High value -> Pitch alterations in a more chaotic way (classic acid style)

9.2.2. MUTATOR

The Mutator mode consists of the Following parameters:

Density (no.1): Probability that an existent note will disappear or that a new note
will appear

Note (no.2): Probability that a note will change heights but staying always in its
current octave (Change of pitch)

Octave (no.3): Probability that a note will change octaves (Won`t change pitch)

Reshuffle (no.4): Chance that a note will be swapped with another one, giving
you mutations that do not alter the general pitch content

Accent (no.5): Probability that every note will change its accentuation status

Slide (no.6): Probability that every note will change its slide status

31
Pitch (no.20): Probability that a note changes its pitch

Note: In this mode, it is possible to take a snapshot to be used as a reference point

when changing parameters (See section 9)

Extra options: (For both mutator and generator modes)

Shuffle (no.9): Generates a shuffle effect specifically design to work together

with slides (adjustable via knob (no.6))

Gate (no.10): Generates a gate effect specific for 303.

Accent velocity (no.11): Velocity of accentuated notes.

Regular velocity (no.12): Velocity of non-accentuated notes.

Note: When taking a snap of any sequence, the motor working in mutator mode will
interpret the sequence as a bass-line of the real 303. The engine will interpret that
notes having a velocity > accent velocity will be accentuated.

Rotate back (no.7): Click on the button to rotate the generated pattern one step
back.

Rotate forward (no.8): Click on the button to rotate the generated pattern one
step forward.

32
9.3. MUTATE

1 2 3 4 7

5
6

Figure 12: View of the Mutate section

Works in Mutator mode. It consists of the following parameters: grouped by

couples:

Note/Amount (no.1): Note height

- Note: Indicates the probability that note heights will vary

Low value -> Less probability
High value - > More probability
- Amount : Indicates the maximum amount by which every height may vary
Low value - > Less amount
High value -> More amount

Start/Amount (no.2): Note start

- Start: Indicates the probability that note starts will vary

33
 - Amount: Indicates the maximum amount by which every note start may
vary

Length/Amount (no.3): Note length

- Start: Indicates the probability that note length will vary

- Amount: Indicates the maximum amount by which every note will
change its length

Velocity/Amount (no.4): Note velocity

- Velocity: Indicates the probability that note velocity will vary

- Amount: Indicates the maximum amount by which every note will vary its
velocity

Pitch/Amount (no.7): Note pitch

- Pitch: Indicates the probability that note pitch will vary

- Amount: Indicates the maximum amount by which every note will vary its
pitch

Unrestricted (no.5) : When enabled, it allows moving all notes en bloc that have
the same timestamp.

Fix overlaps (no.6): Solves note overlapping problems caused by the engine
operation. When this option is enabled, all new mutations will fuse overlapped
notes.

Ignore snap: This engine modifies notes according to selected parameters and
according to the value of the selected snap. The higher the value of the snap the
higher the note shifts will be. The lowest snap value possible is NONE, and it
will cause a humanization effect of notes. Such mode can be obtained by
pressing the alt key while the buttons Regen or Random are pressed (See
section 6.1).

Note: It is possible to take a snapshot to be used as a reference point at the moment of

modifying parameters (See section 9)

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 10. PATTERN EDITOR

The pattern editor consists of 8 total tracks, each one with 64 pre-definable
patterns for the Phrase Arpeggiator, which might be executed in the desired
order. It is mainly destined to live usage. (See figures 13 and 14)

This mode will work when the Pattern Mode option is enabled (see section 5.3).
This section will work by executing changes in two possible ways:

- Patterns queued/in wait: Every time the following bar is reached in the
HOST, all patterns that are in queue/waiting will be played.
- Patterns with immediate change: The moment when a pattern change is
ordered, the new pattern will be played.

The amount of bars that have passed without any pattern change is indicated in
figure 15, (no.11)

1 2

3 4

Figure 13: Configuration window and In-Out channel for every track

35
 1 2 3 4

5
7

8
6

12

11
9

10

Figure 14: Pattern editor

36
Available actions are:

A) Individual actions: These are exclusively executed for the selected

TRACK:

Over an empty slot (no.7):

- Add pattern: Double left click.

- Activate the selection lasso: Ctrl+Left click (while moving the mouse)
- Unselect all: Right click
- Stop reproduction: Left click on any stop button of an empty slot (no.6) to
queue the stop action in the pattern that is being played. The same effect
is achieved by left clicking the button (no.10) of the correspondent track.

Over the inserted pattern (no.4):

- Load in the phrase editor: Double left click or Drag and drop a pattern
into the Phrase Editor (figure 4). The rightmost color represents the
sequence that is currently being edited on the Phrase Editor. (no.12)
- Save: Drag and drop a pattern into the browser (figure 7)
- Delete: Double Right click, Edit menu -> Delete (section 5.2)
- Select: Left click. The selected pattern will display as described in (no.2)
- Move: Left click + drag.
- Make copy: Ctrl (while moving the note)
- Make phantom copy Ctrl + Alt (while moving the pattern). Phantom
copies are represented as in (no. 8)

Note: A phantom copy is an alias of the original pattern, with the same
sequence, any posterior changes that are applied to the original one will reflect
on its phantom copies. You can create different phantom copies groups.

- Add to playlist: Drag and drop a pattern into the Playlist (figure 19). The
original pattern and the new one will both become phantom copies.
- Play a pattern: Left Click on the stop button (no.3). The pattern will turn
to wait mode until the current pattern finishes playing.

37
 B) Scene actions: These are executed for ALL TRACKS SIMULTANEOUSLY:

Scene reproduction: Left click on the PLAY button (no.5) to queue the
reproduction of the entire scene. A scene is corresponded to all the slots row of
every track.

Global stop: Left click on the STOP button (no.9) to queue the stop of all tracks.

Note: When pressing Shift + any play or stop button the stop or play order will execute
immediately, without waiting for the pattern change time to run out.

10.1. Channel selection menu and effects for every

track (Figure 13)

Input cannel (no.1): Number of data input channel of the HOST for the current
track. (1-16, or all)

Output channel (no.2): Number of output channel of the HOST for the current
track. (1-16, or all)

Config (no.3): Opens/closes the configuration window for the track. (See section
11)

Enable Arpeggiator (no.4): Enables/disables the Phrase Arpeggiator for the

current track.

- On: The Arpeggiator (Phrase Editor) is enabled

- Off: The Arpeggiator (Phrase Editor) is disabled

10.2. MIDI link environment

It consists of an environment in which we can assign a MIDI message (Hot Key)

to every PLAY/STOP control of the pattern editor, coming from the HOST or a

38
MIDI controller, with the objective of triggering each pattern independently.
(See figure 15)

Figure 15: MIDI link environment

4 5 6 8 9

10

Figures 16,17: Edition windows with assigned MIDI messages/ Menu with conflicting
MIDI messages

39
Controls are represented by the following color-scheme:

- No control assigned to any MIDI message (no.3)

- Control assigned to a MIDI message (no.1)
- Control with conflicting MIDI messages (no.2)

Click on any control to edit it. An edition menu will open (See figures 16, 17).
Such menu consists of 2 slots:

- Pattern queue slot: (no.9)

- Instant pattern change slot: (no.8)

Available actions are:

- Assign a MIDI messages to a pattern: Left click on an empty slot (no.8) or

a previously used one to select it. We now send a MIDI message through
the channel we want: We play a note in the host, press a key in a MIDI
controller... Such message will be stored as a *Hot Key* to trigger the
considered pattern.

Note: Accepted MIDI messages are: NOTE_ON and Continuous Controller (CC),
configured as Switch

- Remove a MIDI message: Left click on the button (no.4)

- Change the mode of assignation: Left click on (no.7) to change the

assignation mode of messages. Consists of the following options:
o Keep: The edition window will stay open when assigning a MIDI
message.
o Auto: The edition window will automatically close when assigning
a MIDI message.
o Next: The edition window of the next logic point will display when
assigning a MIDI message so you can quickly assign messages to
all patterns.

- Solve conflicts: Left click on (no.6) to enable/disable the automatic

resolution of conflicts:
o On: If the assigned MIDI message has been previously used, all
previous conflicting ones will be unassigned.

40
o Off: If the assigned MIDI message has been previously used,
controls will remain in conflict. If we edit a conflicting control we
will see within parenthesis to the left of the MIDI message the
number of conflicting controls (no.9). Left click on the button
(no.10) to solve all existing conflicts

41
 11. TRACK CONFIGURATION WINDOW

1 2 5 3 4

10 11 6 12 7 8

Figure 18: Window of track configuration

It consists of a section that works in real-time independently of each track, with

a series of parameters that we will now describe:

Rnd Vel (no.1): Adds a bit of randomness to the velocity of the notes in the
sequence.

- Low value -> Slight and predictable *human* effect

- High value -> Chaotic effect

Quantizer start strength (no.2): Moves note starts to the closest *quantizer
pattern gridline*, adjusting the distance % according to the knob value.

42
Quantizer end strength (no.3): Moves note ends to the closest *quantizer
pattern gridline*, adjusting the distance % according to the knob value.

Quantizer pattern name (no.4): This area shows the name of the quantizer
pattern that is being used. You can change it by dragging another pattern from
the browser and dropping it here. Patterns can be dropped into the phrase
editor (figure 4) window to edit it, and then exported as a quantizer pattern. You
can also drag and drop quantization patterns between configuration windows of
different tracks.

Chain (no.5): Links the values of the parameters Quantizer start strength and
Quantizer end strength.

- On: Linking enabled

- Off: Linking disabled

Note: It is recommended to have this function enabled in order to prevent

*muting* problems provoked by the quantizer itself.

Play Speed (no.6): Indicates the playback speed of the track. It might take the
following values:

- /4: Four times slower

- /2: Two times slower
- n: Normal speed
- x2: Two times faster
- x4: Four times faster

Sync with host clock (no.7): Grid synchronization

- On: Synchronized with host time

- Off: Triggered by *note on* events, like a classic arpeggiator

Ignore host velocities (no.8): Accept/Ignore incoming velocities from the host

- On: Output velocity is the product of host velocity by the editor velocity
(Calculated as %)
- Off: Output velocity is the actual editor velocity, host velocity is ignored

Engine mode (no.9): Select the kind of calculating engine of the arpeggiator:

- Free: Output notes of the arpeggiator vary as long as there are note
changes on the Host and the Phrase Editor. It is Noras classic mode,
included in all versions up to 1.4.

43
 - Static: Changes to output notes in the arpeggiator are only triggered by
changes to the Phrase Editor notes.

11.1. pitch SCALE SELECTOR

When a note in the Phrase Editor (figure 4) has an altered pitch it will be forced
to the scale defined by the following parameters:

- Mini keyboard (no.10): Displays a preview of the current scale. You may
click on the individual notes to create a custom scale.
- Scale key (no.11): Select a key for the current scale. Notice this control
does not work with custom scales.
- Scale (no.12): When clicking on it, it displays a list with different types of
scales that can be selected.

44
 12. PLAYLIST

The Playlist, just like the Pattern Editor, consists of 8 tracks and it allows clips
(see figure 20) sequencing. It has a grid with a functionality similar to the one in
the Phrase Editor. (See figure 19).

Each track has a loop button (no.7), which, when enabled, restarts the time of
each track whenever it reaches the end of the last clip. (Acting as a Pattern
Chainer)

1 2 7 3 4

Figure 19: Playlist

Each row of the Playlist represents a track. You can edit the name of the track
by left-clicking on (no.5)

45
Available actions are:

A) General (available in the Phrase Editor): (see section 7.1)

- Over the empty area: Activate the selection lasso, unselect all
- Over the inserted clip: Delete, Multiple delete, Select, Move, Make copy,
Ignore grid-snap, Cut, Copy, Paste, Resize
- Keyboard cursors

B) Particular (Only available in the Playlist):

Over the empty area (no.4):

- Add clip: Ctrl + Shift + Left click. Optionally, if you don't release the
mouse button, the note can be moved around
- Add a phantom copy of the last edited or selected clip: Left click.
Phantom copies will appear marked with a circle (no.3)
- Add multiple phantom copies of the last edited or selected clip: Shift +
left click.

Over the inserted clip (no.3, no.6):

- Open a clip in the Phrase Editor: Double left click or Drag and drop a clip
into the Phrase Editor (figure 4)
- Save: Drag and drop a clip into the browser (figure 7)
- Add a clip to the Pattern Editor: Drag and drop a clip into the Pattern
Editor (figure 15). The original and the new pattern will become phantom
copies (no.3)

Split clips:

- Shift + Right click: Divides a clip on the spot where the mouse cursor is.
- Shift + Right click + Drag: Creates a cutting-line. When the mouse click is
released, all intersected clips will be cut.

Editor Controls:

Time Signature Options (no.1): Same options as the phrase editor (see section
6.4)

46
Snap Options (no.2): Same options as the Phrase Editor (see section 7.4)

12.1. PLAYLIST CLIPS

1 5 2

3
4
Figure 20: Playlist clip

It consists of the following elements:

- Name of the contained sequence (no.1)

- Mark of phantom copy with another clip or pattern (no.2)
- Sequence content (no.3): Displays a thumbnail of the sequence
- Clip time-bar (no.4): Indicates the way in which the clip is being played.
- Topmost color [no.5]: Represents the sequence that is currently being
edited on the Phrase Editor (figure 4)

47
 Appendix

(A) How to install NORA

(A.1) REAPER

Configuring the path

Click Options -> Preferences on the menu.

Select Plug-ins -> VST from the list on the left.

Verify that the path to NORA is added in the VST plug-in paths window. If it is not
then click the Add button and add it manually.

Click the Clear cache/re-scan button. The application will scan the paths
related to the VST plugins and will find Nora.dll.

Close the window by clicking OK.

Configuring MIDI

Insert a new track (Track 1 by default): Double-click the hole placed on the left
of the main window, below the toolbar.

Click the fx button of the created track.

On Add FX to: Track 1 , select All Plug-ins -> VSTi from the list on the left.

Select VSTi: Nora (SquaredHeads) from the list. Nora will be loaded unto the FX:
Track 1 window.

On the very same window, click Add and then load, after NORA, a new
instrument.

Getting everything running

In the created track, press Ctrl + Left click in the Arrangement zone, in order to
create a MIDI item

48
Double-click the created item and add notes or chords in the piano roll.

(A.2) FL STUDIO
Configuring the path

Click Options -> File Settings on the menu.

In the VST plugins extra search folder section, select the path to NORA.

Click Channels -> Add One -> More on the menu.

Click the Refresh button and select the Fast Scan option. NORA should be on
the list in the VST plugin section. Select it and then close the window.

Configuring MIDI

Click Channels -> Add One on the menu and select NORA. The step sequencer
will load.

Click NORA. It will load in a new window.

Click the wheel icon on the upper left corner.

Select Settings -> MIDI -> Output port and enter a port that is not currently in
use. (i.e.: 40)

Load another instrument following the previous steps, then select Settings ->
MIDI -> Input port on the configuration window and enter the previously
selected port. (i.e: 40).

Note: NORA does not work with any of the internal FL-STUDIO instruments because
they do not allow MIDI input. There are versions of these instruments in the VST that
you can use.

Getting everything running

In the step sequencer, add chords or notes in the NORA channel leaving the
second instrument slot empty.

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(A.3) ABLETON LIVE
Configuring the path

Click Options -> Preferences on the menu. Select the File Folder tab.

Click VST Plug-in custom folder-> Browse and select the path to NORA.

Click the Rescan button. NORA will appear in the Categories -> Plug-ins
section on the main window inside LIVE.

Configuring MIDI
Note: 2 MIDI tracks are necessary in order to load 1 instance of NORA

From Categories ->Plug-ins drag NORA and drop it on the first MIDI track.

From Categories ->Instruments drag an instrument and drop it on the second

MIDI track.

Click the I-O button on the right side of the main window inside LIVE: Outputs
and inputs for each channel will show.

In the MIDI track of the instrument, inside the MIDI from section, select NORA
from the Input Type and Input Channel lists.

In the same section, select the In option.

Getting everything running

Add notes or chords in the MIDI track of NORA.

50