Features

Producer Pal provides AI-powered tools for music production in Ableton Live. Simply ask the AI what you want to do, and it will use these tools to help you create.

Connection & Setup

Connect to Ableton (ppal-connect)

• Establish the connection with Ableton Live (required before using other tools)
• Summarizes the state of the current Live Set
• Provides the AI with a Producer Pal skill set that adapts to different AI model capabilities

Project Context (ppal-context)

• Read and write project memory — persistent notes that help the AI understand your goals across conversations
• Search configured sample folder for audio files by filename or path

Built-in Chat UI

• Control Producer Pal with its built-in text-based interface
• Compatible with Google Gemini, OpenAI, and OpenAI-compatible online services (Mistral, OpenRouter, etc)
• Compatible with local SLMs (Ollama, LM Studio)

Network Control

• Control Ableton Live with another computer on your network for collaborative production and remote control workflows

Transport & Playback

Transport Control (ppal-playback)

• Start/stop playback in Session or Arrangement view
• Play specific scenes or clips
• Set loop points and playback position
• Jump to arrangement locators by ID or name
• Set loop start/end using locators
• Control which tracks follow the Arrangement
• Stop all clips or specific track clips

Live Set Management

Read Live Set (ppal-read-live-set)

• Get complete Live project overview
• View all tracks, scenes, and clips at once
• See tempo, time signature, and scale settings
• View arrangement locators with times and names
• Check what's playing and track states

Update Live Set (ppal-update-live-set)

• Change tempo, time signature, scale
• Create, rename, or delete arrangement locators

Scene Operations

Create Scene (ppal-create-scene)

• Add new scenes at any position
• Set scene name, color, tempo, and time signature
• Scenes can follow song tempo or have their own
• Ability to capture currently playing clips into a new scene

Read Scene (ppal-read-scene)

• View scene details and all its clips
• Check which clips are playing/triggered
• See scene tempo and time signature

Update Scene (ppal-update-scene)

• Change scene name, color, tempo, and time signature
• Update multiple scenes at once

Track Management

Create Track (ppal-create-track)

• Add MIDI, audio, or return tracks
• Position tracks exactly where you want
• Set initial mute/solo/arm states

Read Track (ppal-read-track)

• Get detailed track information
• View all clips in Session and Arrangement
• See devices, routing options, and drum pad mappings
• Check track states (muted, soloed, armed)
• View mixer properties: gain, pan, panning mode, and send levels

Update Track (ppal-update-track)

• Change track gain (volume), panning, and send levels
• Change mute, solo, arm, I/O routings, and monitoring state
• Change track name and color
• Update multiple tracks at once

Device Management

Create Device (ppal-create-device)

• Add native Live devices (instruments, MIDI effects, audio effects)
• Place devices on any track type: MIDI, audio, return, or master
• Position devices at a specific index in the device chain
• Create devices inside rack chains or drum pads using path notation
• List the native Live devices

Read Device (ppal-read-device)

• Get detailed info about any device, including inside rack chains and drum pad chains
• List device parameter names and values (the state of knobs, dials, etc)

Update Device (ppal-update-device)

• Change device name
• Change device parameter values (control knobs, dials, etc)
• Update multiple devices at once
• Move devices anywhere else in the Live Set, including into racks / wrapping in a new rack
• Create, load, delete, and randomize rack macros variations
• A/B Compare with supported devices
• Control chain and drum pad mute and solo state
• Change the choke group and output MIDI note of drum chains

Clip Creation & Editing

Create Clip (ppal-create-clip)

• Generate MIDI clips with notes, velocities, and timing
• Place clips in Session slots or Arrangement timeline
• Support for probability, velocity ranges, and complex rhythms
• Auto-create scenes as needed

Read Clip (ppal-read-clip)

• Get detailed info about any clip in Session or Arrangement
• Read MIDI notes in musical notation (C3, D#4, etc.)
• Get audio clip gain, pitch, warp settings, sample info

Update Clip (ppal-update-clip)

• Change clip name, color, and loop settings
• Add/remove MIDI notes and change note pitch, timing, velocity, and probability
• Change audio clip gain, pitch shift, warp settings, and warp markers
• Move clips and change their length in the Arrangement
• Split arrangement clips at specified positions
• Update multiple clips at once

Custom Music Notation

Producer Pal uses a text-based music notation syntax called bar|beat to work with MIDI clips. It helps LLMs translate natural language expressions of time to the correct time positions in Ableton Live clips and the arrangement timeline.

• Pitches: Standard notation (C3 = middle C, F#4, Bb2, etc.)
• Time positions: bar|beat format (1|1 = first beat, 2|3 = bar 2, beat 3)
• Durations: bar:beat format (4:0 = 4 bars, 1:2 = 1 bar + 2 beats)
• Velocity: Values from 1-127 (or ranges like 80-100)
• Probability: 0.0 to 1.0 (1.0 = always plays)
• Bar copying: Copy bars with @2=1 (bar 1→2), ranges with @2-8=1 (bar 1→bars 2-8), or tile patterns with @3-10=1-2 (repeat 2-bar pattern across bars 3-10)

Transforms

Apply complex changes to clips using math expressions:

• Transform MIDI notes: velocity, pitch, timing, duration, probability
• Transform audio clips: gain, pitch shift
• Shapes: LFO-like waveforms (sine, tri, saw), linear and exponential ramps for fades, randomization (rand, choose) for humanization
• Context variables: Access note order (note.index), clip metadata (clip.duration, clip.index, clip.position, clip.barDuration) in expressions
• Selectors: Target specific pitch ranges (e.g., C3:, C3-C5:) or time ranges (e.g., 1|1-2|4:), or both in either order (e.g., C3 1|1-2|4: or 1|1-2|4 C3:)

Object Management

Duplicate (ppal-duplicate)

• Copy tracks, scenes, clips, or devices
• Create multiple copies at once
• Copy clips anywhere in the Session, Arrangement, or from Session to Arrangement
  • Position in the Arrangement by bar|beat or locator
  • Auto-tile clips to fill longer arrangement durations
• Copy devices to any track, return track, or rack chain
• Route duplicated tracks to source instrument for MIDI layering

Note: Return tracks and devices on return tracks cannot be duplicated (Live API limitation).

Delete (ppal-delete)

• Remove tracks, return tracks, scenes, clips, or devices
• Bulk delete multiple objects

Selection State and View Control

Select (ppal-select)

• Read current selection and view state (when no arguments)
  • See selected track, scene, clip, and device
  • Check what's currently visible in Live
• Update selection and view state (when arguments provided)
  • Select specific tracks, scenes, or clips
  • Switch between Session and Arrangement views
  • Show/hide browser and detail views
  • Focus on devices or clip details