The Annoying Piano (TAP)

Overview

TAP (The Annoying Piano) is an experimental digital piano that dynamically alters pitch during performance, creating emergent compositions through real-time note manipulation. This instrument challenges traditional piano paradigms by introducing controlled unpredictability into the playing experience, enabling musicians and sound artists to explore new territories of non-idiomatic improvisation and algorithmic composition.

Max for Live device

TAP is also a Max for Live MIDI effect for Ableton Live. It moved, with its history, to audio-plugins on 2026-10-28. The parked VST attempt is still in this repo's history, up to commit 0a32ae3.

Features

• Multi-input support:
  • Mouse interaction
  • Keyboard controls
  • External MIDI controller compatibility
  • MIDI file upload and playback
• Dynamic pitch alteration modes:
  • Swap: Exchange pitches between consecutive notes
  • Gravity: Apply weighted pitch attraction between notes
  • Move: Shift pitch by defined semitone intervals
• Customizable audio effects
• Real-time pitch manipulation

Technical Stack

• Frontend Framework: React (^18.3.1)
• Backend Framework: Next.js (^14.2.13)
• Styling: TailwindCSS
• Audio Engine: Tone.js (^15.0.4)
• Additional Dependencies:
  • @heroicons/react: ^2.1.5
  • @react-midi/hooks: ^2.0.1
  • @tonejs/midi: ^2.0.28
  • react-icons: ^5.3.0

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/jimmyNicholas/next-annoying-piano.git
cd next-annoying-piano

2. Install dependencies:

npm install
# or
yarn install

3. Start the development server:

npm run dev
# or
yarn dev

Usage Guide

Input Methods

1. Mouse Control

• Click and hold piano keys to play
• Release or move mouse to stop the note

2. Keyboard Input

• Click the "Activate Keyboard" button to enable keyboard controls
• [Keyboard mapping image to be added]
• Special modifier keys available [Details to be added with image]

3. MIDI Controller

1. Connect your MIDI controller via USB
2. Allow browser access when prompted
3. Select your MIDI device from the dropdown menu

4. MIDI File Playback

• Supported format: Standard MIDI files (.mid)
• Upload via the file upload button
• Single track playback (first track for multi-track files)
• Basic transport controls (play, pause, stop)
• MIDI parsing handled by tonejs/MIDI library

Pitch Alteration Modes

Swap Mode

Changes the pitch of consecutive notes by exchanging their frequencies.

Example:
Initial state: G4 = 392Hz, A4 = 440Hz
1. Play G4 → Last Key = G4
2. Play A4 → Last Key = G4, Current = A4
3. Swap occurs
Result: G4 = 440Hz, A4 = 392Hz

Gravity Mode

Attracts the pitch of previous notes toward the last played note.

Example (Strength = 2):
Initial state: G4 = 392Hz, A4 = 440Hz
1. Play G4 → Last Key = G4
2. Play A4 → Last Key = G4, Current = A4
3. Gravity applied
Result: G4 = 398Hz, A4 = 440Hz

Move Mode

Shifts the pitch of the last played note by a specified number of semitones.

Example (Semitones = 1):
1. Play A4 (440Hz)
2. Move applied
Result: A4 = 466.16Hz

Development Status

Future plans include:

• NPM package distribution
• MIDI file size limits
• Extended browser compatibility testing
• System requirements documentation
• Production deployment guide

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

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Note: Browser compatibility, system requirements, and recommended audio setup specifications are currently being documented through testing. Please check back for updates.