How to connect MIDI keyboard and Musescore Linux (2021)
Hello All, I need some of your expertise here. I am trying to connect my MIDI keyboard to Musescore so that I can both do note input with the piano and also play scores through the piano and not the PC speakers.
Sounds simple but I am having the hardest time. Between Jack, ALSA, ALSA and Jack, that connection graph - I need help. All the docs I have been able to find are very dated and not of much help. I got MIDI note input to work once, but am back at square 1 now.
I use Fedora 34 and have a Yamaha P200 keyboard. Musescore 3.6.2. Can anyone point me to some concise instructions that can help me accomplish this?
Thanks in advance.
Comments
Are you managing jack through qjackctl?
It will connect jack-daemon to system-alsa, and has a graphical view of jack to jack connections. In musescore, select jack in pref-I/O.
In reply to Are you managing jack… by larryz
Thanks I already tried that. Seems a lot of other settings need to be changed from the default. Would you mind posting screenshots of the JACK settings screens, the Musescore pref/IO page and also the JACK connection graphic so I can use that to match my system?
There is a lot of conflicting information out there especially about Jack interaction with Pulseaudio
In reply to Thanks I already tried that… by k88
To debug, please try using dummy-driver in qjackctl (picture qjackctl-dummy).
I've started two musescore (mscore is first musescore and is representing your midi-keyboard).
And the second musescore named mscore-1.
The two are midi connected in qjackctl graph, (mscore-midi-out to mscore-1-midi-in).
The musescore (mscore-1) preferences-io has jack and jack-midi selected.
Ensure midi-in is on (upper-left corner midi-connector symbol). Open synthesizer that gives visual feedback on any incoming midi note-events, and press play / key on keyboard.
In reply to To debug, please try using… by larryz
Larryz,
Thanks for the reply. It was a little over my head as I don't understand what you meant by 2 musescores. I can run only one instance of it.
I thought maybe I should take some screenshots.
With Jack running, this is what I see after I startup Musescore:
![Jack-Musescore.png]()
No MIDI in or out.
So, leaving everything in place, I shut down Musescore and started Rosegarden and this is what I see:
![Jack-Rosegarden.png]()
Everything works - MIDI note input - MIDI out through my keyboard. Didn't even have to change a setting.
Based on my screenshot, for musescore to do MIDI IN and OUT, what do I need to connect or change?
In reply to Larryz, Thanks for the reply… by k88
Hi! By two musescore's I meant using one musescore as a substitution for a proper midi-keyboard :-)
Anyhow, thanks for posting your pictures, I think your problem is revealed in those.
Your midi keyboard seems to be the device "20:CH345".
Further it seems rosegraden will automatically connect your midi keyboard with its midi-input.
So it seems you have to manually do that connection , not sure if musescore can remember these somehow, but I think qjackctl will remember, or atleast you can save some setup.
So, start musescore, and in qjackctl, drag/draw a connection using your mouse, from "20CCH345", to the musescore-box left side (where midi-input reside).