---
layout: default
-title: Handle Overlapping Notes
+title: Handling Overlapping Notes
+menu-title: Overlapping Notes
---
-
-
-
-<p>Every MIDI note consists of two messages, a NoteOn and a NoteOff message. Each one has a note number and a channel (also a velocity, but that isn't relevant here). The MIDI standard stresses that it is invalid to send a second NoteOn for the same note number on the same channel before a NoteOff for the first NoteOn. It is more or less impossible to do this with a physical MIDI controller such as a keyboard, but remarkably easy to trigger when editing in a DAW - simply overlapping two instances of the same note will do it.</p>
-<p>Ardour offers many options for how to deal with instances where you overlap two instances of the same note. Which one to use is a per-session property and can be modified from <code>Session > Properties > Misc > MIDI Options</code></p>
+<p>
+ Every MIDI note consists of two messages, a NoteOn and a NoteOff. Each one
+ has a note number and a channel (also a velocity, but that isn't relevant
+ here). The MIDI standard stresses that it is invalid to send a second NoteOn
+ for the same note number on the same channel before a NoteOff for the first
+ NoteOn. It is more or less impossible to do this with a physical MIDI
+ controller such as a keyboard, but remarkably easy to trigger when editing
+ in a DAW - simply overlapping two instances of the same note will do it.
+</p>
+<p>
+ Ardour offers many options for how to deal with instances where you overlap
+ two instances of the same note. Which one to use is a per-session property
+ and can be modified from <kbd class="menu">Session > Properties > Misc > MIDI
+ Options</kbd>.
+</p>
+
<dl class="wide-table">
-<dt>never allow them</dt>
-<dd>Edits that would create note overlaps are not allowed</dd>
-<dt>don't do anything in particular</dt>
-<dd>Ardour leaves overlapping notes alone - the behaviour of a MIDI receiver (plugin or hardware) is undefined</dd>
-<dt>replace any overlapped existing note</dt>
-<dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, remove the one that wasn't being moved</dd>
-<dt>shorten the overlapped existing note</dt>
-<dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, shorten the one that wasn't moved so that there is no overlap</dd>
-<dt>shorten the overlapping new note</dt>
-<dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, shorten the one that was moved so that there is no overlap</dd>
-<dt>replace both overlapping notes with a single note</dt>
-<dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, merge them both to form one (longer) note</dd>
+ <dt>never allow them</dt>
+ <dd>Edits that would create note overlaps are not allowed</dd>
+ <dt>don't do anything in particular</dt>
+ <dd>Ardour leaves overlapping notes alone — the behaviour of a MIDI receiver (plugin or hardware) is undefined</dd>
+ <dt>replace any overlapped existing note</dt>
+ <dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, remove the one that wasn't being moved</dd>
+ <dt>shorten the overlapped existing note</dt>
+ <dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, shorten the one that wasn't moved so that there is no overlap</dd>
+ <dt>shorten the overlapping new note</dt>
+ <dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, shorten the one that was moved so that there is no overlap</dd>
+ <dt>replace both overlapping notes with a single note</dt>
+ <dd>When one note is moved to overlap another, merge them both to form one (longer) note</dd>
</dl>
-<p>Changing the option in use will <strong>not</strong> retroactively make changes - it will only affect new note overlaps created while the option remains chosen.</p>
-<blockquote><p>Ardour does not check for note overlaps across tracks or even across regions. If you create these, it is your responsibility to deal with the consequences.
-</p></blockquote>
+<p>
+ Changing the option in use will not retroactively make changes — it will
+ only affect new note overlaps created while the option remains chosen.
+</p>
+<p class="warning">
+ Ardour does not check for note overlaps across tracks or even across regions.
+ If you create these, it is your responsibility to deal with the consequences.
+</p>
projects / ardour-manual / blobdiff