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How to make a Minecraft note block song

Bring a MIDI file. Blocksmith builds the note blocks, checks the redstone, and writes the function that plays it.

Note blocks in Minecraft: Java Edition play a short set of instruments, two octaves each, when redstone reaches them. A MIDI file is a list of notes over time. Blocksmith reads it on your computer, folds pitches into that range, and lays repeaters so the notes land on time. A simulator then checks the wiring.

The only song on this site is the eight-note chime written for the gallery. Do not bring a commercial song’s MIDI. If you wrote the tune, or you have permission, you are fine. Composing on a piano roll is OpenNBS, and that page is honest about the split.

Steps

  1. Start with a MIDI you can use. Export .mid from a tool you use for your own music, or from OpenNBS if you have been writing there.
  2. Let Blocksmith build the machine. It places note blocks on the blocks that choose the instrument, plus the repeater line and a start.
  3. Listen in a Java world. Run /function blocksmith:play and sit where the app points you. The check is why a long file should not skip a bar quietly.
  4. Don’t look for a Bedrock export. Tuning a note block from a command is a Java feature. The app will not hand you a Bedrock pack that cannot play.

Songs do not spend an AI wish. They are not part of the skin or build galleries. More is on the songs page.

Questions

Will you add a song I heard on YouTube?

No. We don’t host other people’s songs, famous or otherwise.

Can I edit one note?

Barely. Speed and which parts to keep, then it builds. For note-by-note edits, use OpenNBS, then export MIDI if you still want the machine.

Does the chime count as a tutorial song?

It is eight harp notes written for the page, so the example would not be somebody else’s melody. You can inspect that gallery page. It is not a chart of a known track.

Download Blocksmith free

Mac and Windows. On a Mac, Blocksmith is notarised by Apple and opens normally. On Windows, the installer isn’t code-signed yet, so SmartScreen may say “Windows protected your PC”: choose More info, then Run anyway.

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