I am using Dorico Pro 6 on macOS with a digital piano connected via USB-C for MIDI note input.
I have a recurring problem: Dorico often does not react to MIDI input in an already open project. The MIDI device is connected and enabled in Preferences > Play > MIDI Input Devices, and I am in note input mode with the caret visible.
The workaround is always the same:
I create a new empty Dorico project.
I double-click into a staff in that new project to start note input.
MIDI input starts working there.
I close the new project without saving.
I return to the original project.
MIDI input now works in the original project as well.
This looks like some kind of MIDI input or note-input initialisation problem. I had previously tried enabling “Filter out MIDI controllers” and checking the MIDI input settings; for a while it seemed better, but the problem has now returned.
Has anyone seen this specific behaviour before? Is there anything else I should check, or could this indicate an Audio Engine/MIDI initialisation issue?
2 things to check in the new project that doesn’t respond to MIDI. 1) make sure the project is active. Check the button (blue=active) in the transport:
If the project is active, generate MIDI activity with your device and check if Dorico “sees” it. The very bottom right of the window will respond with a green light.
EDIT: 3) Also check Preferences → Play and make sure your device is activated under “MIDI Input Devices”
Thanks @derAbgang , you are right, those things I also would have asked about.
Also @Janus, you are right, I would be only a little more specific. So yes, @Martin_Wettstein , please bring Dorico into that state where no MIDI input is working and then do from the menu Help > Create Diagnostic Report and post the corresponding zip file here. Thanks
I also regularly check Audio MIDI Setup on macOS, and the device is always recognized immediately as soon as I switch it on. In Dorico, the device is activated under Preferences > Play > MIDI Input Devices.
If the problem occurs again, I will check whether the project is active in the transport and whether the green MIDI activity indicator at the bottom right responds before using my workaround. I will also create and send a Diagnostic Report while the problem is present.
I will report back with these details if it happens again.
Although the button is blue, Dorico does not respond to MIDI input. However, if I switch it off and then on again, MIDI input starts working. So perhaps this is already the solution.
If the problem nevertheless reappears later, I will be happy to report back with more details and a Diagnostic Report.
Do you have any applications running concurrently that accept MIDI input? It could be that the other application doesn’t release the device until Dorico “forces” it to via the Activate button - but that’s just a guess. A Diagnostic report when the device doesn’t work with an activated project is probably best.
No, no other applications running concurrently that use MIDI. I’ll create a diagnostic report next time the issue occurs with an activated project and post it here.
I waited until the problem occurred again before posting this, so that I could create a Diagnostic Report while the issue was present. I have attached the report.
What I observed is the following: I open a project, and the button in the top right is blue, but MIDI input is not recognized. If I switch the button off and then on again, MIDI input starts working.
So this seems to be a simple workaround for me. It is not perfect, of course, but at least it avoids having to create a new project just to “wake up” MIDI input.
The only issue is that other users with the same problem might not immediately think of switching this button off and on again — I certainly didn’t.
According to the logs you had Dorico running for 3 days. Now, what were your last actions? You loaded a project, then had no MIDI input, then pushed the activate button twice and had MIDI input again and then took the diagnostic report? Is that what you did last?
Hi Ulf. No, I created the diagnostic report while MIDI input was still not working.
The sequence was:
Dorico had been running for quite a long time.
I opened/returned to the project.
The project button was blue, but MIDI input was not recognized.
I created the diagnostic report at that point, while MIDI input was still not working.
Only afterwards did I switch the project button off and on again.
After that, MIDI input started working.
So the diagnostic report should reflect the state in which the project button was blue but MIDI input was not being recognized.
For me personally, the problem is now effectively solved thanks to your hint about the button. But I thought the diagnostic report might still be useful for the team.
Small follow-up for the team: When I close the project deactivated (button off), and later reopen it still deactivated, I have to hit the activate button twice to get MIDI input working — activating once isn’t enough.
