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I recorded a piece with my keyboard (a Yamaha YPG-535). When I play it back on the keyboard, it sounded great. I put it on a flash drive in MIDI format and plugged it into my computer (Windows 7). I played it in Windows Media Player and I noticed it was not playing the sustain pedal. I opened it in Musescore 1.2, and everything else was notated correctly.

Why was the sustain pedal not transferred to the MIDI file, and how should I fix this?

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  • don't use windows media player - it's synth is terrible. use a real synthesizer. You understand that a midi files is just notes, right? It'll be turned into sound by the synth you use. So depending on which sounds the synth uses (and expecially their quality) the sound will vary greatly.
    – Stephen Hazel
    Sep 10, 2012 at 5:43
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    Pedantic, but relevant to this question: A MIDI file is not just notes, it also can include controller data, which is relevant to the OP's question.
    – ObscureRobot
    Sep 10, 2012 at 17:24

1 Answer 1

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According to the manual, your YPG-535 uses the standard controller - CC# 64 - for the sustain pedal. It is possible that Windows Media Player ignores controller data and just plays the notes. You will need to examine the MIDI File in an editor or DAW that will show you controller values as well as notes. If you see CC 64 set to ON when you played the sostuneto pedal, then the file is fine.

Update: Reaper should work for examining the MIDI file in detail. You can download the trial version for free, and the full version isn't expensive.

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  • Which programs do you recommend for this? I've never messed with MIDI files before and don't really know where to start.
    – American Luke
    Sep 9, 2012 at 20:09
  • Reaper should do the job. You can download it for free and should be able to examine your MIDI file with it.
    – ObscureRobot
    Sep 10, 2012 at 2:37
  • Do you mean the Forte (sustain) pedal? Your initial question mentions the Sostenudo pedal, which is altogether different both in application and in terms of MIDI implementation. A look at the brochure indicates that your model only has the sustain pedal input, so the answer above should suffice.
    – Zeronyne
    Sep 10, 2012 at 14:57
  • @ObscureRobot Still figuring out the program. Where do I look for the controllers in the program?
    – American Luke
    Sep 11, 2012 at 14:38
  • I haven't used Reaper myself, but there should be a way to open up a MIDI section and view the continuous controllers. You may have to select the specific controller by number (64, in your case).
    – ObscureRobot
    Sep 11, 2012 at 16:36

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