studio-pilot by consigcody94 - MCP Server

🎵 studio-pilot

Control Ableton Live with natural language through Claude Desktop - MCP server for music production

studio-pilot brings the power of AI to music production. Control Ableton Live using natural language through Claude Desktop, making music creation more intuitive and accessible than ever before.

🎯 Why studio-pilot?

Music production software is incredibly powerful but has a steep learning curve. studio-pilot bridges this gap by letting you:

🗣️ Control with voice - "Set tempo to 120 BPM and create a MIDI track called 'Bass'"
🤖 AI-assisted workflow - Let Claude help you set up your session, create tracks, and manage your mix
📚 Learn as you go - Claude explains what each operation does, helping you master Ableton Live
⚡ Rapid prototyping - Quickly set up complex sessions through conversation
🎓 Lower barrier to entry - Perfect for beginners and experienced producers alike

✨ Features

🎛️ Session Control

Get session information (tempo, time signature, playing status)
Set tempo (20-999 BPM)
Transport control (play, pause, stop, continue)

🎹 Track Management

Create audio and MIDI tracks
Position tracks at specific locations
Automatic track naming

🎼 Clip Creation

Create MIDI clips in any track and scene
Set clip length in bars
Custom clip naming

🎚️ Mixer Operations

Control volume, pan, mute, solo
Batch parameter changes
Real-time track level monitoring

🔊 Real-time Monitoring

Get output meter levels for any track
Monitor multiple tracks simultaneously
Visual level indicators in responses

🚀 Installation

Prerequisites

Ableton Live 10 or later with OSC support enabled
Node.js 16+ installed
Claude Desktop (or any MCP-compatible LLM client)

From Source

git clone https://github.com/consigcody94/studio-pilot
cd studio-pilot
npm install
npm run build
npm link

Now you can use studio-pilot from anywhere!

🎛️ Ableton Live Configuration

Before using studio-pilot, you need to enable OSC support in Ableton Live:

For Ableton Live 10+

Download and install LiveOSC or AbletonOSC:
- LiveOSC: https://github.com/ideoforms/LiveOSC
- AbletonOSC (recommended): https://github.com/ideoforms/AbletonOSC
Place the downloaded files in your Ableton Live MIDI Remote Scripts folder:
- macOS: ~/Music/Ableton/User Library/Remote Scripts/
- Windows: %USERPROFILE%\\Documents\\Ableton\\User Library\\Remote Scripts\\
- Linux: ~/Ableton/User Library/Remote Scripts/
Launch Ableton Live and go to Preferences → Link/Tempo/MIDI
In the MIDI Ports section, enable Remote for the OSC script
The OSC server should now be running on ports 11000 (send) and 11001 (receive)

Verify OSC is Working

You can verify OSC is working by checking Ableton's logs or using an OSC testing tool like OSCulator.

📖 MCP Setup (Claude Desktop)

Install studio-pilot (see installation steps above)
Configure Claude Desktop

Edit your Claude Desktop configuration file:
- macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
- Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
- Windows: %APPDATA%\\Claude\\claude_desktop_config.json

Add studio-pilot to MCP servers:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "studio-pilot": {
      "command": "studio-pilot",
      "args": [],
      "env": {
        "ABLETON_HOST": "localhost",
        "ABLETON_SEND_PORT": "11000",
        "ABLETON_RECEIVE_PORT": "11001"
      }
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop
Test it! Try asking Claude: "What's my current tempo in Ableton?"

For detailed setup instructions and troubleshooting, see .

🎬 Usage Examples

Once configured, you can ask Claude to control Ableton Live using natural language:

Getting Started

You: "What's my current Ableton session setup?"

Claude will use the get_session_info tool to show you the current tempo, time signature, and playing status.

Setting Up a Session

You: "Set the tempo to 95 BPM and create three tracks: one MIDI track for drums, one MIDI track for bass, and one audio track for vocals"

Claude will:

Set the tempo to 95 BPM
Create a MIDI track named "drums"
Create a MIDI track named "bass"
Create an audio track named "vocals"

Creating a Beat

You: "Create a 4-bar MIDI clip in track 0, scene 0 called 'Drum Pattern'"

Claude will create the clip and confirm its creation.

Mixing

You: "Set track 1 volume to 80%, pan it 30% to the right, and unmute it"

Claude will adjust the mixer parameters for track 1 as requested.

Transport Control

You: "Start playback"

Claude will start playing your Ableton Live session.

You: "Stop playback and reset to the beginning"

Claude will stop and reset the transport.

Monitoring Levels

You: "Show me the output levels for tracks 0, 1, and 2"

Claude will display a visual representation of the current output levels for those tracks.

🎼 Complete Example Workflow

Here's a complete conversation showing how to set up a simple lo-fi hip-hop beat:

You: Help me start a lo-fi hip-hop beat

Claude: I'll help you set up a lo-fi session! Let me:
1. Set a chill tempo (85 BPM is perfect for lo-fi)
2. Create the basic tracks we'll need

[Uses set_tempo and create_track tools]

✓ Tempo set to 85 BPM
🎹 Created midi track "Lo-Fi Drums" at position 0
🎹 Created midi track "Bass" at position 1
🎹 Created midi track "Piano/Keys" at position 2
🎹 Created midi track "Vinyl Texture" at position 3
🎵 Created audio track "Vocals/Samples" at position 4

Your lo-fi session is ready! The tracks are set up with a classic
lo-fi tempo. Want me to create some initial clips?

You: Yes, create 8-bar clips in the first scene for drums, bass, and piano

Claude: [Creates clips]

🎼 Created clip "Lo-Fi Drums" in track 0, scene 0 (8 bars)
🎼 Created clip "Bass Line" in track 1, scene 0 (8 bars)
🎼 Created clip "Piano Chords" in track 2, scene 0 (8 bars)

Your clips are ready to fill with music! Start playback when you're ready.

You: Set the drums to 80% volume, bass to 70%, and piano to 60%

Claude: [Adjusts mixer]

🎚️ Track 0 mixer updated:
  • volume: 80%
🎚️ Track 1 mixer updated:
  • volume: 70%
🎚️ Track 2 mixer updated:
  • volume: 60%

Perfect lo-fi mix levels! Your drums will punch through while the
bass and piano sit nicely in the background.

You: Start playback

Claude: ▶️ Playback started playing

Happy creating! 🎵

🛠️ Available MCP Tools

`get_session_info`

Get current Ableton Live session information.

Parameters: None

Example: "What's my current tempo?"

`set_tempo`

Set the tempo (BPM) of the session.

Parameters:

tempo (number, required): BPM between 20 and 999

Example: "Set tempo to 128 BPM"

`transport_control`

Control playback transport.

Parameters:

action (string, required): "play", "pause", "stop", or "continue"

Example: "Stop playback"

`create_track`

Create a new audio or MIDI track.

Parameters:

name (string, required): Track name
type (string, required): "audio" or "midi"
position (number, optional): Track position (0-based)

Example: "Create a MIDI track called Synth Lead"

`create_clip`

Create a new MIDI clip.

Parameters:

trackId (number, required): Track index (0-based)
sceneIndex (number, required): Scene index (0-based)
name (string, optional): Clip name
length (number, optional): Length in bars (default: 4)

Example: "Create a 16-bar clip in track 2, scene 0"

`set_mixer`

Set mixer parameters for a track.

Parameters:

trackId (number, required): Track index (0-based)
volume (number, optional): 0-1 (default: 0.85)
pan (number, optional): -1 (left) to 1 (right)
mute (boolean, optional): Mute state
solo (boolean, optional): Solo state

Example: "Mute track 3 and set its volume to 50%"

`get_track_levels`

Get real-time output meter levels for tracks.

Parameters:

trackIds (array of numbers, required): Track indices to monitor

Example: "Show me levels for tracks 0, 1, and 2"

🏗️ Architecture

studio-pilot/
├── src/
│   ├── types.ts              # TypeScript type definitions
│   ├── osc-client.ts          # OSC communication with Ableton Live
│   ├── mcp-server.ts          # MCP protocol server
│   └── index.ts               # Public API exports
├── dist/                      # Compiled JavaScript output
├── tests/                     # Test suite
└── docs/                      # Additional documentation

How It Works

MCP Layer: Claude Desktop communicates with studio-pilot via the Model Context Protocol (JSON-RPC 2.0 over stdin/stdout)
Translation Layer: studio-pilot translates MCP tool calls into OSC messages
OSC Layer: OSC messages are sent to Ableton Live on port 11000, responses come back on port 11001
Ableton Live: Executes the commands and sends back status information

🧪 Development

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run in development mode with watch
npm run dev

# Run tests
npm test

# Run tests with coverage
npm run test:coverage

# Lint code
npm run lint

# Format code
npm run format

# Type check
npm run typecheck

# Build for production
npm run build

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Fork the repository
Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
Open a Pull Request

See for detailed guidelines.

💡 Tips & Best Practices

Naming Conventions

Use descriptive track names that Claude can understand:

✅ "Create a MIDI track called 'Drum Kit'"
✅ "Create an audio track for 'Lead Vocals'"
❌ "Create track trk_001"

Session Organization

Organize your requests logically:

Set tempo and time signature first
Create all your tracks
Create clips in a scene
Adjust mixer settings
Start playback

Working with Clips

Remember that:

Scene index 0 is the top scene
Track index 0 is the leftmost track
Clip length is in bars (not beats)

Monitoring Performance

Use get_track_levels to monitor your mix in real-time
Check levels regularly to avoid clipping
Claude can help you identify problem tracks

❓ FAQ

Q: Does this work with Ableton Live Lite? A: Yes, as long as you can install the OSC remote script, it works with all versions of Ableton Live 10+.

Q: Can I use this with FL Studio or Logic Pro? A: Currently studio-pilot only supports Ableton Live via OSC. Support for other DAWs may come in future versions.

Q: Do I need to keep Claude Desktop open? A: Yes, Claude Desktop (or another MCP client) is required to translate your natural language requests into tool calls.

Q: Can I control plugins and effects? A: Basic plugin parameter control is planned for future versions. Currently, you can create tracks and clips, and control mixer parameters.

Q: Is there a lag between commands? A: OSC communication is very fast (<10ms typical). The main latency is from LLM response time (1-3 seconds).

Q: Can multiple instances run simultaneously? A: Currently, only one studio-pilot instance can connect to Ableton Live at a time due to OSC port limitations.

🗺️ Roadmap

📄 License

🙏 Acknowledgments

Built with node-osc for OSC communication
Powered by Model Context Protocol
Inspired by the music production community

🎵 Made with studio-pilot

Are you using studio-pilot in your music production workflow? Let us know! We'd love to feature your tracks and workflows.

🔗 Links

⭐ Star this repo if you find it useful!

Made with ❤️ by consigcody94