tunes

A standalone Rust library for music composition, synthesis, and audio generation. Build complex musical pieces with an intuitive, expressive API — no runtime dependencies required.

Perfect for algorithmic music, game audio, generative art, and interactive installations.

Features

• Music Theory: Scales, chords, patterns, progressions, and transposition
• Composition DSL: Fluent API for building musical sequences
• Sections & Arrangements: Create reusable sections (verse, chorus, bridge) and arrange them
• Synthesis: FM synthesis, filter envelopes, wavetable oscillators
• Sample Playback: Load and play WAV files with pitch shifting
• Rhythm & Drums: Drum grids, euclidean rhythms, 808-style synthesis, and pattern sequencing
• Instruments: Pre-configured synthesizers, bass, pads, leads, and more
• Effects, Automation and Filters: Delay, reverb, distortion, chorus, modulation, tremolo, autopan, gate, limiter, compressor, bitcrusher, eq, phaser, flanger, saturation, filters
• Musical Patterns: Arpeggios, ornaments, tuplets, classical techniques
• Tempo & Timing: Tempo changes, time signatures (3/4, 5/4, 7/8, etc.), key signatures with modal support
• Key Signatures & Modes: Major, minor, and all 7 Greek modes (Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, etc.)
• Real-time Playback: Cross-platform audio output via cpal
• WAV Import/Export: Load samples and render compositions to WAV files
• MIDI Export: Export compositions to Standard MIDI Files with proper metadata

Installation

Add this to your Cargo.toml:

[dependencies]
tunes = "0.1.0"

Platform Requirements

Linux users need ALSA development libraries:

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install libasound2-dev

# Fedora/RHEL
sudo dnf install alsa-lib-devel

macOS and Windows work out of the box with no additional dependencies.

Quick Start: Super simple!!

Real-time Playback

use tunes::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<(), anyhow::Error> {
    let engine = AudioEngine::new()?;
    let mut comp = Composition::new(Tempo::new(120.0));
    let eighth = comp.tempo().eighth_note();  //getting this value to use in the next example

    // This is where you can do everything. 
    // Notes and chords can be input as floats with frequencies in hz or using or by prelude constants
    // Durations can be input as a duration of seconds as a float or using durations inferred by tempo
    
    comp.instrument("piano", &Instrument::electric_piano())
        .note(&[C4], 0.5)    //plays a c4 for half a second
        .note(&[280.0], eighth); //plays 280.0 hz note for half a second
        //continue chaining methods after the second note if you want.
    engine.play_mixer(&comp.into_mixer())?;
    Ok(())
}

Export to WAV

use tunes::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<(), anyhow::Error> {
    let mut comp = Composition::new(Tempo::new(120.0));

    // Create a melody with instruments and effects
    comp.instrument("lead", &Instrument::synth_lead())
        .filter(Filter::low_pass(1200.0, 0.6))
        .notes(&[C4, E4, G4, C5], 0.5);

    // Export to WAV file
    let mut mixer = comp.into_mixer();
    mixer.export_wav("my_song.wav", 44100)?;
    Ok(())
}

Sample Playback

use tunes::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<(), anyhow::Error> {
    let mut comp = Composition::new(Tempo::new(120.0));

    // Load samples (drums, vocals, any WAV file)
    comp.load_sample("kick", "samples/kick.wav")?;
    comp.load_sample("snare", "samples/snare.wav")?;

    // Use samples in your composition
    comp.track("drums")
        .sample("kick")                    // Play at normal speed
        .sample("snare")
        .sample("kick")
        .sample_with_rate("snare", 2.0);   // Double speed (pitch up)

    // Mix samples with synthesis
    comp.instrument("bass", &Instrument::sub_bass())
        .notes(&[C2, C2, G2, G2], 0.5);

    let mixer = comp.into_mixer();
    let engine = AudioEngine::new()?;
    engine.play_mixer(&mixer)?;
    Ok(())
}

MIDI Export

use tunes::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<(), anyhow::Error> {
    let mut comp = Composition::new(Tempo::new(120.0));

    // Create a composition
    comp.instrument("melody", &Instrument::synth_lead())
        .notes(&[C4, E4, G4, C5], 0.5);

    comp.track("drums")
        .drum_grid(16, 0.125)
        .kick(&[0, 4, 8, 12])
        .snare(&[4, 12]);

    // Export to MIDI file
    let mixer = comp.into_mixer();
    mixer.export_midi("song.mid")?;
    Ok(())
}

Comparison with Other Music Programming Libraries

tunes occupies a unique position in the music programming landscape:

When to use tunes

tunes excels at:

• Building Rust applications with music generation (games, art installations, tools)
• Algorithmic composition with type-safe APIs
• Offline music generation and batch processing
• Learning music programming without complex setup
• Prototyping musical ideas with immediate feedback

Use alternatives if you need:

• SuperCollider: Extreme synthesis flexibility and live coding ecosystem
• Sonic Pi: Classroom-ready live coding with visual feedback
• Leipzig: Functional composition with Clojure's elegance
• Strudel: Browser-based collaboration and live coding
• Music21: Academic music analysis and score manipulation

tunes' unique position

tunes is the only standalone, embeddable, type-safe music library with synthesis + sample playback. It compiles to a single binary with no runtime dependencies, making it ideal for:

• Rust game developers (Bevy, ggez, etc.)
• Desktop music applications
• Command-line music tools
• Embedded audio systems

Documentation

Run cargo doc --open to view the full API documentation with detailed examples for each module.

Testing

cargo test

• The library includes 550 comprehensive tests and 150 doc tests ensuring reliability and correctness.

Examples

Run the included 50 examples to hear the library in action:

# Sample playback (WAV file loading and playback)
cargo run --release --example sample_playback_demo

# Export to WAV file
cargo run --release --example wav_export_demo

# Synthesis showcase (FM, filters, envelopes)
cargo run --release --example synthesis_demo

# Theory and scales
cargo run --example theory_demo

# Effects and effect automation (dynamic parameter changes over time)
cargo run --example effects_showcase
cargo run --example automation_demo

# And many more...

Note: Use --release for examples with complex synthesis to avoid audio underruns.

License

MIT OR Apache-2.0

Contributing

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