# tunes
A standalone Rust library for music composition, synthesis, and audio generation with real-time, concurrent playback and control.
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, Granular synthesis, Karplus Strong, additive synthesis, filter envelopes, wavetable oscillators
- **Instruments**: 150+ Pre-configured synthesizers, bass, pads, leads, guitars, percussion, brass, strings, woodwinds and more
- **Rhythm & Drums**: 100+ pre-configured drum sounds, drum grids, euclidean rhythms, 808-style synthesis, and pattern sequencing
- **Effects, Automation and Filters**: Delay, reverb, distortion, parametric EQ, chorus, modulation, tremolo, autopan, gate, limiter, compressor (with multiband support), bitcrusher, eq, phaser, flanger, saturation, sidechaining/ducking, various filters
- **Musical Patterns**: Arpeggios, ornaments, tuplets, and many classical techniques and patterns built-in
- **Algorithmic Sequences**: 50+ algorithms, including Primes, Fib, 2^x, Markov, L-map, Collatz, Euclidean, Golden ratio, random/bounded walks, Thue-Morse, Recamán's, Van der Corput, L-System, Cantor, Shepherd, Cellular Automaton, and many more
- **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 with concurrent mixing, live volume/pan control
- **Sample Playback**: Load and play audio files (MP3, OGG, FLAC, WAV, AAC) with pitch shifting, time dilation and slicing
- **Streaming Audio**: Memory-efficient streaming for long background music and ambience without loading entire files into RAM
- **Spatial Audio**: 3D sound positioning with distance attenuation, azimuth panning, doppler effect, and listener orientation for immersive game audio
- **Audio Export**: WAV (uncompressed), FLAC (lossless ~50-60% compression), STEM export
- **MIDI Import/Export**: Import Standard MIDI Files and export compositions to MIDI with proper metadata
- **Live Coding**: Hot-reload system - edit code and hear changes instantly
* [ ] The library includes **1118 comprehensive tests and 424 doc tests** ensuring reliability and correctness.
## Who this is and isn't for:
For:
learners
tinkerers
algorithmic/generative/procedural music
experimental musicians
game jammers and indie devs,
rust coders looking to play with Digital Signal Processing without having to re-implement everything from scratch
Not for:
professional producers
DAW dwellers
DSP engineers
live-repl-first musicians
beginners to programming
## What this is and isn't for:
Is:
A fun, batteries-included domain specific language for digital signal processing
Aimed at making creative music using DSP fundamentals, music theory helpers and generative algorithmic sequences accessible
tunes is also under active development
Isn't:
A truly professional grade implementation of DSP or a AAA quality audio sample playback engine.
Tunes does pre-rendered and real-time synthesis, sample playback and spatial audio but it is NOT the most efficient implementation of "play x at y when z" audio playback needs
However, the crate has handled 5000 concurrent synthesis events with heavy effects on decade old hardware.
Whether or not that's good enough depends on your use case
## PROS
rust
music theory integration
composition first
code first environment (rust's ide integration and your choice of ide is everything here)
sufficient performance for 99% of use cases
## CONS
no gui or graphical elements
no "instant feedback" outside of hot-reloading segments
no external control or input (no live line recording, midi in, osc or network controls) or hardware control
no plugin system
not multithreaded audio (and no simd)
rust (not as beginner friendly as something like sonic pi)
## Installation
Add this to your `Cargo.toml`:
```toml
[dependencies]
tunes = "0.15.0"
```
### Platform Requirements
**Linux users** need ALSA development libraries:
```bash
# 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
```rust
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
```rust
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(())
}
```
### Export to FLAC (Lossless Compression)
```rust
use tunes::prelude::*;
fn main() -> Result<(), anyhow::Error> {
let mut comp = Composition::new(Tempo::new(120.0));
comp.instrument("piano", &Instrument::electric_piano())
.notes(&[C4, E4, G4, C5], 0.5);
// Export to FLAC (50-60% smaller than WAV, lossless quality)
let mut mixer = comp.into_mixer();
mixer.export_flac("my_song.flac", 44100)?;
Ok(())
}
```
### Sample Playback
```rust
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 Import/Export
```rust
use tunes::prelude::*;
fn main() -> Result<(), anyhow::Error> {
// Export: Create and export a composition to MIDI
let mut comp = Composition::new(Tempo::new(120.0));
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]);
let mixer = comp.into_mixer();
mixer.export_midi("song.mid")?;
// Import: Load a MIDI file and render to audio
let mut imported = Mixer::import_midi("song.mid")?;
imported.export_wav("output.wav", 44100)?;
// Or play it directly
let engine = AudioEngine::new()?;
engine.play_mixer(&imported)?;
Ok(())
}
```
### Live Coding (Hot Reload)
```bash
# 1. Copy the template
cp templates/live_template.rs my_live.rs
# 2. Start live coding mode
cargo run --bin tunes-live -- my_live.rs
# 3. Edit my_live.rs and save - hear changes instantly!
```
The live coding system watches your file and automatically:
- ✅ Recompiles when you save
- ✅ Stops the old version
- ✅ Starts playing the new version
- ✅ Shows compilation errors in real-time
Perfect for iterative composition, live performances, and experimentation!
```rust
// my_live.rs - edit and save to hear changes!
use tunes::prelude::*;
fn main() -> anyhow::Result<()> {
let mut comp = Composition::new(Tempo::new(140.0));
comp.track("drums")
.drum_grid(16, 0.125)
.kick(&[0, 4, 8, 12]);
// Try changing notes here and saving!
comp.instrument("lead", &Instrument::synth_lead())
.notes(&[C4, E4, G4], 0.25);
let mixer = comp.into_mixer();
// 4096 samples = ~93ms latency - good balance for live coding
let engine = AudioEngine::with_buffer_size(4096)?;
// Start looping playback
let loop_id = engine.play_looping(&mixer)?;
// Keep program running (live reload will restart)
loop {
std::thread::sleep(std::time::Duration::from_millis(100));
}
}
```
**Important:**
- Use `play_looping()` for seamless loops without gaps
- Buffer size 4096 works well for most systems (increase to 8192 or 16384 if you hear glitches)
- The live reload system will automatically stop and restart with your changes
## Comparison with Other Music Programming Libraries
`tunes` occupies a unique position in the music programming landscape:
| **Type safety** | No | No | No (Clojure) | Partial (TS) | **Yes (Rust)** | No |
| **Real-time audio** | Yes | Yes | Yes (Overtone) | Yes (Web Audio) | **Yes** | No |
| **Sample playback** | Yes | Yes | Yes (Overtone) | Yes | **Yes** | No |
| **WAV export** | Yes (manual) | No | Via Overtone | No (browser) | **Yes (easy)** | Yes |
| **FLAC export** | Yes (manual) | No | No | No | **Yes (easy)** | No |
| **MIDI import** | Yes | No | No | No | **Yes** | Yes |
| **MIDI export** | Yes | No | No | No | **Yes** | Yes |
| **Live coding** | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes | **Yes** | No |
| **Easy to learn** | No | Yes | Medium | Yes | **Yes** | Yes |
| **No dependencies** | No (needs SC) | No (needs Ruby) | No (Clojure+SC) | No (browser/Node) | **Yes** | No |
| **Algorithmic patterns** | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | **Yes** | Yes |
| **Music theory** | Manual | Manual | Yes | Some | **Yes (built-in)** | Yes |
| **Standalone binary** | No | No | No | No | **Yes** | No |
| **Embeddable** | No | No | No | No | **Yes** | No |
### 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
```bash
cargo test
```
## Examples
Run the included **75+ examples** to hear the library in action:
```bash
# 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...
cargo run -- example example-name-here
```
**Note:** Use `--release` for examples with very complex synthesis to avoid audio underruns.
## Documentation Book
**📚 Comprehensive Guide Available!**
Tunes includes a complete book with tutorials, examples, and in-depth comparisons with other audio libraries.
**Find it at:** `book/` directory in the repository
**To read locally:**
```bash
# Install mdbook if you don't have it
cargo install mdbook
# Serve the book locally
cd book
mdbook serve --open
```
The book includes:
- 🚀 **Getting Started** - From first sound to algorithmic music
- 🎵 **Core Concepts** - Architecture, engine, mixer, composition layers
- 🎮 **Game Audio Patterns** - Samples, concurrent SFX, dynamic music, spatial audio
- 🎹 **Synthesis & Effects** - FM synthesis, granular, effects chains
- 🔬 **Advanced Topics** - Generators, transformations, MIDI, optimization
- ⚖️ **Comparisons** - Clinical, honest comparisons with Kira, Rodio, SoLoud, TidalCycles, Sonic Pi, and more
**Not sure if Tunes is right for you?** Check the [Comparisons](book/src/comparisons.md) page for honest, technical comparisons with other libraries.
---
## License
MIT OR Apache-2.0
## Contributing
Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.