06.08.2026 / Inside

Building a cover song with MIDI - that's how it really works

Building a cover song with MIDI - that's how it really works

Pull MIDI, throw into the DAW, give each track an instrument, complete. Sounds easy, It is too - if you know the five digits, where things would otherwise go wrong.

Why MIDI is the best place to start

A MIDI file is the song in blueprint format. No audio track, no sound, just instructions: what tone, if, who long, how loud.

That means: You get the entire structure of a song in your project — chords, bass line, Drums, Melody - and can touch every single note. Different key? Two clicks. Anderes Tempo? A field. Take out the bass and play again? Immediately.

You can't do any of that with an audio file.

Where you get MIDI

Free online:

  • BitMidi — huge collection, uncomplicated, well sorted
  • FreeMidi.org — sorted by artist
  • MidiWorld — Classic, a lot of eighties and nineties
  • cprato.com — above average quality, clean tracks

The insider tip: Search for .kar instead of .mid. Das sind Karaoke-MIDIs. They are often divided much more cleanly, because they were built for live playback — and they have the text in them as markers, which helps with singing.

If you need the piece in studio quality: Buy sheet music (Musicnotes, Sheet Music Direct) and type it in yourself. Lasts an evening, but it is exact to the note instead of “someone did that by ear.””.

First problem: Typ 0 or type 1

This is the most common moment of frustration, and hardly anyone knows, what it is.

MIDI files come in two types:

  • Typ 1 — all instruments on separate tracks. That's what you want. You move in, do you have 8 bis 16 Sense, each can be edited individually.
  • Typ 0 — everything on one track, separated only by channels. You move in, you have a single sausage with drums, Bass and melody on top of each other.

If you only get a lead, is it type 0. Solution:

  • Reaper: Right click on the item → Item Processing → Explode MIDI item by channel
  • Ableton: Live asks directly during the import, whether to split it by channel — say yes
  • Logic: Select region → MIDI → Separate by MIDI Channel
  • FL Studio: Beim Import „Import as separate channels” choose
  • Online if necessary: Chase file through a MIDI splitter and as type 1 save

Or you can download another version straight away. For well-known songs there are usually five.

Import in die DAW

The actual step is banal: Drag the file into the project window. That's it.

Two things, which happen automatically and which you should check:

Tempo: The MIDI comes with its own tempo track. Some DAWs adopt them, some don't. If your project suddenly... 118,7 BPM is set - that's exactly what happened. Mostly a good thing, because the song then plays correctly.

key: It's not in the MIDI. You have to hear it yourself or read it on the bass.

Give each track an instrument

Now comes the part, for whom you do the whole thing.

Select track → instrument plugin on it → select sound. That's all. From here it's your song.

But before that: Program Changes rauswerfen. MIDI often contains commands such as “Track 3 = General-MIDI-Sound Nr. 48″. Some plugins react to this and change the sound in the middle of the song. When an instrument switches over for no reason, is that the reason. Delete all program changes in the event list, is calm.

Drums are a special case. Drums are on Channel 10 and follow the General MIDI standard: Kick on note 36, Snare on 38, Hi-Hat closed on 42, open up 46, Crash on 49. However, your drum plugin may have a different mapping - then the kick triggers a cowbell. Either you switch the plugin to GM mapping (Superior Drummer, EZdrummer, Batteries can do that), or you can push the notes onto the correct pads by hand. Five minutes of work, then it's fine.

The three things, always have MIDIs from the network

1. Velocity lies flat 100. Everything is equally loud, sounds like an automaton. Fix: Velocity randomization from ±10 to ±15 on all tracks except drums. For drums, it's better to do it by hand - the backbeat is louder, Ghost Notes quieter.

2. Everything sticks exactly to the grid. People don't play on the grid. Bass minimally behind the beat, Hi-hats slightly in front of them — that makes the difference between “Demo” and “Recording”. Most DAWs have a Humanize function; 5 bis 10 Milliseconds are enough.

3. Volume automation is included. CC7 (Volume) and CC11 (Expression) are often stuck in the file. When a track becomes quieter or disappears completely while playing, even though you didn't do anything: that's it. Delete CC7 and CC11 in the event list.

Set the key to your voice

The one handle, who saves cover versions.

Select all MIDI tracks and transpose in semitone steps, until the highest note in the verse is comfortable for you. Not until you barely meet her — until you hold her comfortably. Live, that's another two semitones less.

The advantage over audio pitching: With MIDI it doesn't sound like anything afterwards. Not an artifact, not a chipmunk. The sounds are simply somewhere else.

Don't transpose the drums - otherwise the kick will move to another pad.

From here: your song

The point, where a MIDI file becomes music.

  • Replace at least two tracks completely. Play bass and guitar yourself, Reprogram drums. What's left, is the framework.
  • Throw something out. Most network MIDIs are packed with string pads and sounds, which are not so prominent in the original. Less immediately sounds better.
  • Rebuild the structure. Shorten intro, Omit bridge, Another anders. You don't do karaoke.
  • Singing at the end. Only when the key is right.

Briefly about the legal aspects - the practical version

Four lines, then we're through:

  • Recreate the original is free. You don't have to ask anyone.
  • Rewrite (Song, Text, own verse, translation) needs permission from the author.
  • TikTok, Instagram, YouTube: Platform has framework agreements with GEMA. Done for private accounts.
  • Spotify and Apple: Book a cover license with the sales department. Upload hitch, few euros.
  • Enter the real composer when logging in. You are an interpreter, not author.

Two practical side notes: Free MIDIs are completely unproblematic for building and learning. When it becomes a release, Self-typed or purchased material is the cleaner basis. And: Original-Audio, Stems or acapellas don’t belong in a cover — anything, what you hear, comes from you.

Checklist

  1. MIDI laden (.kar try out)
  2. Typ 0? Split by channel
  3. Drag into the DAW, Check speed
  4. Delete program changes
  5. Delete CC7 and CC11
  6. Check drum mapping
  7. Assign instruments
  8. Velocity randomisieren, humanize
  9. Transpose (Remove drums)
  10. Re-record two tracks yourself
  11. Shorten structure
  12. Singing on it

First version is available in one afternoon.