Contents

Table of Contents

Preface

Preface to the Csound Manual
History of the Canonical Csound Reference Manual
Copyright Notice
Getting Started with Csound
What's new in Csound 6.16.0

I. Overview

Introduction

The Csound Command

Order of Precedence

Description of the command syntax

Csound command line

Command-line Flags (by Category)

Csound Environment Variables

Unified File Format for Orchestras and Scores

Description
Example

Command Line Parameter File (.csound6rc)

Score File Preprocessing

The Extract Feature
Independent Pre-Processing with Scsort

Using Csound

Csound's Console Output

How Csound works

Amplitude values in Csound

Real-Time Audio

Realtime I/O on Linux

Realtime I/O with JACK Connection Kit

Optimizing Audio I/O Latency

Configuring

Syntax of the Orchestra

Orchestra Header Statements

Instrument and Opcode Block Statements

Ordinary Statements

Types, Constants and Variables

Variable Initialization

Expressions

Directories and Files

Nomenclature

Orchestra Macros

Named Instruments

User Defined Opcodes (UDO)

Vectors and Arrays

Function Syntax in Csound6

The Standard Numeric Score

Preprocessing of Standard Scores

Carry
Tempo
Sort

Score Statements

Next-P and Previous-P Symbols

Score Macros

Multiple File Score

Evaluation of Expressions

Strings in p-fields

Building Csound

Csound Links

II. Opcodes Overview

Signal Generators

Additive Synthesis/Resynthesis

Basic Oscillators

Dynamic Spectrum Oscillators

FM Synthesis

Granular Synthesis

Hyper Vectorial Synthesis

Linear and Exponential Generators

Envelope Generators

Models and Emulations

Random (Noise) Generators

Sample Playback

Soundfonts

Scanned Synthesis

Table Access

Wave Terrain Synthesis

Waveguide Physical Modeling

Signal Input and Output

File Input and Output
Signal Input
Signal Output
Software Bus
Printing and Display
Sound File Queries

Signal Modifiers

Amplitude Modifiers and Dynamic processing
Convolution and Morphing
Delay
Panning and Spatialization
Reverberation
Sample Level Operators
Signal Limiters
Special Effects
Standard Filters
Specialized Filters
Waveguides
Waveshaping and Phase Distortion

Instrument Control

Clock Control

Conditional Values

Duration Control Statements

FLTK Widgets and GUI controllers

FLTK Containers
FLTK Valuators
Other FLTK Widgets
Modifying FLTK Widget Appearance
General FLTK Widget-related Opcodes

Instrument Invocation

Program Flow Control

Real-time Performance Control

Initialization and Reinitialization

Sensing and Control

Sub-instrument Control

Time Reading

Function Table Control

Table Queries
Read/Write Operations
Table Reading with Dynamic Selection

Mathematical Operations

Amplitude Converters
Arithmetic and Logic Operations
Comparators and Accumulators
Mathematical Functions
Opcode Equivalents of Functions
Random Functions
Trigonometric Functions
Linear Algebra Opcodes
Array Opcodes

Pitch Converters

Functions
Tuning Opcodes

Real-time MIDI Support

Virtual MIDI Keyboard
MIDI input
MIDI Message Output
Generic Input and Output
Converters
Event Extenders
Note-on/Note-off Output
MIDI/Score Interoperability opcodes
System Realtime Messages
Slider Banks

Spectral Processing

Short-time Fourier Transform (STFT) Resynthesis
Linear Predictive Coding (LPC) Resynthesis
Non-standard Spectral Processing
Tools for Real-time Spectral Processing (pvs opcodes)
ATS Spectral Processing
Array-based spectral opcodes

String Manipulation Opcodes
String Conversion Opcodes

Vectorial Opcodes

Tables of vectors operators
Operations Between a Vectorial and a Scalar Signal
Operations Between two Vectorial Signals
Vectorial Envelope Generators
Limiting and wrapping of vectorial control signals
Vectorial Control-rate Delay Paths
Vectorial Random Signal Generators

Zak Patch System

Plugin Hosting

DSSI and LADSPA for Csound

OSC and Network

Ableton Link Opcodes
OSC
Network
Remote Opcodes

Mixer Opcodes

Signal Flow Graph Opcodes

Jacko Opcodes

Python Opcodes

Introduction
Orchestra Syntax

Image processing opcodes

STK Opcodes

Miscellaneous opcodes

III. Reference

Orchestra Opcodes and Operators

Score Statements and GEN Routines

Experimental Orchestra Opcodes and GEN Routines

Experimental Orchestra Opcodes
cudanal
cudasynth
cudasliding

Deprecated Orchestra Opcodes and GEN Routines

Historical and Abandonned Opcodes

Loris Related Opcodes
Loris Opcodes
lorismorph
lorisplay
lorisread

The Utility Programs

Directories.

Soundfile Formats.

Analysis File Generation (ATSA, CVANAL, HETRO, LPANAL, PVANAL)
File Queries (SNDINFO)
File Conversion (HET_IMPORT, HET_EXPORT, PVLOOK, PV_EXPORT, PV_IMPORT, SDIF2AD, SRC_CONV)
Other Csound Utilities (CS, CSB64ENC, ENVEXT, EXTRACTOR, MAKECSD, MIXER, SCALE)

Events, Lists, and Operations
Writing a Cscore Control Program
Compiling a Cscore Program
More Advanced Examples

IV. Opcode Quick Reference

Opcode Quick Reference

A. List of examples

B. Pitch Conversion

C. Sound Intensity Values

D. Formant Values

E. Modal Frequency Ratios

F. Window Functions