Using Chordwalk with Reaper
Chordwalk allows any user—even those with limited music theory or playing experience—to quickly create meaningful and satisfying beats and solos in Reaper.
You can work in an intuitive, fun way without needing external MIDI controllers, sequencers, drum pads, or the piano roll.
Reaper includes only a small selection of virtual instruments, so you will likely need to install additional plug-ins from external sources.
Setting Up MIDI Transfer (Windows)
To send MIDI data between ChordWalk and other applications in Windows, you must create a virtual loopback MIDI port.
loopMIDI is a free, trusted tool that makes it easy to set up these ports. It is recommended for creating the virtual loopback connections needed for Chordwalk.
Recommended Setup for Reaper
For the best workflow in Reaper, create a separate loopback MIDI port for each Chordwalk creation area. This keeps your routing clean and improves efficiency.
To create a loopback MIDI port in loopMIDI:
Open loopMIDI.
Enter a name for your new port.
Press + to create it.
Activating Your Virtual MIDI Port in Chordwalk
Once you’ve created a virtual MIDI port using loopMIDI, ChordWalk will recognise it as an available MIDI source.
To transmit MIDI data from Chordwalk to this port, you must activate it in Chordwalk’s MIDI Devices window.
To activate your MIDI device in Chordwalk:
Select the MIDI Devices icon.
A floating window will appear showing all recognised MIDI device destinations.
Locate your newly created virtual MIDI port and activate it.
Next, you need to configure Reaper to recognise the virtual loopback MIDI ports created in loopMIDI.
To enable your virtual MIDI ports in Reaper:
In Reaper, select Options.
Choose Preferences.
In the popup window, navigate to MIDI Inputs.
You will see the virtual MIDI ports you created in loopMIDI.
Enable the inputs for each port you intend to use.
Select OK to save your settings.
Pairing Reaper Instrument Tracks with Chordwalk
In Reaper, each instrument track must be paired with the corresponding creation area in Chordwalk so it can receive MIDI data from the correct virtual loopback port.
To pair a Reaper track with a Chordwalk creation area:
Select the track you want to configure.
Click the track’s “In” area.
Choose Input: MIDI.
From the dropdown menu, select the appropriate virtual MIDI port.
Choose a Source Channel.
Assign the channel number that matches the channel used in the Chordwalk creation area.
Recommended setup:
Use one dedicated virtual MIDI port per track in Reaper, and simply assign Channel 1 for each connection. This keeps routing clean and avoids unnecessary channel management.
You have now successfully paired each Chordwalk creation area with its own instrument track in Reaper, using separate loopback MIDI ports for clean and independent routing.