AbletonMCP - AI Music Assistant for Ableton Live

A powerful MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that enables Claude Desktop to control Ableton Live for automated music production, specializing in techno and industrial music generation.

Features

Natural Language Music Production: Create complete tracks from text prompts
Genre-Specific AI: Specialized in techno and industrial music styles
Real-time Ableton Control: Full integration with Ableton Live via OSC
Intelligent Composition: AI-powered melody, harmony, and rhythm generation
Professional Transport Control: Play, stop, tempo control, and project management

Prerequisites

Python 3.10 or higher
Ableton Live 11 Suite (or higher)
Claude Desktop application
At least 4GB RAM for music production

Step-by-Step Setup Guide

Step 1: Install Python Dependencies

# Navigate to the project directory
cd AbletonMCP

# Install required packages
pip install -r requirements.txt

Step 2: Install AbletonOSC Remote Script

Run the automated installer:

python install_ableton_osc.py

If the automated installer fails, install manually:

Download AbletonOSC: https://github.com/ideoforms/AbletonOSC/archive/refs/heads/main.zip
Extract the ZIP file
Copy the AbletonOSC-main folder to your Ableton Remote Scripts directory:

macOS: ~/Music/Ableton/User Library/Remote Scripts/
Windows: %USERPROFILE%/Documents/Ableton/User Library/Remote Scripts/
Linux: ~/ableton/User Library/Remote Scripts/

Rename the folder from AbletonOSC-main to AbletonOSC

Step 3: Configure Ableton Live 11 Suite

Open Ableton Live 11 Suite
Go to Live → Preferences (macOS) or Options → Preferences (Windows)
Click on the Link/Tempo/MIDI tab
In the Control Surface section:

Set the first dropdown to "AbletonOSC"
Leave Input and Output set to "None"

Click OK to save settings
Restart Ableton Live completely

Step 4: Test Your Setup

Test AI Composition (No Live Required): ```bash

Test the AI composition engine offline

python examples/offline_demo.py ```

Test Full System (Requires Live Running): ```bash

Run the comprehensive test suite

python test_server.py ```

You should see:

✅ Project Structure test passed
✅ Composition Handler test passed
✅ OSC Connection test passed (requires Live to be running)
✅ MCP Tools test passed

If OSC tests fail:

Make sure Ableton Live 11 Suite is running
Verify AbletonOSC is selected in Live's MIDI preferences
Check that ports 11000/11001 aren't blocked by firewall
The offline demo should still work perfectly!

Step 5: Start the MCP Server

python -m mcp_server.main

You should see output like: `` 🎵 Starting AbletonMCP Server... ✅ AbletonTools connected successfully INFO: MCP Server listening on stdio... ``

Keep this terminal window open - the server needs to run continuously.

Step 6: Configure Claude Desktop

Quit Claude Desktop completely if it's running
Open your Claude Desktop configuration file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows: %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Find your Python executable path:

which python

This will show the full path to your Python installation (e.g., /Users/yourname/anaconda3/bin/python or /opt/homebrew/bin/python3).

Create or edit the claude_desktop_config.json file with this content:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ableton-mcp": {
      "command": "/full/path/to/your/python",
      "args": ["-m", "mcp_server.main"],
      "cwd": "/full/path/to/your/AbletonMCP",
      "env": {
        "PYTHONPATH": "/full/path/to/your/AbletonMCP"
      }
    }
  }
}

Important:

Replace /full/path/to/your/python with the result from which python command
Replace /full/path/to/your/AbletonMCP with the actual full path to your AbletonMCP project directory (appears twice)
The PYTHONPATH environment variable is crucial for Python to find the mcp_server module
Use absolute paths, not relative paths like python or ~/

Save the file and restart Claude Desktop

Step 7: Verify Connection in Claude Desktop

Open Claude Desktop
Start a new conversation
You should see "AbletonMCP" listed in the server connections at the bottom
If it shows as connected, you're ready to make music!

Example Prompts - Test All Features

Basic Transport Control

Try these prompts in Claude Desktop:

1. Test Connection `` Ping Ableton Live to test the connection ``

2. Tempo Control `` Set the tempo to 132 BPM ``

3. Transport Control `` Start playback ` ` Stop playback after 8 seconds ``

Track Management

4. Create Basic Tracks `` Create a MIDI track called "Kick Drum" ` ` Create a MIDI track called "Bass Synth" ` ` Create an audio track called "Percussion" ` ` Create a return track called "Industrial Reverb" ``

AI Music Generation

5. Generate Chord Progressions `` Generate a chord progression in A minor for industrial techno, 8 bars long ` ` Generate a chord progression in D minor for minimal techno, 4 bars ``

6. Create Drum Patterns `` Create an industrial drum pattern for 4 bars ``

7. Complete Song Generation `` Create a 64-bar industrial techno song at 132 BPM in A minor ``

Advanced Features

8. Project Information `` Get information about the current Ableton Live session ``

9. Tempo Variations `` Set tempo to 128 BPM for underground techno ` ` Set tempo to 140 BPM for hard techno ``

Complex Compositions

10. Full Production Workflow `` Create a complete techno track: Set tempo to 132 BPM, create kick, bass, lead, and percussion tracks, then generate an industrial techno song structure for 64 bars in A minor. Add atmospheric elements and start playback to preview. ``

Expected Results in Ableton Live

When you run these prompts, you should see:

Transport changes: BPM adjustments, play/stop states
New tracks appearing: Named tracks in the Session View
MIDI clips generated: Containing chord progressions and patterns
Console feedback: Success messages in both Claude and the MCP server terminal

Troubleshooting

"Could not connect to Ableton Live"

✅ Ensure Ableton Live is running
✅ Verify AbletonOSC is installed and enabled
✅ Check Live's MIDI preferences show "AbletonOSC" selected
✅ Restart both Live and the MCP server

"MCP Server not found in Claude Desktop"

✅ Check the config.json path is correct for your OS
✅ Verify the "cwd" path points to your AbletonMCP directory
✅ Make sure to restart Claude Desktop after config changes
✅ Check Claude Desktop's console for error messages

"Permission denied" or import errors

✅ Run pip install -r requirements.txt
✅ Use Python 3.10 or higher
✅ Consider using a virtual environment

Music generation not working as expected

✅ This is Phase 1 - basic functionality
✅ Try different musical keys (Am, Dm, Em, Gm)
✅ Experiment with different BPM ranges (120-150)
✅ Use genre keywords: "industrial", "minimal", "underground"

Next Steps

Once everything is working:

Experiment with different musical styles and BPMs
Combine prompts for complex arrangements
Use Live's tools to further refine the AI-generated content
Save your projects in Ableton Live as usual

What's Working in Phase 1

✅ Transport Control - Play/stop, tempo setting ✅ Track Creation - MIDI, audio, and return tracks ✅ AI Chord Progressions - Genre-specific harmony generation ✅ Basic Song Structures - Multi-section arrangements ✅ OSC Communication - Real-time Live control ✅ Music Theory Integration - Coherent musical output

Project Structure

mcp_server/ - MCP server implementation
ableton_control/ - OSC and Ableton Live API wrapper
music_ai/ - AI composition and generation engine
audio_processing/ - Audio analysis and processing tools
knowledge_base/ - Music theory and genre-specific data
samples/ - Audio content library
tests/ - Test suite

Development

Install development dependencies: ``bash pip install -r requirements.txt ``

Run tests: ``bash pytest ``

Format code: ``bash black . && isort . ``

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

AbletonMCP