sc_play_synth

Instructions

Implementation Reference

• src/index.ts:310-349 (handler)

  Main execution logic for the sc_play_synth tool: parses natural language input, generates and executes inline SuperCollider synthesis code for various sound types.

  case 'sc_play_synth': {
    const schema = z.object({ description: z.string() });
    const { description } = schema.parse(args);
  
    if (!scServer.getBooted() || !synthDefsLoaded) {
      return {
        content: [{ type: 'text', text: 'Error: SuperCollider server is not running. Call sc_boot first.' }],
        isError: true,
      };
    }
  
    const { synthName, params } = parseSynthDescription(description);
  
    // Use inline function syntax for simple sounds
    let code = '';
  
    if (synthName === 'bell') {
      code = `{ var sig = SinOsc.ar(${params.freq} + SinOsc.ar(${params.freq! * 2.4}, 0, ${params.freq! * 0.8}), 0, ${params.amp}) * EnvGen.kr(Env.perc(0.01, ${params.duration}, 1, -4), doneAction: 2); Pan2.ar(sig, ${params.pan}) }.play;`;
    } else if (synthName === 'kick') {
      code = `{ var sig = SinOsc.ar(EnvGen.kr(Env.perc(0.001, 0.3), 1, 60, 50), 0, ${params.amp}) * EnvGen.kr(Env.perc(0.001, 0.5), doneAction: 2); Pan2.ar(sig, ${params.pan || 0}) }.play;`;
    } else if (synthName === 'snare') {
      code = `{ var sig = (WhiteNoise.ar(${params.amp}) + SinOsc.ar(180, 0, ${params.amp})) * EnvGen.kr(Env.perc(0.001, 0.2), doneAction: 2); Pan2.ar(sig, ${params.pan || 0}) }.play;`;
    } else if (synthName === 'hihat') {
      code = `{ var sig = HPF.ar(WhiteNoise.ar(${params.amp}), 8000) * EnvGen.kr(Env.perc(0.001, 0.1), doneAction: 2); Pan2.ar(sig, ${params.pan || 0}) }.play;`;
    } else {
      // Default to simple sine wave
      code = `{ SinOsc.ar(${params.freq}, 0, ${params.amp}) * EnvGen.kr(Env.perc(0.01, ${params.duration}), doneAction: 2) }.play;`;
    }
  
    await scServer.executeCode(code);
  
    return {
      content: [
        {
          type: 'text',
          text: `Playing ${synthName} synth: ${JSON.stringify(params)}`,
        },
      ],
    };
  }

• src/index.ts:82-94 (registration)

  Tool registration in the tools list, including name, description, and input schema.

  {
    name: 'sc_play_synth',
    description: 'Play a synthesized sound based on a natural language description. This is the primary tool for sound synthesis. Examples: "play a bell sound at C4", "play a low bass tone for 2 seconds", "play a plucked string sound"',
    inputSchema: {
      type: 'object',
      properties: {
        description: {
          type: 'string',
          description: 'Natural language description of the sound to create (e.g., "bell at C5", "deep bass", "short snare")',
        },
      },
      required: ['description'],
    },

• src/index.ts:85-94 (schema)

  JSON schema defining the input parameters for the sc_play_synth tool.

  inputSchema: {
    type: 'object',
    properties: {
      description: {
        type: 'string',
        description: 'Natural language description of the sound to create (e.g., "bell at C5", "deep bass", "short snare")',
      },
    },
    required: ['description'],
  },

• src/synth-library.ts:134-222 (helper)

  Helper function parseSynthDescription that interprets the natural language description to select synth type and extract parameters like frequency, duration, amplitude, etc.

  export function parseSynthDescription(description: string): {
    synthName: string;
    params: SynthParams;
  } {
    const lowerDesc = description.toLowerCase();
  
    // Default params
    const params: SynthParams = {
      freq: 440,
      amp: 0.3,
      duration: 1,
      pan: 0,
    };
  
    // Determine synth type
    let synthName = 'sine';
  
    if (lowerDesc.includes('bell') || lowerDesc.includes('chime')) {
      synthName = 'bell';
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('pluck') || lowerDesc.includes('guitar') || lowerDesc.includes('string')) {
      synthName = 'pluck';
      params.decay = 2;
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('bass') || lowerDesc.includes('low')) {
      synthName = 'bass';
      params.freq = 110;
      params.cutoff = 800;
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('pad') || lowerDesc.includes('ambient') || lowerDesc.includes('warm')) {
      synthName = 'pad';
      params.freq = 220;
      params.cutoff = 2000;
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('kick') || lowerDesc.includes('drum')) {
      synthName = 'kick';
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('snare')) {
      synthName = 'snare';
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('hihat') || lowerDesc.includes('hi-hat')) {
      synthName = 'hihat';
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('atmosphere') || lowerDesc.includes('noise') || lowerDesc.includes('wind')) {
      synthName = 'atmosphere';
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('sweep') || lowerDesc.includes('riser') || lowerDesc.includes('swell')) {
      synthName = 'sweep';
    }
  
    // Parse frequency/pitch
    const noteMatch = lowerDesc.match(/\b([a-g]#?)\s*(\d+)\b/i);
    if (noteMatch) {
      const note = noteMatch[1];
      const octave = parseInt(noteMatch[2]);
      params.freq = noteToFreq(note, octave);
    } else {
      // Look for frequency in Hz
      const freqMatch = lowerDesc.match(/(\d+)\s*hz/i);
      if (freqMatch) {
        params.freq = parseInt(freqMatch[1]);
      }
    }
  
    // Parse descriptive pitch terms
    if (lowerDesc.includes('high') || lowerDesc.includes('bright')) {
      params.freq = (params.freq || 440) * 2;
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('low') || lowerDesc.includes('deep')) {
      params.freq = (params.freq || 440) / 2;
    }
  
    // Parse duration
    const durMatch = lowerDesc.match(/(\d+(?:\.\d+)?)\s*(?:second|sec|s)\b/i);
    if (durMatch) {
      params.duration = parseFloat(durMatch[1]);
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('short')) {
      params.duration = 0.3;
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('long')) {
      params.duration = 3;
    }
  
    // Parse amplitude/volume
    if (lowerDesc.includes('loud') || lowerDesc.includes('forte')) {
      params.amp = 0.6;
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('quiet') || lowerDesc.includes('soft') || lowerDesc.includes('piano')) {
      params.amp = 0.15;
    }
  
    // Parse panning
    if (lowerDesc.includes('left')) {
      params.pan = -0.7;
    } else if (lowerDesc.includes('right')) {
      params.pan = 0.7;
    }
  
    return { synthName, params };
  }