get_browser_items_at_path
Retrieve Ableton browser items from a specific category and folder path to access sounds, instruments, and effects for music production.
Instructions
Get browser items at a specific path in Ableton's browser.
Parameters:
path: Path in the format "category/folder/subfolder" where category is one of the available browser categories in Ableton
Input Schema
TableJSON Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| path | Yes |
Implementation Reference
- MCP_Server/server.py:565-605 (handler)The primary MCP tool handler for 'get_browser_items_at_path'. It connects to the Ableton remote script, sends the command with the path parameter, handles the response, and returns JSON-formatted items or formatted error messages.
@mcp.tool() def get_browser_items_at_path(ctx: Context, path: str) -> str: """ Get browser items at a specific path in Ableton's browser. Parameters: - path: Path in the format "category/folder/subfolder" where category is one of the available browser categories in Ableton """ try: ableton = get_ableton_connection() result = ableton.send_command("get_browser_items_at_path", { "path": path }) # Check if there was an error with available categories if "error" in result and "available_categories" in result: error = result.get("error", "") available_cats = result.get("available_categories", []) return (f"Error: {error}\n" f"Available browser categories: {', '.join(available_cats)}") return json.dumps(result, indent=2) except Exception as e: error_msg = str(e) if "Browser is not available" in error_msg: logger.error(f"Browser is not available in Ableton: {error_msg}") return f"Error: The Ableton browser is not available. Make sure Ableton Live is fully loaded and try again." elif "Could not access Live application" in error_msg: logger.error(f"Could not access Live application: {error_msg}") return f"Error: Could not access the Ableton Live application. Make sure Ableton Live is running and the Remote Script is loaded." elif "Unknown or unavailable category" in error_msg: logger.error(f"Invalid browser category: {error_msg}") return f"Error: {error_msg}. Please check the available categories using get_browser_tree." elif "Path part" in error_msg and "not found" in error_msg: logger.error(f"Path not found: {error_msg}") return f"Error: {error_msg}. Please check the path and try again." else: logger.error(f"Error getting browser items at path: {error_msg}") return f"Error getting browser items at path: {error_msg}" - The core helper function in the Ableton Live remote script that implements the browser navigation logic. It accesses Ableton's browser object, resolves the path by traversing categories and folders, collects item details (name, is_folder, is_device, is_loadable, uri), and returns structured data or errors.
def get_browser_items_at_path(self, path): """ Get browser items at a specific path. Args: path: Path in the format "category/folder/subfolder" where category is one of: instruments, sounds, drums, audio_effects, midi_effects or any other available browser category Returns: Dictionary with items at the specified path """ try: # Access the application's browser instance instead of creating a new one app = self.application() if not app: raise RuntimeError("Could not access Live application") # Check if browser is available if not hasattr(app, 'browser') or app.browser is None: raise RuntimeError("Browser is not available in the Live application") # Log available browser attributes to help diagnose issues browser_attrs = [attr for attr in dir(app.browser) if not attr.startswith('_')] self.log_message("Available browser attributes: {0}".format(browser_attrs)) # Parse the path path_parts = path.split("/") if not path_parts: raise ValueError("Invalid path") # Determine the root category root_category = path_parts[0].lower() current_item = None # Check standard categories first if root_category == "instruments" and hasattr(app.browser, 'instruments'): current_item = app.browser.instruments elif root_category == "sounds" and hasattr(app.browser, 'sounds'): current_item = app.browser.sounds elif root_category == "drums" and hasattr(app.browser, 'drums'): current_item = app.browser.drums elif root_category == "audio_effects" and hasattr(app.browser, 'audio_effects'): current_item = app.browser.audio_effects elif root_category == "midi_effects" and hasattr(app.browser, 'midi_effects'): current_item = app.browser.midi_effects else: # Try to find the category in other browser attributes found = False for attr in browser_attrs: if attr.lower() == root_category: try: current_item = getattr(app.browser, attr) found = True break except Exception as e: self.log_message("Error accessing browser attribute {0}: {1}".format(attr, str(e))) if not found: # If we still haven't found the category, return available categories return { "path": path, "error": "Unknown or unavailable category: {0}".format(root_category), "available_categories": browser_attrs, "items": [] } # Navigate through the path for i in range(1, len(path_parts)): part = path_parts[i] if not part: # Skip empty parts continue if not hasattr(current_item, 'children'): return { "path": path, "error": "Item at '{0}' has no children".format('/'.join(path_parts[:i])), "items": [] } found = False for child in current_item.children: if hasattr(child, 'name') and child.name.lower() == part.lower(): current_item = child found = True break if not found: return { "path": path, "error": "Path part '{0}' not found".format(part), "items": [] } # Get items at the current path items = [] if hasattr(current_item, 'children'): for child in current_item.children: item_info = { "name": child.name if hasattr(child, 'name') else "Unknown", "is_folder": hasattr(child, 'children') and bool(child.children), "is_device": hasattr(child, 'is_device') and child.is_device, "is_loadable": hasattr(child, 'is_loadable') and child.is_loadable, "uri": child.uri if hasattr(child, 'uri') else None } items.append(item_info) result = { "path": path, "name": current_item.name if hasattr(current_item, 'name') else "Unknown", "uri": current_item.uri if hasattr(current_item, 'uri') else None, "is_folder": hasattr(current_item, 'children') and bool(current_item.children), "is_device": hasattr(current_item, 'is_device') and current_item.is_device, "is_loadable": hasattr(current_item, 'is_loadable') and current_item.is_loadable, "items": items } self.log_message("Retrieved {0} items at path: {1}".format(len(items), path)) return result except Exception as e: self.log_message("Error getting browser items at path: {0}".format(str(e))) self.log_message(traceback.format_exc()) raise - MCP_Server/server.py:565-565 (registration)The @mcp.tool() decorator registers the get_browser_items_at_path function as an MCP tool, with schema inferred from the function signature (path: str) and docstring.
@mcp.tool() - MCP_Server/server.py:567-573 (schema)Docstring defining the input schema: path parameter as a string in 'category/folder/subfolder' format.
""" Get browser items at a specific path in Ableton's browser. Parameters: - path: Path in the format "category/folder/subfolder" where category is one of the available browser categories in Ableton """