A
licenseB
qualityB
maintenanceConnects Ableton Live to AI through MCP, enabling prompt-assisted music production with extended tools and a 33-personality style system for generating parts in various artist styles.
62
5
MIT
Ableton DJ MCP
by gpulga
Runs inside a Max for Live device, bridging AI clients to Ableton Live for real-time set manipulation.
Click on "Deploy Server".
Wait a few minutes for the server to deploy. Once ready, it will show a "Started" state.
In the chat, type
@followed by the MCP server name and your instructions, e.g., "@Ableton DJ MCPcreate a 4-bar tech house drum loop with clap on 2 and 4"
That's it! The server will respond to your query, and you can continue using it as needed.
Here is a step-by-step guide with screenshots.
Ableton DJ MCP
█████╗ ██████╗ ██╗ ███╗ ███╗ ██████╗██████╗
██╔══██╗██╔══██╗ ██║ ████╗ ████║██╔════╝██╔══██╗
███████║██║ ██║ ██║ ██╔████╔██║██║ ██████╔╝
██╔══██║██║ ██║██ ██║ ██║╚██╔╝██║██║ ██╔═══╝
██║ ██║██████╔╝╚█████╔╝ ██║ ╚═╝ ██║╚██████╗██║
╚═╝ ╚═╝╚═════╝ ╚════╝ ╚═╝ ╚═╝ ╚═════╝╚═╝
▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█
Let Claude (or any MCP-capable AI) control Ableton Live.
Ask in plain language, and the AI reads and edits your open Live set in real time: tracks, clips, MIDI notes, devices, scenes, automation, playback.
Song sections, tracks, clips and device chains: everything here is readable and editable by the AI.
"Set tempo to 124, add a Drift bass on a new track, and write a rolling 16th-note bassline in A minor for 8 bars."
"Read my drum track and add ghost-note hi-hats with some velocity variation."
"Duplicate scene 3, mute the kick for the first 4 bars, and automate the filter opening across the break."
It works on the whole set, from arrangement sections down to individual notes and velocities in a clip:
It ships with electronic-music knowledge (house, tech house, melodic techno, indie dance and more), so genre and arrangement suggestions start from how those styles are actually built.
Capabilities
25 MCP tools (adj-*), served over stdio via the portal or directly over HTTP
at :3350/mcp. Positions use bar|beat notation. Full schemas are in the
Tools Reference.
Domain | Tool | Op | Surface |
Session |
| R | Handshake; returns Live version, set overview and usage skills. Required first call |
| R/W | Persistent project memory (read/write); sample-folder search | |
| R | Genre and production guidance by topic, loaded on demand | |
Live Set |
| R | Tempo, time signature, groove, Link, punch/overdub, locators, tracks, scenes, meters |
| W | Tempo, time signature, groove, Link, punch in/out, overdub, name, locators | |
Track |
| R | Session/arrangement clips, device chain, routing, mixer state, output meters |
| C | MIDI, audio or return track at index | |
| W | Name, color, volume, pan, mute/solo/arm, I/O routing, group fold | |
Scene |
| R | Name, color, tempo, time signature |
| C | Scene at index | |
| W | Name, color, tempo, time signature | |
Clip |
| R | Notes, timing, loop, sample/warp properties, playhead position |
| C | MIDI (bar|beat notes) or audio (file path), Session slot or Arrangement position | |
| W | Note add/remove, transform expressions ( | |
| W | Velocity-0 mute map of pitches across bar ranges | |
| R/W | Clip automation envelopes: write points, read (0.25-beat grid), clear; 6 curves, 8 recipes | |
Device |
| R | Live browser tree walk with search; returns loadable URIs |
| C | Native device by name, or any browser item by URI; supports rack chain paths | |
| R | Parameters (name, value, range), rack chains, drum pads, drum map | |
| W | Parameter writes by name or index, range-clamped; nested racks | |
Ops |
| C | Track, scene, clip or device copy; Session → Arrangement |
| D | Track, scene, clip or device | |
Transport |
| X | Play/stop, loop, fire/stop clips and scenes, record, MIDI capture, undo/redo, save, nudge |
| X | Set UI selection: track, scene, clip | |
Generate |
| — | Euclidean/Bjorklund and named rhythms → bar|beat notes. Pure function, no Live I/O |
Op: R read · W write · C create · D delete · X execute.
Related MCP server: Ableton Cookbook MCP
Requirements
Ableton Live 12.3+ with Max for Live (Suite, or Standard + M4L)
Node.js 24+ (nodejs.org)
macOS or Windows
An MCP client: Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, etc.
Install (about 5 minutes)
git clone https://github.com/gpulga/ableton-dj-mcp.git
cd ableton-dj-mcp
npm run setupNo npm install or build step is needed. setup installs the Live device and
bridge, then prints the exact command to connect your AI client. Do the few
clicks it lists inside Live, then ask your AI: "connect to ableton".
Full walkthrough and troubleshooting: docs/Setup.md.
Claude Desktop, no terminal: grab the .zip and .mcpb from the
latest release and
follow
these steps.
Let your AI install it
Open Claude Code (or another coding agent) in any folder and paste:
Install Ableton DJ MCP for me by following
https://github.com/gpulga/ableton-dj-mcp/blob/main/docs/Setup.mdThe agent runs the commands. You do the clicks inside Live that it asks for.
How it works
AI client ──stdio──▶ portal (Node) ──HTTP :3350──▶ Max for Live device ──▶ Live API
Python bridge (UDP) ──▶ Browser / automationA Max for Live device on a track in your set runs the MCP server. A small portal process connects your AI client to it. An optional Python remote script adds things Max can't reach, like the browser and clip automation. Details: Architecture.
The device's Setup tab: server running on port 3350, ready for your AI to connect.
Docs
You want to… | Read |
Install and connect | |
See what the AI can do (25 tools) | |
Write MIDI in the notation | |
Hack on the code | |
Report a bug / request a feature |
License
This server cannot be deployed
Maintenance
ActivityActive
ResponsivenessSlow
Related MCP Connectors
AI music production assistant — audio profiling, AI mixing sessions, and service inquiries.
- mozonicOAuthcom.mozonic
AI mixing and mastering: analyze your mixes, run DSP autofix, render stems, and master tracks.
- VocunoOAuthcom.vocuno
AI music studio: song generation with vocals, covers, stems, voice conversion, mastering, editing.
Autonomous music production for AI agents with MIDI generation, QC and provenance.
Related MCP Servers
- AlicenseNot gradedqualityCmaintenanceBridges AI assistants with Ableton Live, enabling real-time control, offline project analysis, version tracking, and rack/preset parsing for music production workflows.MIT
- AlicenseCqualityDmaintenanceConnects Ableton Live to Claude AI, enabling prompt-assisted music production, track creation, and Live session manipulation.100MIT
- AlicenseNot gradedqualityDmaintenanceEnables AI agents to control Ableton Live with full access to Live's object model, including clip creation, device control, automation, and audio signal capture for mixing and mastering tasks.1MIT