This chapter is based on Andrés Cabrera's article Using Python inside Csound, An introduction to the Python opcodes, Csound Journal Issue 6, Spring 2007: http://www.csounds.com/journal/issue6/pythonOpcodes.html. Some basic knowledge of Python is required. For using Csound's Python opcodes, you must have Python installed (currently version 2.7). This should be the case on OSX1 and Linux. For Windows there should be an option in the installer which lets you choose to install Python (www.python.org) and build Csound's Python opcodes.
To use the Python opcodes inside Csound, you must first start the Python interpreter. This is done using the pyinit opcode. The pyinit opcode must be put in the header before any other Python opcode is used, otherwise, since the interpreter is not running, all Python opcodes will return an error. You can run any Python code by placing it within quotes as argument to the opcode pyruni. This opcode executes the Python code at init time and can be put in the heade. The example below, shows a simple csd file which prints the text "Hello Csound world!" to the terminal.2 Note that a dummy instrument must be declared to satisfy the Csound parser.
EXAMPLE 12B01_pyinit.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer> <CsOptions> -ndm0 </CsOptions> <CsInstruments> ;start python interpreter pyinit ;run python code at init-time pyruni "print '*********************'" pyruni "print '*Hello Csound world!*'" pyruni "print '*********************'" instr 1 endin </CsInstruments> <CsScore> i 1 0 0 </CsScore> </CsoundSynthesizer> ;Example by Andrés Cabrera and Joachim Heintz
Prints:
*********************
*Hello Csound world!*
*********************
The Python interpreter maintains its state for the length of the Csound run. This means that any variables declared will be available on all calls to the Python interpreter. In other words, they are global. The code below shows variables "c" and "d" being calculated both in the header ("c") and in instrument 2 ("d"), and that they are available in all instruments (here printed out in instrument 1 and 3). A multi-line string can be written in Csound with the {{...}} delimiters. This can be useful for longer Python code snippets.
EXAMPLE 12B02_python_global.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer>
<CsOptions>
-ndm0
</CsOptions>
<CsInstruments>
pyinit
;Execute a python script in the header
pyruni {{
a = 2
b = 3
c = a + b
}}
instr 1 ;print the value of c
prints "Instrument %d reports:\n", p1
pyruni "print 'a + b = c = %d' % c"
endin
instr 2 ;calculate d
prints "Instrument %d calculates the value of d!\n", p1
pyruni "d = c**2"
endin
instr 3 ;print the value of d
prints "Instrument %d reports:\n", p1
pyruni "print 'c squared = d = %d' % d"
endin
</CsInstruments>
<CsScore>
i 1 1 0
i 2 3 0
i 3 5 0
</CsScore>
</CsoundSynthesizer>
;Example by Andrés Cabrera and Joachim Heintz
Prints:
Instrument 1 reports:
a + b = c = 5
Instrument 2 calculates the value of d!
Instrument 3 reports:
c squared = d = 25
Python scripts can also be executed at k-rate using pyrun. When pyrun is used, the script will be executed again on every k-pass for the instrument, which means it will be executed kr times per second. The example below shows a simple example of pyrun. The number of control cycles per second is set here to 100 via the statement kr=100. After setting the value of variable "a" in the header to zero, instrument 1 runs for one second, thus incrementing the value of "a" to 100 by the Python statement a = a + 1. Instrument 2, starting after the first second, prints the value. Instrument 1 is then called again for another two seconds, so the value of variable "a" is 300 afterwards. Then instrument 3 is called which performs both, incrementing (in the '+=' short form) and printing, for the first two k-cycles.
EXAMPLE 12B03_pyrun.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer> <CsOptions> -ndm0 </CsOptions> <CsInstruments> kr=100 ;start the python interpreter pyinit ;set variable a to zero at init-time pyruni "a = 0" instr 1 ;increment variable a by one in each k-cycle pyrun "a = a + 1" endin instr 2 ;print out the state of a at this instrument's initialization pyruni "print 'instr 2: a = %d' % a" endin instr 3 ;perform two more increments and print out immediately kCount timeinstk pyrun "a += 1" pyrun "print 'instr 3: a = %d' % a" ;;turnoff after k-cycle number two if kCount == 2 then turnoff endif endin </CsInstruments> <CsScore> i 1 0 1 ;Adds to a for 1 second i 2 1 0 ;Prints a i 1 2 2 ;Adds to a for another two seconds i 3 4 1 ;Prints a again </CsScore> </CsoundSynthesizer> ;Example by Andrés Cabrera and Joachim Heintz
Prints:
instr 2: a = 100
instr 3: a = 301
instr 3: a = 302
Csound allows you to run Python script files that exist outside your csd file. This is done using pyexec. The pyexec opcode will run the script indicated, like this:
pyexec "/home/python/myscript.py"
In this case, the script "myscript.py" will be executed at k-rate. You can give full or relative path names.
There are other versions of the pyexec opcode, which run at initialization only (pyexeci) and others that include an additional trigger argument (pyexect).
The opcode pyeval and its relatives, allow you to pass to Csound the value of a Python expression. As usual, the expression is given as a string. So we expect this to work:
Not Working Example!
<CsoundSynthesizer> <CsOptions> -ndm0 </CsOptions> <CsInstruments> pyinit pyruni "a = 1" pyruni "b = 2" instr 1 ival pyevali "a + b" prints "a + b = %d\n", ival endin </CsInstruments> <CsScore> i 1 0 0 </CsScore> </CsoundSynthesizer>
Running this code results in an error with this message:
INIT ERROR in instr 1: pyevali: expression must evaluate in a float
What happens is that Python has delivered an integer to Csound, which expects a floating-point number. Csound always works with numbers which are not integers (to represent a 1, Csound actually uses 1.0). This is equivalent mathematically, but in computer memory these two numbers are stored in a different way. So what you need to do is tell Python to deliver a floating-point number to Csound. This can be done by Python's float() facility. So this code should work:
EXAMPLE 12B04_pyevali.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer> <CsOptions> -ndm0 </CsOptions> <CsInstruments> pyinit pyruni "a = 1" pyruni "b = 2" instr 1 ival pyevali "float(a + b)" prints "a + b = %d\n", ival endin </CsInstruments> <CsScore> i 1 0 0 </CsScore> </CsoundSynthesizer> ;Example by Andrés Cabrera and Joachim Heintz
Prints:
a + b = 3
You can pass values from Csound to Python via the pyassign opcodes. This is a very simple example which calculates the cent distance of the proportion 3/2:
EXAMPLE 12B05_pyassigni.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer>
<CsOptions>
-ndm0
</CsOptions>
<CsInstruments>
pyinit
instr 1 ;assign 3/2 to the python variable "x"
pyassigni "x", 3/2
endin
instr 2 ;calculate cent distance of this proportion
pyruni {{
from math import log
cent = log(x,2)*1200
print cent
}}
endin
</CsInstruments>
<CsScore>
i 1 0 0
i 2 0 0
</CsScore>
</CsoundSynthesizer>
;example by joachim heintz
Unfortunately, you can neither pass strings from Csound to Python via pyassign, nor from Python to Csound via pyeval. So the interchange between both worlds is actually limited to numbers.
Apart from reading and setting variables directly with an opcode, you can also call Python functions from Csound and have the function return values directly to Csound. This is the purpose of the pycall opcodes. With these opcodes you specify the function to call and the function arguments as arguments to the opcode. You can have the function return values (up to 8 return values are allowed) directly to Csound i- or k-rate variables. You must choose the appropriate opcode depending on the number of return values from the function, and the Csound rate (i- or k-rate) at which you want to run the Python function. Just add a number from 1 to 8 after to pycall, to select the number of outputs for the opcode. If you just want to execute a function without return value simply use pycall. For example, the function "average" defined above, can be called directly from Csound using:
kave pycall1 "average", ka, kb
The output variable kave, will calculate the average of the variable ka and kb at k-rate.
As you may have noticed, the Python opcodes run at k-rate, but also have i-rate versions if an "i" is added to the opcode name. This is also true for pycall. You can use pycall1i, pycall2i, etc. if you want the function to be evaluated at instrument initialization, or in the header. The following csd shows a simple usage of the pycall opcodes:
EXAMPLE 12B06_pycall.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer>
<CsOptions>
-dnm0
</CsOptions>
<CsInstruments>
pyinit
pyruni {{
def average(a,b):
ave = (a + b)/2
return ave
}} ;Define function "average"
instr 1 ;call it
iave pycall1i "average", p4, p5
prints "a = %i\n", iave
endin
</CsInstruments>
<CsScore>
i 1 0 1 100 200
i 1 1 1 1000 2000
</CsScore>
</CsoundSynthesizer>
;example by andrés cabrera and joachim heintz
This csd will print the following output:
a = 150
a = 1500
Sometimes you want Python variables to be global, and sometimes you may want Python variables to be local to the instrument instance. This is possible using the local Python opcodes. These opcodes are the same as the ones shown above, but have the prefix pyl instead of py. There are opcodes like pylruni, pylcall1t and pylassigni, which will behave just like their global counterparts, but they will affect local Python variables only. It is important to have in mind that this locality applies to instrument instances, not instrument numbers. The next example shows both, local and global behaviour.
EXAMPLE 12B07_local_vs_global.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer> <CsOptions> -dnm0 </CsOptions> <CsInstruments> pyinit giInstanceLocal = 0 giInstanceGlobal = 0 instr 1 ;local python variable 'value' kTime timeinsts pylassigni "value", p4 giInstanceLocal = giInstanceLocal+1 if kTime == 0.5 then kvalue pyleval "value" printks "Python variable 'value' in instr %d, instance %d = %d\n", 0, p1, giInstanceLocal, kvalue turnoff endif endin instr 2 ;global python variable 'value' kTime timeinsts pyassigni "value", p4 giInstanceGlobal = giInstanceGlobal+1 if kTime == 0.5 then kvalue pyleval "value" printks "Python variable 'value' in instr %d, instance %d = %d\n", 0, p1, giInstanceGlobal, kvalue turnoff endif endin </CsInstruments> <CsScore> ; p4 i 1 0 1 100 i 1 0 1 200 i 1 0 1 300 i 1 0 1 400 i 2 2 1 1000 i 2 2 1 2000 i 2 2 1 3000 i 2 2 1 4000 </CsScore> </CsoundSynthesizer> ;Example by Andrés Cabrera and Joachim Heintz
Prints:
Python variable 'value' in instr 1, instance 4 = 100
Python variable 'value' in instr 1, instance 4 = 200
Python variable 'value' in instr 1, instance 4 = 300
Python variable 'value' in instr 1, instance 4 = 400
Python variable 'value' in instr 2, instance 4 = 4000
Python variable 'value' in instr 2, instance 4 = 4000
Python variable 'value' in instr 2, instance 4 = 4000
Python variable 'value' in instr 2, instance 4 = 4000
Both instruments pass the value of the score parameter field p4 to the python variable "value". The only difference is that instrument 1 does this local (with pylassign and pyleval) and instrument 2 does it global (with pyassign and pyeval). Four instances of instrument 1 are called at the same time, for the same duration. Thanks to the local variables, each assignment to the variable "value" stays independent from each other. This is shown when all instances are adviced to print out "value" after 0.5 seconds.
When the four instances of instrument 2 are called, each new instance overwrites the "value" of all previous instances with its own p4. So the second instance sets "value" to 2000 for itself but only for the first instance. The third instance sets "value" to 3000 also for instance one and two. And the fourth instance sets "value" to 4000 for all previous instances, too, and that is shown in the printout, again after 0.5 seconds.
All of the python opcodes have a "triggered" version, which will only execute when its trigger value is different to 0. The names of these opcodes have a "t" added at the end of them (e.g. pycallt or pylassignt), and all have an additional parameter called ktrig for triggering purposes. See the example in the next chapter for usage.
Python opcodes can simplify the creation of complex data structures for algorithmic composition. Below you'll find a simple example of using the Python opcodes to generate Markov chains for a pentatonic scale. Markov chains require in practice building matrices, which start becoming unwieldy in Csound, especially for more than two dimensions. In Python multi-dimensional matrices can be handled as nested lists very easily. Another advange is that the size of matrices (or lists) need not be known in advance, since it is not necessary in python to declare the sizes of lists.
EXAMPLE 12B08_markov.csd
<CsoundSynthesizer>
<CsOptions>
-odac -dm0
</CsOptions>
<CsInstruments>
sr = 44100
ksmps = 32
nchnls = 2
0dbfs = 1
pyinit
; Python script to define probabilities for each note as lists within a list
; Definition of the get_new_note function which randomly generates a new
; note based on the probabilities of each note occuring.
; Each note list must total 1, or there will be problems!
pyruni {{
c = [0.1, 0.2, 0.05, 0.4, 0.25]
d = [0.4, 0.1, 0.1, 0.2, 0.2]
e = [0.2, 0.35, 0.05, 0.4, 0]
g = [0.7, 0.1, 0.2, 0, 0]
a = [0.1, 0.2, 0.05, 0.4, 0.25]
markov = [c, d, e, g, a]
from random import random, seed
seed()
def get_new_note(previous_note):
number = random()
accum = 0
i = 0
while accum < number:
accum = accum + markov[int(previous_note)] [int(i)]
i = i + 1
return i - 1.0
}}
giSine ftgen 0, 0, 2048, 10, 1 ;sine wave
giPenta ftgen 0, 0, -6, -2, 0, 2, 4, 7, 9 ;Pitch classes for pentatonic scale
instr 1 ;Markov chain reader and note spawner
;p4 = frequency of note generation
;p5 = octave
ioct init p5
klastnote init 0 ;Used to remember last note played (start at first note of scale)
ktrig metro p4 ;generate a trigger with frequency p4
knewnote pycall1t ktrig, "get_new_note", klastnote ;get new note from chain
schedkwhen ktrig, 0, 10, 2, 0, 0.2, knewnote, ioct ;launch note on instrument 2
klastnote = knewnote ;New note is now the old note
endin
instr 2 ;A simple sine wave instrument
;p4 = note to be played
;p5 = octave
ioct init p5
ipclass table p4, giPenta
ipclass = ioct + (ipclass / 100) ; Pitch class of the note
ifreq = cpspch(ipclass) ;Note frequency in Hertz
aenv linen .2, 0.05, p3, 0.1 ;Amplitude envelope
aout poscil aenv, ifreq , giSine ;Simple oscillator
outs aout, aout
endin
</CsInstruments>
<CsScore>
; frequency of Octave of
; note generation melody
i 1 0 30 3 7
i 1 5 25 6 9
i 1 10 20 7.5 10
i 1 15 15 1 8
</CsScore>
</CsoundSynthesizer>
;Example by Andrés Cabrera
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