HiChord for Bitwig 6 - Create Chords easily and on the Fly
Bitwig Preset | Sep 15, 2025
In this video, I demonstrate how to recreate the functionality of the popular hardware device, the High Court, inside Bitwig, allowing you to play and modify diatonic chord progressions using your keyboard instead of spending hundreds on the physical unit. I showcase how to set up and use my Bitwig preset for easy chord selection and modification, and how to record the results into a MIDI track. You can download my free preset from GitHub, and I'm open to feedback or requests for additional features or Bitwig Studio 5 compatibility.
You can watch the Video on Youtube
- support me on Patreon
Short Overview #
In this video, I dive into a popular hardware device called High Chord, which lets you play chord progressions easily with just a few buttons. While some people are amazed by its simplicity and others criticize the price, I show you how to replicate its functionality inside Bitwig using a custom preset, so you don’t need the actual hardware. You’ll see how to play diatonic chords, switch chord types, add some spice with modifiers, and even record your chord ideas directly into Bitwig. If you want to try it out, you can download my preset for free from GitHub and let me know if you’d like to see more features or a version for Bitwig 5.
- Introduction after a break from making videos, explaining the interest in the High Chord hardware device.
- Overview of the High Chord device, its popularity and controversy due to its price and utility.
- Explanation of what the device does: lets you play diatonic chord progressions using buttons and a joystick for changing chord types.
- Demonstration of replicating the High Chord functionality inside Bitwig using a preset and a standard keyboard.
- Clear description of controls: playing chords mapped to keys, modifier keys switch chord types, and joystick emulation for inversions and variations.
- Discussion of chord types available: major, minor, seventh, major seventh, minor ninth, suspended, diminished, augmented.
- Explanation of how to keep chords in scale or add "spicier" out-of-scale notes using modifiers.
- Instruction on recording output from this setup into a MIDI or note track in Bitwig.
- Commentary on the basic nature of the device from a music theory perspective and thoughts about its price.
- Accessibility: free Bitwig preset provided on GitHub, open to user feedback for improvements or version 5 adaptation.
- Encouragement to try out the preset, leave feedback, and support the channel.
Introduction and Context #
It's me, Polarity, your familiar "old guy from YouTube," back after a break from making videos. Today, I'm diving into a new hardware device that has generated quite a stir online, both good and bad. The device is called High Chord. It's designed for playing chord progressions using just a few buttons. The internet's reaction has been polarized, some people are amazed and want it immediately, while others balk at its high price tag (around $300) and criticize it. Given this controversy, I decided to take a deeper look and provide a tutorial on how you can replicate this device's functionality directly in Bitwig, avoiding the need for expensive hardware.
How the High Chord Device Works #
The High Chord allows you to play basic diatonic chords from a chosen musical scale, using buttons to select chord roots and a joystick to modify chord type. On the device:
- You select your key/scale at the top.
- Buttons correspond to the various degrees of the scale, triggering respective chords (e.g., the first button plays the I chord, the second the ii, etc.).
- On the left, there's a joystick that lets you switch the chord type, push it up to go from minor to major or vice versa, or change to various extensions and alterations like 7th, 9th, suspended, diminished, and augmented chords.
Despite how "magical" or "innovative" this might seem, the concept is actually very straightforward and can be implemented digitally within most DAWs.
Replicating High Chord in Bitwig #
Some viewers questioned if it’s possible to emulate High Chord in Bitwig. I gave it a try, and it certainly works. Here’s how I translated the functionality:
Keyboard Mapping and Logic #
- Chord Buttons: On a MIDI keyboard, from C3 to C4, each key becomes a chord trigger. Each button corresponds to a chord degree (#1 to #7) in the selected scale.
- Joysticks/Modifiers: Below this octave range are "modifier keys" that change the chord type, emulating the joystick's function.
- For example: switching from major to minor, adding 7th or 9th extensions, creating suspended or diminished chords.
- These controls make it easy to play within a scale or deliberately step outside it for a bit of harmonic "spice."
Scale and Chord Type Switching #
- At the top of the interface, you select your key (e.g., C Major or C Minor).
- When playing a key in the designated octave, the corresponding diatonic triad is triggered.
- Modifier keys let you alter the chord quality (major/minor, seventh, ninth, suspended, diminished, and augmented).
- Some extensions deliberately introduce notes that are outside the scale, adding tension and interest.
Inversions and Wrappers #
- Though not fully implemented, chord inversions could be added for further harmonic variation.
- In Bitwig, you can use "wrapper" presets to keep outputs within a chosen scale, even if you make complex chord changes.
Recording and Output #
A common question is how to record the chords generated by this system. In Bitwig:
- Create a new instrument track.
- Set its input to receive MIDI from the wrapper output.
- Hit record, and your chord progressions will be captured as note clips, ready for further editing.
Perspective on High Chord and Musical Utility #
Many people are drawn to hardware like High Chord because it feels hands-on and compact, a fun musical toy. However, in terms of music theory and actual harmonic complexity, the device is quite basic. It covers standard diatonic progressions and some extensions, but it's nothing groundbreaking for those familiar with basic harmony.
The price can seem steep, especially since this functionality can easily be achieved with software in Bitwig or other DAWs, often for free. For some, the appeal is in the tactile experience and novelty, not the theoretical depth.
Free Bitwig Preset and Feedback #
I’ve made my Bitwig preset available for free via my GitHub, as an alternative to the expensive hardware. If you want new features or improvements, let me know in the comments or through feedback. If there’s interest, I can port this system to Bitwig Studio 5 as well.
This project is all about sharing and making music production tools accessible. Try it out, let me know what you think, and enjoy making new chord progressions without splurging on niche hardware.
Conclusion #
This video demonstrates how to replicate a much-hyped hardware device within Bitwig, providing the same practical (if simple) music-theory tools for free. It’s not revolutionary in harmonic terms, but it brings convenience and playfulness to composing with chords. Download, experiment, and leave feedback for further enhancements. Thanks for watching, and see you in the next video.
Full Video Transcription #
This is what im talking about in this video. The text is transcribed by Whisper, so it might not be perfect. If you find any mistakes, please let me know.
You can also click on the timestamps to jump to the right part of the video, which should be helpful.
Click to expand Transcription
[00:00:00] Hey folks, welcome back. It's me polarity the old guy from YouTube, right?
[00:00:04] I mean, you know me. It's been a while. I haven't made a video in a while
[00:00:08] So today I'm back with a device with a hardware device
[00:00:13] A lot of people seem to love on the internet. Lots of people make videos on it
[00:00:17] Some people hate it. Some people love it
[00:00:20] The usual stuff, right? So it's about or the device is called high court
[00:00:27] So you can play court progressions on it with just a few buttons and so on some people are very stunned about it
[00:00:33] Well, this is magic the unbelievable. What is this? I want it, right? Oh, this is 300 bucks. No way
[00:00:39] I'm buying this. So a lot of controversial comments about it
[00:00:42] So I want to show it this year. This is the tutorial video
[00:00:48] Right, so you can play just the basic diatonic
[00:01:00] Courts from the scale in here first note
[00:01:04] second third and so on so all the notes from the diatonic
[00:01:08] Scale that you choose here in the top and then you can play all the courts very easy on on the left side
[00:01:14] You have a stick and you can change the court type
[00:01:17] Right, so you push it up and then you switch from a minor chord to major chord
[00:01:39] Or if you actually play a major chord you switch to a minor chord
[00:01:43] Then we have the seventh chord major 7th minor 7th major 9th minor 9th and so on suspended for suspended to and so on
[00:01:51] So it's very basic. Actually, it's not complicated and you can do this probably in every door
[00:01:56] In no time
[00:01:59] So some people ask me if I can
[00:02:02] Replicate this inside of bitwig and I just try this and it kind of works
[00:02:08] Here's some people the people hating on the price have to go watch this literally
[00:02:12] Speechless with how much you guys have packed into this little thing amazing
[00:02:18] Okay, so people are stunned about this
[00:02:20] So I want to show it this year in bitwig and maybe I also show you my keyboard because we have to use the keyboard because we
[00:02:29] Don't have the hardware device, right? We want to fake it
[00:02:34] So here this is the preset down here and show you just a minute how it looks like but I also show you here the output notes and
[00:02:41] Of course in here the MIDI chord analyzer. You can see the chord type. I'm playing
[00:02:47] So on the keyboard we have basically everything from C3 from here to here is
[00:02:54] What you have to use to play the chords which are basically the buttons and then we have the octave down here, which is
[00:03:04] Yeah, basically this little joystick to switch the chords type. So this is how I implemented this
[00:03:10] we have the joystick and the buttons and
[00:03:12] Yeah, you can play
[00:03:15] All the diatonic chords the
[00:03:24] Triads basically from from the scale you choose here
[00:03:29] Here it's C minor. You can also switch to C major
[00:03:32] and
[00:03:34] Then if you play on top nothing works and down there nothing works
[00:03:44] So it's basically singled out on this
[00:03:47] Yeah, octave here to play actually your notes
[00:03:50] But then down below you have the modifier keys
[00:03:54] To change actually the chords type
[00:03:57] So
[00:03:59] Very straightforward I used here the documentation of this. Maybe I show you this here
[00:04:23] So these are basically at the keys C3 to C4
[00:04:27] first chord second chord third chord and so on
[00:04:31] Very easy and then here the chord modifying joystick major minor
[00:04:38] Yeah, this is basically when you play in a major key and you choose this modifier you switch to
[00:04:44] Minor and if you play in a minor you switch to major
[00:04:47] Also here with this one
[00:04:51] The seventh here, I think this is always straight the seventh. So it's a there's a major triad in there always
[00:04:58] so I guess it's
[00:05:00] On purpose that you play this here because it's not in the scale if you choose a minor scale and you play here a seventh chord
[00:05:06] Some of the notes are not in the scale, right there out of scale, but I think this is on purpose to bring in some spicy
[00:05:14] Yeah tension more or less
[00:05:18] Um, also here suspended. It's basically cloned everything here that we have
[00:05:24] And that's basically it. We have here also an inversion key. So you can change certain
[00:05:29] chords to different inversions
[00:05:32] But I don't think we need this or I haven't implemented this but
[00:05:37] What you can do in bitwig is just put a wrapper on it. So it stays within a certain scales
[00:05:43] You can use a different preset for this. I actually this in a minute how it how it looks like
[00:05:48] Okay, so we have basically here a major key at the top. We can play
[00:05:53] Major chords inside of the scales and some chords of course minor
[00:06:00] Right a minor here
[00:06:04] To stick basically to the scale, but then you can break out of the scale by just using the modifier key to switch to the
[00:06:11] um
[00:06:13] Relative relative mode
[00:06:16] Right to see major
[00:06:20] Come see minor
[00:06:22] So when you switch here in bitwig to see minor
[00:06:26] And you play the notes you of course play the see minor first
[00:06:31] But then this modifier key switches to the major
[00:06:34] So it's exactly the opposite way around
[00:06:39] Also here, it's minor and then you switch to major
[00:06:47] So you can bring in some spice to your chord progressions, um, then
[00:06:54] Let's switch back to major. Yeah, um, then the next one here. This is straight a seventh chord always
[00:07:02] So this gives you for sure notes outside of the scale, um, but I think it's on purpose, um, then we have here the seventh major seventh
[00:07:18] It also, um, changes of course with the chord inside of the scale to just keep the notes inside of the scale
[00:07:30] I don't know how it is on the device. I think it's exactly the same
[00:07:36] You can also go the other way around here again minor
[00:07:42] So you can use the global scale feature for that, um, then we have here, what's this minor ninth
[00:07:57] So you can play around with this then we have here suspended four
[00:08:19] Sus four sus two
[00:08:21] Diminished and then the last one here this this one this is augmented
[00:08:27] So that's basically it, um, if you want to, um, use the inversion thing
[00:08:41] You can just apply here at the end maybe
[00:08:44] one of my
[00:08:46] rapper
[00:08:49] Wrapper presets here. It looks like this. Uh, so now we have here also an added bass note. We can also disable this
[00:08:56] [Music]
[00:08:58] [Music]
[00:09:26] So you can you can play around and try out if you get some nice chord progressions out of this
[00:09:32] Um, then also something I want to show you, um
[00:09:35] Because people ask this all the time, um, how can you record this
[00:09:41] Into a chord track or into a note track and we can do this here. Let me increase this so you can see it better
[00:09:48] Um, we have here an instrument two just a new
[00:09:52] You create basically a new instrument track and then on the left side here as an input
[00:09:57] You can use tracks and then you can use the note wrappers and output here
[00:10:02] Yeah, let's let's use the note wrappers and output and then you just hit record and instead of MIDI notes you
[00:10:09] Basically record the output here of this note wrapper
[00:10:13] more or less
[00:10:15] [Music]
[00:10:17] I only have one hand but
[00:10:32] Um, so this is what we play here on the keyboard
[00:10:34] Um, and this is what we record more or less
[00:10:38] So you can record these notes coming from this device
[00:10:43] Uh easily on another track and then use note clips for that
[00:10:47] I don't know why it's so hyped. I think
[00:10:50] People really love to have these small little devices around and you know some toys to play around with
[00:10:57] but actually music in a musical way, this is not
[00:11:01] More harmony and harmony theory. This is like nothing. It's it's very basic
[00:11:07] Um, just to have these diatronic chord progressions and then use maybe here some
[00:11:12] different chord types to break out of
[00:11:14] um
[00:11:16] The scale
[00:11:17] But I guess it's fun, but you know 300 400 bucks. It's very expensive, but I get it. It's probably, you know
[00:11:24] Another mass produced device. It's probably just a hobby project. So I guess um, it's um,
[00:11:30] it's okay
[00:11:32] um
[00:11:34] So yeah, I put this on uh in the description down below you can download this on my github, of course for free
[00:11:41] And maybe give me some some feedback. Maybe you want to have certain chord functions behave differently or whatever
[00:11:48] I just implemented this for now as it is, but I can change it anytime
[00:11:53] Just let me know if you are happy with this
[00:11:56] And if you want to have something changed, um
[00:11:59] I could probably also implement this for bitwig studio 5
[00:12:04] um
[00:12:06] I don't rely too much on the scale feature
[00:12:09] So, um, maybe if you want to have it also for bitwig 5, let me know I can replicate it probably in bitwig 5 easily
[00:12:16] Anyway, I just want to make a video and give you here a new preset
[00:12:20] Something you can play around with a new toy instead of buying this expensive device just to have
[00:12:25] You know something to play with
[00:12:27] um
[00:12:29] Yeah, leave a like leave a comment. Um leave a subscription. Let me know what you think and I'll see you in the next video. Bye
[00:12:35] Bye.
[00:12:36] [BLANK_AUDIO]