Software downloads

Release Notes - CreaVideoLyrics

Installation Notes

Warning 1 (General): On Windows and macOS, keeping your SoundFonts in dedicated folders (e.g. C:\SoundFonts or ~/SoundFonts) instead of the default system folders makes loading much faster. This does not happen on Linux (preview: 1-2 sec vs Windows 4-6 sec, macOS 8-10 sec).

Warning 2 (macOS only): To use the software, run this in the Terminal:

sudo xattr -cr /Applications/CreaVideoLyrics.app

Warning 3 (Linux only): The AppImage needs execute permission. Right-click > Properties > Permissions > "Allow executing file as program".

v1.0.2.3 - Cumulative updates up to November 9, 2026

Everything that has changed since the October 1 update. The built-in guide (right-click > Help, or the ? menu > Help) has been updated with all the new features.

• Automatic tuning of SFZ bass banks. Bass banks are measured and tuned automatically, region by region, even when the sample does not respond to the test velocity. The result is saved and reused on later runs.
• More accurate "Fix out-of-tune notes". The harmonic rule now also accounts for pitch bends already in progress on the note, so it corrects notes that used to be skipped.
• Held guitar bends. A held one-semitone bend is no longer cancelled by mistake: beating between the guitar and other instruments on the same note is gone.

Menus, archives and navigation

• Menu bar in every module. The context menu (right-click) is still available.
• *Midi to Mp3*: Songs (MIDI song archive, Open MIDI folder), Tools (General options, Corrections by family, Choose style: a single control center), Style presets, Option presets and ?.
• *Sync lyrics*: Songs (MP3 + text song archive, Open MP3 folder) and ?.
• *Create video*: Songs (Video song archive) and ?. The "Open MP3 / MP4 folder" button stays where it was.
• The ? menu contains Help and About CreaVideoLyrics (version, company, contacts).
• Song archive, one per module. Midi to Mp3 finds the MIDI files you have already processed; Sync lyrics finds MP3 + TXT pairs with the same name; Create video finds MP3 + SRT pairs with the same name. Just point to the main folder of your projects: the scan includes subfolders and a double-click on a song reloads it in the right module with its fields already filled in. MP3 and SRT files created with CVL join the list on their own.
• Scan rules: a scan replaces the entire list of the selected archive; if you cancel, the previous list stays; removing an entry never deletes your files.
• Settings, archive and logs in a single folder called *CreaVideoLyrics* inside your Music folder (with separate files for macOS, Windows and Linux). Licence and trial files stay in the user folder.

From MIDI to video

• Straight to Create video. At the end of "Create Audio File and SRT for Video", if the MIDI has lyrics (so an SRT is also created), the program asks "Do you want to go straight to Create video?". With *Yes*, Create video opens with the MP3 and SRT already filled in (if it was already open, its fields are replaced); with *No* the folder opens as before.
• Automatic SRT from the MIDI's lyrics, written next to the MP3 together with a .parole file holding the timing of single words.
• Create video: two-line opening title (title and artist, taken from the MIDI or typed by you) shown until the first lyric line; drag and drop files onto the fields; it remembers font, size and your last background folder.
• New "Lyrics style": *Line by line* or *4 lines, highlighted word by word* (default, as in the OLW player). The first, larger line is the one being sung and fills with colour word by word; the next three, smaller and grey, show the upcoming phrases, and the block moves up one line at a time. If the .parole file is missing (for example with a hand-made SRT), *Line by line* is used.

Presets and options

• Style presets (in the menu): Dance / Disco / Funk, Slow / Ballad / Jazz, Pop, Blues, Rock blues. They apply the style to the loaded MIDI, always starting from the original; "No style" brings it back as it was.
• Option presets (in the menu): No options, Slow songs, Fast songs. They set the options that best suit the type of song, based on our experience. Only one preset is active at a time; songs with their own saved options are left untouched.
• New options in the panel: *Wind breathing* (breath, vibrato, legato), *Doubling of ensemble instruments* (a second, slightly different voice for organs, strings, choirs, brass...), *Protect the vocal* (lowers the instruments that cover the guide voice, on velocities only).

Audio, balance and preview

• Balance volumes now also works with MediumQuality, in the preview and in the final file. General rules, with no fixed cuts per instrument:
• Bass protected: 3 dB of margin over the reference and a maximum cut of 4.5 dB.
• Dominant parts (a part that covers the others): progressive containment beyond the threshold, up to 3 dB extra.
• Drums: compared with the parts playing at the same moment; the chosen kit is respected in the export too.
• Isolated volume dips (CC7/CC11) on melodic channels: gradual recovery, from 1.2 to 4 dB, only where the dip is an isolated step and not an intended dynamic.
• Per-instrument compensation: kalimba -5 dB (it sounds louder than its volume suggests). It grows with the cases you report.
• Drum menu: kit choice (.sfz too) and an option for drums without reverb.
• Preview: the MIDI is processed first, to map the corrections to apply; then the song is split into 30/60-second groups for all engines (0, 1 and 2): the first 30 seconds are ready immediately and the rest follow. The break you may notice comes from this choice and affects only the preview, which starts much sooner. With *Balance volumes* on, the preview instead prepares the whole song before starting: longer initial wait, no break, and replays are immediate if the settings do not change.
• Faster: rendering and measurements run in parallel on the available CPUs; the SoundFont search by family runs in parallel; new Family SF button under the channel grid (SF2 or SFZ for all active channels).

Note and instrument fixes

• Guitars: transient pitch-wheel moves fixed, legatos with real notes, string noises also inferred (position changes on nylon and steel, cautiously).
• Weak dynamics and zero volumes (CC11=0) are preserved.
• Dry drums: the send to the effects stays consistent even with Tube and Multiband bass.
• Various fixes for notes and instruments.

News from November 2026

• More present .sfz drums. .sfz drum kits had less treble (cymbals, hi-hat) and a big but not very present kick compared with SF2 kits: they are now balanced automatically, so you can use them without losing presence.
• Cleaner .sfz bass. Low notes no longer sound muddy: rumble below 38 Hz is removed and the muddy zone around 220 Hz is reduced.
• Faster preview and creation. The .sfz drums, the slowest part, are saved and reused until you change the MIDI or the kit; "Create File" works at 48 kHz (like the final MP3) and is about twice as fast, with no difference in sound.
• Safe closing. If you try to close the program while an operation is running (preview, MP3, synchronization, video), a warning appears and the program does not close; with nothing running, all modules close together.
• More reliability with .sfz banks. Automatic recovery of channels without audio, SFZ guitar wheel on new attacks, dB scale in the General volume tooltip.

Good to know when updating

• The first preview of each song is regenerated (the preview memory was reset), so it will be slower than usual. If you change the options, the preview regenerates by itself.
• Balance and preview have changed: listen again to songs you had already fine-tuned, you may hear small differences from before. Tell us what you are not happy with.

v1.0.1.0 - Update of October 1, 2026

Important fixes (MaximizeQuality and HigherQuality engines):

• Disappearing channels: sometimes an instrument could not be heard in the preview or in the audio file (a different one each time), or a channel played with another channel's sound. The cause has been found and fixed: all channels now always reach the mix. The MediumQuality engine was not affected.
• Channel volume (Vol %): the percentage set in the grid is now heard proportionally and the same way on all three engines (e.g. 50% = half amplitude, about -6 dB).
• MediumQuality engine: the stereo, groove and brass corrections already used by the other engines are now applied here too.

New:

• Clearer warnings: if a channel renders without audio, the program automatically renders it again; if it still fails, it tells you which channel is missing.
• Silent notes: if a SoundFont assigned to a channel lacks some notes used by the song (e.g. a drum kit with no kick), the program warns you before rendering.
• .sfz warning: with the MediumQuality and MaximizeQuality engines a .sfz assigned in the grid is not used; the program now tells you.
• Diagnostic log: in the song's _Files folder you will find <song>_log_diagnosi.txt. If something sounds wrong, attach it to your report.
• Consistent buttons: all buttons react when pressed; those with an immediate effect (Save and Apply, Clear Grid, Octave +1/-1) flash green to confirm, without freezing the program anymore.
• Guide: new sections "Getting started: your first MP3 in 5 steps" and "Where to find SoundFonts (and what to know)", including the risks and licenses to be aware of.

v1.0.1.0 - September 28, 2026

• English is now available. Several graphic details have been made consistent, and there is a new simplified options center. It can be turned on when a MIDI is loaded, from Quick Options.

v1.0.0.0 - September 27, 2026 - OFFICIAL RELEASE

Out of beta: First public release. v1.0.0.0 includes every feature of the beta (v4.0.8.0), plus:

• Major-version license (no time-based expiry)
• 30-day trial (plain HTTP, no OpenSSL dependency)
• Cross-PC anti-sharing with heartbeat (one user per PC)
• Multi-OS support (Windows, macOS, Linux AppImage), kept in sync

Features

We have completed several styles and presets. MIDI files now sound believable and usable.

• Main MIDI engine: quality levels 1 to 3, with substantial differences. From 1 (MediumQuality, great for beginners) to 3 (near-real performances, at the cost of more time).
• Presets: make the initial setup easier; every parameter can still be customized.
• Styles: we work on harmonies and sounds, improving what is there instead of reinventing it. Changes by genre.
• SoundFont search: suggests the best ones based on folder, audio file quality and rating. Supports both SF2 and SFZ.

On-the-fly MIDI corrections: The software fixes a great many writing errors (see the Help for the full list). You can download the corrected MIDI for external use, or use the audio generated by CVL (recommended).

Instrument families (20 in total): Winds, Strings, Voices, Accordion, Harmonica, Bass, Guitars, Pad, Drums, Piano, Electric Piano, Harp, etc. Each family gets automatic corrections suited to its sound.

• Winds/Synth leads: legato, vibrato, soft expression
• Strings/Voices: light legato, vibrato, expression
• Accordion/Harmonica: vibrato + expression (no legato)
• Bass/Guitars: removes clipped notes, keeps staccato and bends
• Pad: soft release
• All: fixes overlapping repeated notes

Volume and mix:

• Normalization to -16 LUFS with a safety limiter
• Fixed gain, no volume jumps
• Preview mixing can be stopped

Interface:

• Muted channels highlighted, channel panel always visible
• Right-click menu on the channel grid to assign SFZ/SF2
• Full Help (right-click > Help) for every window

Previous Beta Versions

v4.0.1.0 - September 24, 2026 (Windows, Linux and macOS aligned)

Per-instrument-family corrections (automatic, with humanization on)

• Every channel (drums excluded) is recognized by family and only gets the corrections that suit how that instrument is played.
• Winds and synth leads: legato, re-centered vibrato, soft expression.
• Sustained strings, voices and choirs: lighter legato, re-centered vibrato, soft expression.
• Accordion and harmonica: vibrato and expression, no legato.
• Bass and guitars: very short notes no longer sound "clipped", staccato is kept; guitar bends are left untouched.
• Pad: softer release at the end of the note.
• All instruments: overlapping repeated notes fixed, the typical cause of a note cutting off abruptly mid-song.
• Corrections adapt to the resolution (PPQ) of each MIDI.

Miscellaneous

• macOS: fixed compilation errors and hid the "Extra Track Options" button that was still visible.

To do

• Switches in Options to turn each family's corrections on/off.
• Sax and winds: vibrato tuning still to be refined when the wind part is doubled on several channels with echo.
• Style transformation presets: to be improved.

v4.0.0.4 - September 24, 2026 (Windows, Linux and macOS aligned)

Sound quality (automatic, with humanization on)

• Winds (sax, brass, woodwinds): legato phrasing instead of "keyboard-staccato" notes, vibrato re-centered on the note and narrowed when the MIDI pushes it all below or above, more gradual expression drops (like a breath), very short volume dips removed.
• Pitch bend written in the MIDI is no longer reduced: notes deliberately bent up/down stay in tune.
• Piano: pedal handled only on pianos, with re-pedaling on chord changes.

Volume and mix

• Uniform final volume: the song is brought to a standard level (-16 LUFS) with a fixed gain, no more volume rising in steps or an ending that is too loud.
• The master volume chosen by the user is applied after normalization, with a safety limiter.
• Fixed drums sometimes missing in the preview.
• Preview mixing can be stopped with the Stop button.

SoundFonts and SFZ banks

• Instrument families expanded (20), with new Electric Piano, Harp and Accordion families; for each family you can set both an .sfz and an .sf2.
• Automatic compensation for .sfz banks recorded too quietly or transposed by an octave (drums excluded).
• Warning if an assigned .sf2 does not contain the required instrument.
• "Use original wind" option: duplicates the wind melody on a dedicated channel.
• In single-channel preview with SF2 engines, any assigned .sfz is ignored (it used to cause confusion).

Interface

• Muted channels marked as soon as the MIDI is loaded; channel panel always open and buttons centered.
• Right-click menu on the channel grid to assign the family's SFZ/SF2.
• Full Help on every window (right-click > Help): functions, recommended values, when to use them and when not to. On Windows it now opens correctly in the browser.

Ready to experiment and have fun. See you soon! ?