Version 5.1.0 | Free Player available | Windows and Mac

Orch

A node-based DAW with tag-based orchestration.

Arrange MIDI phrases in nested containers and use tags to assign or change their instruments. Orch runs locally, with VST3 hosting for instruments and effects.

Download Free Player Watch the composition walkthrough →

Player is free, with saving disabled. The full version enables saving.

Orch Orchestrator canvas showing MIDI sequences connected in an arrangement — Musical phrases become sections you can connect, repeat and nest.

From Ruchir Shah
Orch developer

Music, and the tools behind it.

I’m Ruchir, the developer of Orch. It brings together MIDI arrangement, instrument routing and composition tools, including raga scales and physical modelling. The walkthrough below shows my composition Remembering the Ancients and how it is arranged in Orch.

Track walkthrough

Remembering the Ancients

A composition walkthrough with Ruchir Shah, showing the track and its arrangement in Orch.

Remembering the Ancients — track walkthrough A look inside a working Orch project.

Watch on YouTube →

From phrase to arrangement

Keep the notes. Try another orchestration.

Use tags to assign a MIDI phrase to instruments. Change the assignment without rewriting the performance, then group phrases into sections with their own timing and repeats.

Orch piano roll with MIDI notes and expression lanes — Edit a recorded phrase’s notes, velocities and expression.

Build sections from phrases

Nest containers to arrange larger passages. Link a section from another project when you want to reuse it.

Route your instruments

Host VST3 instruments and effects, connect buses and outputs, and save the signal paths with the project.

Take the arrangement further

Export to compatible DAWs through DAWProject. Use OSC, Python modules or an MCP-compatible assistant for control and automation.

Composition tools

Work with pitch, texture and musical time.

Install tools individually from the module catalog, including in Player. These are a few places to start.

Raga

Shape melodic material with ascending and descending raga scales, microtonal tuning, meendh curves and Tal patterns.

Risset Rhythm

Layer repetitions of a phrase to create the impression of continuous acceleration with the Shepard–Risset effect.

Generator & Texture

Derive call-and-response phrases or counterpoint from existing MIDI, or make drones, pedal patterns, clusters and pads from captured notes.

Harmony & performance

Derive a harmony track from MIDI with Harmony Transposer. Apply reusable timing, velocity and duration offsets with Performance Maps.

In Orch, open Modules → Discover Online Modules for the full catalog. Develop your own tools →

Orch Synth

Modular synthesis and physical modelling

Orch Synth combines synthesis and physical modelling in a visual patch editor. Connect oscillators, filters, envelopes and modulation sources, or work with models of strings, tubes, membranes and resonators.

Save patches as presets and audition them with the editor’s MIDI test keyboard.

Install the editor from the module catalog, including in Player. Download the OrchSynth VST3 instrument separately for Windows or Mac.

Orch Synth Video An introduction to patching and physical modelling in Orch Synth.

Orch Synth Patch Builder with physical modelling nodes including steel string, ADSR envelope, gain control, sympathetic strings, and stereo out — **Physical Modelling** Combine string models, envelopes and resonators in a patch.

Screenshots

Inside Orch

Orch Project Xrefs canvas showing dependencies between linked projects — **Project Xrefs** View dependencies between projects and locate missing references.

Orch VST routing canvas with instrument and audio nodes — **VST Routing** Connect VST3 instruments, effects, buses and audio outputs.

Orch Sample Browser in Explorer layout — **Samples** Browse local libraries, preview sounds, and organize collections.

Orch Synth Patch Builder with oscillator, filter, envelope, and gain nodes connected in a signal graph — **Orch Synth — Patch Builder** Connect oscillators, filters and envelopes in the patch editor.

Screenshots include third-party instruments, libraries and artwork from the developer's setup. These are not included with Orch; no endorsement is implied.

Tutorial Videos

Video tutorials

Walkthroughs of MIDI recording, instrument assignment, sample collections and VST routing. May include those made with older versions of the app.

VST Instrument Setup Create a VST instrument node and assign a recorded phrase to it.

Record, Collect, Assign Record a phrase, build an instrument collection, and assign instruments.

Swapping Orchestration Change instruments and assignments while retaining the recorded MIDI.

More lessons in the full walkthrough playlist →

Before you download

Try it with your own instruments.

Orch runs locally on Windows and Mac. Try Player with your plugins and audio hardware before purchasing. Projects and libraries stay on your computer; license verification uses Gumroad.

Your first session

Set your project and library folders, open the browser interface, and scan your instruments. Record a phrase in Orchestrator, then assign a sound and connect its audio in VST Routing.

Follow the Quick Start →

Documentation

Manuals and reference

Setup instructions and reference material for composition, sample libraries, VST routing, OSC, MCP and module development.

Open documentation

Quick Start Configuration, main views, sample browser, VST routing, and MCP. Module Guide Module layout, manifest fields, routes, handlers, mixins, and globals. OSC Control API OSC message addresses, payloads, bridge data, project and transport commands. Privacy How Orch handles license verification and user data. License EULA and copyright terms for Orch, Orchjs, and bridge components.

Get Orch

Try Orch Player

Player is free to download with saving disabled. Purchase the full version to save your work. Application and OrchSynth downloads are available on Gumroad.

Get Orch on Gumroad