Full name | eXtensible Music Format (XMF) |
Description | Wrapper format for MIDI, Downloadable Sounds (DLS), and WAVE waveform data. From the specification from MIDI.org: "XMF is low-overhead meta-file format . . . . primarily intended to bundle existing standard music and sound file formats--such as SMF, DLS, and WAV--and not to replace any of them." (RP-030, p.2) MIDI and audio data may be encapsulated in the XMF file or be linked via external URI reference.
The second part of the specification (RP-031) discusses Type 0 and Type 1 files: "both must contain at least one SMF file; inclusion of DLS files is optional" (p. 1), and "the SMF file images in an XMF Type 0 file are guaranteed to be streamable." (RP-031, p. 2) [Is there a type that only contains external references to SMF and/or DLS data?] |
Production phase | May be used by composers or arrangers for initial-state activities, in middle-state exchange of data or archiving, or for final-state, end-user delivery. |
Relationship to other formats | |
May contain | SMF, Standard MIDI File Format |
May contain | DLS, Downloadable Sounds Format |
Disclosure | Fully documented. Developed by the MIDI Manufacturers Association. |
Documentation | XMF Specification (2001), available for purchase from MIDI.org; contains three parts: RP-030, general specification; RP-031, Type 1 and Type 0 files; and RP-032, meta event and patch type prefix. |
Adoption | Not known to the compilers of this document. |
Licensing and patent claims | None identified by the compilers of this document. |
Transparency | Transparent wrapper. See also MIDI_SD and DLS. |
Self-documentation | Provided by MetaDataItems, which may be placed at any node in the file and may include technical, copyright, or descriptive information, e.g., title, name, author, etc. The specification speaks of a future plan to specify an XML semantic equivalent to the current mechanism. |
External dependencies | See MIDI_SD and DLS. |
Technical protection considerations | None known to the compilers of this document. |
Normal rendering for sound | Not applicable; see MIDI_SD and DLS. |
Fidelity (support for high audio resolution) | Not applicable; see MIDI_SD and DLS. |
Support for multiple sound channels | Not applicable; see MIDI_SD. |
Support for downloadable or user-defined sounds, samples, and patches | Yes, when an XMF instance contains or references DLS. |
Functionality beyond normal rendering for sound | The XMF specification (RP-032) discusses Meta-Events pertaining to assignment of data to instruments in an XMF context. See also MIDI_SD; the compilers of this document have not investigated the degree to which such added functionality is provided by XMF as distinct from other file formats and/or application software. |