Quickstart

Quickstart: Your first song with OUMTA

Welcome to OUMTA.

This page walks you through the core of the app without trying to explain everything. By the end you’ll have a playable song — and a feel for how OUMTA thinks.

No prior knowledge needed. And don’t worry: you can’t break anything.

Before we start: How OUMTA understands songs

OUMTA is not a classic audio tool.

It doesn’t answer the question
“How fast is the song?”
but rather:

“Where am I right now — and what’s next?”

That’s why OUMTA thinks in blocks.

A block is a song section: Intro, verse, chorus, bridge — or simply “the part that feels the same.”

Step 1: Open a new song

Open the Song Library and create a new song.

The song does not start empty, but with an example block.

That block is:

selected
the current focus
the starting point for playback

Important:
Selection defines where the song starts.

Step 2: A quick look at tempo

Before going deeper, it’s worth checking the tempo.

Click the BPM display in the Player and set a rough tempo. Tempo applies to the whole song.

It doesn’t have to be perfect. You can fine-tune it anytime later.

Step 3: Edit the block

Open the Block Editor:

double-click the block
or right-click the block → Edit block
or press Enter on the selected block (Pro)

Note (Free version)
In the Free version, no keyboard shortcuts are active.
All steps are done intentionally via mouse or touch.

In the Block Editor you define
how the click behaves in this section.

You don’t need to set everything. Focus on three things.

Step 4: Define the basic structure

1. Time signature

How is it counted? (e.g. 4/4)

2. Bars / repeats

How many bars does this section have?

Now the block is musically defined. It knows:

how long it is
how it’s counted

That’s enough for now.

Step 5: Give the click a feel

Open the click pattern.

This is not about tempo, but about weighting:

Where does the pulse feel strong?
Where does it step back?
What helps you while playing?

You can preview the pattern directly
using the small Play button.

Playback keeps running while you edit.

That’s intentional. OUMTA is built for listening, not for doing math.

Step 6: Add orientation (optional)

If you want, add a guide.

A guide is a short spoken reminder:

“Chorus”
“Break”
“Turnaround”

Guides are optional. But they’re extremely helpful when:

songs get longer
structures get complex
you play live

Step 7: Back to the Player

Close the Block Editor.

You’ll now see the block in the Player:

with color
with width
as part of a timeline

This display is not millimeter-accurate. It’s readable.

OUMTA prioritizes orientation — not microscopic precision.

Step 8: Build out the song

Create more blocks:

click the + at the bottom
each one is its own section
its own pattern, its own length

You’ll notice:

repeats become instantly clear
transitions are visible
you don’t have to keep anything in your head

That’s the point where OUMTA starts carrying you.

Step 9: Playback & rewind

Press Play.

The song starts:

after the count-in
at the selected block

The playhead always shows you:

where you are
how far the section has progressed
what’s coming next

When you press Stop, the playhead stays exactly where you stopped.

That’s intentional.

Especially during rehearsal it often matters to see: Where did the mistake happen?
In which block?
In which section?

To start again, you can deliberately rewind
(for example to the first block or a specific entry point).

You decide. OUMTA doesn’t hide that information.

Step 10: Save

When the song feels good: Save.

Everything is preserved:

block structure
patterns
guides
visual layout

What you can do now

You learned:

how OUMTA models songs
why blocks matter more than time
how click patterns create musical feel
why selection defines the start point
why the Player is not a DAW

And most importantly:

You have a working song.

Where to go next

Depending on what you want:

Play live? → Player & Shortcuts
Work faster? → Presets & Pro features
Build complex songs? → Block Editor in detail

But the hardest part is done.

You’re in.