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2 more ways to get Csound
Other download sites
Run by third parties, not by The Csound contributors. Prefer the official page above when it works.
Package managers
- Homebrew
brew install csound
About Csound
Csound is a sound and music computing system that descends from the MUSIC-N series by Max Mathews. Barry Vercoe first released it in 1985, and it has been used in computer music ever since.
You describe instruments and scores in code, and Csound renders or plays the result. Current versions run on desktop, mobile, embedded, server and web platforms. Csound 7 can be tried in a Web IDE, and the Csound FLOSS Manual has worked examples. It suits composers, sound designers and researchers who want precise, programmable control over audio.
Strengths
- Decades of development and a long history in computer music
- Runs on desktop, mobile, embedded, server and web platforms
- Web IDE for trying Csound 7 without installing
- Reference manual and FLOSS Manual examples
Limitations
- Sound is made by writing code, which takes time to learn
- Not a point-and-click audio editor
Details
- Pricing
- FreeFree and open source.
- License
- Open source, license not stated
- Developer
- The Csound contributors
- Platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux, Web
- How it runs
- Downloadable app, Web application
- Best suited for
- Composers and sound designers who want to program synthesis and processing
- Categories
- Audio tools, Developer tools
- Last verified
- Added
- Provenance
- Facts checked against the developer's own pages and store listings, 1 sources on file.
Alternatives to Csound
Compare allSoftware that can replace Csound for an important use case, and what changes if you switch.
SuperCollider
A programmable platform for real-time audio synthesis and algorithmic composition.
SuperCollider is a free, open-source platform for real-time synthesis controlled from code, with a client/server design and an editor with built-in help.
Pure Data
Open-source visual programming environment for building interactive audio and multimedia works.
Pure Data replaces text code with visual patching for real-time audio processing, and is free and open source on Windows, macOS and Linux.
Sonic Pi
A free live-coding music synth where you write simple code to compose and perform music.
Sonic Pi is a free live-coding synth under the MIT license with a friendly built-in tutorial, aimed more at performance and learning than deep synthesis programming.
Similar software
Related functionality, not necessarily a direct replacement.
Cardinal
Free, self-contained virtual modular synthesizer based on VCV Rack, as a plugin and standalone app.
VCV Rack
A virtual Eurorack modular synthesizer for Windows, macOS and Linux with a large module library.
Surge XT
An open-source hybrid synthesizer available as a plugin and a standalone app.
SunVox
A small modular synthesizer with a pattern-based tracker sequencer for desktop and mobile.
