Developed by the innovative Montreal software company, Plogue, Bidule is software for making music and audio art.

So what sets it apart from your traditional audio software?

• Modular layout lets you draw and connect audio/MIDI any way you need.
• Saving modular structures into groups allows you to re-use inventions from one composition to the next.
• Modular layout, ASIO driver compatibility, and VST2 support makes Bidule a very stable environment for live performance of electronic music.
• Bidule's building block modules can be used to create your own DSP or MIDI effects or instruments.

So what does this mean? Are there any drawbacks? Well, Bidule is unfortunately not a program where you can just press Record and immediately start making music right out of the box. To use Bidule, you have to have a goal in mind, and you have to know how to use the necessary modules to reach this goal.

That's where this FAQ comes in. Come consult our list of questions when you're not sure how to do something. It could be that your solution is here, and it's a lot easier than you think.

Bidule, by the way, is the French word for "thingy" or "gadget". Plogue is French Québecois slang for the verb "to plug". Put 'em together and what do you get? Software for plugging gadgets and thingies together. I couldn't have put it better myself. ;-)

To get an idea of some of the basic things you can do with Bidule, take a look around the image below.

1 The MIDI Step Sequencer bidule is used as the master transport for the composition. Note the green letters m3 next to the bidule icon, indicating that the step sequencer can be used as a master for the purposes of synching objects to its tempo.