producer-pal

Producer Pal

AI music production assistant for Ableton Live via the Model Context Protocol (MCP).

Quick Start

Run the Producer Pal MCP bridge to connect any MCP client to Ableton Live:

npx producer-pal

This starts a stdio-to-HTTP bridge that enables MCP clients (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Gemini CLI, Codex CLI, VS Code with Cline, LM Studio, etc.) to communicate with the Producer Pal Max for Live device running in Ableton Live.

Prerequisites

• Ableton Live 12.3+ with Max for Live (e.g., Ableton Live Suite)
• Producer Pal Max for Live device - Download Producer_Pal.amxd and add it to a MIDI track in Ableton Live
• Node.js 20+

Version Note: The npm package version is independent of the Max for Live device version. Always use the latest of both.

Configuration

Add Producer Pal to your MCP client's server configuration. The command is npx producer-pal with optional arguments -y (for auto-install).

Configuration examples:

Claude Desktop

Edit ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "producer-pal": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "producer-pal"]
    }
  }
}

Claude Code

claude mcp add producer-pal npx producer-pal

Gemini CLI

Edit ~/.gemini/settings.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "producer-pal": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "producer-pal"]
    }
  }
}

Codex CLI

Edit ~/.codex/config.toml:

[mcp_servers.producer-pal]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "producer-pal"]

LM Studio

Edit Settings → Program → Integrations → mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "producer-pal": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "producer-pal", "-s"]
    }
  }
}

The -s flag enables small model mode. See the LM Studio guide for details.

Cline (VS Code extension)

Edit cline_mcp_settings.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "producer-pal": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "producer-pal"]
    }
  }
}

Other MCP clients

Use the command npx producer-pal with optional argument -y for auto-install. Consult your client's documentation for MCP server configuration syntax.

CLI Flags

• -s / --small-model-mode - Enable small model mode (simplifies tool interface for smaller LLMs and automatically enables it on the device)

Environment Variables

Optional environment variables can be configured through your MCP client:

• MCP_SERVER_ORIGIN - URL for the Max for Live device (default: http://localhost:3350)
• SMALL_MODEL_MODE - Enable small model mode (default: false). Equivalent to the -s flag above.
• ENABLE_LOGGING - Enable file logging (default: false)
• VERBOSE_LOGGING - Detailed debug logs (default: false)

Example with environment variables:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "producer-pal": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "producer-pal"],
      "env": {
        "MCP_SERVER_ORIGIN": "http://localhost:3350",
        "ENABLE_LOGGING": "true"
      }
    }
  }
}

Note for Claude Desktop users: The .mcpb extension bundle provides an easier setup alternative to npx producer-pal.

Documentation

For complete documentation, setup guides, and usage examples, visit:

https://producer-pal.org

Source code and development:

https://github.com/adamjmurray/producer-pal

Support

• Discussions
• Issues

License

MIT License - see LICENSE