Installation and setup

Mora has a small conceptual entry point and a larger optional environment. Start with patterns, then add the audio receiver, Studio, samples, and analysis that your work needs; you do not need to install every optional model or adapter to evaluate a first expression.

Model and asset terms differ from Mora’s own license; see Licensing and assets.

Mora is SBCL-first. Mora Studio is a native application with an OpenGL renderer that requires OpenGL 4.1 core / GLSL 410. It does not run in a browser.

Install SBCL and follow Qlot’s documented installation procedure. Studio additionally needs GLFW and libffi; native font rendering also needs FreeType available to the installed bindings.

From the Mora directory:

make deps
make example
make repl
make studio

• make deps installs the declared Lisp dependencies.
• make repl starts a Lisp REPL with the lower-level SuperDirt system loaded. Load the language explicitly before using its DSL, as shown in First patterns.
• make studio opens Mora Studio.

make studio is the standard way to start Studio. It sets up the language and runtime and attempts each configured service: the SuperDirt connection, stem setup, Link, MIDI, SLYNK, MCP, and audio analysis. It does not install external prerequisites.

make deps installs only the declared Lisp dependencies. SuperCollider, sample libraries, and model assets are separate installations, and optional model downloads, native DSP builds, audio-device routing, and package activation in a running SuperCollider interpreter are separate steps.

Pattern construction and querying do not need any of the following. Set them up for your own audio system when you want sound.

Follow the SuperDirt project’s installation and setup instructions for SuperCollider and its sample library. SuperDirt runs in SuperCollider and receives Mora’s timestamped OSC events.

Mora’s default backend targets loopback UDP port 57120. Its standard eight channels need suitable SuperDirt orbit configuration. Configure the server device, orbit outputs, and monitoring for your own setup.

For initial stock samples, confirm that the bd, sn, and hh banks are loaded.

Use one language interpreter and one audio server. Keep imported-audio memory limits explicit rather than loading an entire collection without a budget.

Mora’s SuperCollider extensions are packaged together as SuperDirtMora, built and installed separately from the supercollider/SuperDirtMora sources. Ordinary pattern and sample playback needs SuperDirt; managed sample loops, prepared controls, ordered native effects, and related features also require the SuperDirtMora package, installed and active.

Before enabling managed features, read SuperDirtMora companion and the package’s help source, supercollider/SuperDirtMora/HelpSource/Classes/SuperDirtMora.schelp.

Measured visuals and audio analysis need an audio input or capture source. Constructing patterns does not. If the analysis integration is unavailable, patterns and visuals that do not use measured audio can still be used; analysis is then not live. See Machine listening.

On macOS, Homebrew provides the native dependencies:

brew install sbcl glfw libffi freetype