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Installation

Requirements

  • macOS. The bridge transport is a Unix domain socket, so Windows is not supported.
  • Ableton Live 12. Tested with 12.4.6.
  • Node.js 22.13 or newer.
  • ffmpeg and ffprobe, for the audio analysis tools.
  • ImageMagick 7 (magick), only for the NKS artwork pipeline.
  • Python 3, only for running the bridge's unit tests. Live runs the bridge with its own Python.

Install the server

bash
git clone https://github.com/cavi-ai/ableton-mcp.git
cd ableton-mcp
npm ci

Install the bridge

bash
npm run cli -- install

This copies CaviMcpBridge into ~/Music/Ableton/User Library/Remote Scripts. It copies nothing else. Then open Live's preferences, go to Link, Tempo & MIDI, and select CaviMcpBridge as a Control Surface.

Pass --destination <Remote Scripts path> if your User Library is somewhere else. npm run cli -- uninstall removes only the installed CaviMcpBridge directory.

An older copy inside the application bundle

An older copy of the script inside the application bundle can take precedence over the User Library copy. If doctor reports an outdated bridge after installing, check and update that copy:

bash
npm run cli -- install --destination "/Applications/Ableton Live 12 Suite.app/Contents/App-Resources/MIDI Remote Scripts"

Then restart Live. This modifies the application bundle; the default install does not. A Live update can replace the copy, so run doctor again after updating Live.

Check the connection

bash
npm run cli -- doctor --json

ok: true means the bridge answered on the socket, reports version 0.3.1, and advertises every capability the server needs. If it doesn't, see Troubleshooting.