> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.vibrai.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart

> Create your first Vibrai arrangement from the CLI or an MCP client.

This page shows the same task — a house arrangement — done two ways: from the terminal and from an AI chat. Both paths produce the same result in Live.

Before you start: Ableton Live must be open with the Vibrai M4L device loaded on a track. See [Installation](/installation) if you haven't done that yet.

## First arrangement

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash CLI theme={null}
  # 1. See what genres are available
  vibrai genre list

  # 2. Check presets for house
  vibrai genre presets house

  # 3. Create a project file from a preset
  vibrai project init --project my-song.vibrai --genre house --preset "Tech 1"

  # 4. Dry-run to see what will be generated
  vibrai generate --project my-song.vibrai --dry-run

  # 5. Render into Live, loading a default instrument on each track
  vibrai generate --project my-song.vibrai --force --with-instruments

  # 6. Start playback
  vibrai transport play
  ```

  ```text MCP (Claude Desktop) theme={null}
  Open Claude Desktop and type:

    Set up a new project — house, short. Let's hear what you've got.

  Claude assembles a complete project and saves it, then loads
  instruments, generates the parts, and starts playback.

  The whole flow takes about 30–60 seconds. You don't need to
  click anything in Live.
  ```
</CodeGroup>

<Note>
  `--with-instruments` loads a default instrument on each track so the arrangement makes sound immediately — without it, `generate` writes MIDI to empty tracks. To load defaults onto an existing arrangement instead, use `vibrai device load-defaults` (or the `load_default_instruments` MCP tool).
</Note>

## What you get

After `generate` completes, Live's session view has one scene per section (named after each section) and one clip per track per scene, filled with MIDI notes. The arrangement view has the same clips laid out left to right.

## Try a different seed

The generator is deterministic: same project file + same seed = same output. To get a fresh variation without changing the structure:

```bash theme={null}
vibrai generate --project my-song.vibrai --force --seed 42
```

Each integer seed gives a different but reproducible result.

## Capture what you built

If you've been working in Live by hand and want a project file:

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash CLI theme={null}
  vibrai capture --out my-session.vibrai
  ```

  ```text MCP (Claude Desktop) theme={null}
  Capture what I have here into a project file called my-session.vibrai.
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## What's next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="CLI Overview" icon="terminal" href="/cli/overview">
    Global flags, JSON output, exit codes, and the full branch structure.
  </Card>

  <Card title="MCP Overview" icon="robot" href="/mcp/overview">
    How tools map to engine operations and the snake\_case convention.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Concepts" icon="book" href="/concepts">
    `.vibrai` files, generators, theme & variation.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Troubleshooting" icon="wrench" href="/troubleshooting">
    Bridge connection issues and common error messages.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>