In a MIDI file, each MIDI message is accompanied by a number for the number of MIDI ticks, which defines the amount of time that must elapse after the previous message before this message is executed. Thus, the message itself tells a MIDI device what to do and the MIDI ticks tell the MIDI device when to do it.
One tick is just an amount of time. How much time is in one MIDI tick depends on other data in the MIDI file and can vary from one file to another.
The MIDI tick is a length of time, the size of which is defined by the time division of the MIDI file and can vary from one file to another. The number of MIDI ticks for a MIDI message defines the total amount of time that must pass from the previous MIDI message so that the current MIDI message is executed.
See Header chunk (of the MIDI file) and Time division (of a MIDI file) for an explanation of how the length of MIDI ticks is defined. See Track chunk (of a MIDI file) for examples of how MIDI ticks are stored and used.
One tick could be any length of time in different files. For example, a one tick could be equal to 8,000 microseconds. Then, if a MIDI message is stored in a MIDI file with a time stamp of 2 ticks, it will be executed 2 * 8,000 = 16,000 microseconds after the previous message. If the previous message in this example was executed 1 second from the start of the song, this message will occur 1.016 seconds from the start of the song.
A MIDI message with zero ticks is executed at the same time as the previous message in the MIDI sequence.
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