Hi Brad,
From my perspective (I guess I’m a power-user, since I teach PL theory and design at the PhD level, and am comfortable with any language), the API is more important than the language. I view Cantabile as a VM since it hosts VSTs, which means that its current power is mainly limited by the API it exposes to the scripts and plug-ins it hosts. For example:
- An API that allows setting the transport position would allow development of scripts and plug-ins that repeat choruses or pause fermatas live.
- An API for setting tempo would allow development of code that performs fine tempo adjustments based on MIDI event timings.
- An API for receiving display-change events from Cantabile would allow development of deep integration plug-ins that reflect Cantabile display elements to control surfaces.
All of these are limitations of the API rather than the specific scripting language. If Cantabile had an API that allowed existing plug-in formats (e.g., VST3) to access Cantabile’s major functionalities, I’d certainly develop for it. Such an API would free users to write code using any language/compiler they like, which would maybe dodge the problem of “can’t please everyone”.