Accordion / Expandable Group Element for Canvas

Support
1

Hi Leo and Agustín,

Firstly, congratulations and thanks for the Version 3 release. It’s genuinely impressive how much more flexible AbleSet has become, especially with Canvas. The new capabilities have opened up workflows that previously weren’t practical to build.

I’ve been developing a Canvas-based workflow to simplify in-ear monitor (IEM) adjustments for a live band setup, where each musician has a dedicated Canvas view on their phone. In this setup, I’m handling both MD duties onstage and monitor control at FOH. Since DiGiCo consoles allow only a single iPad connection for mobile control, I’m using AbleSet as a structured request interface so band members can communicate mix changes efficiently while I make adjustments centrally.

Each member needs access to a relatively large list of mixer inputs — drums, percussion, keys, guitars, vocals, talkbacks, backing tracks, etc. — with Up / Down controls to request level changes in their IEM mix. These instruments directly mirror categorized input channels from the mixer console.

I’ve already built a working proof-of-concept in Canvas where these per-instrument requests function correctly between member views and the MD view. The system works reliably; the remaining challenge is primarily UX and screen usability, especially on phones.

On mobile screens, fitting all instruments and controls onto a single page quickly becomes impractical. Even with careful layout, the number of inputs exceeds what can be comfortably navigated during a live performance.

The ideal solution would be an accordion-style Canvas element, similar to how the Setlist element allows songs to expand and reveal sections. This would allow grouping instruments logically (for example: Drums → Kick, Snare, Hi-hat, etc.) while keeping the interface compact and performance-friendly.

Why this would help:

  • Musicians could focus only on relevant instrument groups at a time.

  • Large input lists would remain usable on phone-sized screens.

  • Navigation during live performance would be faster and less error-prone.

  • Groups would reflect user-defined mixer input categories rather than fixed system groupings.

  • Canvas layouts for larger control surfaces would become significantly easier to design and maintain.

While similar behavior can currently be approximated using visibility logic and buttons and even with the request here, a native expandable/collapsible container (accordion) element would greatly simplify setup and improve usability.

An accordion/group container for Canvas would be extremely valuable for workflows involving larger categorized control interfaces like monitor mixing, cue systems, or complex performance controls.

Thanks again for the incredible flexibility Canvas already provides, and for considering this request! Happy to answer any questions you may have for me.

System Info

OS and Version: macOS Tahoe 26.2
AbleSet Version: 3.0.3
Ableton Live Version: 12.3

2

Hey @pritamswain,

Thanks for the detailed explanation.
I’m not certain how doable this is, but it’s definitely interesting — and I’ll pass it along.

As a workaround, you could approach that like this:

:one: Main Canvas (compact overview)
Show only your top-level groups, for example:

  • Drums
  • Keys
  • Guitars
  • Vocals
  • Tracks
  • Talkbacks

Each of these would be a Button element.

Set the Button Type to “Link” and choose the target Canvas page (for example, /canvas/drums).

:two: Group Canvas (expanded view)
On the Drums Canvas page, you would place:

  • Kick Up / Down
  • Snare Up / Down
  • Hi-hat Up / Down
  • etc.

At the top (or bottom), add another button:

  • Label it something like “Back to Main”
  • Link it back to your Main Canvas page

While it’s not a native accordion container, in practice it behaves very similarly and keeps the interface performance-friendly, and it can work really well on smaller screens like phones.

Would that work for your use case?

I’m looking forward to your reply!

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3

Hi Agus,

Thanks for the response. Your approach would definitely work in theory.

My initial design was based on using custom OSC paths per member and instrument, leveraging a JS map on the MD Canvas to keep track of requests and dynamically list the relevant changes for each member. The workflow you suggested would likely require a slight redesign on my end, but I should be able to adapt it, but it still does not minimise clicks while letting me stack more elements in the same view

That said, could this also be considered as a feature request for a native accordion/container element in Canvas? It would be an ideal fit for this kind of workflow and would significantly reduce setup time when building similar canvases across multiple bands and playback rigs that I manage.

Thanks again for taking the time to look into this!

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