Comments to my post.
I found the thread discussing the M1 build.
I haven’t looked too deeply yet, but it appears the huge sound gap I mentioned is because Sam is using samples instead of built-in synths for his sounds.
I figured out if I put run_file in the main Sonic Pi editor I can point to a file and edit that with any editor I want. That works pretty well for me.
Because I’m a classically trained musician, I really want to start my compositions in MIDI, so I’ve spent the last few days figuring out how to get read MIDI files, use a MIDI keyboard, and get OSC to work. I’ve always thought I should know how MIDI works and I’m finally learning.