How to add navigation for the Session Box

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After adding a session box, you can make it dynamic by assigning navigation controls.

This allows you to move the session box around Ableton Live’s Session View using knobs/encoders or even buttons on your MIDI controller.

In this guide, we’ll create horizontal (track) navigation controlled with an encoder and vertical (scene) navigation assigned to two buttons.

Add Track Navigation with an Encoder

  1. Add a new Session Box Navigation mapping.
  2. Assign it to an encoder — in this example: Knob 15.
  3. In the Navigation section:
  • Change Navigation Type from Specific to Scroll.
  • Set ‘Scroll tracks or scenes’ to Tracks.
  • Leave Move By set to 1 (or set it to the same width as the session box in order to move it by its entire width each time).
  1. Click Save.

This mapping will move the session box left or right based on encoder movement.

Add Scene Navigation with Two Buttons

We’ll now use two buttons to move the session box up and down through scenes.

Button for Scene Down

  1. Add a new Session Box Navigation mapping.
  2. Assign it to the down button — e.g. Button 14.
  3. Set Navigation Type to Scroll.
  4. Set Target to Scenes.
  5. Leave Move By as 1.
  6. In the Input Control Override section, set Control Type to Increment. This will move the session box right.
  7. Click Save.

Button for Scene Up

  1. Duplicate the previous mapping.
  2. Change the input to the up button — e.g. Button 12.
  3. In the Input Control Override, change Scroll Direction to Decrement to move the session box left.
  4. Click Save.

Final Steps

  1. Save the full script.
  2. Click Generate into Ableton Live.
  3. Reload the MIDI Remote Script in Ableton.

Test the Navigation

  • Turn the encoder (e.g. Knob 15) to move the session box left/right across tracks.
  • Press the assigned buttons (e.g. Button 12 and Button 14) to move the session box up/down through scenes.

This navigation setup allows you to dynamically control which area of the Session View your controller is focused on.