Vienna Symphonic Library Forum
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  • Thanks for your answers!

    I guess I'll stick with my DAW.

    If I had the skills I'd code a VSL, rules based notation program.

    Something similar to Notion but using VSL samples and an open archecture so we could use other VI's as well. It would include MIDI-orchestration rules based on instruments and their idiosyncratic features and, rules based on MIDI performance techniques...basically all the things we have to think about while making mock-ups or composing.

    Rules we have come to use and do manually to make the phrases sound like real humans but take hours to achieve.

    Many of us are fast composers but making the music SOUND good with samples and computers takes twice as long as composing the music in the first place. The software is the bottleneck.

    I'm always looking for ways of speeding up this process but there doesn't seem to be an elegant solution for it (yet).

    In notation programs the music looks great but there are performance limitations.
    In a DAW the music looks like crap but can playback more realistically yet it takes hours of tweaking per 1 minute of orchestral music.

    I think we are all frustrated with this.

    Its a damper on creativity to compose and at the sametime have to think about so many MIDI performance processes to make the music sound good. Keyswitches, modwheel, pitchwheel, two foot controllers, breath controller, ribbon controller, V-Span, H-Span, A/B switch, X-Cell Fade, X-Velocity Fade, Expression, Patches, Matricies, Presets, ADSR,...thats a lot of stuff to think about.

    I'm not complaining about VSL, I love VSL and I thank the universe everyday for hatching them. They solved many of my problems. This is just one of the last lingering challenges that needs to be conquered.

    If I was part of VSL product development team such a notation program would be first on the list of new products. Why? Because it would make using their samples a breeze and there would be even less competition, plus the users would be able to make better music quicker resulting in happier customers who'll buy more VSL products because they'll get paid sooner since their projects get finished faster.

    Less time + faster rendering = more $$ in all of our pockets

    Whats up VSL?

    You guys are in a position where you can take over the world of orchestral sampling with this type of notation product yet we are on the brink of seeing more complex and difficult to use products...MIR, Choirs (which I can't wait for and am bitting at the bit).

    But a notation product of this sort would make you the undisputed champion of the sampling industry and make all of our lives easier.

    Thats it I'm done, time go back to my little cell and wait for a keyswitch :-)

    DM

  •  Sibelius with the sound sets is the closest current approximation to your dream and that's why I'm directly composing in Sibelius


  • Hi Andi

    Appass soundset working brilliantly  - thanks!

    Now, I do not have the muted Appass yet. Does the soundset switch from open to muted? If so, do I load the muted samples into a diff. instrument or is there a way to put them in the same instr?

    Cheers

    Steve 


  • Hi Steve!

    There are presets which use both Appassionata Strings collections and presets which use only the first collection. The presets for both collections combine patches with and without sordino in one instrument. The sound set will automatically switch to the muted samples if you write muted or con sordino.

    Best wishes,

    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library
  • Thanks Andi - that clears that up!

    The only problem is that now I've seen certain features of your soundset eg the way it handles the diff legato speeds ie vertically, I need to go back to my other edited sets to get the same things to work there! ie in the SE set if I try to use the two legato patched (normal and fast  - which I have from the single instrument downloads) the vertical span idea doesn't work as it then stays on the lower vertical cell when changing to another horiz. patch!

    Oh well - just need to find some time to do it  - at least now I know how!

    steve


  • Hi Steve!

    You can still use other sound sets if you just activate further instances of Vienna Ensemble. For example the Appassionata sound set on VE instance 1 and the SE sound set on VE instance 2.

    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library
  • Andi

    You misunderstand me

    I am using 5 instances of VE with various different soundsets - some yours/sibelius's, some my own.

    My point was that I have been modifying the SE one to suit me - ie adding things like Bass trumpet and Alto tromb as and when I've downloaded the single instruments - but haven't managed to get the different legato patches to change on variation of speed. Now I have seen your preset for appass (which of course is markedly different from the SE presets in the placement of the key switches) I can see how it would work. I just have to build new presets!       

    Thanks for all you're doing in the sib/VSL world

    Steve


  • Ok. Thanks for clearing it up. Now I understand... [;)]

    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library
  • Andi

    Please help soon if you can....

    With your assurance that adding the appass 2 would be simple I have bought the Appass 2 strings to use for a project for tomorrow (Tues)

    Now the soundset is great EXCEPT I "only" have the L1 of both Appass I and II

    It seems you have provided presets for normal L1, normal L1 and L2, and normal L1 and 2 + muted L1 and 2.

    I have tried to sort out a preset to do the same as the L1 but for normal and sordino but I don't really understand what the controller 3 does etc.

    help?

    steve


  • Hi Steve!

    Please load the "L2+II" presets that came with the sound set. Substitute all patches that remain silent during playback. These are the L2 patches, that you don't have.

    You will probably have to make the following changes:
    C0: make the H-Span only one cell (no 2A, 2B)
    D0/1A,2A substitute with perf-legato

    All the best,
    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library
  • Done

    Thanks so much

    I even sorted out the legato - fast legato change for both muted and non too!

    At some point I'll completely get to grips with VI and VE!!

    Thanks again for your help - Dvorak's Song to the Moon shall have muted strings!

    Steve  


  • Andi

    OK - last (hopefully) question.....

    I can't get the portamento to trigger - followed the instructions in the "readme" re playback dictionary changes but still no portamento

    Any ideas.

    Sorry... :)

    Steve


  • Hi Steve!

    With which sound set are you having the troubles with portamento?
    Anyway, with adding the Sound ID Change "+portamento" in Play/Dictionary/Staff Lines/portamento until end of last note under line it should work.
    For this to take effect, you have to draw a portamento-line.

    Best,
    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library
  • Hi Andi

    As I said I followed your intructions in the "read me" to the letter

    I then draw the port line (and I have tried the same with the gliss line) and do not get the control change for port.

    Maybe then I need to check that I am doing things correctly with regards to the Sib side of things inputting the port line there

    Steve  


  • Hi Steve!

    That's odd. It should work perfectly well then.
    One thing that comes to my mind: When the sound ID of the instrument you choose in Sibelius and the Sound ID of the program you choose in the Manual Sound Sets tab are not the same, keyswitches and control changes often do not work correctly. For example the Sibelius instrument "Solo Violin" has the Sound ID "strings.violin" and the Program "Appassionata Violins" has the Sound ID "strings.violin.ensemble". So these two combined will not work properly.

    You can find (and change) the Sound IDs of the Sibelius instruments in House Style/Edit instruments/Edit instrument/Best Sound.

    If all articulation changes work well and portamento is the only one which doesn't, the instrument Sound IDs are probably not the problem.

    If you want to, you can send me your Sibelius file and your playback configuration and I take a look at it.
    You find the playback configuration at the following location:
    Documents and Settings\user\Application Data\Sibelius Software\Sibelius 5\Playback Configurations

    It consists of an xml-file and a folder with the same name.

    Best,
    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library
  •  Hi Andi,

    can I "order" a soundset for the upright? :-)

    Bests,

    - Mathis


  • Hello Mathis!

    To be honest a sound set for Upright Bass is not very high on the priority list.

    For the collections, where there is no sound set yet, there is also a way to use them with Sibelius. Activate and open an instance of VE for the instruments in your score without a sound set. As sound set choose none.
    For every instrument create a matrix of the patches you need with H-Span set to Keyswitches. To switch between patches, write the following Technique Text in Sibelius.
    ~Nxx,64 followed shortly by ~Oxx,64
    These are MIDI commands for Note on and Note off. xx stands for the MIDI number of the Keyswitch. (24=C1, 25=C#1, ...)

    Best wishes,
    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library
  •  Hi Andi,

    actually I know how to write Sibelius soundsets but I just happen to like yours... ;-)


  • Many Thanks for this ! I own Sibelius and Solo Strings but also Concert Guitar. As you know classical guitar is widely played everywhere and I'm sure that a Sibelius soundset for the Concert Guitar library would be something very useful. Can I (we) have any hope on this ? JJacks

  • Hi JJacks!

    A big part of the Classical Guitar library are the chords. These could not be included in a sound set, as it would be necessary for Sibelius to create different Sound IDs for different chords. This is not possible in the current version of Sibelius. So, there are other collections, which will get the sound set treatment first. For playing single note articulations with Sibelius you can do as I have written in my last post in answer to Mathis' question ^^^.

    Best,
    Andi


    Vienna Symphonic Library