What's the best way to 're-bow' a long note in Duality?

[Macker]

A prime example of what I'm trying to do is to comply with the "viel Bogen wecheln" (plenty of bow changes) score markings for Vn1, Vn2 and Va in the last 10 bars of Mahler 5.IV (Edition Peters), where, for instance, Vn1 hold A6 for about 4 or 5 seconds while re-bowing a lot.

There appears to be a multitude of different combinations of Dimension Tree selections and Edit settings that offer some semblance of what I'm looking for. Of course I'm after an optimal selection, but without knowing what's going on under the hood, and without doing hours and hours of exploratory testing, I'm a bit reluctant to make a choice that would - hopefully - serve now and in my future work with Duality.

I have 5 binaurally separated sound sources in my mix for each of the 5 String sections (i.e. 25 Synchron Players for strings), and my method so far involves breaking a relevant MIDI note into various different shorter periods for each of my instrument sound sources - all short enough to trigger the alternative patches (as seen in the Edit graphics), and with no gaps between these fake shorter notes. Some of these fake shorter notes are roughly 1/8 notes, other are a bit longer.

I'm getting some sort of results with many of the Dimension selections in both Long and Perf. Legato, but have no idea where some of these selections are technically no different to one another - because that's how they're deliberately edited - or where some are, potentially at least, technically and sonically better than others.

There's a large number of combinations that seem to be reasonable candidates for simulating re-bowing, but of course it would be nice to know which of them can render, for technical reasons, the best results.

Perhaps someone at VSL and/or a user might already know an effective method for simulating this particular strings playing technique? I'd be grateful for a bit of help on this.

[Ben]

Rebowing happens automatically. It's not possible in Synchron Player to control it. If you have issues getting consistent same-note repetitions (legatos) try pressing the sustain pedal which will also trigger a same note rebow repetition.

[Macker]

Thanks Ben.

Well I'm already controlling it (albeit a simulation of it) – by triggering the alternative (repetition) patches using stealthily introduced MIDI On events. For me it's not a problem of getting consistent same-note sounds; more a problem of making the transitions between them sound as near as possible to real, highly skilled and sensitive re-bowing.

I wasn't aware that the sustain pedal also triggered repetition notes. That could be very handy instead of cutting up MIDI notes! I'll give it a go. But I'd still have to optimise the transitions - that's my main area of concern. Sorry if I didn't make that clear in my OP.

Many thanks for the tip.

[Macker]

Unfortunately, after doing a little refresher course in how Sustain Pedal works for strings in the Synchron Player, I've found that it can't help me in this case but only hinder.

Synchron Player Sustain Pedal complies with MIDI 1.0 specification, in that so long as Sustain Pedal is asserted, the current note(s) will ignore live or written MIDI Note Off. Then Synchron Sustain Pedal goes further and forces a Legato transition – invoking the library's next repetition note – at any new MIDI Note On events while still asserted. But these forced Legatos appear to use the options already selected in Synchron's Dimension Tree.

In other words, it seems Synchron's Sustain Pedal does not invoke a Legato transition type unique to Sustain Pedal and regardless of Dimension Tree settings. Moreover, without encountering a live or written MIDI Note On while asserted, it appears Synchron Sustain Pedal on its own has no way of triggering a repetition note switchover.

So for example, automated Sustain Pedal could be great for instantly converting a written sequence of Tenuto notes into strict Legato.

Alas, none of this gets around my needing to cut up long single MIDI notes into many shorter notes, to trigger repetition note switchovers in order to simulate re-bowing. And so far as I can find, nor does Sustain Pedal offer any alternative to the Dimension Tree Legato Type, Attack and Release options already selected. So I'm still left with the problem of selecting the most suitable from the multitude of Dimension Tree options, for the task of simulating re-bowing.

Ah well, press on.