2 years, to the day

Used Instruments

  • Oboe

  • Piano

  • Flautando Strings

  • Low Strings

Downloads and Information

Piano

Preparation

Delay the notes manually to ensure playback behind the beat for creating a more emotional feeling. This is most obvious on the first note of bar 5 but also happens on almost all other notes.

Basic Phrasing

  • Only Midi Velocity is used

Finishing Touches

  • Dynamic Range (CC30): 74 Applies a compressor (Make quiet sounds louder)
  • Humanize Delay Scale (CC25): 110

Oboe

Instrument / Preset Selection

  • Oboe 1 / VelXF sus / Classic

Preparation / Articulation Selection

  • Legato con vibrato

Basic Phrasing

  • Modulation (CC1) for basic phrasing & balancing of the last note in phase 1
  • Expression (CC11) to increase dynamic range
  • Timbre Adjust (CC8) for shaping note ends at the end of the phrase

Finishing Touches

  • Humanize Delay Scale (CC25): 25

Flautando Strings

Preparation

  • Distribute the strings to be able to use "real" Legato transitions per line
  • Make sure that one instrument (e.g.: Violins 1) never plays back the same note
  • Check that there are overlaps to correctly trigger the legato patches
  • Slightly adjust note ends for a realistic playback

Possible solution:

Preparation / Articulation Selection

Create an emulated flautando by setting up a custom patch for every instrument:

  • Combine legato (Patch "Legato AT+RS soft") and tremolo patch (timestretched to 50% playback speed)
  • Enable the parallel mode and set the parallel mode to "Mix" for legato and tremolo patch
  • Set Vel. XF (CC1) to a value of 0

Variations per string instrument:

  • For first violin a second custom patch needs to be created to get a portamento transition (beginning of bar 6). Just repeat what you did before but select portamento as base patch instead of legato
  • For 2nd Violins, Violas and Cello create a second custom patch (as before, but select the "Legato RS soft" patch) Apply this patch to the first 3 notes to have a softer start and use the previous patch (with normal attack) on all other notes

Basic Phrasing

  • Add a phrasing curve with expression (CC11) for all flautando strings

Finishing Touches

  • Activate Timbre Adjust and set the values (CC8) to 50% (midi value ~74) to make the strings less prominent
  • Set Legato Blur (CC33) to 50% (midi value ~74) to create more smeared legato transitions
  • Set Dynamic Range (CC30) to values around 45 (This adds a compressor to make quieter passages louder)
  • Set Humanize Delay Scale (CC25) to values around 25

Low Strings

Instrument / Preset Selection

  • Cello / VelXF Sus / Lush Long
  • Double Basses / VelXF Sus / Lush Long

Preparation / Articulation Selection

  • Legato / Soft attack / Soft release (for the first 4 notes)
  • Legato / Normal attack / Soft release (for all other notes)

Basic Phrasing

  • Use ModWheel (CC1) to create 2 basic phrases (First Phrase: Start until middle of bar 4)
    • Split the first phrase into two sub phrases (reduce at beginning of bar 3)
    • Add a note decay at the end of Phrase 1 / Middle of bar 4
  • Use Expression (CC11) to increase dynamic range

Finishing Touches

  • Set Humanize Delay Scale (CC25) to values around 30
  • Set Humanize Legato Blur (CC33) to values around 30

Mixing

Piano

  • Increase Main microphone from 0dB to 2dB
  • Reduce the Reverb Send to -10 (bring the piano closer)
  • Adjust the EQ settings (brighten up the sound)
    • -6.61 dB at 490 Hz with Q 1.45
    • +7.27 dB at 8k Hz with Q 0.71

Master Volumes

Instrument Value
Oboe 90 (no adjustment)
Soft Piano 117
1st Violins 100
2nd Violins 107
Violas 101
Cello 101 (no adjustment)
Double Basses 62

Other Tweaks

  • Add a tempo map with some variation around 105 bpm and a ritardando at the last bar

Top learnings

  1. Add the free Soft Piano to a Synchron Prime Edition Project
  2. Utilize the Dynamic Range Slider (Compressor)
  3. Emulate Flautando
  4. Use Legato Blur for more smeared transitions
Copyright © 2002 - 2024 Vienna Symphonic Library GmbH. All Rights Reserved.