Hi,
I’m always looking for a way to use more virtual instruments on the same staff. There are things, like switching to a sordino library or one with extended techniques, that require a different instrument for the same part.
At the moment there are two solutions: using different voices, or entirely different players. None of them is really satisfactory — one for the confusion of having too many voices on the same staff, and the other for the complexity of managing two or more staves trying to be only one.
An “Insert VSTi Change” event, similar to the ones we already have for creating divisi and condensing changes, would make things easier. When an event of this type is encountered, Dorico switches to a different VSTi on the same staff.
Paolo
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You can also have a Playing Technique linked to a Playback Technique that triggers a channel change. If you are using VEP already, you could have another instrument loaded on a different channel, so the Playing Technique will end up switching to that instrument. If you set it to a relative channel change, then in VEP put 5 different strings on the next 5 channels after your original strings, you might even be able to get away with just using one Playing Technique to make the relative switch, instead of having to do absolute channel changes.
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Good idea. Maybe an add-on technique for something like “con sordino”, switching all the techniques to another channel may work. Let’s try.
At this point, being able to switch MIDI port, instead of MIDI channel, could be very useful.
Paolo
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That’s how I use Sonokinetic strings, the regular patch and sordino patch in VEPro are in the same Kontakt instance on sequential MIDI channels. Dorico expression map is set up with a relative channel change. Works nearly flawlessly
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A note to myself: since Dorico manages ports in the routing of players, it’s just a matter of reserving only the lowest-numbered channels to the basic techniques or parts.
For example, the first string divisi quintet can go to channels 1-5 on port 1, and the second divisi quintet to channels 1-5 on port 2.
The Sordino add-on will move all the techniques to the next set of free channels among the remaining eleven. So, for example, the first quintet con sordino can go to channels 6-10 on port 1.
Paolo