Notation playback good as Notion SLE ?

Cubase
#1

I have Cubase Artist and Miroslav Philharmonik orchestra library. I am considering getting either Notion SLE for Miroslav (a notation program) or upgrading to full Cubase. A primary attraction of Notion is its a notation package tied specifically to Miroslav samples- you can input various notation symbols in the score (stacato, legato, as well as trills, crescendo, etc.) and it will play back the appropriate samples and score markings mimicking these score symbols. Is the full Cubase capable of doing this or at least some of it or is it not even close to this capability of Notion ? Does it just do basic notation without recognizing and playing back such score markings ?

Bob

#2

The full version of Cubase 6 has “VST Expression”, which does precisely what you are asking. But you will need (probably that means you’ll have to build it yourself) a VST Expression Map for Miroslav Philharmonic.

#3

Sorry but I don’t know much about VST Expression. I thought that was a way to attach midi changes to individual notes (but NOT necessarily via a score marking but rather in a sequencer track). The real question I want to know is whether these effects on playback (I assume per your note with “VST Expression”) can be invoked by conventional markings in the Cubase NOTATION score. In other words, with this VST Expression can you mark a note in a score with a stacato dot or insert a FF and when it plays back will it play back the stacato patch for that note or the fortissimo ?
Thanks for any insight. The real attraction of the Novation SLE is that apparently right out of the box it uses everything in the Miraslav Library (such as all the various string articulations) and by simply marking them in the conventional way in the score it invokes the corresponding Miraslov patch- no programming at all. I’m not lazy and willing to program in Cubase if necessary if I upgrade, but I want that functionality of being able to just put conventional markings in the score and have them pull up the appropriate stuff from the sample library.

Thanks again, Bob

#4

Yes, VST Expression is primarily invoked by symbols in the Score Editor.

#5

+1 for upgrading Cubase instead of getting Notion. As Vic said, you’ll be able to do exactly what you describe with VST Expression Maps in Cubase. The only thing is you may have to create them yourself, but they’re super easy to create. The articulations can be inserted in both the Score and Key editors, with instant changes being reflected on both editors no matter where they are made. This video will give you a better idea of how it works:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFi9rsyh8eY


HTH

#6

THANKS ! I’ve finally gotten a definitive answer (and it has probably caused me to dump my plan to get Notion SLE for Miroslav and put the bucks into a CB upgrade instead !)

I understand now I can make my own Miroslav Expression Map if necessary. What is a little bothersome to me though is, as I understand it the CB Expression Map has been around since CB5 and there was an effort to develop an online user repository of the Maps for sharing (like what’s available at VSL). Yet in a quick search I found a CB archive website constructed for doing just this, yet there did not seem to be ANY such Maps uploaded. What gives ? I know vendors can provide them (and believe VSL has done so) but if they aren’t available from CB user uploads can anyone explain to me why nobody is doing it ? Seems like a no brainer and I for one would be happy to do so for the Miroslav if one isn’t available (as soon as I upgrade CB of course !).

Bob

#7

I don’t know either, but I’ve seen people sharing them in the SoundsOnline forums for EWQL products. Perhaps it is the same in the other product’s forums, I don’t know. I personally prefer creating them myself because most people like to work with keyswitches while I like to work with MIDI channels to trigger articulations, so I probably wouldn’t find one that fits my needs. Plus they are really easy to make. On the other hand, it would be cool to have a place where to grab Expression Maps.

#8

Do bear in mind, though, that the VST Expression Maps need the appropriate sample sets loaded, and, in the case of Miroslav (same as with some others), that probably means you’ll need multiple instances of Miroslav, if you want the complete orchestra (but that would be the case with Notion too, I am sure :wink: ).
Because Miroslav itself doesn’t actually have any presets with “key-switched” articulations, you have to do it by loading the various articulations, each into its own MIDI channel (i.e. “slot”), then program the VST EXpression Map to trigger the articulations by changing MIDi channels. So that means, inherently, that each instance of Miroslav can hold a maximum of 16 articulations, so you’d probably want one instance of Miroslav per section of the orchestra (like forum member ZeroZero built for the orchestra set in HALion Sonic SE… http://www.steinberg.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=13798 ).
All that to say that making a VST EXpression set for the complete Miroslav is no mean task, and would be useless anyways, without also supplying the Miroslav multi presets they are intended for.
I suggest that you take a look at what ZeroZero did for HALion Sonic Orchestra in that forum link (you could even try it out for yourself, using the demo library on the installation discs)… it will certainly give you an overview of what would be needed to do the same thing with Miroslav (except that the VST Expression Maps would be different… those HALion Sonic presets have built-in keyswitches, whereas the presets for Miroslav would require MIDI channel change).