I’m using NP4 in anger for the first time on some pieces for strings. For me, it’s better than anything I’ve had before, and I don’t need to make manual playback adjustments to dynamics etc in play mode.
For the first time, I can say to myself - how would that passage sound pp? and the result of changing the dynamic is that it actually sounds like an orchestra playing pp! It feels like having an orchestra on hand.
And for the first time, loud dynamics and fast runs sound convincing. I’ve never had that using BBCSO core directly,
I don’t know it would translate to a real orchestra of course, but it is a far more satisfying way of working.
If you find this issue significant, there’s an established workflow to deal with this on the user side.
You bounce the stems, import them into a DAW, and make your desired corrections with volume faders and spectral editing directly on the audio stem. It’s the same tools you’d use for sample editing but a more straightforward process when you can quickly identify what you want to fix by ear, in a musical context.
Arne, thank you for the advice!
I’m aware that I can improve the things in a DAW, but I would never use Sketch for a demo mix, or end product, since I have VSL, BBC SO Pro and Orchestral Tools on my side, and already created, powerful, template.
Iconica Sketch is fine only to be used the same way as NP, just for check listening and presenting a piece to the clients for approval, or funding… It just has better sounding samples and NPPE makes Sketch very useful library, just would be nice if the Steinberg’s team behind the library fixes the dynamic issue.
It will sound even better together with NPPE, once improved.
NPPE already solves many problems with the Iconica Sketch that are audible when it’s directly hosted within Dorico.
I think we’re looking a gift horse in the mouth by being so critical. NPPE is virtually a miracle of programming, and, even though I know that nothing in life is ever totally perfect or flawless, I am more than satisfied with the results of using NPPE with the BBCSO and Synchron Prime libraries. In my opinion, it isn’t the library or the AI Player that distinguishes one piece of music from another; it’s the actual notes that flow from the composer’s brain into the reality of sound and hearing.
Well, quite! With no disrespect to Arne for the fantastic job he has done, for which I am very grateful, I’d much rather hear a bit of Bach on an 8-bit synthesiser than a piece that’s “just noise” played by the Chicago SO.
Coincidentally, a friend who plays violin in film session work in London recently told me that they are sometimes asked to play closer to how the mockup sounds than how they would naturally play…
Actually no additional recordings are required. They just need to fix the volume balance of the samples. Articulations of the same dynamic range should sound relatively equal, in case there are no accents, or marcato…
This is everything they need to do.
Mike,
This is how the things should be, but in reality the situation is totally different.
Every library is limited to it’s own sound characteristics. The AI Player is limited to it’s playback / performance capabilities. Both unavoidable.
For example NPPE doesn’t allow you to tweak anything related to the playback.
Every piece where BBC SO Pro + NPPE are involved, will sound the same. And this doesn’t depend on the composer’s mind and skills. Actually the sound isn’t an abstract thing, it’s a pure science.
Ben,
The key words here are “film session”. The film music isn’t a concert one. It’s a program music that follows different principles. It servers to the picture.
Most of the times the mock-up already fits the film requirements and the purpose of the session orchestra is just to bring more realism, life and breath to the music, while following the mock-up.
Thurisaz, I agree with you. Totally. Every piece where BBC SO Pro + NPPE are involved, will sound the same. At the microscopic level. However, that’s not a major problem for me. What will be different are the combinations of melodies, harmonies, and rhythms that I write. I’m not trying to put orchestral musicians out of work. I’m just looking for a decent facsimile for my own ears, as well as the ears of those I choose to let listen. My friend, until Arne gives us a way to tweak the output of NPPE, composers who need this microscopic ability to control the sound are better served using one of the many DAWs that are available. Actually, Dorico has a built-in DAW. I come from the DAW world, and I’m just overjoyed that I can finally get good sound from notation software, be it Dorico, Sibelius, or Finale. For me, until I can afford to pay an orchestra (which will probably be never) or have my work selected by an orchestra to be added to their repertoire, NPPE and Dorico (and BBCSO, Synchron Prime, etc.) become my very own faithful personal orchestra. Always willing, always there.
I suppose this has been asked before, but is it possible on the NPPE app, that on the outside slots, where you have the high.pass filter, some slots, or slot for being able to load a VST of our own choosing might be possible?
It seems like the most logical area when using outside libraries to add some possible slots.
Arne, at least with VSL Synchron, NP wants a tremolo mark on the note stem of percussive instruments to play a sampled roll. If I use a trill, NP trills between two notes (of the same pitch). If I deactivate the trill’s playback, and add a “Roll” or “Tremolo” playing technique, nothing happens.
Since some older scores used a trill for rolls, instead of the more modern tremolo mark, is there a hidden technique, in Dorico, that I can use to force playing a roll sample?
Or, is there any chance that a future upgrade will make trills on percussions be interpreted as rolls?
I’ve just gone back to an orchestral project in Cubase - it made the contrast with NP4 very stark. Editing velocities, automation and note lengths manually to get the phrasing right - what a pain! The whole thing is really hard work. I can accept that for the ultimate quality of mock-ups DAWs are still best, but for me, for classical music at least, Dorico 5 and NP4.4 are fabulous.
Unfortunately we don’t plan to add external VST support, at least not for the time being.
I certainly understand how that would be useful. Still, we’re helped by the simplicity of .np_templates being text files that don’t save other’s data and being portable between users. Third-party VST support would also be time consuming to maintain, at the expense of our core function.
Can I ask specifically what VST you wanted to support. Reverb?
We use none of the host’s switches to trigger percussion rolls, but the notation program must be configured to produce a MIDI roll, and then it works. NotePerformer interprets a fast stream of notes as a tremolo, or roll, by MIDI analysis.
It works identically for NP and NPPE. We translate between the notation program and the sample library.
Maybe what’s happening in my case. If I insert a Roll or Tremolo playback technique, Dorico is sending a patch change message, and not a faster stream of notes.
The only way to make NP understand it’s a tremolo is by adding the Tremolo symbol on the note stem. Maybe Dorico could allow an alternative way of playing trills on percussions (this might happen with unison trill?).
Daniel, maybe this is something that can be added to a future version of Dorico? Trill con percussions optionally interpreted as tremolos?
