Sudden increase in dynamic around a beat into new flow

Dorico
#1

There is something very odd I noted recently and wonder if others have spotted or could test from a simple example.

What happens is the following. At the beginning of a new flow (but not the first one) there is a sudden and marked increase in dynamic about a beat into the flow --not right at the beginning. The dynamic is mostly corrected at the first change in articulation or dynamic. However there are things to note:

  1. this happens only with the top line (I’ve been testing with a string quartet so violin 1)
  2. it is library independent although the exact effect varies somewhat from library to library
  3. the behaviour is not present in Dorico 3.5 – only 4.0.31
  4. it often doesn’t occur if the playback is started at the beginning of the flow as opposed to running through from the previous one where I’ve found it to be 100% reproducible.

I attach a very simple example below using the Halion default. Play the whole extract from the beginning violin 1 solo and then the same with at least one of the other instruments. Can you replicate my findings?

dynamics test.dorico (2.2 MB)

#2

I think you’re right, although giving the four strings in your example file the same notes is not the clearest way to demonstrate the issue.

#3

you’re only supposed to play the lines individually of course so I thought giving the same notes to play might be the best way.

#4

Ah, yes, that makes sense. I hear it happen in Vn 1. No idea what’s happening there.
OT: quite ugly samples in the viola, hoarse in the p and noisy when louder. Viola joke?