Hello,
So I am experimenting with trying to get VDL melodic instruments working with Dorico. Specifically, I am trying to get the Marimba RoseW Med (MW) to work. It looks like I figured it out but just wanted to double check some things so I can make sure it’s correct and so I can understand the inner workings of Dorico.
So what I did was created a solo player, and chose marimba. I then went to “play,” and then changed the player to Kontakt, and then from there I loaded the Marimba RoseW Med (MW) sound. From there, I went to “write” and wrote some notes, and everything is playing perfectly, even the crash cymbals in the high register that VDL has for this marimba.
I was curious if it really is this simple for VDL melodic instruments? Why didn’t I have to write a percussion MIDI map like the other non-pitched VDL percussion instruments? Just curious how Dorico is able to play everything perfectly, even the cymbals, without me programming any MIDI notes.
Also, is this the correct way to program VDL melodic instruments? Thanks for the help.
You don’t have to write a percussion map for pitched instruments, because it is assumed that a pitched instrument produces pitched sounds up and down the keyboard. Percussion maps define the mapping between specific MIDI pitches and the percussion sounds produced by those pitches, so you only need a percussion map for a patch that contains sounds for multiple untuned/unpitched instruments.
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The instruments with MW (mod wheel) in their name have things that you’ll probably want an Expression Map for – with the vibraphone for instance you can opt for muffled or dead sticking, and you can set up different vibrato fan speeds (I just have fast and slow, but its on a scale of 1-127 if you really wanted)
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That is awesome, thanks for the help!
That is great news, thank you for the help! This looks like the solution I was looking for! Just want to double check, I don’t have to create an “empty kit” for a marimba? I could just choose marimba from the solo player option at the start up, and then change the VST instrument to Kontakt and then load my marimba of choice?
In terms of the cymbals that are programmed with this VDL marimba, would I be able to change that notehead in “write” mode?
You don’t need to create a percussion kit for pitched instruments: percussion kits are only necessary when you want to bring together a number of unpitched percussion instruments and show them together, either on a single five-line staff or on a grid.
Got it, so in this case, it looks like I just continue with picking marimba at the beginning of starting a new project and then changing the VST instrument to Kontakt and my VDL marimba of choice?