Hello,

I am writing a front ensemble arrangement and this is the first time I've written for a synth.  Question for all of you experts -- what is the best synth instrument to use with Sibelius and VDL?  Do you just use instrument changes to get different sounds (piano, strings, etc)?

Thanks for your help -- hope this isn't too dumb of a question!!

Jeremy Simmons
Sibelius 6
VDL 2.5.5

I'm curious to know what other do, too. My extremely low-tech way to do this is as you said, through instrument changes. But, I'd really like to get more ";synth-y"; sounds in my scores eventually. Right now, I feel pretty closed off to strings, piano, pad, synth bass... Maybe I need to invest in a Yamaha DX-7. That's what all the cool kids are using, right?

Key-tar, maybe?

;)

I've always preferred to start out with the ";Tape"; synths. They offer strings and horns, I believe.
Once you have the ";soundscape"; figured out, you can do instrument changes. This will provide you a larger pallet for other synthesized goodies.

I would suggest, if you've never incorporated synths in a score for pageantry, you take the time to audition the digital synth patches. Sibelius enables you to choose from quite a few, as well as giving you access to the MIDI synths.

There are synths that work well with the acoustic mallet instruments, and some that unfortunately do not.

Cheers!

Dickie

Is there a way to audition sounds in Sibelius?  Without adding the instruments to the score first, I mean.

With every new version of Sibelius, I've taken a bit of time to make a test score with some sounds, combos and commonly used rudiments.

The time spent doing this helps me two ways:
-It helps facilitate a less-interupted workflow.
-I can utilize parts of the test score in the the ";Ideas"; palet.

As far as the ";Ideas"; palet:
You can ";audition"; sounds without inputting them into your working score. Sibelius has a nice assortment of genres and whathaveyou to noodle around with.

I wish the Tapspace community would do an exchange program regarding the ";Ideas"; palet.
We could share commonly used things that may be troublesome to those new VDL.
(Cymbal rolls in various lengths and dynamics, required parts with MIDI messages, commonly used rudiments with stickings etc.)
That way, there'd be less of a learning curve when dealing with the finer points of VDL.
(which after a few years, I still have)

Cheers!
Dickford

When I write for synth I typically use the VDL piano, ";Pad 2 (warm)"; (for strings), and ";Lead 6 (voice)"; for vocals. I find these good enough to get representative playback. When actually rehearsing with the pit I will experiment with the performer(s) to find the sounds we like for given situations.

I'm curious to know what other do, too. My extremely low-tech way to do this is as you said, through instrument changes. But, I'd really like to get more ";synth-y"; sounds in my scores eventually. Right now, I feel pretty closed off to strings, piano, pad, synth bass... Maybe I need to invest in a Yamaha DX-7. That's what all the cool kids are using, right?

____________________

[url=http://www.gafassol-carrera.com]Gafas Cartier[/url]

[quote author=erath link=topic=4430.msg23201#msg23201 date=1342413606]
I'm curious to know what other do, too. My extremely low-tech way to do this is as you said, through instrument changes. But, I'd really like to get more ";synth-y"; sounds in my scores eventually. Right now, I feel pretty closed off to strings, piano, pad, synth bass... Maybe I need to invest in a Yamaha DX-7. That's what all the cool kids are using, right?

Key-tar, maybe?

;)

[/quote]

Weird. Is there an echo in here, Gafas?

(see immediately above)