Keyswitch Query

[jrmckie]

Hi,

Anyone know a neat way of dealing with keyswitches? I've inserted an instance of Kontakt 4 (hosting Symphobia strings) into Notion 3 and I want to control the different articulations via keyswitches. (Same for brass, woodwind etc ... I'm making a template.)

The keyswitches of course are very high on the staff (or sometimes very low ... at any rate out of the normal playing range), and this means that the staffs are widely spaced and I have a lot of white on the page. It would be perfect if I could hide the keyswitch notes, but apparently Notion doesn't allow this ... only 'objects' can be hidden. I can make the notes small, and turn their stems down, but they are still way up there, and necessitating a gap between staffs.

Anyone come across this before, and have a way of dealing with it?

John

[fabiolcati]

Hi John.
The most elegant way out is to writing rules for your setup linking keyswitches to expressions and techniques.
Here's fluttertongue for flute in GPO:

<rule>
<if technique="trem" />
<if instrument-id = "13002"/>
<key-switch type="note-on-prefix" midi-pitch="4" velocity="127" />
<key-switch type="note-off-suffix" midi-pitch="0" velocity="127" />
</rule>

Hope it helps as a starting point for meditation.
Best regards

[jrmckie]

Hi John.
The most elegant way out is to writing rules for your setup linking keyswitches to expressions and techniques.
Here's fluttertongue for flute in GPO:

<rule>
<if technique="trem" />
<if instrument-id = "13002"/>
<key-switch type="note-on-prefix" midi-pitch="4" velocity="127" />
<key-switch type="note-off-suffix" midi-pitch="0" velocity="127" />
</rule>

Hope it helps as a starting point for meditation.
Best regards

Thanks Fabio. Yes, that certainly is an elegant solution. Being new to Notion I'm going to approach custom rules gently, and get familiar with Notion a bit first ... though the example you give looks relatively straightforward.

I have thought of another solution (less elegant than yours). I could create a sequencer staff and record the keyswitches on that, and then hide the sequencer staff. On the staff in the score view I can include the relevant articulation markings and, although they will not change patches in the absence of custom rules, they will at least alert me to the fact that there is a hidden sequencer staff with the relevant keyswitch at this point. I might experiment with that ... though I'm open to further suggestions!

Thanks again for your suggestion Fabio. It is definately something I'll try when I'm a bit more familiar with the workings of Notion.

Cheers,
John

[wcreed51]

Better to use a hidden standard staff, as you can just place the keyswitch notes without having to record them in. And change them if needed.

[jrmckie]

Better to use a hidden standard staff, as you can just place the keyswitch notes without having to record them in. And change them if needed.

Thanks Bill. Yes, I've proceeded along those lines, and it's working quite well, though when I'm a bit more familiar with Notion I'll try Fabio's suggestion.

On another point, your set-up is similar to mine: Windows 7 x64, 16 GB RAM, except I use Reaper x64 rather than Sonar. Tell me, how do you go with EWQL Symphonic Choirs? Do you use it with Notion? What about the RAM restriction with Notion being 32-bit? Or do you only use Symphonic Choirs with Sonar?

SC is a spectacular choir instrument, but Reaper is not officially supported as a host for it, and there have been a lot of grumbles on the Reaper forum from people trying to use workarounds to get it functioning properly. On the other hand, I hesitate about using it with Notion because of the RAM restriction. I'd be intereted to know how you use Symphonic Choirs ... and if you have the Play version.

Kind Regards,
John

[wcreed51]

Hi John,

To tell the truth, I still mostly use Finale, as Notion is missing too many key features. I host my VSTs in 64bit VE Pro, so don’t suffer memory limitations.

Yes, I have the Play version of SC. I haven’t used it a lot yet; got it during one of EW’s 50% off sales. Yes, it is spectacular!

Bill

[jrmckie]

Thanks for the information Bill!

John