String legato

[TimWinter]

I am using Notion 3 and VSL Special Edition exclusively and generally really love the sound. I am just wondering if I can smooth out legato passages with strings. For instance, when I have a succession of eighth notes and put a slur over them it doesn't seem to change the character of the notes.... they still sound separate bowed notes. And I have played around with the articulation drop down box.... That just makes things worse.... I just want a very smooth sound.

Is there something I am missing, or is it just the limitation of the beast? I realize that I am working with a bare bones VSL so maybe that that is the problem??? Just kind of new to all of this and there is SOOO much to learn...

Any help is appreciated.

[Admin]

Dear Tim,

I think the problem here is that all the notes changing at the same time, has a tendency to emphasize the changes in the notes. A way to resolve this issue is to highlight-select the entire section of strings that you want to "make sound smoother". Then:

1. Go to the Tools menu.
2. Select Randomize Events
3. Move the Note Beginnings slider to 3%.
4. Click OK.

That will slightly adjust the start times of the notes and thus, change the timing of the instruments playing back. There are also other settings in that menu that allow you the capability to "Humanize" the playing of the virtual instruments.
I have experiment with these settings myself and I find them quite useful unless you are going to NTempo the score.

If that does not solve the problem, I have two other experiments you can try:

1. Press Tab and go into "Sequencer Overlay".
2. You can individually drag the note-endings to a placement that either overlaps the next note-head, or provides a gap between the ending and the beginning. This is just the manual way of using the Randomize Events tool. You will get two different results if you go either way. Dragging the note-endings beyond the next beat, will allow the release samples in Vienna to fade inside of the next played note. It is only useful in small amounts if you are looking for realistic sounds. Shortening the note-ending will allow the release samples in Vienna to play through the gap. This is a cleaner way of handling the playback, but still you must not use much gap.

And, as I just mentioned, Vienna has release samples that play in the current setup. We left the Release Samples on in the presets. Some instruments do not work that well in their timing with release samples. They will often extend beyond their specified timing when played back in Notion, so some users may feel that release samples need to be turned off. You sacrifice some realism provided by Vienna, but it may make a big difference in some instrument libraries. Most particularly, the Wind Trill samples. You either have to shorten the length of the duration in the Sequencer Overlay or turn the release samples off on the woodwinds in Vienna.

If you want to keep your presets, save them with a different name in Vienna, as to not overwrite the Bundled Presets, and load them any time you want to use them from the Vienna presets menu.

-Admin

[Migot]

Thanks for those nice tips !