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how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 8:34 pm
by playflute
I have a musician switching instruments (let's say ; guitar and mandolin tremolo) during a piece . I'd use a guitar sound coming from QL Colossus and a mandolin tremolo sound from QL RA. How can I get both sounds out of my speakers and all the notes on one staff for the musician ?
TIA.
Best.

Serge

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 1:14 am
by Novatlan
A quick glance through the manual did not show me any way to do this.
Sibelius can do instrument changes, but Notion can not (yet). I may be wrong, though^^

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 4:23 am
by fabiolcati
Hi, playflute an Novatlan.

In my experience you can have different parts on a single staff by "Insert instrument" command (cmnd+I on Mac).
You can use it two ways:
1. As a plain "instrument change" function, as it is labeled in Sibelius
2. As a multivoice-multiplayer-multitimbral-on-a-single-staff weapon.

You can create up to four new instruments with the sound of your choice and assign it to a different voice on the same staff.
Enter notes using multivoice mode for each part.

I tested this both with 1 oboe and 1 horn on the same staff and with 3 horns on two staves (the fourth refusing to be engaged).

As a positive side effect mode 2. automatically creates a new channel strip in the mixer for every new inserted instrument, so you can tweak each one by his own, along with dynamic marks working indipendently on each. This allows you to have a score that looks right and also plays right (more realistic).

I suppose this tecnique can be useful to achieve a true "divisi" effect if your library comes with smaller string sections along with section patches:
a. Assign Violin I part to the ensemble patch to play on voice 1 (all voices could work as well)
b. When the "divisi" comes in create two new instruments with the smaller section patch each assigning, say, voice 2 to First Viiolins I and voice 3 to Second Violins I.
c. Assign instrument to staff
d. Enter notes in multivoice mode.
To return to "uniti" write music on voice 1.

-- Edit.
Just uploaded an excerpt showing this technique here:

http://rapidshare.com/files/304889845/3 ... otion.html

Hope it works. And helps.

Have a nice day

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 6:31 am
by Novatlan
You are of course absolutely right. Shame on me for not properly RTFM :(
I will seriously think about proper consequences. Maybe three hours of listening to Stockhausen should cure me from not reading manuals.

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 6:45 am
by fabiolcati
Novatlan wrote: Maybe three hours of listening to Stockhausen should cure me from not reading manuals.

I don't agree. Some "Klavierstüken" are brilliant. "Gesang der junglinge" too! Maybe not ideal while reading...

My next goal his to have eight Notation hornists to do some Mahler.

:-)

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 4:12 pm
by wcreed51
I would never have know this without watching the tutorials. You'd think something as fundemental as this would have aplace in the menu structure!

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 2:02 am
by Novatlan
In part you are right, these functions should be in the menu.

But regarding tutorials: It would be nice to have access to the videos from within the application. I am pretty sure most people do not even know the NOTIONmusic Youtube channel^^
Integrating the Twitter feed into the application would be great, too, but only if Notion updates it more :)

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 10:04 am
by wcreed51
The tutorials are posted on the website, under Suport.

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Tue Nov 17, 2009 7:23 am
by playflute
Thanks a lot, fabiolcati.
Here's an important step in the adoption of Notion as my preferred notation software.
Best wishes to all.
Serge

Re: how to get more than one sound on one staff ?

PostPosted: Tue Nov 17, 2009 8:03 am
by playflute
Sorry to come back but actually on trying things out it seems my problem isn't solved yet... (and it also seemed I didn't state it completely... )
But here's the 'new' question :
What to do when the two sound come from two different vsti ?
best.
Serge