3 8 V I R T U A L I N S T R U M E N T S

Part 1 in our new series on the art of MIDIprogramming: balance

Sequencing

The problem often starts at the samplelibrary level (lack of proper/naturaldynamic relations between the variouslayers, particularly often in the case of cross-fading patches) and works its way into com-positions through peoples careless handlingof MIDI CC#11 (expression) or CC#1 (modwheel) data.

In this article Ill offer a few pointers thatcan help you out if youre fighting theheadaches of improper volume relationsbetween your orchestral instrument samples.

BasicsAll commercially available libraries have

normalized sample pools (meaning that everyinstrument, from solo bass flute to four hornsin unison, is set so its loudest point is as loudas possible). So the first step is to make sureyour template is balanced properly. This is arather long and tedious process, since youneed to rebuild the natural volume relationsbetween the patches.

Ive split this process into two phases:1. Find the proper relative balance between

each articulation of an instrument in yourtemplate. Essentially this means you shouldfind the proper volume relations betweenyour staccs, sustains, runs, tremolos, trills, etc.

Start with the loudest articulation (top layerof aggressive staccs, or sustains for strings)and measure the volume of your other articu-lations against this. Flautando patches, sulponticelli, sul tasto etc. will all be relativelyquiet in the real world, so make sure thesepatches are lower in volume. Just how muchyou need to lower them is hard to say, butuse your ears the mids/low mids are gener-ally good indications. If you go too loud, themids become too prominent and balancebetween the other articulations is lost. Do thisfor each instrument separately.

Without doubt the most

common beginner

mistake is lack of

attention to natural

balance among the

instruments at play. This

is a problem even in

experienced peoples

mockups, and its the

result of an improperly

balanced orchestral

template.

by Thomas J. Bergersen

2. Now its time to find proper balancebetween the various instrument groups. Atthis stage I like to have a classical recordinghandy, just to benchmark against. The record-ing youre benchmarking against has to berecorded with a simple A/B mic setup (nospot micssimple stereo pair over the con-ductor) and the piece has to be dynamic. Itneeds a triple forte tutti passage, since this ishow you find the maximum sound level foreach instrument group. I recommend anyrecording of Gustav Mahlers 5th from the1990s.

Begin with the first instrument in yourscore, the piccolo flute. Find a part in yourbenchmark recording where its playing at fullblast. Approximate the level in yoursequencer/orchestral template and make sureall the articulations of this instrument retaintheir relative balance.

Configure any pan data too at this point ifyou want to. Move on to the next. Repeatuntil youve done this for all the instrumentsin your template. This could take a few days,but it is well worth it.

If youre meticulous in your approach, theend result will be an almost properly balancedorchestral template that is the basic startingpoint.

AdvancedAdding to the long list of what I consider to

be problems with commercial sample libraries,we have the normalization issue, which effec-tively kills the natural relation between dynam-ic layers. A good example is the flute, which inthe real world is an instrument of great dynam-ic variation through its register; you cant playloud in its lower register and you cant play softin its higher register.

Due to ruthless normalization, the fluteslow range is as loud (in dB) as its high range,

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Samples

V I R T U A L I N S T R U M E N T S 3 9

1 voice: CC#11 - value 127

2 voices: CC#11 - value 114

3 voices: CC#11 - value 110

4 voices: CC#11 - value 105

5 voices: CC#11 - value 99

the horns lower range is as powerful as itsmid/high range, and so on. Its not possibleto reconstruct the proper natural relationsunless you know all the instruments very well.

So if you really want to create a properlybalanced orchestral template, youll have tohire a musician for each instrument andrecord them all performing a controlled chro-matic scale at ppp, mf and fff! Then you ana-lyze the sound wave and find the approxi-mate dB differentials between notes in eachpart of the instruments various registers.

Finally, you transfer these relations to yourorchestral librarynot exactly a cakewalk, buttruth is without proper balance, even withinan instrument itself, you can never go by tra-ditional orchestration rules or guidelines.There are too many discrepancies betweenreal orchestras and todays orchestral libraries.

Another technique I use when dealing withsamples of ensembles in homogenouslyinstrumented harmonies (such as a stringtriad comprised of three notes with a 12-vio-lin ensemble sustains patch) in order to avoida buildup in volume is to use CC#11 to atten-uate the output as more and more voices areadded.

Fig. 1 is a chart based on my own customsamples (your results may vary), and thesehave proven themselves pretty accurate withTASCAM GigaStudios linear handling ofCC#11. Again, your results may differ

depending on your library and the instrumentin question.

But in general I would lower the volumefrom 127 to around 100-110 when playingtriads with a sustain patch. Thatll make sureyou retain some of the balance in the orches-tra.

Orchestra sizes and MIDIThere are distinct disadvantages and

advantages to working with orchestral sam-ples. The obvious advantages are the cost,perfection (tuning and intonation amongother things), and flexibility.

When youre working with sample librariesthat have large sections of instruments, suchas 12 violins or 10 celli, you are stuck withthese sizes. The act of dividing these groupsinto smaller sections (called divisi, or div. (It.))is impossible, and thus you are stuck with thissize on single notes.

Here the advantage is that you can easilyachieve a huge sound without much effort. Ahuge soaring string line in 1st, 2nd violins,and violas is easy to achieve with single-notesustains for each section. A triad will sound

like 36 violins and a 4-part chord will soundlike 48 violins.

Or at least this is the general consensus.Theoretically speaking this practice is obvious-ly wrong, especially when you consider theimproper balance that is obtained throughoutthe orchestra once you accumulate all theseinstrument groups.

In reality, however, the result is a bit differ-ent. While the effect certainly is something tobe on the lookout for, it is usually not some-thing people will perceive as a bad thing. Ifoverdone, it can lead to the dreaded organeffect so much of the frequency range isoccupied with sounds of similar timbre andcharacter that the sense of space between thecolors is lost. This

is akin to the effect a painter experienceswhen he or she mixes colors carelessly, result-ing in a brown mess. This is a typical resultwhen layering different samples from variouslibraries. Vibrato is partially to completely lost,and it becomes akin to a thick synth pad.

There are ways to avoid this problem ifyoure using sample libraries that offer wideselections of solo instruments, or sampleddivisi strings. In the case of solo instrumentsamples, it involves layering multiple tracks ofvarious similar articulations to form thedesired section size.

The upside is that you have complete con-trol over each individual musicians perform-

ance; the downside is that this is a lot ofwork. It becomes more difficult to keep trackof your work, and the playing techniques,intonation, recording techniques, and reso-nance issues all become very apparent veryquickly. In the case of pre-sampled divisi sam-ples youre obviously going to enjoy a morecomfortable work procedure.

Brass instrument sizes in libraries are usuallywithin reason: 3-4 trumpets, 3-4 trombones,and 4-8 horns. It is common that the libraryalso offers solo instruments for each section,and obviously a tuba. Some specialized sam-ple libraries offer a piccolo trumpet, Wagnertuben, euphoniums, Bb and C trumpets,Viennese horns, bass trombones, and evencontrabass trombones. There are certainlibraries that even offer horns in different sec-tion sizes from pairs of 2 to 6 in unison.

With brass I advise you to use solo instru-ments in harmonies of three notes or more. Acertain synthetic sound becomes increasinglyaudible with larger harmonies consisting oftwo or more instruments in unison per sample.

The exception is horns: their mellow tonelends itself better towards large sections in

complex harmonies. Its not uncommon tosee two horns per note in a triad (comprisinga 6-horn section), although the traditional useof the horn section (consisting of four horns)is one horn on each note in a 4-part chord.

Some people prefer a large horn section,others like the space that a more modesthorn section gives. Experiment with chordsusing both section and solo samples, butkeep in mind that there are different rules inthe digital orchestration domain.

Sampled woodwind instruments are diffi-cult to deal with. If you have too many instru-ments of the same timbre playing in unison,the personal character of that instrument istransformed into a more authoritative but lesscharming by-product. I really recommendsolo woodwind samples in place of ensemblesamples, especially in the digital domainwhere balance can be corrected very easilyusing volume control.

Experiment both with solo and ensemblesamples of the same instrument and find outwhat you like the most. A solo instrument willprovide more nuances and a higher level ofdetail to your orchestration, while ensemblesprovide a slightly more sterile yet smoothedgeflute ensemble doubling violins forexample.

Woodwinds have a tendency to blend bet-ter in the real world than with samples. This isoften because the intonation and tuning inorchestral samples are too perfect, resulting ina battle for the same exact frequencies.Consequently the distinct woodwind colors intraditional orchestration are easily lost.

Finally, dont be afraid to crank up the vol-ume of your instrument sections to let thembe heard, especially when using woodwindensemble samples. Because of their smoothnature they tend to disappear in between thestrings and the brass if the orchestration doesnot offer them their rightful space.

Fig. 1: As you add voices, lower the volumeusing MIDI CC#11. This chart was put together forTJs custom library, but its pretty close for all thecommercially available ones.

(CONTINUED ON PAGE 63)

All commercially available libraries

have normalized sample pools, so the first

step is to rebuild the natural relationships

between the patches.

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