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Having bought a bunch of extras to enhance my songs I wonder if there is such a thing as Orchestral Strings software where you could create some strings arrangements? There are some packages out there but they seem you to require a keyboard which I don't? Does such a thing exist?
Paul
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recently bought Garritan Personal Orchestra 4. you can enter songs without a keyboard but once I really get started using it I'll probably pick up something basic (and cheap!)
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You can use the piano roll view or the staff view of your DAW and maybe BiaB, don’t know, and write your string parts. You can use whatever strings sounds you have now. This is a slow process but it works.
You can also have BiaB generate string parts and you can modify them in the PVR or staff view. I do this a lot using my DAW.
Over on this side of the pond you can buy a new or used keyboard with a MIDI out for $100 USD or less. These will not be velocity sensitive and/or may have small keys but they will work.
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BIAB is the best program I have found for generating string arrangements. As Mario said, they can be touched up in a variety of ways. I did just this a year ago, adapting my songs for a performance with the symphony orchestra.
Once you have the parts created and edited, then it is a different discussion about what to use to play them and create a recording.
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Are you asking about writing the notes that the strings will play? If so, use the notes that created as the 'String" parts for the existing styles.
If you are asking how to get the tone that a string section creates, look in Sampletank under "Miroslav Sounds." Apply these sounds to the notes that the styles create, as above.
Also there are new Realtracks in v2014 that use actual members of the violin family. Look in the Reatracks picker under "String Quartet."
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I'm looking for a product like BIAB & EZkeys where you put the chords in to generate the strings. I'm not aware that BIAB comes with orchestral strings although I did use a cello in my last song. I now have BIAB 2014 with the free strings but they are not the smooth orchestral strings I would like to add to my songs. Plus EZkeys don't have strings either with is strange considering it would be right up their street. What I've seen on the internet in a few places is something like Hollywood quality orchestral strings that you can arrange into your own music but looking at the screenshots looks like you would 1.need to play piano 2. use a midi keyboard to play the arrangement before applying the strings sounds. http://www.soundsonline.com/Symphonic-Orchestra
Last edited by PaulH; 12/30/13 03:05 AM.
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I'm not aware of anything else that does what BB does...as far as entering chords and it plays....
There are some really fine string packages out there... look at the Native Instrument strings as well as the Garritan package..... both are fairly low cost but still sound good.
Unfortunately, unless you have a keyboard, mousing the notes into the song will be the only way. Look into BB to see if it will give you a midi track for a pad. You could then substitute a string sample and be halfway there.
Mousing takes a phenomenal amount of work and time. Although I must say, I heard a classical orchestral composition in the Sonar song forums several years back where the person posting the work claimed it was 100% entered by mouse into PRV. Even better, it had multiple tracks with the various orchestra instruments AND.... it was all done using nothing but TTS.
Pick up an inexpensive keyboard. I've seen them for sale at music stores for around $60 brand new. Playing string parts is mostly one note at a time, and generally whole notes..... so the string parts tend to be easy to play.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.comAdd nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both. The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
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This looks interesting: NotePerformerI use Arne Wallander's WIVI program with a wind controller. He is a genius! I don't know how this could work with BIAB.
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While it is true that BiaB does not have a feature called "Orchestral Strings," it does provide a number of ways to create string parts. For example, BiaB writes string parts for many of the included styles.
Have you tried all the ways that BiaB can create string parts?
In what way are they not what you want?
Please explain what you have tried, and what you want to do.
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Paul have you googled free orchestra midi files? There are a lot of free midi files of orchestras that you might find useful as a starting point for your music. Also google using a computer keyboard as a midi keyboard for information on this. I’m not sure if this will help but it may be what you can use.
Also again don’t overlook the fact that you can use BiaB generated string parts using better string sound sets. I have generated one string track and saved it to my DAW then I generated another string set and save that to my DAW. In my DAW I have raised or lowered octaves on selected notes or parts and/or changed parts to better fit the song. I have also written some additional parts, shorten or lengthen notes, change articulations etc.
You can do all this in the piano roll view. However for direct input you would need some kind of MIDI controller so be sure to check out the computer keyboard thing I mentioned if you can’t get a MIDI keyboard at this time.
Good luck and I hope this helped.
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Hi Paul Like Flatfoot says, are you looking for a way to create string sections with what is already delivered with BiaB, perhaps using your internal sound card, or are you looking for an external package (software or hardware synth) that BiaB can use to create 'quality sounding' Orchestral Strings? There are several string sounds on an internal midi synth that 'sort-of' do the job. The product you referred to at sounds online will most probably give you far more realistic results, but may take a bit of input effort (I'm guessing those samples didn't just 'happen'). I don't know how compatible it is with BiaB, but note that it is dongle-protected software, so you also need to purchase an i-Lock if you don't already have one. If this is the direction you are heading, make sure you take advice from Guitar Hacker and look at the Native Instrument strings as well as the Garritan package.
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...
If you are asking how to get the tone that a string section creates, look in Sampletank under "Miroslav Sounds." Apply these sounds to the notes that the styles create, as above... Hi Flatfoot, Are the Miroslav sounds you mentioned part of Sampletank 2.5 that comes with BiaB or are these a separate add-on? I couldn't find that anywhere in my setup. Is there a special trick involved? Thanks Trevor
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
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...Are the Miroslav sounds you mentioned part of Sampletank 2.5 that comes with BiaB or are these a separate add-on?
Its both. There are a few samples of what Miroslav can do in the Sampletank finder, listed as "Miroslav Philharmonik Sounds." Do you see them? If you like the samples, get the full program from IK multimedia. I beleive its less than 150US.
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Sorry, I'm a little lost. The Sampletank finder?
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. BiaB 2013 and later come with a free version of Sampletank. When you have that installed, look for 'Miroslav Philharmonik Sounds.' If you do not find them on your computer, go to IK multimedia and download "Sampletank FREE." Here is the link: http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/sampletank/index.php?pp=sampletank-2-xl-versions
Last edited by flatfoot; 12/30/13 08:41 AM.
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Wallander NotePerformer ( www.noteperformer.com) is indeed amazingly good but it only works with Sibelius 6 or 7 (also Sibelius First). Alas you cannot use the sounds outside of Sibelius. However it is a fantastic piece of software and you simply write your score into Sibelius and it NotePerformer plays it back really well. It reads all the subtleties of dynamics and switching strings to pizzicato from arco etc etc brilliantly and the more detail you write into the score the better it plays back. It sounds heaps better than the supplied Sibelius sounds to my ears.
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PaulH
What kind of Strings arrangement do you want ? Open Strings, stopped Strings, Full Strings Orchestra, Quartet Strings Orchestra,...
Even if you get the best Strings sounds of the world, you will have to write serious Strings parts : take care of the instrument ranges, apply expressions changes via MIDI controller #11, add somme fills where it applies, ....
That is not for discouraging you, just to help you to define your project.
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It's not that hard to create string parts in any program that supports piano roll notation. The general rule is to move each note as little as possible. So if you've got a Cmaj7 going to an Fmaj7, first keep the common tones: C -> CE -> EG -> B -> Then move to the remaining notes the shortest possible distance: C -> C E -> E G -> FB -> AIf you've got more than a stepwise movement, move to the target note in stepwise motion, making sure you arrive at the target chord on the beat. You'll need to do this now and then when the the notes creep up too far, and you have to move them down. Plus, it gives nice internal motion. It doesn't take long to create string parts like this, and they sound pretty good. You can see an example of this here (skip past the first 60 seconds). In a lot of ways, it's easier to work from the piano notation than with music notation. There are different ways you can use strings. If you're just after a pad, just about any string library will work - even the cheap ones - because the focus won't really be on the strings. I've got a number of different string libraries, and they each have different purposes. Session Strings is good for an intimate blended string sound. It's not that "big", but has a number of nice articulations. It runs under the Kontakt Player. I got it during one of the yearly half-price sales. Miroslav Philharmonic is one of my favorite libraries for strings. It's got some lovely sounds, both solo and sections. I picked up the cut-down version during an sale, and upgraded to the full version. Garritan Personal Orchestra is pretty affordable (used to be cheaper, grrr...) and has good string sections and solo instruments. It's an excellent library, especially since you get a full orchestra of other instruments along with it. LA Scoring Strings First Chair is a solo strings library that runs in the Kontakt Player. I picked it up for the solo strings, but also to blend in with the string section for a more "detailed" sound. Typically, you might add a solo instrument to a string section sound. Kirk Hunter Rock/Pop Strings is a good library with solo and string sections of various sizes, with a lot of articulations. I picked it up during a half-price sale. It's got nice sounds, but I find that I don't use it a lot. Notice a theme here? Waiting for sales!  There are a lot of other libraries available. But I think GPO or Miroslav are both excellent choices, and fairly low cost. In particular, Miroslav has some really nice sectional sounds.
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Hi Flatfoot, thanks I already have Sampletank 2.5.5.b installed, and I have definitely already run the SampleTank Free Sounds Installer. Do I presume that I find the Miroslav from the VSTi plug in? From the track list drop-down menu, I choose "Select Midi Synth or audio plug In", and I see a list of Amplitube and Hi-Q SampleTank items, including Strings Ensemble Chamber and Movie, but no Miroslav. I think my question is "how/where do I look for 'Miroslav Philharmonik Sounds.'" I'm also interested in the word you used "The Sampletank finder". Is that a real product or something else? Appreciate your help
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>>>...I already have Sampletank 2.5.5.b installed, and I have definitely already run the SampleTank Free Sounds Installer...Do I presume that I find the Miroslav from the VSTi plug in?.,..>>>>
.
If you are saying that you have all the sounds that come with Sampletank 255, and yet you find no sounds lableled "Miroslav Philharmonik Sounds," then I have misspoken.
Now that I think about I am not sure how I got these particular sounds into my computer. They showed up somewhere in the propcess of starting with the BiB ST sounds and subsequently upping to ST 255. I have them in the main sampletank window, on the right, under the buttons that say "Delete" and 'Backup."
I will try again: Look in Sampletank, at the folder called "Band-in-a-Box." Then go to "Strings" and try "Chamber Strings" and "Movie Strings." Apply these sounds to the "String" parts created by BiaB.
.
Last edited by flatfoot; 12/30/13 04:58 PM.
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