# CSS + Williams = Magic



## NoamL

"Fawkes the Phoenix" from _Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets_
Composed by John Williams
Orchestrated by Conrad Pope
Mockup by Noam Levy @NoamL
Mix by Eugene Latsko @Grim_Universe

All feedback is welcome. Thanks for listening!


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## AlexanderSchiborr

Yeah, I heard that already. And for samples that sounds deliiicious  Not..even not considering samples..it sounds great. (Hope I will my time the next weeks for doing some mixes also.)


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## markleake

One of my favourite Harry Potter tracks, although I've got to say I have a fair few on the "favourite" list. The strings loose a bit of presence compared to the original, but wow, they really do wonderfully well, and you've done an excellent job. I think actually in this track the woods are less convincing to me than the strings... in some parts they don't seem to have the same vibrancy.

A technical question if I may... what kind of treatment did you give the strings, especially the cellos? Sometimes I find cellos in CSS to not have the sound I'm looking for.


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## NoamL

Thank you Alexander and Mark!

This was a challenging mockup because the orchestra uses 125 GB of RAM and I did it on a 16 GB MacBookPro. So I had to break it into 8 Logic sessions. Then, I bounced out 87 stems which I sent to Eugene to mix. He did a great job!

This mockup is based on what I learned in the *CSS + Elgar = Magic* project and trying to reach the next level. One of the goals here was to create a truly balanced orchestral template with no dynamic processing (dynamic EQ, dynamic volume fader moves etc). In that respect it's a partial success. I got the static mockup to sound pretty good, but once we got to the mix phase we started to need dynamic processing to get more juice out of the woodwinds, etc.

Over all I found that CSS naturally rose to the challenge of playing this music in a way that conveyed phrasing and musicianship. The Berlin Series did ok, but Berlin Brass is very unbalanced, a problem I've written about tackling *here*. So the experience left me feeling even more eager for Cinematic Studio Brass and Studio Woodwinds  On the positive side, there's a really fun feeling of depth and space when BWW+BB get together and you've got two dozen individual musicians with their own quirks. It's also cool to have multiple soloists to audition with different musical characters.

In terms of lessons learned on the VI side, one of the big things I've deicded over the past year is to *no longer use humanization*. Which is pretty contrarian to the advice often posted on VI-C and other DAW forums! Can explain a bit more later maybe. The tl;dr is that using a fluid click track is what I've found to be the best way to create phrasing that sounds human and makes musical sense, while humanization doesn't work at all.


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## desert

Yet another beautiful mockup


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## Jdiggity1

Did someone say screencast??


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## Ethos

Interesting what @NoamL said about not using humanization. Except for some circumstances, I also no longer use humanization/randomization. I quantize everything and then "play the tempo" almost like drawing in CC automation. I wish I could assign a fader on my Avid Artist Control to the tempo track.


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## Steve Martin

A really good mockup here. At 2 minutes 05, I was pretty blown away by how you programmed the strings here to sound so great and realistic - of course CSS is a wonderfully sounding string library and it sounded just great at all the other places, and not just that one place of course, but that part really stood out to me in particular. Wow, that is quite a string library! Congrats on a great demo


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## Jetzer

Really great! Love this track. One of my faves


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## holing

Noam your mockup sounds great! I especially love how you sequence the strings and WW! Did you mix any other string libraries with CSS?


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## NoamL

desert said:


> Yet another beautiful mockup





holing said:


> Noam your mockup sounds great! I especially love how you sequence the strings and WW!





Jesse Heslinga said:


> Really great! Love this track. One of my faves





Steve Martin said:


> Congrats on a great demo



Thank you!!



jononotbono said:


> I want to hear your own music with sample libraries. Stop being scared.



Aw thanks Luke! Truly wish I could but the last few VI projects I worked on have all been writing for Real Composers... under NDA. 



Jdiggity1 said:


> Did someone say screencast??



Daniel James and Christian make it look so easy! I tried to record something but it was just rambling. @Ethos just explained it really well though:



Ethos said:


> Interesting what @NoamL said about not using humanization. Except for some circumstances, I also no longer use humanization/randomization. I quantize everything and then "play the tempo" almost like drawing in CC automation. I wish I could assign a fader on my Avid Artist Control to the tempo track.



Exactly!



holing said:


> Did you mix any other string libraries with CSS?



No, the strings are entirely CSS. I believe that @Grim_Universe put an exciter and some EQ on them to get more presence.


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## Grim_Universe

I use multiband compressor as an EQ sometimes to tweak the sound character of the CSS library. Then the multiband exciter which makes the sound dense and rich. Another very important thing is reverb, I use very light and clean reverbs (LexHall is my favourite), because they help me not to mess up the mix. Some of them resonate too much. One more thing to consider is to cut 2700Hz by a 2 or 3 dbs. Strings become warmer that way, because we feel presence (5k+Hz) and body better.


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## guydoingmusic

I quit! Selling all my orchestral samples! Thanks!! 

Seriously - Amazing mockup, Noam! Sounds incredible!


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## wbacer

Just amazing, you guys have definitely taken the art of mockups to the next level.
Everything is crystal clear. 
@Grim_Universe, which multiband compressor and exciter did you use?
Regarding auto humanization, I agree it's really not that musical.
I like the way Mike Verta creates his mockups with no tempo track and no quantizing. He just plays in each part, riding the mod wheel and lets the music breath.
Lots of different ways to do all of this.
Great job.


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## garyhiebner

Jdiggity1 said:


> Did someone say screencast??


Yeah would also love to see a screencast on how you did this mockup. It would be so insightful. Do it!


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## tonaliszt

Wow! That sounds fantastic!


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## Ben E

NoamL said:


> "Fawkes the Phoenix" from _Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets_
> Composed by John Williams
> Orchestrated by Conrad Pope
> Mockup by Noam Levy @NoamL
> Mix by Eugene Latsko @Grim_Universe
> 
> All feedback is welcome. Thanks for listening!




Amazing!
Noam, what is a "fluid click track"?


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## guydoingmusic

Ben E said:


> Amazing!
> Noam, what is a "fluid click track"?


There are a couple of ways to do it... some depends on the DAW. But essentially, you either don't record with a click track at all and play everything in without quantizing anything and just play how you would conduct it. The other is modulating the tempo either by drawing in the tempo map or... Cubase has a way to automate it with a slider at the top of the tempo map. I think Logic has a way to just tap the tempo in as the project goes (you can do this in Cubase as well). So this way the tempo is "fluid" and not mechanical.


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## John Busby

guydoingmusic said:


> There are a couple of ways to do it


here's a look at how to do it in Logic by the man....the myth, Mr C Henson



EDIT: by the way...beautiful mockup!! @NoamL


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## Grim_Universe

@wbacer FabFilter and Izotope products


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## NoamL

Ok screencast time! 



I tried to skip the basic stuff and focus on what I do that might be off the beaten path. It's the first time I ever do a DAW walkthrough so I hope this is interesting.


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## MarcelM

very nice... now we need another video from grim universe about the mixing he has done. 

awesome job from both of you!


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## Jdiggity1

NoamL said:


> Ok screencast time!



Marvellous effort that. Thanks for putting in the time. Took me a few minutes to realise "Demo mode" was not referring to what I was listening to.


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## Emmanuel Rousseau

Thanks for the screencast, that was fascinating.
Great job from both of you !

Ah, Berlin Brass... What a complex love/hate relationship


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## Erik

Thanks for sharing Noam, well done!


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## Jetzer

This video is great @NoamL ! I have experimented with quantized/unquantized/humanization before and went to complete quantizing almost everything, even in this type of music I feel it just sounds better with samples. Love your explanation.


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## artomatic

Truly a treat! Thanks for this, @NoamL !


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## Paul T McGraw

Thank you @NoamL for the midi-performance and for the video. Both awesome.


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## Alex Fraser

I'll add my thanks for this. Great job, I learnt a bunch!


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## mc_deli

NoamL said:


> Ok screencast time!
> 
> 
> 
> I tried to skip the basic stuff and focus on what I do that might be off the beaten path. It's the first time I ever do a DAW walkthrough so I hope this is interesting.



Oh my, thanks


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## novaburst

NoamL said:


> "Fawkes the Phoenix" from _Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets_
> Composed by John Williams
> Orchestrated by Conrad Pope
> Mockup by Noam Levy @NoamL
> Mix by Eugene Latsko @Grim_Universe
> 
> All feedback is welcome. Thanks for listening!




Such a nice piece, a little feed back would have been to bring the brass more up front, and the bass sounds too tight, let the bass loose a little bit on resonance, and tail .

But loved it


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## col

Wow thanks Noam. I was a bit late to the party . Great info there.


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## Saxer

Even later to the party... really cool stuff!


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## NoamL

col said:


> Wow thanks Noam. I was a bit late to the party . Great info there.





Saxer said:


> Even later to the party... really cool stuff!



Thanks @Saxer and @col ! The funny thing is listening to it months later I hear so many things I would like to change. @novaburst is right, I should have made the bass pizz. more resonant, and brought the horns and trombones forward somewhat. Many other little details too.

I have the MIDI for both this and "Leaving Hogwarts" (the Harry Potter II version) floating around. When it came down to choosing which one to mock up, Berlin Brass was the deciding factor - I decided it could not do the second piece well enough so that's how it ended up being Fawkes.

I have an idea all planned out for "CSB + _____ = Magic"


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## Ashermusic

johnbusbymusic said:


> here's a look at how to do it in Logic by the man....the myth, Mr C Henson
> 
> 
> 
> EDIT: by the way...beautiful mockup!! @NoamL




You may find that 10.4'sa new Smart Tempo features make this unnecessary. Early days here for me to test it much.

Yes, nice mockup Noam. 8 Logic projects? I admire your dedication.


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## NoamL

Ashermusic said:


> You may find that 10.4'sa new Smart Tempo features make this unnecessary. Early days here for me to test it much.



Oh cool! I'll have to check out this feature.


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## Kony

NoamL said:


> Ok screencast time!
> 
> 
> 
> I tried to skip the basic stuff and focus on what I do that might be off the beaten path. It's the first time I ever do a DAW walkthrough so I hope this is interesting.



Thank you for sharing Noam - thoroughly enjoyed the mock-up and screencast


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## marclawsonmusic

Very late to the party, but excellent work and thanks for sharing your workflow on this.


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## Wolf68

holy cow, this is vivid & excellent, respect!


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## Stevie

As always, fantastic work. May I ask what harp you used for this track?


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## NoamL

Thanks @Stevie ! This was probably Spitfire Harp. Still my favorite  The glisses are made using the "slid" patch... and a sock-covered hand on the white keys of the piano! (followed by transposing/altering the scale as needed)


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## olvra

NoamL said:


> and a sock-covered hand


what color?


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## Stevie

NoamL said:


> Thanks @Stevie ! This was probably Spitfire Harp. Still my favorite  The glisses are made using the "slid" patch... and a sock-covered hand on the white keys of the piano! (followed by transposing/altering the scale as needed)


Fantastic! Ah, the sock tip is great :D
Btw, the slid articulation always creates crackles on my system. I have never found the culprit and Spitfire neither, apparently, haha. I guess you don't have that issue?


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## NoamL

olvra said:


> what color?


any color can be used when mocking up harp glisses, as long as the sock hasn't been on a foot recently.

Mine are all black though - I'd earn no style points with rctec!








Stevie said:


> Btw, the slid articulation always creates crackles on my system. I have never found the culprit and Spitfire neither, apparently, haha. I guess you don't have that issue?


This has been solved by SF, here are some instructions I got from customer support:

1) Open the patch with the wrench icon

2) Select 'RR1' under 'slid' in the 'Monitor' Tab.

3) Make sure 'Edit All Groups' is active by clicking on it. It should be red.

4) Click on the 'AET Filt.' in 'Group Insert/FX'

5) Click on Bypass under the 'AET' section.


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## Stevie

NoamL said:


> This has been solved by SF, here are some instructions I got from customer support:
> 
> 1) Open the patch with the wrench icon
> 
> 2) Select 'RR1' under 'slid' in the 'Monitor' Tab.
> 
> 3) Make sure 'Edit All Groups' is active by clicking on it. It should be red.
> 
> 4) Click on the 'AET Filt.' in 'Group Insert/FX'
> 
> 5) Click on Bypass under the 'AET' section.


OH MY GOD, I can't believe what I'm reading here. Thank you so much! I can finally use the slid articulation!!! 🥳🥳🥳


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## markleake

NoamL said:


> any color can be used when mocking up harp glisses, as long as the sock hasn't been on a foot recently.
> 
> Mine are all black though - I'd earn no style points with rctec!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> This has been solved by SF, here are some instructions I got from customer support:
> 
> 1) Open the patch with the wrench icon
> 
> 2) Select 'RR1' under 'slid' in the 'Monitor' Tab.
> 
> 3) Make sure 'Edit All Groups' is active by clicking on it. It should be red.
> 
> 4) Click on the 'AET Filt.' in 'Group Insert/FX'
> 
> 5) Click on Bypass under the 'AET' section.


Wow, I've had this issue forever! I can't believe there is a fix for it! Thanks.


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## Franco

John Busby said:


> here's a look at how to do it in Logic by the man....the myth, Mr C Henson
> 
> 
> 
> EDIT: by the way...beautiful mockup!! @NoamL



This method is really interesting. Does anyone know how to apply it in Studio One 5? Thanks in advance


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## Vik

Franco said:


> This method is really interesting. Does anyone know how to apply it in Studio One 5? Thanks in advance


This clip from 2017 is actually based on a rather cumbersome method compared with using Beat Mapping in Logic, and AFAIK StudioOne has something similar?
There are other ways to do beat mapping/tempo mapping in Logic as well (those functions had an update yesterday), and I would be surprised if Studio One _doesn't_ (← edited!) offer something simpler than manually tapping tempo etc.





https://support.apple.com/no-no/guide/logicpro/lgcp36952350/10.7.5/mac/12.3


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