# Harp glissando solutions



## Tom72 (Jun 26, 2008)

I'm looking for a workable solution to harp glissandos using scripts. 

With the sampled harp I prefer to use, there are no useful glissando sounds included. I recently looked into the included "Harp Glissando" script of Kontakt and it seems reasonably useful. In this script, you set the root key and scale to use, and it will create a scale gliss from single notes for you. Doable.

However, my question with this post is if some parameters of this script can be remote controlled via midi info from within a track in the seq - namely the scale and root key parameters. Neither the manual, the script notes, nor the NI site mentions this. 

With the current piece I'm sequencing, I got about 12 different harp glisses. To use the NI script, I found myself loading 12 instances of the same harp program, and applying the Harp glissando script to each instance, but with different root note, scale, and timing setting. This can't be the way this is intended to work, or the script was intended for more modest use them I'm trying to bring out of it. 

Does anyone know however this script can be controlled from an outside parameter, or if you have a more workable solution for harp glissandos to suggest. I'm all ears.

Thanx in advance for any replys
Tom


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## musicpete (Jun 26, 2008)

This may be a stupid question, but why don't you do it as follows:

1) record yourself playing the required glissandi on the white keys of your keyboard

2) check the necessary pedalling of the harp for each glissando

3) simply adjust the recorded white key gliss. to reflect the correct pedalling

This is what I am doing for years and it always worked quickly, easily and I got acceptable results. I think most orchestration books will have at least a shot explanation of how a concert harp works. This makes it very easy to replicate it with samples.


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## Pzy-Clone (Jun 27, 2008)

Hey...there is a script collection from a company named SonicCouture that has a wonderful glissando script for harp.

it works as this:

You hold a chord with your right hand...any chord, and then use the modwheel to move the glissando up or down , within the scale of the held notes in realtime.

It sound more realistic then playing a gliss with the keys, and is much faster too!
its quite clever :D


http://www.soniccouture.com/pages/scriptorium.php


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## Nickie Fønshauge (Jun 27, 2008)

As an alternative you may use my Harpeggio script. The ModWheel sets the speed of the played arpeggio/gliss (the notes clamped down simultaneously). CC#1 = 0 (instant) switches direction to UP (higher CC#1 = slower speed) and CC#1 = 127 (instant) switches direction to DOWN (lower CC#1 = slower speed). And best of all: it's free.


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## the sinner (Jun 27, 2008)

Also you can't miss with Cineharp. I think it is like $59 - has lots of glissandi.

Also doesn't K3 come with a script?


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## ComposerDude (Jun 27, 2008)

Nickie, I haven't tried your script yet but *love* the clever name.


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## _taylor (Jun 29, 2008)

the sinner @ Fri Jun 27 said:


> Also doesn't K3 come with a script?



So does K2 under "Instrument specific"


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## Franz (Jun 30, 2008)

I am currently working on a harp script for my harp samples. I have sampled glisses in every key. The script will recognize if you play an interval up down or up and down and select the proper gliss samples (min, maj, dim) this makes it possible to play harp lines and instantly play a gliss that sounds "non keyboardy". The gliss will start at the highes or lowest key you play and sound as long as you hold the interval. It is also possible to dampen the harp by using the sustain pedal (yeah I know it's backwards but it makes sense in case of the harp).
Since I use sampled glisses it only uses very few voices. A ringing harp gliss using sampled notes can add up to massive voice numbers and you'll really only get parts of your gliss and the familiar "ooops I choked sound: krchk".


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## Tom72 (Jun 30, 2008)

What a response. Thanks guys 

*Music Pete:* Yes, this solution works. It's what I have been doing for a long time. However, I have come to find it cumbersome to set my seq to a much slower tempo and manually play all the notes in. If I instead draw the notes in, I still have to stick to a given quantization pattern and that makes the gliss sound rather mechanic. I agree that this is doable, but I'm hoping to find something 'better' 

*Psyclone:* I told a distand composer friend of mine about this name and he told me he has this script collection and he sent me a screen-video of himself doing harp glisses with this script - press down the chord and swing your mod wheel to play. It looks very neat indeed. I'm going to have a look into this. Thanks.

*Nickie Fonshage:* Thanks alot for sharing your hard work. I just tried this and it works, very intuitively. An option for doing cross-glissandos to this and this script might earn you some  (cross-gliss = where the harpist hands starts at opposite ends of the strings and crosses each other). Great work.

*The Sinner: *Yes, both Kontakt 2 and 3 comes with a harp glissando script. This is the script I mentioned in my first post of this thread. It's quite useful but it is static for each program, can't change it in real-time. Thanks for the cineharp recommendation. I didn't know of that.

*Franz:* Sounds ambitious and interesting. I agree that 'created' glisses are about the biggest voice-hogs there are, compared to sampled glisses. Will you be making your work available in some way?

Thanks again for all responses


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## Franz (Jul 1, 2008)

I am very close to completing the script, it already works very well. After I add a few cosmetic and user friendly features it'll be available for download at vrsound.com.


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## sarobin (Feb 13, 2009)

The problem which I have found with all of these solutions is duplicate notes you get in the gliss. Say you have a dim7 gliss. The duplicate notes will be played on the same string (i.e. same sample). 

I wish there was a harp lib that could allow you to create real glisses - i.e. the duplicate notes are different strings (i.e. a Db would be the Db string AND the Cb string sharpened by the Cb pedal). This I think has quite a different sound.

I don't think this exists yet?


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