# Noteperformer by wallander instruments - realistic notation program playback - version 1.1.3 now ava



## Wallander (Sep 2, 2013)

*Wallander Instruments is proud to present: NotePerformer* 







http://www.noteperformer.com

*NotePerformer is a brand new type of orchestral library that reads ahead and analyses your score, and plays back your music with accurate phrasing - for each and every member of your virtual orchestra! *

*EDIT Version 1.1.3 is now available for download! For more information & download, please visit http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=news*

When writing orchestral music with NotePerformer you don't have to worry about key switches, CC curves, routing MIDI channels, assigning instruments, keyboards, breath/wind controllers etc. In fact, there isn't even a NotePerformer interface, but you do all your work in Sibelius! You write the music as a musical score, add new instruments from the score as you please, add slurs, articulations, dots, techniques, etc. Then press play, and NotePerformer does the rest.

I could go on forever on why this technology is the coolest thing ever for computer-based composition (and for producing scores for live performers) but I am going start with some audio demos first, so that you get an idea of what sound quality to expect:


*Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker Suite - Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy*
[flash width=450 height=110 loop=false]http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/107873167%3Fsecret_token%3Ds-Udw1O[/flash] 

*Holst - The Planets - Jupiter*
[flash width=450 height=110 loop=false]http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/107871760%3Fsecret_token%3Ds-aPaeA[/flash] 

*Grieg - Peer Gynt Suite - Morning*
[flash width=450 height=110 loop=false]http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/107872792%3Fsecret_token%3Ds-1Xbvd[/flash] 

*Quilter - A Children's Overture*
[flash width=450 height=110 loop=false]http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/107871275%3Fsecret_token%3Ds-Q8EPR[/flash] 

There are also a ton of more examples on the NotePerformer website. 

Now, these demo tracks were obviously written centuries ago, and not for the purpose of showcasing NotePerformer. The demos are meant to honestly and transparently demonstrate what this technology can do (and cannot do) from traditional scores with tons of comparable recordings and prints, and what kind of playback quality is achievable with NotePerformer even without prior experience in using sample libraries.

I couldn't figure out whether this mind-reading full orchestral library should cost $499 or $2999, so I decided it should cost $129, which is practically a giveaway. So if you're a Sibelius user and want this, please hurry before I change my mind!  

So to summarize, NotePerformer is perhaps the most affordable orchestral library on the market, while also being one of the most extensive in terms of included instrument content and techniques. And it more or less reads your mind so you don't even need to fill in the details with a sequencer, and you end up with a highly accurate and detailed score for live performances.

And one more thing I forgot to mention. The whole library is based on additive synthesis (winds) and our recently patent-approved sample dynamics technology (for strings and percussion) previously known from our iOS apps, so the library fits in less than 1 GB RAM. NotePerformer typically loads in a few seconds at Sibelius startup, and then you have immediate access to every instrument and technique in the entire library and you can work with multiple scores simultaneously, and do all your work from a small laptop. 

So will NotePerformer make you throw away all your big orchestral libraries? Probably not, and I'm not suggesting you do so. But if you use notation programs for whatever purpose in your work, my super-biased opinion is that NotePerformer is an absolute no-brainer upgrade to Sibelius. 

I could go on and on, but I'll leave room for questions instead. I'll try my best to answer them.  

NotePerformer -requires- Sibelius 6, Sibelius 7 or Sibelius First. 

*Available now from http://www.noteperformer.com*


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## mk282 (Sep 2, 2013)

Is this a teaser product for Wallander Strings and Orchestral Percussion?

Too bad you ended up going with samples for strings and perc. I had hoped you'd have a fully modelled orchestra at our fingertips, something that would top what Synful Orchestra has done...


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## StevenOBrien (Sep 2, 2013)

For a relatively cheap plug & play solution that doesn't require any programming, it sounds pretty good! Definitely a huge step up from Sibelius 7's built in sounds, in my opinion.


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## dfhagai (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Pardon me for asking, but is sibelius still alive? didn't Avid dumped it to the trash?


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## Saxer (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

wow! :shock:

first step (beside synful which is probably dead) into the right direction: software with musical look ahead! next step could/should be the ara-plugin from melodyne and studio one which has the same approach.

i am really surprised this step comes from wallanderinstruments. great, arne! o-[][]-o


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## Wallander (Sep 2, 2013)

mk282 @ Mon 02 Sep said:


> Is this a teaser product for Wallander Strings and Orchestral Percussion?
> 
> Too bad you ended up going with samples for strings and perc. I had hoped you'd have a fully modelled orchestra at our fingertips, something that would top what Synful Orchestra has done...


NotePerformer is a full-blown product in its own right. NotePerformer is no keyboard/breath controller performance instrument, but relies it on having a score to read (read ahead in). Sequencers are not suited to this type of technology I'm afraid, so as for now there are no plans to make a VST or AU port. 



> For a relatively cheap plug & play solution that doesn't require any programming, it sounds pretty good! Definitely a huge step up from Sibelius 7's built in sounds, in my opinion.


Thanks! 



> Pardon me for asking, but is sibelius still alive? didn't Avid dumped it to the trash?


Sibelius is still alive and well, as far as I can tell, but with a new development team. It's one of the world's most popular music programs, so it is unlikely to go away any time soon I'd say. 



> wow! :shock:
> 
> first step (beside synful which is probably dead) into the right direction: software with musical look ahead! next step could/should be the ara-plugin from melodyne and studio one which has the same approach.
> 
> i am really surprised this step comes from wallanderinstruments. great, arne! o-[][]-o


Thanks! :D This one's been kept under the radar, as you might have (not) noticed.


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## Jdiggity1 (Sep 2, 2013)

Wow! Very exciting! I'm off to bed now but hopefully by morning there will be plenty of users sharing their 'real-world' experiences to help me finalize my purchase.


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## JimVMusic (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I was fortunate enough to beta test this software and as far as I'm concerned, this is an automatic purchase for any Sibelius user for sure. It makes composing on Sibleius SO FUN! You write it, Note Performer performs it, and it sounds like what you wrote! I am thrilled that this is out and available.


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## KingIdiot (Sep 2, 2013)

can always count on Wallander to be up to something cool and different!


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## jtenney (Sep 2, 2013)

Just to make sure that people don't think they are trapped forever in the music notation world with Sibelius (or Finale either for that matter): Steinberg has had a development team working for some time to build a new notation program completely from the ground up, based on extensive consultation with, and feedback from, professional studio musicians, composers, arrangers, music engravers and others (in other words, the ones who actually USE notation software). The biggest problems users had with The Two Big Boys is that apparently they kept adding on and adding on to very old code, essentially creating more problems over time than they solved, especially when the race for extra features really heated up (including those trying to turn the programs into DAW-like entities with sampled audio). So, the Steinberg team is looking at the long view, in terms of years, but clearly there is a big developer who believes that a brand-new choice would be an excellent idea...

http://blog.steinberg.net/

later,
John


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## mk282 (Sep 2, 2013)

Wallander @ 2.9.2013 said:


> mk282 @ Mon 02 Sep said:
> 
> 
> > Is this a teaser product for Wallander Strings and Orchestral Percussion?
> ...



I know, I figured that out. My comment was regarding the sounds being used in NotePerformer!


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## Kleven1111 (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Downloading. Can't wait....
Happy Labor Day.
Keith


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## rayinstirling (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I think this is great as I'm coming from the other direction as someone with little notational experience. For me to create an orchestral cue in a DAW then export to Sibelius, this actually does allow me a good enough sound to tweak and improve my skill in creating a readable score.
Great product right now regardless of what may come in future from Steinberg etc.


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## apessino (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

No brainer seems about right... I can't wait to throw some of my scores at it. These days I only use the Sibelius playback for quick checks before playing finished scores "by hand" into Cubase, but I could always use a better quick check. :lol: 

Downloading now... :mrgreen:


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## muk (Sep 2, 2013)

Right out of Sibelius this sounds very musical, a great achievement imo. Arne, big thanks for keeping the price so low, that's an incredible deal! I guess NotePerformer is not only very appealing for composers, but for universities too.
It's great to see a developer tackling the problem of musical phrasing etc. Wish you all the best with this great product.


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## apessino (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

All right, I have only played a few scores, but let me say... HOLY SHIT, this thing is awesome. :D

Amazing how good it sounds right out of the box - by far the best straight up, no sequencing score playback solution ever made. It loads in a couple of seconds on my machine and then every Sib score just sounds an order of magnitude more realistic than it did out of the box.

Very, very impressive! You seriously could have charged quite a bit more for this.


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## aaronnt1 (Sep 2, 2013)

Is there any point to use this for people like me who use Sibelius with Vst libraries like EW's Hollywood series via sound sets from The Soundset Project?


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## williemyers (Sep 2, 2013)

Arne, I don't know if you have to be a Sibelius *owner* to post over on the Sibelius Forum:
http://www.sibelius.com/cgi-bin/helpcen ... ?groupid=3
but I put an announcement up there for you and there are folks over there who are very interested in hearing from you about this program.


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## Jdiggity1 (Sep 2, 2013)

aaronnt1 @ Tue 03 Sep said:


> Is there any point to use this for people like me who use Sibelius with Vst libraries like EW's Hollywood series via sound sets from The Soundset Project?



+1

As far as sonic quality goes and 'realism', I can achieve excellent results with EWQLSO (or HW series). However, a full tutti orchestral score can cause a few hiccups. For that reason alone, I am considering the Wallander product so that nothing (PC resources) holds me back from notating anything I want.


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## MA-Simon (Sep 2, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I was wondering if you could do a little mp3 demo featuring the recorders?

Sopran / Alt / Tenor / Bass ?


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## Wallander (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



JimVMusic @ Mon 02 Sep said:


> I was fortunate enough to beta test this software and as far as I'm concerned, this is an automatic purchase for any Sibelius user for sure. It makes composing on Sibleius SO FUN! You write it, Note Performer performs it, and it sounds like what you wrote! I am thrilled that this is out and available.


Thanks Jim.  You know I greatly appreciate your contribution during the beta, your suggestions and good ears helped making NotePerformer a better product.



KingIdiot said:


> can always count on Wallander to be up to something cool and different!


That's a great compliment, thanks! :D



jtenney said:


> Just to make sure that people don't think they are trapped forever in the music notation world with Sibelius (or Finale either for that matter): Steinberg has had a development team working for some time to build a new notation program completely from the ground up, based on extensive consultation with, and feedback from, professional studio musicians, composers, arrangers, music engravers and others (in other words, the ones who actually USE notation software). The biggest problems users had with The Two Big Boys is that apparently they kept adding on and adding on to very old code, essentially creating more problems over time than they solved, especially when the race for extra features really heated up (including those trying to turn the programs into DAW-like entities with sampled audio). So, the Steinberg team is looking at the long view, in terms of years, but clearly there is a big developer who believes that a brand-new choice would be an excellent idea...
> 
> http://blog.steinberg.net/
> 
> ...


I am sure they'll make a killer software, and I look forward to trying our whatever they produce. 

Regarding the DAW vs. notation program vs. both discussion, NotePerformer was designed so that you wouldn't need DAW functionality in your notation program. That is the way I personally prefer things to function (keeping things simple and useful) but not everyone would agree of course as people have different needs.



> I know, I figured that out. My comment was regarding the sounds being used in NotePerformer!


Ah, ok.  Well regarding having an entirely modeled/synthesis orchestra, trust me when I say I've been doing a lot of research on the subject. And my conclusion was (apart from the fact that WIVI technology couldn't do a good job at it) if you want to do large-scale section building (strings) you need to have a different IR/reverb/reflection pattern on each instrument to have any chance of getting a good timbre when it all comes out in the end. If you stack the sounds dry, it doesn't matter if you have the best samples in the world because you will get a comb-filter-like distortion. Mix 10 great sounding string samples dry, the spectrum will be a complete mess. However if you record 10 violins in a concert hall, where all the various reflections add up, it's the opposite you'll get even a smoother spectrum than either one of the violins. The reverb must be uncorrelated between instruments for them to mix well. 

To make a simple example. Add two sine waves with opposite phase, they'll cancel out and you'll hear nothing. Put two speakers with sine waves of opposite phase in a concert hall. I bet you'll hear it loud and clear. 

With different types of instruments, or smaller sections such as woodwinds, brass, etc. you can get away with mixing it dry but it's still not ideal. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. When instruments don't overlap too strongly in their spectrum (in their overtones) you have less of a problem. 

Anyway, knowing this, and you know why libraries recorded wet have a consistently more pleasant (although less flexible) sound, which seems almost impossible to emulate by adding reverb artificially. You also know why live recordings have a more pleasant sound than just about any mockup, and you know why many producers try to avoid overlapping the spectrum in the mix, when producing any kind of music which is more or less dry.



Kleven1111 said:


> Downloading. Can't wait....
> Happy Labor Day.
> Keith


:D



rayinstirling said:


> I think this is great as I'm coming from the other direction as someone with little notational experience. For me to create an orchestral cue in a DAW then export to Sibelius, this actually does allow me a good enough sound to tweak and improve my skill in creating a readable score.
> Great product right now regardless of what may come in future from Steinberg etc.


You make a very good point, there's a huge educational value in NotePerformer essentially for free, if you have an interest in producing good scores that are easily playable and sound the way you intend it to.



muk said:


> Right out of Sibelius this sounds very musical, a great achievement imo. Arne, big thanks for keeping the price so low, that's an incredible deal! I guess NotePerformer is not only very appealing for composers, but for universities too.
> It's great to see a developer tackling the problem of musical phrasing etc. Wish you all the best with this great product.





apessino said:


> All right, I have only played a few scores, but let me say... HOLY [email protected]#t, this thing is awesome. Very Happy
> 
> Amazing how good it sounds right out of the box - by far the best straight up, no sequencing score playback solution ever made. It loads in a couple of seconds on my machine and then every Sib score just sounds an order of magnitude more realistic than it did out of the box.
> 
> Very, very impressive! You seriously could have charged quite a bit more for this.


Haha, thanks :D

I know it's way too cheap for what it is, but it's priced so that the average Sibelius user (students, teachers etc.) can afford it easily. The fact that it's a steal from a professional's point of view is lucky circumstance.  


aaronnt1 said:


> Is there any point to use this for people like me who use Sibelius with Vst libraries like EW's Hollywood series via sound sets from The Soundset Project?


Admittedly I haven't tried Jonathan's Sound Set for EW. I'm sure Jonathan made a great job with the Sound Set (he always does!) and their sounds are very good. 

There are however a lot of specific things that NotePerformer does which cannot be replicated with just a Sound Set. For example, if you want a short note (sound) with your typical Sound Set you must make it staccato, or it will trigger a sustain sample. So "good sounding scores" are usually shock full of unnecessary staccato dots on every possible short note, and other markings to trigger an appropriate sound in playback. Also, the staccato is fixed length, so if you write a slow line with a staccato it will sound out-of-place, and if you write a fast line you may not even have time to hear it build up. With NotePerformer you can just write a short note (or any length) and it will sound fine, without requiring workarounds. 

There are a hundred other examples just like this, but to summarize, if you just want a good sounding mockup you may be as happy with other libraries, but if you want your score to look good and actually be playable by live performers, and hear it played back as written, I'd say go for NotePerformer. 



MA-Simon said:


> I was wondering if you could do a little mp3 demo featuring the recorders?
> 
> Sopran / Alt / Tenor / Bass ?


We don't have any representable score with recorders, sorry!

That's another thing with NotePerformer. If you take a great score (say, Tchaikovsky) it will sound great. If you take a not-so-good score (dynamics isn't notated properly, or in the wrong place, balance isn't good etc.) it will sound... not-so-good. That could be seen as a flaw, I choose to see it as a feature as it means NotePerformer actually helps you produce a better score.

If we would feature a recorder demo, I'd like it to be a playable work which was written for recorders, where you can actually find a live recording for comparison. Because chances are, if it doesn't sound right with NotePerformer, it wouldn't sound right in live performance either, or you'll be able to hear that the live performers may even ignore e.g. the written dynamics and choose something that works instead. I hope that makes sense.


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## rayinstirling (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Arne said,

_"That's another thing with NotePerformer. If you take a great score (say, Tchaikovsky) it will sound great. If you take a not-so-good score (dynamics isn't notated properly, or in the wrong place, balance isn't good etc.) it will sound... not-so-good. That could be seen as a flaw, I choose to see it as a feature as it means NotePerformer actually helps you produce a better score."_ 

That is exactly the thing that swayed me towards this. In the DAW it's so easy to adjust relative levels in all sorts of different places including eq settings. This doesn't matter if the virtual representation is the final mix but of course we can't get away with that when scoring for a possible performance by others.
In my case "never too old to learn new tricks" LOL


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## IvanP (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Weee!

Instant Buy!!


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## mk282 (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Wallander @ 3.9.2013 said:


> > I know, I figured that out. My comment was regarding the sounds being used in NotePerformer!
> 
> 
> Ah, ok.  Well regarding having an entirely modeled/synthesis orchestra, trust me when I say I've been doing a lot of research on the subject. And my conclusion was (apart from the fact that WIVI technology couldn't do a good job at it) if you want to do large-scale section building (strings) you need to have a different IR/reverb/reflection pattern on each instrument to have any chance of getting a good timbre when it all comes out in the end. If you stack the sounds dry, it doesn't matter if you have the best samples in the world because you will get a comb-filter-like distortion. Mix 10 great sounding string samples dry, the spectrum will be a complete mess. However if you record 10 violins in a concert hall, where all the various reflections add up, it's the opposite you'll get even a smoother spectrum than either one of the violins. The reverb must be uncorrelated between instruments for them to mix well.
> ...



Arne, thanks for this quite elaborate reply. I see your point. 


By the way, WIVI updates, happening anytime? It sure could do better with more improved models


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## JB78 (Sep 3, 2013)

No-brainer if you use Sibelius IMO, The Almighty Wallander strikes again :D


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## ed buller (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

bought.....quite excited


e


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## Maximvs (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I was also fortunate to be part of the Note Performer Beta Team and what I can honestly say is that this product for me is a dream come true.

Finally I can also use Sibelius to produce good quality sounding demos for my clients without the need to use a DAW.

Moreover, Note Performer is very affordable and a great learning tool.

That's just my two cents...


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## IvanP (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Wow. I'm really impressed. Can't recommend this enough. 

As someone that had lost faith in decent Sibelius playback, this is a dream come true. 

Wonderful, affordable and easy to use tool. 

Congratulations 

PS: For further updates / upgrades, I'd be willing to pay for a version that can handle contemporary and avant-garde playback...tricky, I know :mrgreen: 

Regards, 

Iván


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## dcoscina (Sep 3, 2013)

I jumped on board as well since I have a renewed interest in composing with Sibelius. Mind you, I'm one of the few people like actually thinks some of the built in library sounds that come with Sibelius 7 are pretty good. That said, this program/plug in got me because I like to compose using my laptop but have an aged Macbook 1.83 ghz running Snow Leopard and it cannot load all the instruments that Sibelius 7 comes with (bummer). I have resorted to using Notion which is a terrific compositional program with a lean(er) sound library but not on par with Sibelius for engraving purposes. 

I plotted a few notes down using Noteperformer and I do like its responsiveness to dynamics. I do wish the strings could be a little shorter when using a staccato (not sure whether staccatisimo shortens them any further) but I'm happy I bought this. I own some other Wallander instruments and find the whole idea behind them very encouraging. This is definitely the right track to be on. 

Thank you for making this plug in so affordable and usable for people with modest set ups.


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## apessino (Sep 3, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I am having a blast with this! 

The most amazing thing is how it shapes phrases from the notation. While the _sound _of the result might not be on par with a carefully sculpted sample-based performance its _accuracy _as to how a written score would be performed by a human player is much higher. As a proofing and learning tool I find it amazing.

I am having a great time working again in Sibelius – it has been a while, but man there is nothing like composing with standard notation. I am not willing to give up the sequencing/mockup part but I really want to move away from “composing to the samples,” which is nearly unavoidable if you write at the sequencer (for me at least). 

Also, I really think I am going to be much faster this way (full score first, then play in to make a mockup if needed), especially for longer/more complex pieces, and even if I make changes to the score while doing the mockup. 

I notice that I stumble and meander a lot more when I am writing by playing parts in directly... the restricted nature of the sample libraries, as extensive and versatile as they might be these days, still steers one's creative vision away from the mind's ear and towards what sounds best given the available sonic palette. I want to move away from that and learn to trust my own idea of the score, then make the samples do what I wrote to the best I can make them, not the other way around. o=< 

All right, I am just rambling now... :mrgreen:


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## dcoscina (Sep 3, 2013)

Apessino, I totally agree. I studied the old fashioned way using manuscript and piano to compose in my university days so notation will always be tops for me when composing for orchestra. I've always said that if someone came up with a library as sonically real as the sample libraries I would totally jump on board as daws and sample libraries also make me lose focus on the musical aspects of composing and make me think more like a producer or engineer. Notion started this idea in 2005 and they have made great strides with their work but Sibelius is still the big boy on the block when it comes to print out and layout abilities. Also, it has a scoring ability for film as well which is cool. 

Anyhow glad this plug in was released. I'm going on vacation and needed something to allow me to work on my laptop and in full Sibelius not SibeliusnFirst which I had to buy to be able to run on my laptop.


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## dcoscina (Sep 3, 2013)

Hi guys- just to confirm, staccatisimo does shorten the notes. COOL! 

BTW- I'm having a bit of time getting really loud dynamics on the tuba. Even with ffff. the horns and trumpet respond very nicely with that but tuba sounds like mf regardless of dynamic marking. 

Loving this plug in the more I play with it. Thanks again for a terrific product!!


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## jumpenguin (Sep 3, 2013)

I compose every single note in Sibelius, then bring the finished score to Logic or Digital Performer. I run some of my old scores with NotePerformer, and the result is amazingly musical. I am so pleased with how it shapes the phrases.

Only thing missing for me is lack of accordion. I use accordion in almost all composition and am disappointed when I hear piano sound instead. I hope to find accordion in future update.


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## dormusic (Sep 4, 2013)

The big thing that happened here is that a VI company got into the notation bussiness; for that, I congradulate you! Well done Arne!


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## doubleattack (Sep 4, 2013)

jumpenguin @ Wed 04 Sep said:


> ...
> Only thing missing for me is lack of accordion. ...
> I hope to find accordion in future update.



I'm glad, I'm not the only one, who miss this... :D 

It seems it isn't a common instrument until today.
A banjo is included, but not a bandoneon or an accordeon. What a pity.

Otherwise for shure a helpful tool and very useful for laptop work.


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## Windle (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Great idea and very welcome. Excellent value for money. Congratulations!

I love the fact I can simply swap from Note Performer to DLS playback so quickly and easily without having to wait for lots of sounds to load.

For a 1.0 release it's in very good shape but hopefully there's room for modifications...

I've noticed it doesn't seem to respond to written "cresc." or "poco a poco dim." written in Expression text. That would be very useful.

Also the sound is very wet. Some option to adjust it would be welcome as well.

Sibelius might be going through some upheavals in terms of development but it's still a mightily powerful notation program that is constantly used worldwide every day by many, many people. Commercially this feels like a very smart move!

W.


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## Wallander (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



rayinstirling @ Tue 03 Sep said:


> Arne said,
> 
> _"That's another thing with NotePerformer. If you take a great score (say, Tchaikovsky) it will sound great. If you take a not-so-good score (dynamics isn't notated properly, or in the wrong place, balance isn't good etc.) it will sound... not-so-good. That could be seen as a flaw, I choose to see it as a feature as it means NotePerformer actually helps you produce a better score."_
> 
> ...


I think your comment is right on. All the performance rules and the orchestral balance in NotePerformer has been deducted statistically, by matching known scores to actual live performances. So it's all based on real-life. And I think that's an important distinction to make.  I wrote this software, but it's constantly teaching me things when I use it myself.



mk282 said:


> By the way, WIVI updates, happening anytime? It sure could do better with more improved models


WIVI was released in 2007, and was frequently updated up until 2010 or so. Now there haven't been an update for some time. After numerous attempts, it all comes down to that I have reached a point where I no longer have the skill set to improve these instruments additionally, being limited by the technology. It's still a one-of-a-kind product I'm very proud of, being that it's 100% synthetic, and can produce extremely convincing results in the right hands. And it's a super-playable instrument with breath or wind controllers. 

But despite playability & flexibility there's a limit to what you can do sound-wise with algorithms. If someone wants the exact sound of a trumpet recorded with a certain microphone in e.g AIR studios or another world-class hall, the quick-and-easy way (and probably the best way) will always be so make a sample of that particular sound and put it in your track. Even if you need to rewrite the music somewhat to make it work with the sample library, many are fine with that because at least you're getting the exact sound you wanted.



JB78 said:


> No-brainer if you use Sibelius IMO, The Almighty Wallander strikes again :D


Thanks Jon!  



Massimo said:


> I was also fortunate to be part of the Note Performer Beta Team and what I can honestly say is that this product for me is a dream come true.
> 
> Finally I can also use Sibelius to produce good quality sounding demos for my clients without the need to use a DAW.
> 
> ...


Thanks Max, you were a huge help in beta testing this one!  

If anyone is ever in need of a beta tester, Max is _the_ guy.



IvanP said:


> Wow. I'm really impressed. Can't recommend this enough.
> 
> As someone that had lost faith in decent Sibelius playback, this is a dream come true.
> 
> ...


Thanks! :D I know a lot of the really avant-garde techniques may be missing from NotePerformer. That's a tricky one, as you say. Not at least because many of these techniques never sound the same twice...  so including them would also be a bit deceiving. 

In the end, I may be repeating myself, but the sounds that are supported are the ones that Sibelius dictionary include by default. So that you can just plug-and-play the library and use it to its fullest without messing around with with dictionary entries. 

With that said, there are a lot of 20th century things you can do with NotePerformer with standard notation. Flutter-tongue glissando with a cup mute while doing a crescendo - I haven't tried it but there's no reason why it shouldn't work. You get the idea.  




apessino said:


> I am having a blast with this!
> 
> The most amazing thing is how it shapes phrases from the notation. While the sound of the result might not be on par with a carefully sculpted sample-based performance its accuracy as to how a written score would be performed by a human player is much higher. As a proofing and learning tool I find it amazing.
> 
> ...


:D

I am not arguing with you here.  I am not going to claim that NotePerformer does better than a carefully sculpted sample-based track using state-of-the-art libraries in the hands of a skilled professional (and many hours of patience and hard work).

But a fair question to ask oneself is, will NotePerformer allow me to write better music? For many people I think this is the case. 

One thing I haven't tested myself, but would be interested in hearing the results of, would be making a hybrid score. Writing music with NotePerformer for expression and musical coherence, and beefing it up with samples for effect. Might be a good combo to get both realism and effect.




dcoscina said:


> Hi guys- just to confirm, staccatisimo does shorten the notes. COOL!
> 
> BTW- I'm having a bit of time getting really loud dynamics on the tuba. Even with ffff. the horns and trumpet respond very nicely with that but tuba sounds like mf regardless of dynamic marking.
> 
> Loving this plug in the more I play with it. Thanks again for a terrific product!!


Thanks! :D And to confirm what you said, yes staccatissimo is supported. So is mezzo-staccato. 

The staccatos (and everything else) in NotePerformer are all based on statistics, matching scores to live performances. And as you have noted, in real life, staccato is -not- performed as a super-short note by a live performer. It's significantly shorter than a regular note, but not too short. It all depends on context (and what duration you have notated). After all, it's frequently used in the middle of a musical phrase, even lyrical ones.

Staccato in sample libraries are fixed-length short notes only because that's the only practical way to sample it. That's not how it works in real-life though, and I think that particular quirk has ruined a lot of good scores from the sample library age.  




jumpenguin said:


> I compose every single note in Sibelius, then bring the finished score to Logic or Digital Performer. I run some of my old scores with NotePerformer, and the result is amazingly musical. I am so pleased with how it shapes the phrases.
> 
> Only thing missing for me is lack of accordion. I use accordion in almost all composition and am disappointed when I hear piano sound instead. I hope to find accordion in future update.





doubleattack said:


> I'm glad, I'm not the only one, who miss this... :D
> 
> It seems it isn't a common instrument until today.
> A banjo is included, but not a bandoneon or an accordeon. What a pity.
> ...


I agree NotePerformer should include accordions. Just haven't gotten around to that.  

The banjo was sampled because a focused effort was done on plucked strings, at the same time. Since these instruments behave the same (technically) it's a good idea to do them all at once, as they share a lot of features. 



dormusic said:


> The big thing that happened here is that a VI company got into the notation bussiness; for that, I congradulate you! Well done Arne!


Thanks! :D



Windle said:


> Great idea and very welcome. Excellent value for money. Congratulations!
> 
> I love the fact I can simply swap from Note Performer to DLS playback so quickly and easily without having to wait for lots of sounds to load.
> 
> ...


The cresc. and dim. keywords have no playback effect in Sibelius. That's why.  

I think there's a plug-in in Sibelius that fixes that, but I believe it does so by adding a hidden hairpin. 

You can actually adjust the reverb level in NotePerformer, from the Performance panel in Sibelius. You cannot set the reverb length, but you can choose to output it dry if you want to. You can also control the reverb level for each instrument from the Sibelius mixer.


----------



## mk282 (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Wallander @ 4.9.2013 said:


> mk282 said:
> 
> 
> > By the way, WIVI updates, happening anytime? It sure could do better with more improved models
> ...




Kinda sad to read this. :( One would think that with all the cores and GHz these new CPUs throw at us, you could scale the algorithms to include more details to produce even more convincing results. In fact, that's exactly what Modartt is doing with Pianoteq - just constantly improving on its engine, adding new stuff to their calculations, it all just ends up being better and better.


----------



## FriFlo (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Yesssss! I was always hoping you someone would do exactly this and at the same time ist is quite affordable!
I will definitively buy this!


----------



## Windle (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Wallander @ Wed Sep 04 said:


> The cresc. and dim. keywords have no playback effect in Sibelius. That's why.



Ah - that explains it!



Wallander @ Wed Sep 04 said:


> You can actually adjust the reverb level in NotePerformer, from the Performance panel in Sibelius. You cannot set the reverb length, but you can choose to output it dry if you want to. You can also control the reverb level for each instrument from the Sibelius mixer.



Of course - the Mixer! I had forgotten it was even there - so used to just letting Sibelius choose the sounds (and now NotePerformer).

Thanks.

W.


----------



## muk (Sep 4, 2013)

Very clever idea to deduct performance rules from actual live recordings. Looks like I'll have to get it too. I guess it'll be an invaluable tool to check the orchestral balance.


----------



## Graham Keitch (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

This is the way to go - and good luck with this.

The following is NOT intended to throw cold water on this as I'm 100% behind making notation more performance friendly but to balance all the references to Sibelius, don't forget Finale has had these feature since about 2004-2005 - nearly 10yrs ago but rarely gets credit for it. I'm sticking my neck out here I know, but Sibelius produced playbacks generally sound mechanical compared to those produced with Finale's Human Playback. I'm hoping Finale playback will be even better when the next release comes out and I welcome any competition to help push the bar. Finale HP is about performance styles and parameters, not just switching articulations which isn't an issue provided these can be changed via cc which most libraries support. I'm really pleased NotePerformer has come into the frame based on similar philosophy.

Graham


----------



## Ginharbringer (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Not sure if I missed this in the discussion but, is there ever any chance of this coming to finale?


----------



## nradisch (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Truly a fantastic product. As both a musician and a software engineer it seems to me that looking ahead in the notation is really the only way to get even a fighting chance or properly rendering a musical phrase. I'm surprised no one has realized this until now (...watch me get flamed by people who are going to list of endless software packages that have done this in the past  )

Anyhow, for those who'd like a further comparison, here's a piece of Beethoven's 9th symphony played by

Sibelius using Sibelius sounds
Sibelius using EWQLSO sound set
Sibelius using NotePerformer

The music was entered exactly as it appears in the Dover edition with no
accommodations made except replacing cresc. and dim. with hairpins.

https://soundcloud.com/nradisch/9th-sym ... us-default

https://soundcloud.com/nradisch/9th-symphony-ewqlso

https://soundcloud.com/nradisch/9th-sym ... eperformer

--Neil


----------



## Wallander (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



mk282 @ Wed 04 Sep said:


> Kinda sad to read this. :( One would think that with all the cores and GHz these new CPUs throw at us, you could scale the algorithms to include more details to produce even more convincing results. In fact, that's exactly what Modartt is doing with Pianoteq - just constantly improving on its engine, adding new stuff to their calculations, it all just ends up being better and better.


Don't feel bad about that.  

Making the perfectly modeled piano is one thing. There are tens of millions of people who own a MIDI keyboard, and can use it like if it was a real piano, both in practice and in concert. 

But wind instruments is a whole different beast. WIVI was purposely a simplified model of winds, because otherwise you couldn't control it over MIDI (which was built for keyboards). So it's not limited by running out of CPU, it's limited by its own design.

But that's why there's NotePerformer now.  You don't need a controller.



Graham Keitch said:


> This is the way to go - and good luck with this.
> 
> The following is NOT intended to throw cold water on this as I'm 100% behind making notation more performance friendly but to balance all the references to Sibelius, don't forget Finale has had these feature since about 2004-2005 - nearly 10yrs ago but rarely gets credit for it. I'm sticking my neck out here I know, but Sibelius produced playbacks generally sound mechanical compared to those produced with Finale's Human Playback. I'm hoping Finale playback will be even better when the next release comes out and I welcome any competition to help push the bar. Finale HP is about performance styles and parameters, not just switching articulations which isn't an issue provided these can be changed via cc which most libraries support. I'm really pleased NotePerformer has come into the frame based on similar philosophy.
> 
> Graham



No hard feelings here  but also the technologies are not the same. 

Finale's Human Playback is similar to what became the Sibelius Dictionary, combined with Sound Sets. That is, you can control what MIDI messages should be used for key-switches and dynamics, and basic playback settings such as how fast a tremolo is played, how much a hairpin changes dynamics, elementary humanization settings and such.

NotePerformer is more like... you have ten different algorithms that control a note's attack, based on the musical context. 

But no beef against Finale's playback. It's more or less universally accepted that Finale sounded better than Sibelius 6, at the very least. With Sibelius 7, I have no idea, I'm not the right person to ask because I've been lucky enough to have used NotePerformer since before that came out, the development version. 

Anyway, feel free to compare the output. Here is MakeMusic's own "Finale vs. Sibelius" page:

http://www.finalemusic.com/products/fin ... -sibelius/

They feature Eine Kleine Nachtmusik which we also happen to feature as a demo:

https://soundcloud.com/noteperformer/no ... ozart-eine



Ginharbringer said:


> Not sure if I missed this in the discussion but, is there ever any chance of this coming to finale?



We're not ruling it out, but there is no Finale version in development now so I would not put a time frame on it. The reason why we targeted only Sibelius for this release is that Sibelius' playback engine included support for certain technical features which we required. But if a future version of Finale would include the features we need to make an equivalent playback engine, it would be worth taking a look at for sure.



> Truly a fantastic product. As both a musician and a software engineer it seems to me that looking ahead in the notation is really the only way to get even a fighting chance or properly rendering a musical phrase. I'm surprised no one has realized this until now (...watch me get flamed by people who are going to list of endless software packages that have done this in the past Smile )
> 
> Anyhow, for those who'd like a further comparison, here's a piece of Beethoven's 9th symphony played by
> 
> ...



Thanks!  And thanks for sharing these!

Oh.. this is a difficult one.  Many notes in the second half of this clip are notated portato (staccato, but with a slur as well). If you don't use NotePerformer they are probably going to be played back either staccato or legato no matter what playback device you have (except NotePerformer, because it knows that legato+staccato at the same time should mean portato). In this case they're played back legato in the other two clips, I think. 

I'm going to chime in with a few general tips to tweak NotePerformer playback: 
- Reset all volumes in the mixer by double-clicking on the sliders (by default volumes will be scrambled because of Sibelius' instrument definitions)
- Turn off Live Playback, 
- Change from Espressivo to Meccanico in the Performance Panel in Sibelius.

That will produce the most neutral performance, a good starting point.


----------



## Matt (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

_Wow_, thanks for making this, it's exactly what I've been wanting for a long time. I'd immediately throw more money your way if there was an expansion with vocal/choral patches.


----------



## wcreed51 (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

> Finale's Human Playback is similar to what became the Sibelius Dictionary, combined with Sound Sets

Yes, it does do that, but it does a lot more then that. HP adds interpretive nuances to playback, like subtle cc11 swells on held notes, etc.

And Finale is in development, with a new version expected this fall.


----------



## Lizard (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Dear Arne,
I have ordered a copy of NotePerformer some 24 hours ago but so far have not received any mails. Additionally, the support form on the NotePerformer site seems to be broken (always returns "Error, try again later"). Could you maybe look into that? I can be reached by private message.

Thanks in advance!


----------



## Wallander (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Matt @ Wed 04 Sep said:


> _Wow_, thanks for making this, it's exactly what I've been wanting for a long time. I'd immediately throw more money your way if there was an expansion with vocal/choral patches.


There are plans to add choir sounds as well, but we haven't recorded anything yet, so there's no timeframe for that as for now!



wcreed51 said:


> > Finale's Human Playback is similar to what became the Sibelius Dictionary, combined with Sound Sets
> 
> Yes, it does do that, but it does a lot more then that. HP adds interpretive nuances to playback, like subtle cc11 swells on held notes, etc.
> 
> And Finale is in development, with a new version expected this fall.


Ah, ok. I didn't know that. 



Lizard said:


> Dear Arne,
> I have ordered a copy of NotePerformer some 24 hours ago but so far have not received any mails. Additionally, the support form on the NotePerformer site seems to be broken (always returns "Error, try again later"). Could you maybe look into that? I can be reached by private message.
> 
> Thanks in advance!


Thanks for pointing this out, the support form should be working now!

There must have gone something wrong with your email delivery. I've PM:d you, as I need more information to identify your order. Meanwhile, make sure to also check your spam folder in case it got caught there!

Regarding this... anyone who orders anything from our website, if the product hasn't been delivered within a few hours there must be something wrong. Product delivery is instant, handled automatically by scripts. The most common problem (by far) is that the email gets caught in the spam folder!


----------



## dcoscina (Sep 4, 2013)

I agree. I'd love to have some unison groups to work with since it's a different timbral sound than solo instruments. I'd also pay for an update too!


----------



## apessino (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



nradisch @ Wed Sep 04 said:


> Truly a fantastic product. As both a musician and a software engineer it seems to me that looking ahead in the notation is really the only way to get even a fighting chance or properly rendering a musical phrase. I'm surprised no one has realized this until now (...watch me get flamed by people who are going to list of endless software packages that have done this in the past  )
> 
> Anyhow, for those who'd like a further comparison, here's a piece of Beethoven's 9th symphony played by
> 
> ...



Yup - that says it all! :D


----------



## apessino (Sep 4, 2013)

dcoscina @ Wed Sep 04 said:


> I agree. I'd love to have some unison groups to work with since it's a different timbral sound than solo instruments. I'd also pay for an update too!



+1 sections would be awesome! 8)


----------



## Daryl (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I'm looking forward to my product and installation instructions arriving. Programming demos that are going to be replaced by players is such a waste of time, I really want to do as little of that as I can get away with. Hopefully this plug will get me closer, at least for some things.

D


----------



## ModalRealist (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

So I couldn't resist picking this up! It made me bite the bullet and update my super-ancient Sibelius 4 too. Overall, the package is absolutely, completely and utterly *fantastic.* It makes writing in Sibelius a pleasure, given how malleable and expressive the score now becomes.

Moreover, the brass and woodwinds actually sound pretty nice - I've had immense fun shaping brass passages this afternoon. The alterations in tone up and down the dynamic range are really well-executed, and you can get a really nice "brass choir" out of it. (Still probably not suitable for a final mixdown though - unless you are just doing a mockup prior to having an actual recording done.)

The weakest link to my ears are the strings, which have a habit of sounding unduly synthetic in comparison to the rest of the instruments. I feel like they're not as responsive or expressive - but maybe I'm just not tinkering with them enough?


----------



## Wallander (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Aoiichi @ Wed 04 Sep said:


> Wallander - Sample Modeling collaboration full orchestra when? Together, perhaps you'd be able to pull it off. The tragedy is I'm only half-joking.
> 
> But this looks like an excellent product, and very generously priced. I'll be picking it up when my next student loan comes in! However, I did notice one or two things that concerned me a little with the demos. The dynamic balancing, especially with brass seems to be slightly off. Although I think this is because at the moment, for woods/brass the instruments are only solos, right? (At least, that's what the instrument list suggests to me, the only sections are strings at the moment) Are there plans to add more sections at some point in the future (e.g. 4 French Horns section, and then maybe even 2 horns, violins a3/4, etc.)? It's quite a tall order, but I think it'll catapult Noteperformer onto the next level and I'd be very happy to pay for such an update, it being so generously priced already.


I don't think Sample Modeling would have any use for me.  They are doing a good job with their instruments already! 

All the dynamics are based on statistics, from actual performances. But there's no perfect setting that works for every piece. This can also differ quite a bit between recordings. What we have now is some kind of middle-ground. 

It can also be because of soloist/section problems where the scores have "a2" but we haven't doubled the voice in our score. "a2" doesn't affect playback in Sibelius, so you need to double those notes. 

Regarding sections, hmm, I'm not sure what you mean now?  If you want to write for four horns with NotePerformer, you just add two staves of horns, and write two voices on each? If you put two unison notes on a stave, it -will- sound like a section of two. NotePerformer will automatically assign different soloists to each voice. No matter if you put 4 horns on the same stave, or split them across several staves, it will work and sound like a section of the right size.



dcoscina said:


> I agree. I'd love to have some unison groups to work with since it's a different timbral sound than solo instruments. I'd also pay for an update too!





apessino said:


> +1 sections would be awesome!


Unisons already work as they should. See above.  



> I'm looking forward to my product and installation instructions arriving. Programming demos that are going to be replaced by players is such a waste of time, I really want to do as little of that as I can get away with. Hopefully this plug will get me closer, at least for some things.
> 
> D


You should definitely have them by now!



ModalRealist said:


> So I couldn't resist picking this up! It made me bite the bullet and update my super-ancient Sibelius 4 too. Overall, the package is absolutely, completely and utterly fantastic. It makes writing in Sibelius a pleasure, given how malleable and expressive the score now becomes.
> 
> Moreover, the brass and woodwinds actually sound pretty nice - I've had immense fun shaping brass passages this afternoon. The alterations in tone up and down the dynamic range are really well-executed, and you can get a really nice "brass choir" out of it. (Still probably not suitable for a final mixdown though - unless you are just doing a mockup prior to having an actual recording done.)
> 
> The weakest link to my ears are the strings, which have a habit of sounding unduly synthetic in comparison to the rest of the instruments. I feel like they're not as responsive or expressive - but maybe I'm just not tinkering with them enough?


Thanks!  

The instruments should have pretty much identical responsiveness, but the strings articulate differently. In general, woodwinds and brass can attack notes with much shorter attack than a string player. 

Also, if you're writing a lyrical passage for strings, NotePerformer will do a much better job if you actually write some dynamic movement/expression to the strings , using hairpins. If you don't, they will play the notes without any emotion whatsoever. But this is common practice. If you look at Tchaikovsky or John Williams scores you will see hairpins fading in and out all the time during lyrical passages. I personally think that's very good practice, because it leaves out the guesswork for the performers.


----------



## ed buller (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

gotta say...very happy with this. No it doesn't replace my financial black hole of a sample library collection for realism ( thank god..as it's so cheap ) but it's very inspiring hearing stuff come together very quickly . Also the fact that you just set everything to the same level, and it sounds right, is great. 

a no brainer if you have Sibelius 

e


----------



## Daryl (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Wallander @ Wed Sep 04 said:


> > I'm looking forward to my product and installation instructions arriving. Programming demos that are going to be replaced by players is such a waste of time, I really want to do as little of that as I can get away with. Hopefully this plug will get me closer, at least for some things.
> >
> > D
> 
> ...


I have a receipt for payment, but no instructions about how to d/l the software.

Edit:

All fixed now, thanks to Arne.

D


----------



## Mike Greene (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

This is so freaking cool, I'm going to buy Sibelius just so I can use it. Speaking of which . . . for purposes of using NotePerformer, is Sibelius First good enough to get good performances?


----------



## Nick Batzdorf (Sep 4, 2013)

Impressive as hell.


----------



## apessino (Sep 4, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Thank you for the clarification regarding unison! We are so used to think in terms of samples that the mind goes straight to "a section patch would sound fuller!" mode. :D Thinking about it a bit more, since NP is mostly algorithmic this does not apply.

Interestingly, one of the first things I did after downloading NotePerformer was to make a bunch of parts, assign the same instrument to all of them and then have them play lines in unison to see how NP would handle it. I can confirm that there is no phasing or "thinning" happening to any appreciable extent. So great there... Do 6 horns in unison sound as rich and thick as the real thing (or a good sample)? Not quite, but given the scope of NP I think it is close enough. Perhaps a better use of spatial positioning/reverb would help thickening the texture - I'll have to experiment.

I always debate whether doubling instruments should be on the same staff or not when writing scores. Fewer staves is nice, but keeping them separate generally results in faster editing since writing for multiple voices tends to require more upkeeping than copying lines when needed. Using NP I'll just keep them separate so I don't have to duplicate notes in different voices to write "a 2" and similar.


----------



## bdr (Sep 4, 2013)

Very very nice work Arne, and a no-brainer price. Thanks!


----------



## Wallander (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



ed buller @ Wed 04 Sep said:


> gotta say...very happy with this. No it doesn't replace my financial black hole of a sample library collection for realism ( thank god..as it's so cheap ) but it's very inspiring hearing stuff come together very quickly . Also the fact that you just set everything to the same level, and it sounds right, is great.
> 
> a no brainer if you have Sibelius
> 
> e


I'm glad to hear that! 



Daryl said:


> I have a receipt for payment, but no instructions about how to d/l the software.
> 
> Edit:
> 
> ...


That's great! If anyone else has a problem with their order, please let me know!



Mike Greene said:


> This is so freaking cool, I'm going to buy Sibelius just so I can use it. Speaking of which . . . for purposes of using NotePerformer, is Sibelius First good enough to get good performances?


Thanks Mike! :D 

Absolutely, Sibelius First will run NotePerformer fine! The most noticeable limitation will be that there's a 16 stave limit. But you can setup a decent orchestra with that, if you put all flutes on the same staff, same with oboes, etc. and don't use too many different percussion instruments. With NotePerformer you can do real-time instrument changes on the fly, so if you need a piccolo for a few staves you can put it on the flute stave temporarily, for example. 

Full version of Sibelius is obviously more flexible, but Sibelius First is still a very good alternative. And I think you can upgrade to Sibelius 7 at a decent cost. 

If you go for full Sibelius 7, and are going to use NotePerformer instead of the built-in sounds (40+ GB) the software is actually very lean and a good fit for buying as a download. I believe full Sibelius 7 is just a 700 Mb download without the sounds.



Nick Batzdorf said:


> Impressive as hell.


Thanks! :D




apessino said:


> Thank you for the clarification regarding unison! We are so used to think in terms of samples that the mind goes straight to "a section patch would sound fuller!" mode. Very Happy Thinking about it a bit more, since NP is mostly algorithmic this does not apply.
> 
> Interestingly, one of the first things I did after downloading NotePerformer was to make a bunch of parts, assign the same instrument to all of them and then have them play lines in unison to see how NP would handle it. I can confirm that there is no phasing or "thinning" happening to any appreciable extent. So great there... Do 6 horns in unison sound as rich and thick as the real thing (or a good sample)? Not quite, but given the scope of NP I think it is close enough. Perhaps a better use of spatial positioning/reverb would help thickening the texture - I'll have to experiment.
> 
> I always debate whether doubling instruments should be on the same staff or not when writing scores. Fewer staves is nice, but keeping them separate generally results in faster editing since writing for multiple voices tends to require more upkeeping than copying lines when needed. Using NP I'll just keep them separate so I don't have to duplicate notes in different voices to write "a 2" and similar.


You can theoretically add as many NotePerformer instruments as you want without phasing, and it will sound decent enough, but not perfect obviously. 

I posted some technical stuff about section-building earlier in the thread. There are absolutely difficulties involved with this that are hard to get around. Section samples sound the best, but they are static and impose other problems. You would hear serious machine-gun effects because you're getting the same sound every repetition. With NotePerformer each musician lives their own life so even if it sounds mechanical sometimes, you never actually get the same sound twice. That's a huge benefit, not having to worry about that. 

No more than two instruments per stave is usually a good idea.  Most scores I've seen follow that convention, and fewer voices makes it easer to input notes in Sibelius. 



> Very very nice work Arne, and a no-brainer price. Thanks!


You're welcome.


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## Lizard (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Just chiming in to say that my problems were resolved very quickly as well and I am well satisfied with the product itself - thanks Arne, you rock!


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## FriFlo (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



> The cresc. and dim. keywords have no playback effect in Sibelius. That's why.


That's a shame. Arne, I hope we can persuade Avid to include that! I have been dreaming about a simple library for Sibelius to onece set up and forget, that includes most techniques, expressions and dynamics without having to do hacks. Hitting play in a note sequencer will never sound really great, but at least it should fairly well represent the sonic result of the band/orchestra. This is what I hope NotePerformer to be. Cresc. and dim. are a must though ...


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## Wallander (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Lizard @ Thu 05 Sep said:


> Just chiming in to say that my problems were resolved very quickly as well and I am well satisfied with the product itself - thanks Arne, you rock!


Great! 



FriFlo said:


> That's a shame. Arne, I hope we can persuade Avid to include that! I have been dreaming about a simple library for Sibelius to onece set up and forget, that includes most techniques, expressions and dynamics without having to do hacks. Hitting play in a note sequencer will never sound really great, but at least it should fairly well represent the sonic result of the band/orchestra. This is what I hope NotePerformer to be. Cresc. and dim. are a must though ...


I agree it would be great to have them. But I do understand why they have not implemented this, as the cresc. and dim. texts are played back largely by taste. That is, how long the crescendo should be. Should it be executed until the next dynamic change, or a certain number of seconds, etc. 

Meanwhile, I'm quite happy that they support hairpins, so that you at least CAN do this in playback.  And once you get used to it, it's actually quite handy to just add a hidden hairpin where you have the cresc. text. That way you can also choose to execute it the way you want it to!

However, I would very much like a2, a3, and such keywords to have effect on how many notes are sent to the plugin (a2 would double the MIDI notes, for example). That would save a lot of time for a lot of people. I figure it haven't made sense to implement it before, since NotePerformer is the first playback device (that I know of) that fully supports unison notes. Normally you would just get two overlaid samples (=the same sound, but twice the volume).


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## dcoscina (Sep 5, 2013)

Arne, this truly is a god send for people like me who had to buy Sibelius First for laptop use because the resources for playback on the full Sibelius 7 (*which I also own) is too much for my sad little ol' Macbook 1.83. With your plug in, I can use the full Sibelius 7 on my laptop and get some pretty terrific results. 

I think the key here is that it's a very impressive performance resource to have. I was testing a few articulations like Bartok snap pizz and col legno and it worked like a dream! Even loved the con sord strings! 

For unison, I have no problem writing 4 horn parts out individually and when it comes time to print off my score, to compact them to 1 or 2 staves. Sibelius does this ridiculously easy so I'm not too concerned. 

Thanks again for Note Performer. It is exactly what Sibelius needed. It's certainly turned me back onto composing strictly into notation and with Sibelius, it's like riding a bike. I'm way faster at composing in it than I am with DAWs these days because of the time it takes to search for a desired sound or art, then load it, then make the DAW bend to the will of the music idea. I'm old school admittedly...

David


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## ed buller (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

you still need to run a plug in to get hairpins to work right ? or am i missing something

e


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## Wallander (Sep 5, 2013)

dcoscina @ Thu 05 Sep said:


> Arne, this truly is a god send for people like me who had to buy Sibelius First for laptop use because the resources for playback on the full Sibelius 7 (*which I also own) is too much for my sad little ol' Macbook 1.83. With your plug in, I can use the full Sibelius 7 on my laptop and get some pretty terrific results.
> 
> I think the key here is that it's a very impressive performance resource to have. I was testing a few articulations like Bartok snap pizz and col legno and it worked like a dream! Even loved the con sord strings!
> 
> ...


I'm so happy to hear NotePerformer suits you so well!  

Full Sibelius becomes a very lean program when used with NotePerformer, that's for sure. I'm running large scores myself without a glitch on my small Macbook Air that only has a 64 GB flash drive. This is using the internal sound card, so I just need my mini laptop to be fully equipped. That's an amazing feeling.



ed buller said:


> you still need to run a plug in to get hairpins to work right ? or am i missing something
> 
> e


No, I think we may have misunderstood each other here. 

If you write pp< that will give you pp and a crescendo to p (the next higher dynamic). 

If you write pp<ff, you will get a crescendo from pp to ff, like you should. 

So hairpins work as they should with NotePerformer (with continuous dynamic changes). What doesn't work is just typing the text "cresc." or "dim".


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## dcoscina (Sep 5, 2013)

I love how the program responds to variations in short articulations. There is a difference between staccato and staccatisimo. BRAVO!


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## ed buller (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

wow...that works

no plug in


great

e


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## Mike Greene (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Wallander @ Thu Sep 05 said:


> Absolutely, Sibelius First will run NotePerformer fine! The most noticeable limitation will be that there's a 16 stave limit . . .


You're obviously unfamiliar with my limited work ethic. 7 or 8 staves is about as much detail as I can muster. :mrgreen:


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## BachN4th (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

How would this handle a Concert Band score? Building up the section sizes sounds like it could be troublesome. Any chance Sibelius has as feature to duplicate a staff 6 times, but only show one of them? The hidden staves should still play back to keep the section sizes larger, but the visible score sub-set would look proper? Would be cool if those hidden lines would auto-update based on changes to the visible staff.

Have you thought of a way to force larger section sizes needed for a concert band score?


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## apessino (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



BachN4th @ Thu Sep 05 said:


> How would this handle a Concert Band score? Building up the section sizes sounds like it could be troublesome. Any chance Sibelius has as feature to duplicate a staff 6 times, but only show one of them? The hidden staves should still play back to keep the section sizes larger, but the visible score sub-set would look proper?



It sure does - it is trivial to do and maintain, but AFAIK you can't have them automatically aliased. Any changes you make would have to be manually applied, good thing it would only take a couple of clicks.


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## BachN4th (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Ok, cough it up... who's going to post a demo of one of the Holst Suites for Band?


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## apessino (Sep 5, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



BachN4th @ Thu Sep 05 said:


> Ok, cough it up... who's going to post a demo of one of the Holst Suites for Band?



Find me the Sib score and I would be glad to do it...


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## FriFlo (Sep 6, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



Wallander @ Thu Sep 05 said:


> FriFlo said:
> 
> 
> > That's a shame. Arne, I hope we can persuade Avid to include that! I have been dreaming about a simple library for Sibelius to onece set up and forget, that includes most techniques, expressions and dynamics without having to do hacks. Hitting play in a note sequencer will never sound really great, but at least it should fairly well represent the sonic result of the band/orchestra. This is what I hope NotePerformer to be. Cresc. and dim. are a must though ...
> ...



It's great to hear, that you are craving for the same kind of things. If this is going to be a hit, Avid won't have a choice but listen to what users of Sibelius with NotePerformer want to have integrated. For sure I will buy this!
Thank you for that great effort!


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## Daryl (Sep 6, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Avid listen to users? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA......!

D


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## jumpenguin (Sep 6, 2013)

I spent a day with NotePerformer. When I was working my strings, it gave me goose bumps. 

It DOES play all the artificial harmonics!!!

It understands diamond shaped note-head perfectly. Putting the diamonds 3rd above , 4th above and 5th above stopped (regular) notes are played all correctly. 

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

I really hope you will add accordion in future. And if I find it plays all the left hand chord and bass solo correctly, I am happy to pay for the program again!


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## Wallander (Sep 6, 2013)

Mike Greene said:


> You're obviously unfamiliar with my limited work ethic. 7 or 8 staves is about as much detail as I can muster. :mrgreen:


:mrgreen:



jumpenguin said:


> It DOES play all the artificial harmonics!!!
> 
> It understands diamond shaped note-head perfectly. Putting the diamonds 3rd above , 4th above and 5th above stopped (regular) notes are played all correctly.


You need to thank Max (Massimo on the forum) for this.  He was very persuasive regarding adding proper harmonic playback. I'm happy that he was because when it all came together the artificial harmonics playback system turned out perfectly.


Regarding concert band scores, that shouldn't be a problem at all. You will get the same sound with NotePerformer if you have 4 instruments on 4 different staves, as you would putting them on the same stave. I can't say if there are any way for Sibelius to automatically duplicate a staff, though. I don't think there is, unfortunately. 

From my perspective as a developer, Avid & Sibelius have always been very supportive of NotePerformer from the start. I know for a fact they are open to adding features to extend playback possibilities. So don't count that out.  With that said, with such a large and widely used product, I can only imagine you need to be very careful of making changes to existing code so that nothing breaks.


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## dbudde (Sep 6, 2013)

Wallander @ Fri Sep 06 said:


> You will get the same sound with NotePerformer if you have 4 instruments on 4 different staves, as you would putting them on the same stave.



How is this possible? One midi channel per staff pretty much dictates that all instruments on the staff must sound the same. But if they are voiced differently, then they want to sound different within the same staff. Are you somehow splitting out voices so you can treat them separately in your player?


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## Wallander (Sep 6, 2013)

dbudde @ Fri 06 Sep said:


> Wallander @ Fri Sep 06 said:
> 
> 
> > You will get the same sound with NotePerformer if you have 4 instruments on 4 different staves, as you would putting them on the same stave.
> ...


Yes, it's automatically split over different voices. This is no problem to do. 

You can also notate unison notes for a doubled sound. They don't need to be of different pitch for this to work.


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## dcoscina (Sep 6, 2013)

The more I work with Note Performer, the more I love it. It's amazing.


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## dbudde (Sep 6, 2013)

Wallander @ Fri Sep 06 said:


> Yes, it's automatically split over different voices. This is no problem to do.



Thanks for the answer. I agree this is something that should be easy to do. Unfortunately (or fortunately for you, I guess) no one has done it to date. So this is quite amazing. But just to make sure we're talking about the same thing... If I have a single staff with 3 voices, say a guitar. One voice is playing normal notes, another is playing harmonics, and a third is playing a percussive slap. In all cases of duration and overlap/collision of the voices, you maintain all three sounds for their stated durations (interpreted of course per your algorithms). A voice coming in while another is sustaining a note does not cut off it's sound and replace it with another one. Is this correct?

This leads me to my next question. Your web site says you lookahead in the score. How are you doing this? Are you actually parsing score objects (notes, lines, text objects, etc.) or are you processing a soundset-interpreted MIDI stream? I'm guessing the latter unless you are running some kind of manuscript plugin either prior to or in parallel with playback.


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## Wallander (Sep 6, 2013)

dcoscina @ Fri 06 Sep said:


> The more I work with Note Performer, the more I love it. It's amazing.


:D




dbudde said:


> Thanks for the answer. I agree this is something that should be easy to do. Unfortunately (or fortunately for you, I guess) no one has done it to date. So this is quite amazing. But just to make sure we're talking about the same thing... If I have a single staff with 3 voices, say a guitar. One voice is playing normal notes, another is playing harmonics, and a third is playing a percussive slap. In all cases of duration and overlap/collision of the voices, you maintain all three sounds for their stated durations (interpreted of course per your algorithms). A voice coming in while another is sustaining a note does not cut off it's sound and replace it with another one. Is this correct?
> 
> This leads me to my next question. Your web site says you lookahead in the score. How are you doing this? Are you actually parsing score objects (notes, lines, text objects, etc.) or are you processing a soundset-interpreted MIDI stream? I'm guessing the latter unless you are running some kind of manuscript plugin either prior to or in parallel with playback.


Different notes in a chord cannot play different articulations. I don't think this is technically possible in Sibelius, as it's a single MIDI stream so it doesn't do that distinction.

Exactly how the read-ahead is done is proprietary technology. I hope this is understandable.


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## dbudde (Sep 6, 2013)

Wallander @ Fri Sep 06 said:


> Different notes in a chord cannot play different articulations. I don't think this is technically possible in Sibelius, as it's a single MIDI stream so it doesn't do that distinction.
> 
> Exactly how the read-ahead is done is proprietary technology. I hope this is understandable.



Different voices are not notes in the same chord. If you're really looking ahead then you ought to be able to do this. But sigh, apparently not.

I understand about your not willing to tell how you read-ahead.


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## Wallander (Sep 6, 2013)

dbudde @ Fri 06 Sep said:


> Different voices are not notes in the same chord. If you're really looking ahead then you ought to be able to do this. But sigh, apparently not.
> 
> I understand about your not willing to tell how you read-ahead.


You're absolutely right. Sibelius doesn't provide us information about what voice a note has, that's why. So we can only assume any articulations applies to all notes. The same goes for dynamics.


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## dbudde (Sep 6, 2013)

Wallander @ Fri Sep 06 said:


> dbudde @ Fri 06 Sep said:
> 
> 
> > Different voices are not notes in the same chord. If you're really looking ahead then you ought to be able to do this. But sigh, apparently not.
> ...



Thus my question about how you do read-ahead. 

Thanks for the clarification.


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## muk (Sep 6, 2013)

Just aquick question: can anybody tell me how Noteperformer fares with chamber music? How does a string quartet piece sound, for example? I couldn't find any chamber music demos, but judging from the instruments list Noteperformer should be able to do it.


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## Wallander (Sep 6, 2013)

muk @ Sat 07 Sep said:


> Just aquick question: can anybody tell me how Noteperformer fares with chamber music? How does a string quartet piece sound, for
> example? I couldn't find any chamber music demos, but judging from the instruments list Noteperformer should be able to do it.


I can openly admit that solo strings are not the strongest part of the NotePerformer library. The instruments are included and have the same articulations as the sections, but they probably fit better as part of an orchestral setting. And while they may be able to help you produce a good score, and blend with the orchestra, the results are not going to make you throw away your Kronos Quartet CDs.  

There are a few demos that do feature solo strings. For example Dance Macabre, Romanian Folk Dances, and the 1812 overture (the cellos/viola choir in the beginning, which is a kind of brutal example).


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## muk (Sep 7, 2013)

Thank you Arne for your honest answer. It's not a dealbreaker for me, but it would have been a nice supplement. I'm writing chamber stuff quite frequently.
From what I've heard the Woodwinds will be incredible for solo too, so I can use them for chamber and add some different string sound sets. Now let me hear that piano and I'm done with asking


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## Wallander (Sep 7, 2013)

muk @ Sat 07 Sep said:


> Thank you Arne for your honest answer. It's not a dealbreaker for me, but it would have been a nice supplement. I'm writing chamber stuff quite frequently.
> From what I've heard the Woodwinds will be incredible for solo too, so I can use them for chamber and add some different string sound sets. Now let me hear that piano and I'm done with asking


We do have a full movement from Rachmaninoff's second piano concerto as a demo.  

Just like the rest of the instruments, the piano in NotePerformer is designed for an orchestral setting. So you'll find it has a more neutral sound that should blend with the orchestra, compared to a piano recorded close-up.


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## muk (Sep 7, 2013)

Right, I'm sold  Will report back how I like it.


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## ed buller (Sep 7, 2013)

I've left the DAW alone for the few days as I'm having sooooo much fun on the laptop with this and Sibelus. It's so quick to hear results that sound pretty inspiring to be honest. No it's not a top draw sample library but for an instant response to orchestral ideas its amazing......

E


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## benjamind2013 (Sep 7, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Hi Arne,

This looks so promising. I wanted to ask a few questions regarding solo/section strings, the acoustic bass and the guitars

Is it possible to slide from one note to another note? 
Is it possible to do string bends?
Can one change the onset of vibrato on your instruments?


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## doubleattack (Sep 8, 2013)

ed buller @ Sat 07 Sep said:


> I've left the DAW alone for the few days as I'm having sooooo much fun on the laptop with this and Sibelus. It's so quick to hear results that sound pretty inspiring to be honest. No it's not a top draw sample library but for an instant response to orchestral ideas its amazing......
> 
> E



+1

Incredible sound for such a fast loading time - actually zero. Really amazing. 

In the playbacks I miss falls and scopes, though glissandi were played correctly. 
Did I something wrong here, or are jazz articulations not implemented?


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## Wallander (Sep 9, 2013)

ed buller @ Sat 07 Sep said:


> I've left the DAW alone for the few days as I'm having sooooo much fun on the laptop with this and Sibelus. It's so quick to hear results that sound pretty inspiring to be honest. No it's not a top draw sample library but for an instant response to orchestral ideas its amazing......
> 
> E


Thanks! :D




> Hi Arne,
> 
> This looks so promising. I wanted to ask a few questions regarding solo/section strings, the acoustic bass and the guitars
> 
> ...





> +1
> 
> Incredible sound for such a fast loading time - actually zero. Really amazing.
> 
> ...



Almost no jazz/pop special effects, such as guitar string bends, or trumpet falls, scopes, are supported by NotePerformer. Falls and scopes aren't because they are not played back by Sibelius, using notes and pitch bends (like it's done with glissando). And only the more common extended/avant-garde techniques are supported, such as flutter-tongue and snap pizzicato. 

When Sibelius generates pitch bend messages (like if you do a continuous glissando) this pitch bend will be played back. Or if Sibelius generates the "notes" that would be included in an articulation (like Sibelius does with trills, or chromatic glissando) those will be played back.

And unfortunately you cannot control the onset of vibrato, or its speed, or even decide exactly what note has vibrato or to which extent, as it's largely decided by the performance engine. Brass, woodwinds and strings do respect the "vibrato", "non vib" and "heavy vibrato" keywords in your score, but they are only effective when the next note starts. And this is only a "guidance to the musician", there may still be some notes that aren't played vibrato, for example if they're too short. 

A full list of instruments and all supported techniques can be found here:

http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=instruments

But what is not mentioned in this list is, NotePerformer instruments have practically full dynamic freedom, and plays back both fast and slow passages of notes well (e.g. tremolos, trills, runs) and does most of this independently of what articulation is used. And you can almost always combine articulations. For example, trombone glissando+diminuendo+harmon mute+flutter-tongue+vibrato, at the same time, if you put that into your score. Other libraries would treat these as independent articulations/patches, so in comparison to a sample library NotePerformer has an almost endless number of articulations.

I hope that clears some things up, regarding what techniques are supported by NotePerformer!


----------



## bricop (Sep 9, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

This is awesome and the timing very serendipitous as I just stopped by the forum to see if there had been any developments with regard to notation playback. I'm just about to start working on a large orchestral work and really didn't want to be spending my time trying to get a decent mock up in my DAW so this is ideal and much easier than playing around with soundsets!!

I just spent a couple of hours inputting the first page of Per Nørgård's 8th Symphony to see how it would handle large scores (35 staves) and it played back beautifully without a crackle or pop. It would be interesting to hear how it plays back more 'filmic' sounding cues. Has anyone tried? The Holst demos sound really good!!

Keep up the good work Wallander! What are your plans for the future of NotePerformer?

All the best

Brian

p.s do the strings do tremolando?


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## ed buller (Sep 9, 2013)

hi

is there a complete list somewhere of symbols or text needed from Sibelius for the articulations to be heard ?

e


----------



## jleckie (Sep 9, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



bricop @ Mon Sep 09 said:


> p.s do the strings do tremolando?



http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=instruments


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## doubleattack (Sep 9, 2013)

Wallander @ Mon 09 Sep said:


> ...
> 
> But what is not mentioned in this list is, NotePerformer instruments have practically full dynamic freedom, and plays back both fast and slow passages of notes well (e.g. tremolos, trills, runs) and does most of this independently of what articulation is used. And you can almost always combine articulations. For example, trombone glissando+diminuendo+harmon mute+flutter-tongue+vibrato, at the same time, if you put that into your score. Other libraries would treat these as independent articulations/patches, so in comparison to a sample library NotePerformer has an almost endless number of articulations.
> 
> I hope that clears some things up, regarding what techniques are supported by NotePerformer!



Yes, thanks a lot for the comprehensive explanation and answers here, much appreciated!!

Frank


----------



## mathis (Sep 10, 2013)

Hi Arne, I waited for this so long!!!

Do you care for the inter-orchestral dynamics? For example in a score where there is a string pad and a woodwind solo everything might be marked p (piano), but the woodwind soloist will automatically play a bit louder than the rest to make himself audible. What annoys me in all the Sibelius playback options I used so far is that I need to care much for those balances.

Bests and congrats!
- Mathis


----------



## OT_Tobias (Sep 10, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

What might work is a custom playback rule "If the technique text for a line is "soli", then play 15% louder". Something like that.


----------



## Wallander (Sep 10, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



bricop @ Mon 09 Sep said:


> This is awesome and the timing very serendipitous as I just stopped by the forum to see if there had been any developments with regard to notation playback. I'm just about to start working on a large orchestral work and really didn't want to be spending my time trying to get a decent mock up in my DAW so this is ideal and much easier than playing around with soundsets!!
> 
> I just spent a couple of hours inputting the first page of Per Nørgård's 8th Symphony to see how it would handle large scores (35 staves) and it played back beautifully without a crackle or pop. It would be interesting to hear how it plays back more 'filmic' sounding cues. Has anyone tried? The Holst demos sound really good!!
> 
> ...


Thanks! 

The immediate plans is to make sure everything works as it should, fix any bugs, some sound quality improvements to be made! And there also are some instruments to be added (voices & organ, for example).



> hi
> 
> is there a complete list somewhere of symbols or text needed from Sibelius for the articulations to be heard ?
> 
> e


All the available articulations in NotePerformer are present in the Sibelius 7 default Sound Sets. A few are missing from Sibelius 6, more information can be found on the NotePerformer support page:

http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=support

and the keywords making effect in NotePerformer are found on the instruments page:

http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=instruments




> Hi Arne, I waited for this so long!!!
> 
> Do you care for the inter-orchestral dynamics? For example in a score where there is a string pad and a woodwind solo everything might be marked p (piano), but the woodwind soloist will automatically play a bit louder than the rest to make himself audible. What annoys me in all the Sibelius playback options I used so far is that I need to care much for those balances.
> 
> ...


Hi Mathis! No, inter-orchestral dynamics (solos) are not considered. The problem is here, that's largely a matter of subjective taste, and I want to avoid baking that into the engine. And chances are the composer WANTS the instrument to play what's notated, then there would be no way to workaround it. 

As OT_Tobias said, what you can do it attach a dynamic change to the "solo" or "soli" keywords in Sibelius. However, in my own _strictly subjective_ opinion, I think one should notate the score at the dynamics it's intended to be played, when you have the ability to do so. After all, the woodwind soloist doesn't see the other player's parts. But you're of course free to notate it the way you prefer.


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## mathis (Sep 10, 2013)

Thanks. By the way, I just bought it and I'm blown away!
Thanks so much!


----------



## Wallander (Sep 10, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

If anyone's up for it...  I'd like to make a small test here with an experimental mixing algorithm that I've been working on for NotePerformer.

I know there are a lot of good ears here, but this might still be a tough one. Which one of these clips do you prefer, and would you be able to tell why?

Tip: Listen to the sound quality, timbre, smoothness, shrillness, sense of room, warmth, how well instrument blend, etc. as it's a sound mixing enhancer, designed to mimic how instruments mix in a three dimensional environment as opposed to digital mixing. The actual performance is, as far as this test is concerned, the same. 

EDIT: The comparison was removed, because the original SoundCloud link has been replaced with the NotePerformer version 1.1.0 rendering.


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## damirp (Sep 10, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

The second pass is preferable to my ears. Less shrill, warmer, more sense of space.

Cheers,
D.


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## snattack (Sep 10, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Hi!

I bought this since I forgot my Vienna dongles at home (I'm on tour) and needed some sounds for a couple of orchestration jobs.

I like the sound of it, and works fine with dryer reverb (all demos are way to wet for my taste, which reduces accuracy when orchestrating).

Just a request (if there's ever an update): Rock Organ and Choir. I'm writing for Peter Jöbacks tour (I know you're from Sweden, that's why I'm mentioning it  and it's all band + orchestra, and this is all I'm missing.

Great plug for not having to do any tweaks!

Best,
Andreas


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## dxmachina (Sep 10, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I like the second version, Arne.

Speaking of placement... I know we're supposed to reset the mixer vol. levels, but what about panning? Should that be reset as well... or are you using the standard MIDI pan to place instruments?


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## StevenOBrien (Sep 10, 2013)

Second one. The first sounds like it's been too brightly EQed, making it a little difficult to listen to.


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## synergy543 (Sep 10, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

The second pass is preferable as it has a wider stereo ambient field.


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## sbkp (Sep 10, 2013)

Just bought this, and my sincere review is zOMG!!! THIS IS MY NEW FAVORITEST THING EVER!


(and I also prefer the second mix version)


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## mathis (Sep 11, 2013)

2nd mix version, more space.


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## Hannes_F (Sep 11, 2013)

2nd. In the first it sounds as if reflections or something are added. If I should search after an analogy it sounds like the wave trains would overturn (and sometimes derail).

Perhaps it is a good idea but simply too much.


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## MrCambiata (Sep 11, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I also think the 2nd has more space and clarity.


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## Wallander (Sep 11, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Thanks everyone for your comments! 

Apparently everyone has picked the 2nd version. Which is great, because the first one is the unprocessed original, and the second version uses the algorithm. Those shrill frequencies you hear in #1 are part of the digital mixing artifacts that are reduced. 

I've expanded the test with a third version (see above) which uses a stronger variation on the algorithm from version two.


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## mathis (Sep 11, 2013)

it's a little less hyped, yes.


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## apessino (Sep 11, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

It is really subtle between #2 and #3 - they both sound great to me, a big improvement over #1.


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## dxmachina (Sep 11, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

For the most part I like the third option the best... though there are a few places where I prefer the second mix. 

At some point will you bring some of these options to the user? What about some additional control over the way your plug interprets performance. For instance, to my ear much of the brass in this example should be a little 'jauntier'...less-connected in some spots and maybe a bit more attack(an obvious example is around :25-:27). This is very subjective, of course... but wondering if some options could be exposed that would allow us to make per-piece performance styles a possibility?


Overall this is pretty astonishing, Arne. Really a pleasure to work with.


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## sbkp (Sep 11, 2013)

I like #3. It seems to have the benefits of #2 while being a little clearer. Seems like the attacks sound better to me, but I might be dreaming.

On an unrelated note, I was wondering if cymbal and tam-tam rolls (ideally with swells) are supported? I got not-so-awesome results on some of my scores with p<f rolls on cymbals.

Thanks, Arne, for this amazing addition to our world!


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## Wallander (Sep 12, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Ok, I think that settles it then!  The 3rd setting will be the output of the next NotePerformer update, using the new algorithm.



sbkp said:


> On an unrelated note, I was wondering if cymbal and tam-tam rolls (ideally with swells) are supported? I got not-so-awesome results on some of my scores with p<f rolls on cymbals.



There is a suspended cymbal which should work better for rolls, but you need to map it manually, as there is no separate suspended cymbal instrument defined in Sibelius. There are also a few different sized tam-tams that can be mapped. 

To do so, select the percussion or cymbal stave, go to Instruments->Edit Instrument->Edit Staff Type and change the mapped "Clash" cymbal to the "Suspended" cymbal sound in NotePerformer. 

Another way to do it would be to create your own new suspended cymbal instrument, from the existing crash/clash cymbal, and keep them separate. So in case you want to use both in your score, you can use instrument change on the staff to switch between them.



dxmachina said:


> At some point will you bring some of these options to the user? What about some additional control over the way your plug interprets performance. For instance, to my ear much of the brass in this example should be a little 'jauntier'...less-connected in some spots and maybe a bit more attack(an obvious example is around :25-:27). This is very subjective, of course... but wondering if some options could be exposed that would allow us to make per-piece performance styles a possibility?


Probably not, sorry, because there must be a possibility to update these values and change/add new algorithms to improve future versions of NotePerformer, completely independent from user settings.


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## mathis (Sep 12, 2013)

Is that background hiss really necessary?


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## Wallander (Sep 12, 2013)

mathis @ Thu 12 Sep said:


> Is that background hiss really necessary?


Absolutely. You NEED room noise or it just won't sound right. 

But if you think otherwise,  there are ways you can drastically reduce the room noise in NotePerformer from the Sibelius mixer: 

1. Mute any NotePerformer instances you aren't using. They all add up to the room noise. 

2. Increase the sound of the instruments in the mixer, and lower the master volume. The master volume will scale the room noise, but the instrument sliders will not.

Or the other way around if you want more room noise.


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## mathis (Sep 12, 2013)

OK, I'll try all that.


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## The Darris (Sep 12, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

This does seem tempting but not much information is provided on the actual instrument sounds. Can you provide a list of all available instrument sounds you guys are using in this? I write for percussion ensembles, so I am mainly concerned with how the percussion (pitched and non-pitched) compare to Sib sounds.


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## snattack (Sep 12, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



The Darris @ Thu Sep 12 said:


> This does seem tempting but not much information is provided on the actual instrument sounds. Can you provide a list of all available instrument sounds you guys are using in this? I write for percussion ensembles, so I am mainly concerned with how the percussion (pitched and non-pitched) compare to Sib sounds.



It's all on the website.


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## Wallander (Sep 13, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



The Darris @ Fri 13 Sep said:


> This does seem tempting but not much information is provided on the actual instrument sounds. Can you provide a list of all available instrument sounds you guys are using in this? I write for percussion ensembles, so I am mainly concerned with how the percussion (pitched and non-pitched) compare to Sib sounds.


No problem! You'll find the full list of instruments here:
http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=instruments

As a sidenote, as the sound was becoming a bit washed out by the mixing algorithm, I've posted a 4th version, where I hope this is fixed  

*Holst - The Planets - Jupiter #4 (EDIT: This is now the same as #1, after the update was released) *
[flash width=450 height=110 loop=false]http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/107871760[/flash]


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## apessino (Sep 13, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

Sounds great!

So... when can we expect this update? 8)


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## dxmachina (Sep 13, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*

I'm hearing more low-end rumble in the 4th mix 15), (7:38), but sounding very nice. 

Will it still be possible to select the level of ambience after this goes in the plugin?


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## Wallander (Sep 16, 2013)

*Re: NEW: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK*



apessino @ Fri 13 Sep said:


> Sounds great!
> 
> So... when can we expect this update? 8)


NOW! 

Please visit:
http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=news

for more info/new download links.

*(All the sound demos have been updated with version 1.1.0 renderings) *



dxmachina said:


> I'm hearing more low-end rumble in the 4th mix 15), (7:3Cool, but sounding very nice.
> 
> Will it still be possible to select the level of ambience after this goes in the plugin?


Yes, absolutely! 

In fact, with the new version, the "Dry" version is perhaps even dryer sounding than in the 1.0 version. And you can still affect the level of ambient noise by increasing instrument levels/lowering master level.


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## dcoscina (Sep 16, 2013)

cool! BTW- I love how it handles meter tremolos. The built in sounds from S7 are AWFUL! Notion has sampled meter trems for most of its instruments but they are fixed tempo. This is the best way to handle them IMO


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## apessino (Sep 16, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

You rock! =o 

Downloading now...


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## dcoscina (Sep 16, 2013)

New version is terrific. Thanks again for such a great resource.


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## apessino (Sep 16, 2013)

dcoscina @ Mon Sep 16 said:


> New version is terrific. Thanks again for such a great resource.



+1

Granted, I only played a few scores, but everything sounds even better, smoother and more expressive.

This is my favorite bit of composition tech in years - thank you so much for making it and please continue developing this baby. You really have something special going... 8)


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## dxmachina (Sep 16, 2013)

Should we also reset panning in the Sibelius mixer as well... or just the volume faders?


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## Wallander (Sep 17, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

Great! I'm glad to hear the new update is doing what it should!  

An observant user just now made the observation that the Crotales in NotePerformer is playing two octaves too high, and he was absolutely correct. We'll have that fixed, I just wanted to give you some heads up in case anyone is experiencing problems with the Crotales. 



Should we also reset panning in the Sibelius mixer as well... or just the volume faders? said:


> Should we also reset panning in the Sibelius mixer as well... or just the volume faders?



Just the volume faders. The pan knobs control the positioning as expected, and the default values are quite decent. But panning can be set to taste of course, like with any library.  Btw. there's a lot more going on with the panning in NotePerformer than just shifting the sound between the speakers, it's more of a room positioning algorithm.


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## benjamind2013 (Sep 17, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

Is there any chance of improving the solo strings?

Everything else sounds really good, the section strings are convincing but my friend doesn't use the solo strings as they are not convincing for him.

The percussion is top notch and he says the brass and winds are to die for!

3 things I hope for: improved solo strings, choir sounds and a few different church organ sounds


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## rayinstirling (Sep 17, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*



benjamind2013 @ Tue Sep 17 said:


> Is there any chance of improving the solo strings?
> 
> Everything else sounds really good, the section strings are convincing but my friend doesn't use the solo strings as they are not convincing for him.
> 
> ...



Your friend says????
Who are you........a composers groupie?
I think NotePerformer is a great tool but convincing? No that's not how it can be described.


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## dcoscina (Sep 17, 2013)

I think Note Performer sounds very impressive. Is it ultra realistic? Well, perhaps not but frankly no sample library is to my ears (thanks to listening to too many live orchestra performances).


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## snattack (Sep 18, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

I've written tons of orchestrations and arrangements for live orchestras, and I think the strenght in Noteperformer is the interpretation, not the timbre of the instruments. The interpretation is definetely more accurate than anything automated I've seen anyway.

Positive: the strings are great! Also the trombones & trumpets, especially how they're performed.

Negative: horns patches sounds more like trombones - way to "metallic", legato transitions are that realistic (or beautyful), the timbre of the woodwinds aren't very convincing (especially the oboe & flute). I don't like the reverb, I'm going to test with other reverbs later on.


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## Wallander (Sep 18, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*



benjamind2013 @ Tue 17 Sep said:


> Is there any chance of improving the solo strings?
> 
> Everything else sounds really good, the section strings are convincing but my friend doesn't use the solo strings as they are not convincing for him.
> 
> ...


Absolutely, this is a possibility. There's a lot of room for improvement in the solo strings, and it's not unlikely that these particular instruments will be improved, because admittedly they're not up to standard.

Choirs will be included in the future, and we do have a church organ recorded with multiple stops already, but it hasn't been edited yet! 



rayinstirling said:


> I think NotePerformer is a great tool but convincing? No that's not how it can be described.





> I think Note Performer sounds very impressive. Is it ultra realistic? Well, perhaps not but frankly no sample library is to my ears (thanks to listening to too many live orchestra performances).



It's still nothing but computer playback, I agree, and computers and samples don't hold a candle to a live orchestra. 

But I also firmly believe that few composers could produce a more convincing mock-up of any of the pieces featured as NotePerformer demos, with any choice of sample libraries. And even if you can, attempting that would be a painful experience, and we're all given the advantage of actually having heard these pieces performed and know what they should sound like. NotePerformer does what it does a prima vista from the score. 



> I've written tons of orchestrations and arrangements for live orchestras, and I think the strenght in Noteperformer is the interpretation, not the timbre of the instruments. The interpretation is definetely more accurate than anything automated I've seen anyway.
> 
> Positive: the strings are great! Also the trombones & trumpets, especially how they're performed.
> 
> Negative: horns patches sounds more like trombones - way to "metallic", legato transitions are that realistic (or beautyful), the timbre of the woodwinds aren't very convincing (especially the oboe & flute). I don't like the reverb, I'm going to test with other reverbs later on.


Thanks!  And you're absolutely right, interpretation and balance was prioritized.

Regarding the reverb, make sure you're running the 1.1.0 update, no matter if you want to use the internal reverb or your own reverb. Because it has both a more transparent reverb built-in, and a better dry sound if you want to add your own.


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## dcoscina (Sep 18, 2013)

Don't get me wrong- I think this is a fantastic program/plug in. It breaths and feels more organic than the built in library. I love how it responds to dynamics, especially the ww's.


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## Wallander (Sep 18, 2013)

dcoscina @ Wed 18 Sep said:


> Don't get me wrong- I think this is a fantastic program/plug in. It breaths and feels more organic than the built in library. I love how it responds to dynamics, especially the ww's.


No worries, I was more making a general remark related to what you and Ray wrote. I should have made that more clear.


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## worenot (Sep 19, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

I just bought this and I love it!
I noticed, though, someone else posting about string harmonics....I can't get them to work for some reason. 
Maybe they don't work for solo strings? Do I need to set something in the Playback Dictionary? I'm using Sibelius 6....
Thanks!


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## snattack (Sep 19, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*



worenot @ Thu Sep 19 said:


> I just bought this and I love it!
> I noticed, though, someone else posting about string harmonics....I can't get them to work for some reason.
> Maybe they don't work for solo strings? Do I need to set something in the Playback Dictionary? I'm using Sibelius 6....
> Thanks!



Me and my collegue can also confirm this problem.


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## Wallander (Sep 20, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*



snattack @ Thu 19 Sep said:


> worenot @ Thu Sep 19 said:
> 
> 
> > I just bought this and I love it!
> ...


It could be missing from the dictionary for your score (especially if it's a pre Sibelius 7 score) and possibly also from some of the included House Styles in Sibelius 6. 

Open the Dictionary, and go to "Noteheads". Make sure that the "Diamond (2)" notehead has the Sound ID change: +harmonic. If it doesn't, simply enter +harmonic in that field. That should do the trick. 

With NotePerformer, harmonics are best written in artificial harmonics form, with a regular note at the bottom and a diamond note where the string is touched. 

Let me know if you still can't make it work!


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## worenot (Sep 20, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

Thanks for your help! Got it working, it turned out that I was just using the wrong "diamond" noteheads in the properties window...


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## Wallander (Sep 20, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*



worenot @ Fri 20 Sep said:


> Thanks for your help! Got it working, it turned out that I was just using the wrong "diamond" noteheads in the properties window...


Oh! I should have told you that could be the problem, but it slipped my mind.  

That's an easy mistake with percussion instruments as well. I often pick the wrong notehead myself (since there are often several that look almost identical) and if you have the wrong notehead with percussion then you hear no sound at all.


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## frankvg (Sep 21, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

Hi Arne,

Although I very much appreciate the idea for this plugin, I don't find the sounds themselves very convincing. Are you planning to upgrade them or is this pretty much what is possible with the existing technologies?


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## dcoscina (Sep 21, 2013)

Hmm, I find the instruments on par with Sibelius bundled sounds and in most cases, they are more expressive and responsive. I would agree that the horns tone is more trombone like but that's about it.


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## RobertTewes (Sep 21, 2013)

*Re: NotePerformer by Wallander Instruments - REALISTIC NOTATION PROGRAM PLAYBACK - version 1.1.0 NOW AVAILABLE*

The bundled Sibelius 7 sounds have always disappointed me. They sound lifeless and robotic. The musicality that Arne's sounds instantly add to my older scores is stunning. Their unquestionably musical sounds with classical scores are more, in my opinion, similar to what is achieved in NOTION with better sample sets or FINALE with Human Playback enabled. The musical symbols and interpretational subtleties that are intrinsic to live performance come alive: so different than the unemotional Sibelius stock sounds. Night and day to my ears. Thanks Arne!


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## frankvg (Sep 22, 2013)

dcoscina @ Sat Sep 21 said:


> Hmm, I find the instruments on par with Sibelius bundled sounds and in most cases, they are more expressive and responsive.


I completely agree with you. Nevertheless for me the 'sound' (although an improvement to the Sibelius stock sounds) is not very convincing hence my question to Arne.


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## muk (Sep 22, 2013)

Just to let you know, +1 for improved solo strings. Overall I like the musicality of NotePerformer very much. Only for concert pieces I'm not entirely happy, the solo instrument doesn't stand out as a soloist (and not for loudness reasons, I set it up in the mixer. Maybe I'll have to fiddle some more). Oddly enough, this seems to be better on stock sounds, eventhough I have no clue why.
But all in all it's an impressive product for an incredible price. Well done!


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## Wallander (Sep 26, 2013)

*NOTEPERFORMER 1.1.3 IS NOW AVAILABLE* 

Sorry for the late reply friends, I wanted to get the 1.1.3 update out first.  It adds major improvement to the sound, in particular the strings.

More info about this update can be found in the new NotePerformer thread I started over in the Sibelius/Finale dedicated forum. You'll find it here:

http://www.vi-control.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=33948


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## Saxer (Oct 1, 2013)

question:
is note performer also suited for big band arranging? what about swing articulation and typical jazz notation (i.e. playing quarter notes short if there's no tenuto-articulation written)?


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## Wallander (Oct 1, 2013)

Saxer @ Tue 01 Oct said:


> question:
> is note performer also suited for big band arranging? what about swing articulation and typical jazz notation (i.e. playing quarter notes short if there's no tenuto-articulation written)?


NotePerformer admittedly works much better with classical/traditional scores, because the "virtual musicians" in NotePerformer were designed for classical performance. So the phrasing is softer/more gentle than that of a jazz musician, and you would be missing jazz articulations such as falls and shakes.


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## Saxer (Oct 1, 2013)

ok, thanks for that info o-[][]-o


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## jsaras (Oct 22, 2013)

This is definitely one of the most satisfying purchases I've made in a very long time. Thank you for inventing it!


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## ScoringFilm (Dec 16, 2013)

Hi Arne,

What's new in the 1.2.1 update?

Regards,

Justin


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## Wallander (Dec 16, 2013)

ScoringFilm @ Mon 16 Dec said:


> Hi Arne,
> 
> What's new in the 1.2.1 update?
> 
> ...


Hi Justin!

Not all update emails are going out today, in order to keep up download speeds, so that's why I haven't posted anything here yet.  

I will update the thread within short, but meanwhile, here is the full story:

http://www.noteperformer.com/?mode=news

There are sound quality improvements all over the library, a new reverb, a church organ with multiple stops, roughly 50% lower CPU use, the solo strings have been revamped. 

And for those of you who have not yet received the download email, you're able to get the update from the news story of course!


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## cheul (Dec 16, 2013)

Are there any new audio demos showcasing the sound improvements ?


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## Wallander (Dec 16, 2013)

cheul @ Mon 16 Dec said:


> Are there any new audio demos showcasing the sound improvements ?


All the old demos have been updated, but no new demos (showcasing e.g. the pipe organ and solo strings) so far. I'm on it!


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## cheul (Dec 16, 2013)

Great. But SoundClound tags all of them as 3 months old. Accessed them from your website ; is here another location for these updated demos ? 

Thanks.


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## Wallander (Dec 16, 2013)

cheul @ Mon 16 Dec said:


> Great. But SoundClound tags all of them as 3 months old. Accessed them from your website ; is here another location for these updated demos ?
> 
> Thanks.


SoundCloud shows the date the songs were originally added, but they have been updated with new sound files. This is also why some tracks have been missing from the player for a few days (in case anyone noticed that) because SoundCloud's system cannot tell the difference between NotePerformer's demos and "similar" live recordings, so they're marked as copyright infringement until it's sorted out manually, and meanwhile they're hidden from the public. It's a bit troublesome, but in a way it's a good thing.  

Related to your question though, in short we will add a comparison section to the website where you can compare NotePerformer's playback to other's, and those demos will be hosted directly on the website.


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## apessino (Dec 16, 2013)

Fantastic! Huge improvements all around...

Thanks, once again... 8)


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## SampleTekk (Dec 17, 2013)

Great stuff as usual Arne! Congrats on this amazing realese.


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## nradisch (Dec 19, 2013)

Hmm. I played my Beethoven's 9th excerpt using the new version (1.2.1) and it sounds weak compared to the audio file I created from the very first release. In particular, the balance in the strings isn't as satisfying as it was.

--Neil


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## Conor (Jan 9, 2014)

Does NotePerformer have any effect on exported MIDI?


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