Orchestration with VST

[Tuomas Easton]

I've always been a fan of orchestration in music and scoring, and have thus far mainly used Reason for it. I have various samples, and even some old soundfonts that I have combined to get the closest-to-'real' sound I can. As mainly a keyboard / keytar player, recording the actual string instruments isn't really an option for me, I've just been using midi controllers and keyboards to do the best I can.

Does anyone have any software suggestions or tips on how to make strings/orchestra sound more 'real'?

thanks!

-Tuomas Easton

http://www.tuomaseaston.com/

 

[b3maniac]

This is a question that can lead to a very long discussion as realism is a quest for many of us. Of course, there is no substitution for the real thing. My preferred approach is to blend real acoustic with VST when possible. Otherwise I put a lot of effort into using midi to mimic the techniques of the real instruments. Here's a link to a site that gives you the idea of how I try to approach it: Don
http://www.midi-orchestration.net/p/sequencing-midi-tips.html

 

[Tuomas Easton]

That link is very helpful! thanks Don.

How have you gone about mixing 'real acoustic' in the past? Do you record actual string players in a studio or something?

thanks!

 

[b3maniac]

I have some horn player friends and one person who also is a violin player. I track the acoustic instrument one a single track, and typically record a second track of the same arrangement ( for spare and editing). I then play VST instruments on their own tracks along with the acoustic recording. I try to make the acoustic track the predominate line and do the mix down with that in mind.

 

[Tuomas Easton]

Hmm, that's not a bad idea... now where to find actual orchestra players haha. If you're curious, here's a piece I did for a movie that I scored back in 2010, Real horns would have definitely helped... but that's what you get for the 'promise of 2% of revenue after expenses'.

https://soundcloud.com/tuomaseaston/the-fury-of-odin

 

[b3maniac]

Tuomas, that is good work. You're doing more than I had expected. I don't always have the opportunity or access to get real acoustic tracks and have to use the other VST tools. A few of the techniques I use then are: *record a track in midi (say for example, trumpet), then I use a couple of different VST trumpets blended together and rendered into an audio for different tonality. * I try different VSTs to find samples that work together in the context I need * I use swells and cut-offs on strings and horns when appropriate * I sometimes distract attention from a background string section by using a separate pizzicato string run or lick * I sometime mix less predominate horns for back ground ( french horn, baritone, wind section. I use sonar, and I can draw-in CC data (or volumn change) on individual midi tracks. IF you can find some good "bowed" sting samples, those are good in many contexts. I use every VST I have to experiment, even older sample sets for my Emulator 4, plus Gigastudio, Kontakt, Miroslav strings, MOJO Horns (R&B + pop) etc and mix-match the best I can. Don

 

[Tuomas Easton]

oh cool, most of that piece I linked was made with Miroslav strings soundfonts. I wish I had more control over expression on individual bowed instruments.. i've heard East/West is a great program for that?

Tuomas