2 years, to the day

Used Instruments

  • Oboe

  • Piano

  • Flautando Strings

  • Low Strings

Downloads and Information

Piano

Black polished grand piano, a used instrument for sale, highlighting its keys, strings, and open lid.

Preparation

Delay the notes manually to ensure playback behind the beat for creating a more emotional feeling. This is most obvious on the first note of bar 5 but also happens on almost all other notes.

Basic Phrasing

  • Only Midi Velocity is used

Digital audio workstation (DAW) piano roll editor displaying a musical sequence for Soft Piano, with piano keys on the left, pink and purple notes on a grid, and velocity bars below.

Finishing Touches

  • Dynamic Range (CC30): 74 Applies a compressor (Make quiet sounds louder)
  • Humanize Delay Scale (CC25): 110

Oboe

Dark brown classical oboe musical instrument with gold keys

Instrument / Preset Selection

  • Oboe 1 / VelXF sus / Classic

Preparation / Articulation Selection

  • Legato con vibrato

Basic Phrasing

  • Modulation (CC1) for basic phrasing & balancing of the last note in phase 1
  • Expression (CC11) to increase dynamic range
  • Timbre Adjust (CC8) for shaping note ends at the end of the phrase
A digital audio workstation (DAW) midi interface showing automation curves for modulation, expression, and timbre control of oboe notes.

Finishing Touches

  • Humanize Delay Scale (CC25): 25

Flautando Strings

Orchestral string instruments, including multiple cellos and double basses, representing string ensemble music.

Preparation

  • Distribute the strings to be able to use "real" Legato transitions per line
  • Make sure that one instrument (e.g.: Violins 1) never plays back the same note
  • Check that there are overlaps to correctly trigger the legato patches
  • Slightly adjust note ends for a realistic playback

Possible solution:

Digital audio workstation screen displaying a MIDI piano roll editor with notes for violins, violas, and cellos, illustrating an orchestral arrangement.

Preparation / Articulation Selection

Create an emulated flautando by setting up a custom patch for every instrument:

  • Combine legato (Patch "Legato AT+RS soft") and tremolo patch (timestretched to 50% playback speed)
  • Enable the parallel mode and set the parallel mode to "Mix" for legato and tremolo patch
  • Set Vel. XF (CC1) to a value of 0
Screenshot of the Vienna Symphonic Library Synchron Player software interface, displaying articulation and custom settings for Violin samples, along with performance, tuning, and humanize controls, and a virtual keyboard.

Variations per string instrument:

  • For first violin a second custom patch needs to be created to get a portamento transition (beginning of bar 6). Just repeat what you did before but select portamento as base patch instead of legato
  • For 2nd Violins, Violas and Cello create a second custom patch (as before, but select the "Legato RS soft" patch) Apply this patch to the first 3 notes to have a softer start and use the previous patch (with normal attack) on all other notes

Basic Phrasing

  • Add a phrasing curve with expression (CC11) for all flautando strings
Digital audio workstation screen showing MIDI notes for flautando strings with expression automation.

Finishing Touches

  • Activate Timbre Adjust and set the values (CC8) to 50% (midi value ~74) to make the strings less prominent
  • Set Legato Blur (CC33) to 50% (midi value ~74) to create more smeared legato transitions
  • Set Dynamic Range (CC30) to values around 45 (This adds a compressor to make quieter passages louder)
  • Set Humanize Delay Scale (CC25) to values around 25

Low Strings

Two used string instruments, a cello and a double bass, signifying flautando and low strings.

Instrument / Preset Selection

  • Cello / VelXF Sus / Lush Long
  • Double Basses / VelXF Sus / Lush Long

Preparation / Articulation Selection

  • Legato / Soft attack / Soft release (for the first 4 notes)
  • Legato / Normal attack / Soft release (for all other notes)
Digital audio workstation (DAW) piano roll displaying the difference between soft attack legato (green notes) and normal attack legato (red notes) for musical sequencing and instrument sound design.

Basic Phrasing

  • Use ModWheel (CC1) to create 2 basic phrases (First Phrase: Start until middle of bar 4)
    • Split the first phrase into two sub phrases (reduce at beginning of bar 3)
    • Add a note decay at the end of Phrase 1 / Middle of bar 4
  • Use Expression (CC11) to increase dynamic range
Digital audio workstation screenshot displaying MIDI notes, modulation, and expression for an Oboe or Cello instrument track.

Finishing Touches

  • Set Humanize Delay Scale (CC25) to values around 30
  • Set Humanize Legato Blur (CC33) to values around 30

Mixing

Piano

  • Increase Main microphone from 0dB to 2dB
  • Reduce the Reverb Send to -10 (bring the piano closer)
  • Adjust the EQ settings (brighten up the sound)
    • -6.61 dB at 490 Hz with Q 1.45
    • +7.27 dB at 8k Hz with Q 0.71
Screenshot of the Synchron Player software, displaying the main interface for instrument and effect selection, alongside an open Equalizer Main window showing an adjustable EQ curve and detailed band parameters like gain, frequency, and Q values.

Master Volumes

Instrument Value
Oboe 90 (no adjustment)
Soft Piano 117
1st Violins 100
2nd Violins 107
Violas 101
Cello 101 (no adjustment)
Double Basses 62

Other Tweaks

  • Add a tempo map with some variation around 105 bpm and a ritardando at the last bar

Top learnings

  1. Add the free Soft Piano to a Synchron Prime Edition Project
  2. Utilize the Dynamic Range Slider (Compressor)
  3. Emulate Flautando
  4. Use Legato Blur for more smeared transitions