New solo string sound fonts
I get that the new Musescore just released, but I would just to point out some things that seem a bit off to me.
Can somebody PLEASE explain to me why the new solo viola sound font SUCKS? Literally, the old one was better! It is more quiet than the other solo strings and sounds worse in general to my ears. Why must it get the short end of the stick? Or does someone think that violists just have the inability to play as loud as cellists and violinists?
At least it isn't as bad as the double bass, which has no solo sound font. Hopefully it gets one soon, because it really does deserve it. I'm sure this is disappointing to many bassists.
Also, I don't think that having two separate sound fonts for two violins or sections are necessary. Like, c'mon, really? You just made the firsts better and louder? We already have the mixer to adjust balance. Some compositions rely on the firsts and seconds sounding the same. This could be resolved easily by making both sections seconds, or even firsts if you want them both to BLAST OVER EVERY OTHER INSTRUMENT BECAUSE THE SOUNDFONT IS LOUDER.
Unfortunately, I think the things with the violins and violas could cause newer composers (the type that will use this application) to be mislead and avoid them. It could also cause the solo bass to possibly be neglected if not added. That is the biggest problem in my eyes.
Anyways, I like the new software in pretty much every other aspect. Nice job, Musescore!
Comments
I agree! I'm just pumping the viola up in the mixer, it's definitely way quiet. Like a at least a whole dynamic marking.
Not sure what you're not liking about the solo viola, but you're welcome to select MS Basic instead in the mixer. If it's just the volume, though, simply turn that up in the mixer.
Having separate samples for 1st & 2nd violins is actually extremely valuable. For one thing, it solves problems that would otherwise occur when playing unisons, where having the same sample twice produces bad audio artifacts. For another, it just makes the payback sound very noticably less mechanical, and allows the ear to pick out the parts better (especially for the solo sounds.
In reply to Not sure what you're not… by Marc Sabatella
I agree that separate sounds for vln 1 & 2 are extremely valuable, it’s nice to get a different color when players trade off the melody. However I do think the vln 2 is quite weak sounding and I agree with original poster that it (and the viola) will discourage some writers from utilizing those positions for melody. So far I’ve had to do things like put an accent on each note to get it to play a melody with any gusto.
Sure you can say “you shouldn’t be effected by the playback sound” or “this is a notation software not a DAW” — to which I would say “Why put so much effort into these impressive new sounds?” Obviously playback is an important part of the new MuseScore, the original poster and I are expressing some constructive critiques in the hopes it could improve further. All of this is under the heading of “these new sounds are amazing and free!”
In reply to Not sure what you're not… by Marc Sabatella
Yes, I do get what you are saying with the firsts and seconds now. Also, I have just been turning the viola up in the mixer a lot of the time, particularly when it is a solo viola.
Despite some aspects that I see as drawbacks, I've come to appreciate the sound font as a whole.
Ok, so I don't think the sound font is that bad, I didn't really mean to say that.
It just seems to get confused sometimes. For example, at slower tempos, it sometimes tries to slide from one note to the next, even though it shouldn't. Once, I had a viola passage of 16th notes at about 80 bpm and it was trying to slide from one note to the next when the notes were thirds and fourths apart.
While the sliding can make the music sound more expressive and lifelike with longer melodies, it causes passages like the one I mentioned above to sound worse.
I think that in general, the staccato can fix problems such as this, but at slower tempos, the sound clips back in at the end of the note like a weird glitch or something.
(After more use, I have also noticed something else: the playback for the viola doesn't play sounds for notes above C6, which is necessary for some solo passages in particular.)
I've attached a file where you can hear the viola playing 16ths without and then with staccato. The last note is a half note with a staccato mark, and you can hear how the sound clips back in at the end. Not a big deal, but I suppose it's worth noting.