Symphony #9 for the Virtual Orchestra, 1st movement

[Jerry Gerber]

From the album Virtual Harmonics

Scored for VSL Symphonic Cube

PLAY

[bitflipper]

Damn, this is so good, Jerry! Jeez, I wish I knew how to make brass that expressive.

[InstrEd]

I have to agree.  Jerry, you really do make the MIDI expressive.  Nice work as usual.  Impressive that you do it all in the staff view to

[Jerry Gerber]

1 hour ago, bitflipper said:

Damn, this is so good, Jerry! Jeez, I wish I knew how to make brass that expressive.

Thanks bitflippper.

If your brass samples don't have built-in dynamics (the samples are of actual instruments going from p to f, or pfp, or f to p, etc. then you have to do it with cc7 or cc11.  That's how I did it before I had the VSL library.  If you write for 3 trumpets, and they're all playing the same line, make sure you de-tune them from each other a little bit, maybe 5 or 10 cents, and also make sure you stagger them so that one starts on the beat, one starts maybe 10 ticks early and one starts 10 ticks late.  This will open up and give a much fuller sound and create more distinction between 1 trumpet and 3, or 1 trombone and 3, etc.

Also, since brass sit in the back of the orchestra, if you give them a little longer reverb and very slightly more reverb, that can make a difference.   Experiment, there's no right way or wrong way to sequence music...

Jerry

 

[Jerry Gerber]

9 hours ago, InstrEd said:

I

 

Edited June 22, 2020 by jsg

[Jerry Gerber]

Thanks InstrEd!   I am able to work in the staff view the way I do because I was composing and playing music decades before I even knew what a DAW was.  I think the better of a player one is, the more likely it is to transfer that knowledge of phrasing, articulation, gesture, intention and musicality in general to music that is sequenced within a DAW.  

[noynekker]

Hi Jerry . . . so uplifting to listen to your compositions here on our Cakewalk forum, it's such a journey for the ears, this one is particularly amazing . . . have you ever had your compositions played by a live orchestra ? If that came to my town I would surely go see it !

[Jerry Gerber]

3 hours ago, noynekker said:

Hi Jerry . . . so uplifting to listen to your compositions here on our Cakewalk forum, it's such a journey for the ears, this one is particularly amazing . . . have you ever had your compositions played by a live orchestra ? If that came to my town I would surely go see it !

Thanks noynekker.  When I was working on my college degree in music composition and theory I heard my works played often by ensembles.  But it's very difficult to get a top orchestra to play long pieces, only about 15% of music programmed in the U.S. by orchestras is by living composers.   If an orchestra wanted to play one of my pieces and offered me both sufficient rehearsal time and a recording of course I would say yes.  But the politics of getting an unknown piece played and recorded are formidable.  I actually am quite content to realize my work electronically as I love working in the digital medium.  I am more interested in music as a recording art than a performance art..

[thegaltieribrothers]

Hi Jerry,

Loved the piece reminded me of spy thrillers in places + relaxing in golden sunshine in others.

Thanks for sharing.

Good Job!

regards

paul