In this example there’s a host of workflow features that make this process far more amenable that you might first think.
If you’re serious about your horn arrangement, therefore, you’ll ultimately want to take the single-instrument approach that we outlined with the Studio Strings project last month. Equally, there’s little option to mix the brass section – maybe favouring one instrument group over the other or creating a more defined stereo image. Though impressive, it ultimately dictates how your music sounds and how you choose to blend instruments.įor example, a lead part could be played by a distinct combination – like trumpet and sax, or a combination of alto and tenor saxes – something that can be difficult if not impossible to force with Auto Voice Split. The result of Auto Voice Split is, of course, much closer to how a real horn arranger, or horn section for that matter, would play your music.
By comparison, the R&B Section, for example, plays just the lead voice for single lines, dividing to the full section (with an instrument per voice) when you play a chord. This might be the effect you’re after, especially for strong single-lined brass parts, but the results quickly become artificial when you play chords. With Auto Voice Split deactivated all the instruments – trombone, trumpets and saxes – effectively play in unison. The killer feature is the Auto Voice Split option. The new controls are largely self-explanatory: varying the amount of performance vibrato, creating subtle timbral difference between notices and controlling the level of key click noise that a sax naturally produces.įor quick, off-the-peg horn lines, the ensemble patches work surprisingly well, and given the distinction between the instruments, it’s easier to discern the ‘behind the scenes’ scripting than with Studio Strings. To the right of the GUI, however, you’ll find a mix of familiar (Attack and Release) and new (Auto Vibrato, Harmonize and Key Clicks for the saxes). The principle controls – including Monophonic triggering which is useful for realistic ‘single instrument’ performances, and Dynamics via CC which is essential for realistic dynamics on long articulations – are the same. The main controls for Studio Horns share many similar features to Studio Strings, although you’ll soon notice some differences here as well.
Of course, you might also want to use a single instrument – like trumpet or sax solo – in which case you’ll turn to the single instrument patches. As with Studio Strings, the Studio Horns instrument is split between single instrument patches, for example a trumpet, and full-sized ensemble patches that blend a combination of trumpets, saxes and trombones.Įnsemble patches are great for quick-and-easy brass lines, especially on pop and R&B tracks that traditionally use a blend of instruments, rather than distinct voices, whereas more involved jazz arrangements (like a big band, for example) may want the distinct and separate instruments.