Hi there,
i strongly consider of becomming a Sibelius user and i am eager to finally turn my back to FInale. However, i need the quite good "out-of-the-box" Sound realisation that Finale provides.
This means: "Human Playback", Keyswitches and the easy Realisation of Keyswitch commands by interpretation of the expressions on the score (like switching from pizz to arco and vice versa). ALso the Sound Quality when using GPO4 library is quite good and the interpratation and implementation of keyswitchable Insutrmens works fine with Finale.
So my question is: How is this managed in Sibelius? Does Sibelius understand GPO4 and does it work well with Keyswitches to use muted and open Brass, Fluttertongue, tremolo, pizz and theirlike? Or do i have to send midi dump notes in a hidden staff to get the sounds to change? As well, does Sibelius realise crescendo and diminiuendo and legato in playback, like it is notated in the score?
Finale is doing this quite well, thanks to "Human Playback", but it is actually in my opinion the only feature Finale does well.
Can i get some opions here, please?
Thanks!
Sound Realisation Finale vs Sibelius
Everyone's impression of what good playback is, is going to be different. I've never used Finale, so I can't tell you which sounds better. Though I haven't been impressed with some of the things I've heard from Finale(what do you expect from a Sibelius user).
I have heard of the "Human Playback" function. There is no such button in Sibelius. There is a set of expression and rubato controls. You might have to spend some time figuring them out. Not a simple button to push.
Keyswitch, as such, is not used to change instruments. There is a way to add text to the score to switch to a different instrument. Much as you would in writing the score by hand.
The Sound Library for Sibelius is some 36gb, and in my opinion, better than GPO. But since you are used to GPO you may think otherwise. You can use other VSTs with Sibelius.
Sibelius will playback hairpins, dynamics, rit, accel, accents, phrasing, etc, just as you notate them in the score.
If you do switch, remember that Sibelius is not Finale. That means that you need to spend some time learning new software.
Also you need a fairly beefy computer. The suggested requirements are a little light. You really need 8gb of ram(or more) to play large scores. An SSD (not required) cuts the loading time of sounds by a significant amount. No problems on W8, or the latest Mac.
Finale and Sibelius are not DAWs. If playback is your main concern, you would need to export to a DAW. As it is, I believe you can get good playback with Sibelius. But it takes some time to learn how to do that. I often have two scores for a piece. One marked for real players, and the other marked to get playback the way I want it. They are not always that different.
You can crossgrade from Finale for a good price.
Good luck.
I have heard of the "Human Playback" function. There is no such button in Sibelius. There is a set of expression and rubato controls. You might have to spend some time figuring them out. Not a simple button to push.
Keyswitch, as such, is not used to change instruments. There is a way to add text to the score to switch to a different instrument. Much as you would in writing the score by hand.
The Sound Library for Sibelius is some 36gb, and in my opinion, better than GPO. But since you are used to GPO you may think otherwise. You can use other VSTs with Sibelius.
Sibelius will playback hairpins, dynamics, rit, accel, accents, phrasing, etc, just as you notate them in the score.
If you do switch, remember that Sibelius is not Finale. That means that you need to spend some time learning new software.
Also you need a fairly beefy computer. The suggested requirements are a little light. You really need 8gb of ram(or more) to play large scores. An SSD (not required) cuts the loading time of sounds by a significant amount. No problems on W8, or the latest Mac.
Finale and Sibelius are not DAWs. If playback is your main concern, you would need to export to a DAW. As it is, I believe you can get good playback with Sibelius. But it takes some time to learn how to do that. I often have two scores for a piece. One marked for real players, and the other marked to get playback the way I want it. They are not always that different.
You can crossgrade from Finale for a good price.
Good luck.
Bob Porter
Sibelius 7.5, W10,i5,16 GB ram,desktop
Sibelius 7.5, W10,i5,16 GB ram,desktop
THanks for your reply, bobp.
My computers are up to date with up to 36 GB RAM, Octo-Core CPUs with 4.5 GHZ and SSDs with 500 GB up to 1 TB, so that is not an issue.
My main question now is, is Sibelius by it's own changing instrument sounds (from pizz to arco for example) or do i have to add midi-dump data there?
Regarding your advice to use a DAW: No, thanks. I am not mastering a studio quality sound track here. I "only" need some good sample of my work. IN fact, DAW will be outdated soon, in my humble opinion. It is way too time consuming and the increasing Computer ressources will aloow for intelligent routines like "Human playback" to inrepret the score directly.
So please, come back to my question: Will Sibelius interpret informations like "pizz" and "arco" or "cond sord": on it's own or do i have to change the instrument sounds maually? That is my main concern.
My computers are up to date with up to 36 GB RAM, Octo-Core CPUs with 4.5 GHZ and SSDs with 500 GB up to 1 TB, so that is not an issue.
My main question now is, is Sibelius by it's own changing instrument sounds (from pizz to arco for example) or do i have to add midi-dump data there?
Regarding your advice to use a DAW: No, thanks. I am not mastering a studio quality sound track here. I "only" need some good sample of my work. IN fact, DAW will be outdated soon, in my humble opinion. It is way too time consuming and the increasing Computer ressources will aloow for intelligent routines like "Human playback" to inrepret the score directly.
So please, come back to my question: Will Sibelius interpret informations like "pizz" and "arco" or "cond sord": on it's own or do i have to change the instrument sounds maually? That is my main concern.
If you add the word pizz in Technique Text ( you will learn what that is) strings playback pizz. Same with the other techniques you want. This is just like you would see it in any score, and the way you would write in by hand. Sibelius is not based on midi information, so that will be different for you. Depending on how you add the text to the score (Expression, ctrl+E, or Technique, ctrl+T) you can change many things. Instrument change is another shortcut. Seems pretty simple to me.
Bob Porter
Sibelius 7.5, W10,i5,16 GB ram,desktop
Sibelius 7.5, W10,i5,16 GB ram,desktop
Thanks for the information. Does that work with GPO4 as well or only with the included Sibelius sound library?If you add the word pizz in Technique Text ( you will learn what that is) strings playback pizz. Same with the other techniques you want. This is just like you would see it in any score, and the way you would write in by hand.
