Best board for horn sections?

[psionic11]

If there's a way to make all parts of a Studio Set use the same channel in the Integra, I haven't found it anywhere. I'd be happy with that. Maybe they learnt something and applied it to the FA series.

 

Here's how to assign a part to whatever MIDI Channel you want.

 

1) Press Part View button.

2) Press and hold SHIFT, then press the arrow keys (around the wheel) to go to the tab Level / Ch.

3) Use the arrow keys to move the cursor to the CH column.

4) Use the wheel to change the channel to whatever you want.

5) EXIT button.

 

Don't forget to save / write your changes: Press SHIFT + EDIT button, then yes to Studio Write, etc.

 

Hope that helps.

 

[psionic11]

That is the issue that we all have to deal with using our workstation synths... we can't actually assign a specific instrument to a note within the voicing, so we are always getting an incorrect, homogeneous blend of all the instruments.

Using KARMA, you can actually approximate having the horns only play specific parts, but it's limited and rather complicated, and might not be worth it to most.

 

My preferred approach is to make a different combi for every cover. I listen carefully to the song, picking out the individual instruments, and seeing who is playing what. Then I make mini zones, and esp with horn parts, there is some overlapping zones. Then I play the actual chords and notes the horns are playing, not just generic chord blocks. Gets more than close enough, and minimizes that generic homogeneous sound you mention. It worked well for songs like The Walk (Mayer Hawthorne), Power of Love, Love Shack, Uptown Funk. May not work so well for other songs or genres.

 

I kinda cheat though, and also use an Integra, split and layered the same way. Best of both worlds.

 

[Tusker]

I do believe that some Kontakt libraries can do this... but I can't recall which...

 

Jerry

 

Yamaha has something really cool going on in their Tyros/Genos products with their Ensemble feature. It has a mode that will split up sounds intelligently based on the number of notes you play. So layer a trombone, tenor sax and trumpet, and then when you play a 3-note voicing the bone takes the lower note, the sax is in the middle, and the trumpet on top. Voila - perfect Chicago voicings. That is the issue that we all have to deal with using our workstation synths... we can't actually assign a specific instrument to a note within the voicing, so we are always getting an incorrect, homogeneous blend of all the instruments.

Yes. Super cool feature. It would be great to see that in something under $5500. ;-) I wonder if there are VSTs that will do this?

 

I have used Kontakt Sessions Horns Pro for this, to get the phrasing right as Jerry described above. Other tools are Chris Heins Horns and Mainstage/Logic Studio Horns. In addition to the dynamic note allocation, you can adjust your ensemble (e.g. you can set the trumpets an octave apart to get "that" sound). Also you can have round robin samples and legato samples, which add an organic quality and smoother melodic lines respectively. It's just a matter of time until these tricks become more widely available on more romplers. As a matter of taste, I've come to prefer a "small realistic horn section" to a "large wall-of synth horn section". On a three hour night the ear will get tired unless the sounds are dynamic and expressive. In any case, as others have mentioned, having at least one real horn player makes a huge difference. HTH.

[t9cstudio]

 

Here's how to assign a part to whatever MIDI Channel you want.

 

1) Press Part View button.

2) Press and hold SHIFT, then press the arrow keys (around the wheel) to go to the tab Level / Ch.

3) Use the arrow keys to move the cursor to the CH column.

4) Use the wheel to change the channel to whatever you want.

5) EXIT button.

 

Don't forget to save / write your changes: Press SHIFT + EDIT button, then yes to Studio Write, etc.

 

Hope that helps.

 

 

Yes, it does. Thanks!

[Jon G]

From about 1995 to 2000, I used an Ensoniq VFXsd (which had kinda crappy horns) MIDIed to a Korg 03/rw (which had okay horn patches). When the VFX died, I started using my (studio) Kurzweil K2000 for live gigs. I made a pretty nice brass patch on the K2000 from a Roland sample I converted from a Roland brass sample CD. I MIDIed to the same Korg 03/rw and combined the horn sounds - worked well for about 10-15 years. I was in a band with a sax player and doubled the parts with him - I thought it sounded nice.

 

I normally use a Kronos 61 now for live brass sounds. The Yamaha Motifs IMO have improved brass sounds with later models; the XS, XF, S90XS and MOXF. I haven't tried the Montage or the MODX.

[DenCV]

Our band leader always liked real horns. Unfortunately, the clubs we played didn't support them, unless we wanted to be playing for 40 a night. So it rell on me, the keyboardist to do the horn parts decently enough to keep the leader happy (which wasn't too hard, he always got guys from the blues jams to be the horn section, they were anything but a section. I tried everything I could under 1000, settled for an MX61, which actually sounded pretty close. But as everybody already said, it's how you play them. My first instrument, and one I still play quite a bit is trumpet, so I could already think like a brass player, you have to find a way of doing that. Second, you have to be willing to use some unorthodox keyboard techniques, even if all the keyboard guys in the audience will make fun of you! Two that come to mind were "love and happiness", there's a double tongued line in there that I had to do a version of one fingered hunt and peck typing on the keys.Teddy Pendergrass's "Get Up Get Down Get Funky Get Loose" was tough too. SOme are just fun, like Brick House, and superstition. But there were a few that no matter how I tried I wasn't hitting, I remember a live version of a Frankie Beverly and maze song, the studio version was some kind of synth I think, live I'm still not sure wasn't synth, but the leader insisted he heard them and it was real horns. Unfortunately it also had real important EP in it, I was short 2 hands!As a trumpet player I can snobbishly say there is absolutely nothing like real horns. As a hungry musician I can say there's nothing like making enough per night to cover more than the gas.

[Barryjam]

DanCV, if you are talking about 'We are One,' there is definitely polysynth horn sound in there, but I don"t think there are actual horns.

[mate stubb]

Last night, I ran thru every brass and reed patch in my old XV-2020, looking for something useful. I finally found some saxes that I can work with in my SRX-07 Ultimate Keys card. The brass patches I found are OK but nothing special.

 

I've got to get an editor working so that I can build some detailed performance layers. If I had a SRX-10 Brass card for the other slot that could kick it up a notch. Those seem to be the priciest cards of all right now though - anybody got one they don't need?