Posted
Howdy,
I think this one could be pretty easy and important.
It would be very helpful to have an a/b buffer swap for parameters, or at least breath or volume.
Once the breath controller is used it, from that point on, always returns to 0 (the last thing it sees is no breath.) Within a single container if a few phrases are recorded with breath the ones following it need to be manually drawn up to an approximate RMS value (if it was drawn to the peak of the breath it would be a lot louder)
If there was a global toggle, one could quickly switch back and forth between a clear, objective, flat view; with constant, default values for containers; to a more emotive performance with breath, where instruments may be masked by very low breath values.
As it is I'm finding that I have to wait to use the breath controller till most of the groundwork is done, as a sort of polish.
This is not ideal, as there might be a specific thing that Im trying to achieve in a phrase that I want to record "in the moment" so I don't forget. Controlling the dynamic shape of a phrase v.s. the dynamic shape of larger sections becomes tedious and time consuming, interrupting the composition process.
An A/B toggle would prevent synfire locking me into that volume for the rest of composition process (at least in that container)
What do you think?
p.s. I know one could use both "volume" and "breath" but In many of the applications I use, breath is not only being used to adjust volume, but also the timbre and behavior of the sound.
Sun, 2009-08-02 - 08:07 Permalink
Sorry for the barrage of posts. My visual project is complete and Im doing scoring full time into next year. I'm finally getting a real chance to explore Synfire thoroughly.
I thought about this a/b issue and I wanted to refine the idea.
Perhaps cc parameters (eg breath) can, optionally, be added as values similar to velocity. When selected as symbols there would even be a text field at the bottom right of the phrase editor, where the velocity currently resides. Each note would have a single value attached to it in the same way that velocity is a single value and moves with the notes.
That value would be the "A" value.
The "B" value would still be the specific cc automation performance. With the ability to change over the course of the note.
There would be 3 modes to select from; selected by right clicking the parameter:
A only
B only
B weighted by A.
This third option would weight the B performance by the A value. In this mode, non-destructive meta adjustments can be made to the cc performance by altering the A values.
Graphically these could be displayed the same way the "Length" parameter is (those diagonal vectors.) The first point would be moved vertically to determine the weight, and the lower point would move laterally to determine the center of the weighting occurred. This case would be useful if the point of interest in the cc performance didn't occur exactly at the note on.
In A only mode, parameters can be roughed in in the prototyping stage without needing to be carefully and accurately performed or drawn in. These parameters will also gain the generalized cut and paste functionality, that is peculiar to Synfire, for instance, pasting the velocity to the breath cc.
This will also benefit the growing number of vsti's that rely entirely on breath or cc11 for dynamics and use velocity for portamento or other parameters.
B mode would mirror how synfire currently functions. In context with a filled "A" buffer it also provides a comparative mode to experiment with.
The combined mode would allow for broad changes and experimentation, late into the composing stage, even after many cc have been recorded.
Any thoughts?