Synchron Woodwinds

Introduction

The instruments were recorded at Stage A, the main hall of Vienna’s revitalized Vienna Synchron Stage. The recordings were executed using an expansive, phase-controlled multi-microphone set-up, capturing solo and ensemble woodwinds played in a scoring stage with exceptional acoustics, now ready to be used in your studio. This document will provide you with the information you need to use the Library with our Vienna Synchron Player.

Standard and Extended Library

All instruments were recorded using 11 microphones, subdivided into 7 sections. The Standard Library includes 4 of these sections (as well as a RAM-friendly Room Mix section composed of merged samples from the individual positions), allowing you to integrate instruments recorded with a stereo Decca tree into your projects using the Vienna Instruments and Vienna Instruments Pro players or our mixing hosts Vienna Ensemble and Vienna Ensemble Pro. Adding the Extended Library and thus getting the Full Library expands your possibilities to 5.1 surround and Auro 3D 9.1.

Microphone positions

Standard Library

Room Mix – Stereo
Close Mic – Mono
Mid Layer Mic – Stereo (L/R)
Main/Room Mic – Decca Tree Stereo (L/R)
Main/Room Mic – Decca Tree Mono (Center)

Extended Library

Main Surround – Stereo (L/R)
High Stereo (3D) – Stereo (L/R)
High Surround (3D) – Stereo (L/R)

The instrument Presets also include different mixer presets. By default the classic room mixes are loaded which include the Standard Library microphone positions "Room-Mix", "Close" and "Mid". These are balanced in the stereo field to represent the respective instrument’s position in the Synchron Stage set-up.

Immersive Sound and Auro 3D

Auro 3D is an immersive audio technology that allows for three-dimensional sound perception. The Belgian company Auro Technologies developed this technology based on a special speaker configuration, adding four additional speakers to a 5.1 surround configuration. These speakers (so-called "Heights") are situated above the front and surround speakers and generate acoustic reflections that are perceived naturally due to the fact that sounds originate from around as well as from above the listener. Thanks to the comprehensive selection of discrete audio channels with the Full Library, you may mix your instruments in Auro 3D as well as in Dolby Atmos.

Flow and Precision Presets

The instruments of Synchron Woodwinds provide two different kinds of Presets, accessible by clicking on the icons “Flow” resp. “Precision” in the Synchron Player’s top bar. Flow Presets offer an intuitive, graphic approach to the library’s contents, with instrument, articulation, and sound parameters displayed in a single window.

Precision Presets are what you already know if you own other VSL libraries. They allow you to explore the depths of the library, adjusting and tweaking parameters as you see fit.

Mixer Presets

For each instrument, there are a number of Mixer Presets for stereo and surround microphone configurations that depict different recording situations: Close, Classic, Wide, Distant, Ambience, Lush, Lush long, Sparkling, and Catchy (the latter four only for stereo set-ups). Apart from that, you will also find Processed Standard Mixer Presets, which give you an idea of the possibilities and may present a good starting point for your own creations.

Flow Presets

As mentioned above, Flow Presets give you instant access to the most important parameters of an instrument, its articulations, and general sound settings in the Synchron Player’s Flow view. The display is subdivided accordingly, with the graphic keyboard underneath. On the Flow Browser page, you can click on START TOUR to step through explanations of the different Flow elements and parameters as shown below.

Instrument / Tone

The Instrument section shows a symbolic image of the selected Instrument, headed by the name of the loaded Preset. You can return to the Flow Browser to select another instrument by clicking on the field. Clicking on the Info circle will connect you to the Vienna Academy, our instrumentology site.

The Dynamics fader under the instrument is set to the modwheel (MIDI CC1) or keystroke velocity by default – with the long notes used in the example below, it is the modwheel, meaning that you can influence the volume of a note being played by changing the controller value. You could also set it to a breath controller (MIDI CC2), leaving your hand free for other stuff. The staccatos, e.g., are set to keystroke velocity, as changing the volume of short notes while they are sounding hardly makes sense.

In the Tone field, you get access to three other items which may be an important factor in making your piece sound truly alive:

Humanization (MIDI CC27) lets you determine the percentage of not being exactly on time – a kind of counter-quantization that introduces an element of necessary imperfection.
Timbre (MIDI CC8) affects the tone of the instrument, making it sound brighter or darker.
Expression (MIDI CC11) is an additional volume control defining a percentage of CC7 (volume), and can be used for automation.

Articulation / Performance

The Articulation pane holds all the samples, so to speak. In the upper field, you see the possible choices with their keyswitches, which are also marked on the Synchron Player’s virtual keyboard. Of course, you can also click on a button to switch to that articulaton. The articulation buttons are color-coded: orange for short notes, green for long ones, and blue for the Universal articulation that allows you to perform without keyswitching.

The Performance field contains all the playing variants of the selected articulation. So, depending on the number and type of variants, the performance options may look quite simple. There are up to four different parameters per articulation. Here’s a few examples:

Short notes allow you to choose Switch-Type (MIDI CC101), i.e., you can select the type of short note played either with keyswitches or with the modwheel.
Type control for other articulations is mostly set to keystroke velocity, or in some instances to keyswitches.
The Legato option of long notes and trills can be switched on and off with MIDI CC3.
Some instruments feature a Vibrato fader knob assigned to MIDI CC20, allowing you to “soft-switch” with a narrow crossfade area between samples without and with vibrato.
Release offers different release options – e.g., switching between ringing and cut release of the fast repetitions – with the help of MIDI CC4.

Sound

In the Sound pane, you can select a basic Category on the top left, and one of the Mixer Presets from that category on the right.

Mic Balance (MIDI CC61) adjusts the relation between intimate and ambient microphoning.
FX/Reverb (MIDI CC5) sets the amount of reverb, which is different in intensity according to the selected preset.
Output Volume (MIDI CC63) takes care of how much of what you do comes out of the Synchron Player.

Finally, there is the choice of Output Routing represented by the four buttons Standard, Category, Multi, and Reverb+:

Standard is the standard Stereo configuration where all microphones are routed to the master output.
Category: here, only the ambient microphones are routed to the master output, while close microphones go to ouput 2,
Multi routes all microphones to different outputs.
Master out – Main, Room-Mix, Reverb
Output 2 – Main-Center
Output 3 – Surround
Output 4 – High-Surround
Output 5 – Mid
Output 6 – Close
Reverb+ is routed like the Multi configuration, but has the Reverb channel routed to its own output 11.

If you’re not sure about the routing options, you can also click on the information button next to the heading.

Precision Presets

An instrument's Precision Presets comprise all recorded Patches in articulation groups, which again contain types of the respective articulation, with further options if available. The general structure was adheres to that of our other Synchron Collections, making it easy to switch or combine instruments without major adaptations.

Articulations are disabled by default. Enabling an articulation means that all the types contained will be activated, too, so if you happen to be short of RAM it is advisable only to activate what you really need (you can always add more types later).

By default the keyswitches for articulations are mapped starting from C1 (for Middle C = C4) for higher instruments, and from C5 for low range instruments (in this collection, only the contrabass clarinet). For the available types, the keyswitches start from C2 for high instruments, and from C6 for low ones.

Additional options within articulations or types are offered by the Dimension Controllers. The controller function is indicated by the respective caption, as of course it may take on different tasks as needed.

Apart from the regular articulation slots, every instrument also features a “Custom” one that does not contain any samples. It provides 6 slots ready for you to configure presets of your own.

Preset types

The library offers three basic Preset types for every instrument in their respective folders, marked "Velocity", "VelXF", and "VelXF sus". In the regular "Velocity" presets, note volume is controlled by keystroke velocity just like a piano. In "VelXF" Presets, all articulations have velocity crossfading activated so that you can control dynamics with MIDI controller CC1, the modwheel. In "VelXF sus" Presets, however, velocity crossfading is only activated for long notes, while the dynamics of short notes are controlled by keystroke velocity, thus facilitating phrasing. Velocity crossfading can be enabled or disabled by clicking its on/off symbol in the Synchron Player's Perform tab.

Sound categories

The Presets of each instrument are subdivided into several Articulation categories (depending on the instrument) plus a "Custom" slot ready for your own creations. With the exception of the FX presets, these categories are:

Short Notes
Long Notes
Legato
Dynamics
Fluttertongue and trills
Fast repetitions
Lyrical legato

Within these Articulation categories, you can select a Type, e.g., short or regular staccato and for some of the types there are additional options available, such as marcato or vibrato type control.

Flutes, Oboe, English horn, Bassoons

The flutes (Piccolo flute, Flute 1, Alto flute), Oboe 1, English horn, and bassoons (Bassoon 1, Contrabassoon) in this collection have mostly the same articulations and therefore very similar layouts. The clarinets, which do not offer vibrato variants, are listed separately.

Articulation switches: C1–F1 / contrabassoon C5–F5
Type switches: starting at C2 / bassoons C6

Short notes

Short and long staccato bold and agile, portato bold and agile, and long portato with and without vibrato. Use Dim.Ctrl/C (CC30) to crossfade between long portato without and with vibrato.

Bold/agile switch: A0/B0; contrabassoon: A4/B4

Long portato:

Use Dim.Ctrl/C (CC20) to crossfade between long portato without and with vibrato.

Vibrato options: A2–B2 / A6–B6
Vibrato XF: Dim.Ctrl/C (CC20)

Long notes

Sustained notes, regular, marcato, and espressivo, without and with vibrato.
With the vibrato crossfading option, use Dim.Ctrl/C (CC20) to control the vibrato amount.

Vibrato options: A2–B2 / A6–B6
Vibrato XF: Dim.Ctrl/C (CC20)

Legato

Performance legato, regular and fast, espressivo, and normal and fast with marcato start, as well as auto-speed options.
With the vibrato crossfading option, use Dim.Ctrl/C (CC20) to control the vibrato amount.

Vibrato options: A2–B2 / A6–B6
Vibrato XF: Dim.Ctrl/C (CC20)

Auto-speed:

The Auto-speed option implements a controller on Dim.Ctrl/D to switch between normal and fast legato depending on playing speed.

Dynamics

Sforzato, sforzatissimo; crescendo and diminuendo 2/3/4 sec.
The piccolo flute does not offer sforzatissimo, but for reasons of continuity contains a copy of the sforzato patch in that slot.

Type switches: only on white notes
Vibrato options: A2–B2 / A6–B6
Vibrato XF: Dim.Ctrl/C (CC20)

Crescendo and diminuendo:

Duration switches: F#2–G#2 / F#6–G#6

Flutter tonguing and trills

Flutter tonguing, normal and marcato; half and whole tone trills, normal and with legato transitions.

Trills:

Normal / legato transition: A0/B0; contrabassoon: A4/B4

Fast repetitions

Fast repetitions from 120 to 160 BPM with ringing and cut release.

Ringing/cut release: A0/B0; contrabassoon: A4/B4