New Samples - Chinese Orchestra

[BiNoO]

Great work, thank you very much for this titanic effort! As you refered and I agree, the loop size could be improved but please maintain the realistic aspect of the instruments (noises, scratches, ressonances, etc) a la Mellotron

Bravo

My concern and the choice I made for the final version of the sample was mostly to limit the instrument noise especially on bowed strings (Huqin=Erhu+Zhonghu+Gaohu) and the orchestral section I made out of those samples, the problem was bow noise is very loud if the mic is close.
I've used Izotope RX4 to adjust the ratio but even this amazing software can't make perfect miracle.
Either it sounds clean but not very natural, or it sounds too dirty.
The other option which would have been more expensive is to record in a large room or concert hall and capture the sound balanced with this natural reverb, it would be good if I aim for a section but there would be much less attack and that would be annoying on a keyboard.

[Spider]

Wow, it's great to be able to interact directly with the designer of the sounds!

I admit I have no knowledge at all of Chinese traditional instruments (so your second goal is fulfilled )
I have yet to download and test the new library, but the demos sound great! I especially like the expressiveness of the sounds, they don't sound "flat" and lifeless like the average string-brass sample.
Are the demos tweaked in any way (pitch bend, effects on...) or do the samples sound so good by themselves? If the second is true, I double the compliments for your effort and the result!

Then it's up to every user to judge if these sounds will be useful or interesting for his own kind of music, but it's always great to have more options available and more opportunities to learn.
I admit that I will probably never use these sounds in my cover-tribute bands, but for sure I will spend a lot of time toying and experimenting with them... and learning about the as-yet-unknown-to-me instruments they come from.

I'm always amazed at how MUCH music there is out there, and how our western tradition is just a tiny part of it.
Keep curious, keep learning, keep playing.

Thanks again Pierre!

[BiNoO]

Wow, it's great to be able to interact directly with the designer of the sounds!

I admit I have no knowledge at all of Chinese traditional instruments (so your second goal is fulfilled )
I have yet to download and test the new library, but the demos sound great! I especially like the expressiveness of the sounds, they don't sound "flat" and lifeless like the average string-brass sample.
Are the demos tweaked in any way (pitch bend, effects on...) or do the samples sound so good by themselves? If the second is true, I double the compliments for your effort and the result!

Then it's up to every user to judge if these sounds will be useful or interesting for his own kind of music, but it's always great to have more options available and more opportunities to learn.
I admit that I will probably never use these sounds in my cover-tribute bands, but for sure I will spend a lot of time toying and experimenting with them... and learning about the as-yet-unknown-to-me instruments they come from.

I'm always amazed at how MUCH music there is out there, and how our western tradition is just a tiny part of it.
Keep curious, keep learning, keep playing.

Thanks again Pierre!

Thanks for your appreciation.
Yes the demo was recorded using a Nord Wave and a Nord Electro, therefore I was able to use a bit of pitch bend and also I assigned the modulation wheel to switch smoothly from one sound to its variation (for example tremolo). It is actually not too difficult to program.
Because Nord Wave is discontinued and not replaced yet, I didn't include those patches on the sample page but I can give more technical details to those interested in recreating this program.
The vibrato can also be assigned on aftertouch and adds a lot of realism too. Anyway I've included real recorded vibrato effects too on separate nsmp so you can still have it on Nord Electro but also compare with the function on Wave/Stage.

[BiNoO]

Superb! Many thanks! Coincidentally the other day I was reading about Chinese instruments and a type of bell that sounds different tones, depending where you hit it (!).

[maurus]

BiNoO: Wow, great work indeed! I can't wait to experiment with these sounds on my Electro.
And thanks for posting and sharing your experience.

[BiNoO]

Thanks Pierre! Truly, this work of yours is a contribution to musical mankind (and womankind). All respect due.

Bless,

Pablo

[c0wfunk]

Hi Pierre, add mine to the thanks you deserve. I am curious if and how you accounted for the different tonality in Chinese music from the western equal tempered system.

I hope to have time to load the samples soon and see what I can do with them!

Cheers,
Jeremy

[BiNoO]

Superb! Many thanks! Coincidentally the other day I was reading about Chinese instruments and a type of bell that sounds different tones, depending where you hit it (!).

Thanks. This collection yet actually only includes melodic instruments. But I had the idea to release a second part focusing on Chinese percussions which is a very big and fascinating part of Chinese musical heritage. I could sample acoustic cymbals, gong, snare... to be used as NSMP files but also create a Nord Drum 2 synthesized Bank. I really can't promise if and when it would be done. I guess it all depends on the interest Chinese and Western users will show to this first part of the project.

[BiNoO]

Hi Pierre, add mine to the thanks you deserve. I am curious if and how you accounted for the different tonality in Chinese music from the western equal tempered system.

I hope to have time to load the samples soon and see what I can do with them!

Cheers,
Jeremy

Thanks, that's a very good question.
In classical music, Chinese instruments (like Western Instruments) are tuned at 442 Hz. I asked the musicians to tune their instrument at 440 Hz.

First I thought I wouldn't adjust any tone and let the instrument sound exactly as recorded but then, while testing demos of multiple instruments together, I realised this wouldn't work for Western ears.
Some of the instruments are indeed not even on the whole range of notes playable. It is still based on equal tempered system but with some tolerance if I can put it this way. Maybe if I had access to top quality instruments (equivalent of Stradivarius I guess), pitch would have been more stable but trust me, the musician I recorded were all great professionals and play on great equipment.
All are graduated from Beijing China Central Conservatory, which is the most demanding classical music school in the Chinese world.

I had then to manually repitch every single sample (1500+). Only this step took me something like 10 hours.
I chose to change the speed of playing, therefore I didn't affect at all the tone.
The final result you can hear was a much richer, warmer and more beautiful tone when playing a chord on the keyboard.

[BiNoO]

BiNoO: Wow, great work indeed! I can't wait to experiment with these sounds on my Electro.
And thanks for posting and sharing your experience.

Thanks and please do not hesitate to use them in a non orthodox way.

Generally, you can be generous on the amount of reverb given. It seems they go along with a sense of large space if you want to emulate how we sometimes hear them in movies.
The plucked instruments (especially Pipa, Liuqin, Zhongran) are also very interesting to be played a funky way exactly like you would on a Clavinet. They are very punchy. Why not add distortion, wah wah or phaser.

For those of you using Nord Wave or Nord Stage 2, don't forget to play with pitch bend.

You can experiment with tremolo/autopan on the Sheng.

Try the Guqin Harmonics like you would with a DX7 Rhodes, with a bit of chorus.

Flutes sound very good in section too. The Dizi was actually made of three different flutes to cover a large range on the keyboard naturally