EastWest Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition Virtual Instrument Plug-In (Download) - Manual (Page 97)

HOLLYWOOD ORCHESTRA OPUS EDITION C O N T E N T S <
CHAPTER 3: BROWSE 97 C H A P T E R <
Use the Mod Wheel (MIDI CC 1) to select among these 3 levels; the further up you push the
Mod Wheel the more vibrato you hear. And remember that vibrato can be changed continu-
ously, including in the middle of a note.
The sustained notes are available at 5 dynamic levels (think of them as pp , p , mf , f , and ff )
which are controlled by the MIDI “Expression” MIDI CC 11. The MIDI Velocity parameter does
not control the loudness of the notes in this instrument.
The selection of which string to play the sustained notes on can be controlled with either the
Finger Position buttons in the Player window.
These instruments are intended for very fast runs. A minimum speed is sixteenth notes (semi-
quavers) at about 125 beats per minute. While it is possible to play at a slower tempo, the
results will likely be less realistic than at faster speeds.
Spiccato Runs
Both of these Spiccato Run instruments are available only in the 2nd Violins section. They are
intended for playing fast runs with the sound of the spiccato articulation.
As the run moves up or down, the appropriate sample based on the direction and the interval
between notes:
• up a whole tone
• up a half tone
• no change (because it’s the first note in the run)
• down a half tone
• down a whole tone
The differences among these 5 samples are subtle but provide a real sense of a run and not
just individual spiccato samples played in rapid succession. This instrument cannot play a run
in which any consecutive notes are more than a whole tone apart.
In the “Smooth” version, a layer of staccato is layered on top of the transitions between notes.
This composite patch achieves a less abrupt but still characteristically spiccato run.
Tremolos
Hollywood Strings includes two types of tremolos: unmeasured (called simply “Tremolo”) and
measured. In the unmeasured instruments, each player moves his bow without regard to the
tempo, creating a sound with no discernible rhythm.
The measured version is aware of the overall piece’s current tempo, allowing the patch to
pulse in time with that tempo. The “TS” in the name of this instrument means that it uses the
Tempo-Sync (TS) feature to align the speed of the internal beats within the measured tremolo
to the overall tempo of the piece. When Opus runs as a plug-in, it asks the host for the current
tempo. When it runs in standalone mode, the tempo is set in the Engine Tempo Sync control,
which you can find by opening the Main Menu, selecting Current Instrument, and then opening
the Advanced Properties dialog.
Neither of these tremolo instruments responds to the MIDI Velocity parameter. Instead, you
need to use CC 11 to change the loudness. This approach permits a continuous change in
both dynamics and timbre in the middle of notes instead of having a fixed timbre set at the
beginning of each note. This is done because long-held passages—including the possibility of
crescendo or decrescendo—are characteristic of tremolo writing.