MIDI tutorials: string writing 101

One of the most enjoyable gigs I’ve had in recent years is arranging/writing “orchestral” backing tracks for my west-coast band, Helsott.  Much of my formal musical training (AKA “schooling,” which I find accounts really for little in the real world, but hey!) was as a composer.  However, I don’t think I’ve touched a piece of manuscript paper to compose in almost 15 years now! 

The fun thing about doing orchestral arrangements for a metal band, albeit sampled orchestral arrangements, is that it gives me a chance to flex those “classical” muscles I rarely use these days, and it brings that world right into collision with the world I mainly inhabit in my day to day gigging, that of music production.  Not only do I record and produce, but I also have worked as an instructor in vocational music production courses at the college level.  I find it really fun to share tips and tricks for production in the classroom environment; now, as the “mad metal professor,” I’ve decided to start blogging some of my favorites!  And here is my first installment...enjoy.

Create realistic sounding strings with MIDI sequencing:

1. Understand the ranges of the instruments that you’re trying to emulate!  A violin cannot play a D in the middle of the bass clef (D2 in MIDI language), and if your sampler doesn’t use this type of range constraint, you’ll need to KNOW what instruments can play what notes.  Get a textbook on instrumentation/orchestration; the two I recommend are Blatter’s “Instrumentation/Orchestration” and Kennan’s “Technique of Orchestration.”  These are both excellent tutorials on writing for strings and contain real-life examples of good string arranging.  One thing to be aware of, however, is that the designation for middle C in MIDI language and in “classical” writing is different.  In MIDI, C3 is middle C in most cases.  In classical training, it’s C4.  Don’t let that trip you up!

2. Understand typical voicings in orchestral writing.  In general, voicings in chords get tighter the higher the pitch.  Spread out chords.  Unless you’re going for a specific effect, don’t include typical 1/3/5 triadic voicings in your lowest range. 

Voicing on the left, not the right - better for lower ranges

It's even better to spread out these voicings even more!

My hand just can't reach that far.

3. Use more than one track.  How many tracks you use depends on the context and the ease of workflow.  In any given session, I’ll typically use anywhere from four to eight tracks of just strings.  One is always a “string section” with sustained articulations.  Others may include solo strings, individual string sections with specific articulations, pads, etc.  It all depends on the musical context and the arrangement style (when in doubt of “arrangement style,” listen to temp tracks, or a reference of a film score, orchestral work, gaming score, etc., and pay critical attention to the layering you hear).

4. Layer with more than one sampling program or library.  I regularly even mix in synth pads to blend in harmonies, typically with slightly adjusted voicings, although I will also double many notes in chords to reinforce harmonies.  (It all depends on the context, of course.)  A good tip I’ve learned is to start out with your most “realistic” library that you’ve got, even if it’s not that high quality.  Then “pad” it with harmonic pads, string emulators instead of samplers, etc., to deepen in the sound.  Just make sure your transient peaks hit at the same time (see #9 below).  If your time/budget allows, hire a session player or two on a REAL instrument to double what you’ve sequenced - that’s how many Hollywood sessions work!


In case you're wondering what sample libraries I use in my string arrangements for Helsott, it's nothing fancy.  I do NOT believe that you need the "latest and greatest" to make quality recordings if you know how to use what you DO own.  I have an older version of Native Instruments' Komplete bundle - the Kontakt libraries get a lot of mileage in my studio, although I tweak them.  I use a combination of software instruments for pads, along with a couple of hardware synths, including my old beater Roland X6 (my touring synth) and my even older Novation Nova II (the weirdo 90s era performance synth, not the table-top version).  Again, I tweak the hell out of patches.

5. Velocity editing is essential to create a true legato feel.  If you step edit, or use a pencil tool to enter pitch information, you’ll absolutely need to adjust EVERY velocity level to create anything even remotely realistic.  You have 128 values to use in MIDI language.  Use the entire range.

Note: no two velocity stems are created equal.

6. Pay attention to the release of notes in chords (your note off messages).  Keep these synced (to a large extent) but if everything is always perfect, it’s not necessarily going to sound “real.”  Too perfect = sounds like a computer.

7. Adjust articulations/style if it’s possible.  Many software and hardware samplers include mappings for tremolo, sforzando, fortepiano, pizzicato, etc.  Automate and adjust accordingly.  Keep in mind that in sustained articulations the timing will differ from sforzando articulations, which typically will contain the bloom of the attack right ON the MIDI on message.  If you don’t have this facility, you can accomplish the same type of thing (with the exception of tremolo and pizz) simply by automating the envelope (ADSR values).  Typically ADSR values are mapped to CC information, so they can be edited within your sequence.


If I'm speaking gibberish with the terms pizzicato, sforzando, etc., definitely check out one of those textbooks mentioned above in tip #1!  This stuff is helpful to know.

 Screenshot from a default cello patch in Kontakt.

Click on pic for larger version - note mapping of articulations!

These are below the range of the instrument - input them as a "note on" message.

I embed articulation messages in EVERY MIDI region, believe it or not!

8. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT TIPS EVER!!!  The bloom of the envelope (your transient peaks in audio-speak) should hit ON the beat, not after, otherwise everything will sound late.  Don’t just trust quantization - you’ll need to adjust by ticks/samples depending on the sequencing program you’re using.  I’ve been known to adjust note on messages by as much 30-40 milliseconds with slow, soft, sustained passages.  It’s best to go through phrase by phrase to make these adjustments - what works in some phrases won’t work in others depending on the articulations you’re using.  One tip, however - save a version of your MIDI file BEFORE doing this editing with hard quantization values (everything ON the grid), and export as a type 1 file (the type that preserves discrete track information).  This can be super useful if you switch over to another sampling library, another sequencing program, or if you ever end up working with REAL string players...you can import MIDI files into notation programs like Finale and Sibelius.  On a side note in terms of quantization, I almost NEVER use straight 100% quantizations in order to create a more “human” feel, although I will include a hard quantized version of any session I do in order to export accurate MIDI files to Sibelius (my current notation program of choice, as it syncs with the version of Pro Tools that I’m on!).  Look for “randomization” or “humanize” functions in your sequencing software to accomplish this.

9. When it comes to mixing sampled strings, I will almost always export each track as a separate audio track and then mix in my DAW of choice (Pro Tools).  Do NOT rely on MIDI automation in the mix context.  Yes, 128 values seems like a lot, right?  Nope.  It’s not, not in terms of resolution!

Hope these tips help you take your “string writing” to the next level!  Questions?  Comment below, or ask me on facebook/twitter!

Here I am, having fun on stage with Helsott, on the Paganfest America tour.

photo courtesy of Stellavor Images, ©2013

delusions of grandeur

Last night, I wrapped up ten years of teaching in the California community college system. The thing I have loved the most over my tenure as a community college teacher is the engagement with my students. At times, I think I learn more from them than they do from me.

Case in point – my students threw me a little “going away” shindig last night, involving a meet-up at a local gelato place and then a show at a local bar. The gelato was fabulous, the company was great, but the local bands featured at the show left a bit to be desired. This didn’t bother me in the least, having played in my fair share of dive bars over the years with support from various bands of dubious musical ability, and so I “tuned out” the noise and focused instead on conversation. However, not all of my students in tow had the same reaction. This morning, I received an email from one of these students asking, “Why do these guys spend all this time rehearsing material only to sound so crappy live?...it really galls me that music is being presented so poorly.” Wow. Now there was some food for thought.

The question posed here – to me – is one hell of a big can of worms. To sum up, why are there so many musicians out there that just don’t realize…that they’re terrible? This is my take, based on ten years of teaching, and many, many years of experience as a professional musician...

In life, and in general, many people make themselves out to be more important and more talented than they really are. It's kind of hard to stomach the fact that there are six (plus) billion people in the world, and that frankly, in terms of one person/one life, we don't really matter all THAT much in the grand scheme of things. We, however, innately want to feel important; we want to have something "special" to contribute to the world to make our mark. There’s nothing wrong with this – it’s only a natural human desire. But there are people who take this to an extreme and consequently become completely delusional about how important they are, or how talented they may be.

It's not exactly the easiest thing in the world to realize: “Well, hell, I might not be THAT good at whatever it is that I'm doing...” It becomes much easier, then, to blame someone else for something that goes awry in order to avoid this very self-realization. In the case of musicians, this blame tends to get placed on things like a crappy PA system (which may or may not actually be crappy), a sound guy not mixing things right, someone in the audience causing a distraction, having a bad cold so the performer can’t sing up to par, and so on. The classic example of this phenomenon is one I’ve experienced in teaching voice students. I always require my vocal students to bring some kind of recording device to a class, coaching or a lesson. The frequent reaction students have, upon hearing their voices for the first time, is: “That can’t be me. I really put my heart into that! Must be a bad microphone.” To which I invariably respond, “That IS you. That is what YOU sound like. Has nothing to do with the microphone.” Harsh, yes, but this is reality. Simply having a passion for singing does not make one automatically a talented vocalist, let alone be able to match pitch.

I have been teaching lessons (piano, voice, along with composition) since I was about 15 years old. It's amazing what you see as an instructor. People really, really think a lot of times that they have this innate talent, simply because they love music, especially when it comes to singing (how else can one explain those horrific American Idol audition episodes?). Years ago, I had a student who was completely tone deaf enroll in one of my choirs. It was an advanced chamber choir and I had to let the poor guy go, because he was SO off with his singing – both pitch-wise and in terms of rhythm – that he threw the rest of the men's section off. It was completely distracting, and there's absolutely no sugar-coating how bad it was. I felt terrible for the student, and tried to break the news to him in a gentle way. I called him into my office privately and said something like "I think you need to take some basic ear training before you'll be totally prepared for this class…I’d love to have you re-enroll in the future once you have the basic skills down.” Although I was gentle, I was direct – what was I supposed to do? And unfortunately, the news wasn’t received well. I was told that I was “prejudiced” and that the only reason he had pitch problems was because of the “pus in his sinuses.” Really?

I have so many stories like this. It all comes down to: it's just hard to admit when one has a shortcoming. Eating a slice of humble-pie is one of the hardest things I think to do.

And so that explains a lot of terrible bands that continue to go out there and attempt to gig – there are indeed people who really THINK they are contributing something to the world while they are completely delusional about their abilities, or lack thereof. And when their "talent" is challenged by someone who is trained or educated, they tend to blame some sort of external entity.

So what does one do in a case like this? I think the most we can do is approach life - and other aspiring musicians - in a humble, non-judgmental manner...best thing to do in this case is to have compassion for people like that, because the "wake-up call" is going to hurt bad enough on its own. Believe me, as a teacher, this has been one of my toughest challenges. I've had some people in classes that are dead-set on becoming musicians...that have absolutely NO innate ability whatsoever and that continue to not be able to keep up with the class despite paying attention and taking notes and meeting with tutors, etc. It’s heart breaking to see this kind of thing. What do you say to a person like that, as an instructor? It's hard. People have to learn their own lessons...the hard way...because most of the time, they're not going to believe you...

And in the meantime, pick which shows you attend wisely!