I’m working on updating the audio for my 12 Orchestral Studies from their original MIDI output, using Dorico notation software and its HALion instrument libraries. I will probably just work on a few of the 12 in order to learn the new software and to not re-hash the pieces that really don’t deserve re-hashing. First one is the first one.
Orchestral Study #1 (flowing and hymn-like), updated audio and original audio
Towards the goal of creating better recordings of my music post-2019, I went into research mode for notation software, virtual instruments, and DAWs. Most information out there is for composing straight into a DAW using a keyboard, pad controller, and pitch and mod controllers. That’s not really my process. I write with a combination of pencil and paper and notation software, switching back and forth throughout the composition process and ending with the final form in the notation software.
For several reasons, I’ve never composed straight to recording. Primarily, it reduces your writing to only music that you can play on a keyboard. When I started writing for orchestra last year, removing the piano from the equation, and my limited ability at the piano, gave me greater expressive freedom. Even when I was writing for the piano, most pieces were not playable without weeks of practice (at the very least). Don’t compose to your physical abilities. Also to consider: techniques that feel good in the hands, or harmonies that sound good on a keyboard, aren’t necessarily those that work for orchestra. (I remember my piano teacher saying that Poulenc’s non-piano compositions were more creative because he could escape his pianist mindset.)
So the first purchase needed to be notation software. I used the open source MuseScore last year, and was very comfortable with it, but it doesn’t support virtual instrument plugins and so would be somewhat more difficult to use to achieve better recordings. Dorico (from Steinberg, who also make the Cubase DAW), Finale (which I used years ago), and Sibelius (subscription-only) are the most popular. Though I did minor research on the others (see Wikipedia’s comparison page), I decided to choose based on the recommendation of popularity. Most of the dozens of choices have 30-day trial periods, but it would take days working with each to provide a fair assessment. My needs are well defined and since MuseScore satisfies most of them, the top pay software will likely satisfy the rest of the needs.
Dorico has a nice interface and comes with HALion Sonic SE and HALion Symphonic Orchestra, and the recordings I heard from those sounded very good esp. considering their free-ness. So Dorico it is. All of the Steinberg software, and probably other higher-end music software, uses an activation code or USB dongle. It comes with the code, so I had to order the extra USB in order to be able to use the software across my two laptops. The install process is a morass of dozens of applications to install, only a few of which are included with Dorico. But which ones? The Dorico selection was obvious, but there were several Doricos and several audio package menus that were not immediately clear as to whether I actually owned them. One attempt at installations resulted in constant crashes, so all was wiped out and restarted. I may have it correct this time. The only remaining issue is the HALion Sonic works but HALion Symphonic Orchestra (much better) does not. TBD.
Once installed, I had headaches getting the software to actually playback audio. After reading discussion boards and watching their troubleshooting video, I realized I was not alone. After several days of a few frustrating hours each night I finally posted to their support forums. The end result, embarrassingly, was that I just had the wrong combinations of audio driver settings, Dorico output settings, and instrument selection. There were few combinations but enough to get them successively wrong. But… works now so it doesn’t matter.
W/r/t instruments better than HALion, I may eventually get Spitfire Studio Orchestra and Spitfire Percussion Professional (~$1000 total) because they sound absolutely amazing, but the HALion sounds are a great starter while learning the software. DAW will probably be Cubase just to stay in the Steinberg family, but that’s not needed for a while.