Orchestral positioning

Part 1. Panning

Left, center or right. It might seem basic and arbitrary, but it’s more important than you might think.

Part 2. Reverb in theory

Reverb. How does it work? Why does it work?

Part 3. Reverb in practice

Some more technical pointers on how to set up a nice orchestral reverb in your DAW of choice.

Part 4. Reverb and realism

This article features some highly subjective (but hopefully useful) thoughts about reverb, virtual orchestras and realism.

Part 5. Choosing a reverb

Algorithmic vs convolution, stereo processing, and some plugin recommendations.

The sample quality myth

Part 1. All that glitters is not gold

Is sample library quality actually the most important aspect of a virtual orchestration?

Part 2. Know your instruments

Before the sampled instrument there was the real instrument. How much do you really know about them?

Part 3. Know the style you’re working in

An orchestra should be something greater than the sum of its parts, and it’s your job to make it so.

Part 4. The human factor

Realism. What is it good for, and when?

Vintage virtual orchestration on a budget

Part 1. Overview

Virtual orchestration did not begin with software samplers and sample libraries, so why not treat yourself to some free VSTi’s that emulate the days of yore?

Part 2. Yamaha S-YXG50

A look at Yamaha’s classic late 1990’s soft synth.

Part 3. Sonic Charge Cyclone

A very truthful emulation of a Yamaha TX16W sampler.

Part 4. E-MU Protues VX

The virtual version of E-MU’s classic Proteus 2000 sound module.

Part 5. The real deal

The actual hardware is still around, so keep an eye out.

Part 6. But… why?

What’s the point of all this anyway?

Miscellaneous

Mixing and processing a virtual orchestra

Some guidelines on using EQ, compression and stereo imaging in your orchestral mixes.

Layering orchestral samples

Various tips on how to layer different libraries to create a bigger, bolder sound.

Let the samples dictate the music

If your samples won’t let you do what you want them to do, let them do what they’re good at and pretend that’s what you intended all along.

10 tips for getting out of a creative rut

When it feels like all your ideas are crap — or maybe you can’t come up with anything at all — here’s some stuff to ponder.