Orchestral SoundFonts/SFZ's
Hello again!
I created this topic in order for everyone here to share their findings and opinions on orchestral soundfonts, to use in Musescore. So for the last few days I've been searching for some good and realistic sounding pack of soundfonts. And I found these:
VSCO Community https://vis.versilstudios.com/vsco-community.html
I only tried the "Vanilla" library which was great for me! It had all basic instruments. Muted trumpets, pianos, solo/section strings except double basses >:(. If you want you can try it, it's free after all.
But besides that, this pack did not included sounds for more than the basic stuff... Let's say for alto flute or contrabassoons or saxophones. Not even Bass drum or snare drum! So besides sharing soundfonts here I also want a small request...
- If it's possible, and if you know any, can you suggest any good soundfonts or sfz's like VSCO's but with more than the basic stuff? (Necessarily bass drums and mutes for brasses)
That's all!
Comments
An orchestral soundfont for use with MuseScore:
https://sites.google.com/view/hed-sounds/aegean-symphonic-orchestra
In reply to An orchestral soundfont for… by Jm6stringer
I'll try hearing them.
In reply to I'll try hearing them. by [DELETED] 32872726
Well I can't say I'm too happy with it either. Because the sord. trumpet is just soft sounding trumpet xD
In reply to An orchestral soundfont for… by Jm6stringer
This isn't all that great sounding :(
In reply to This isn't all that great… by Music_Berry
Yes... I believe the best soundfonts will be the ones which will be made by recording instruments. Right VSCO seems to do that but it is bad at low and high end notes: they don't sound as clear and don't get to sound properly on time. Plus they haven't made sounds for some low/high end notes. Actually in almost every instrument. Only the notes amateurs can play are in VSCO Community edition vanilla.
Here's my list of things I've tried. In addition to VSCO.
SFZ fonts:
Orchestra Pack Soundfonts
Saint James Orchestral Soundfonts
Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra
Virtual Playing Orchestra3
SF2:
MuseScore General
Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra
Symphonic Sounds
Timbers Of Heaven
As well as default sf3 HQ
I think that covers most of the fonts out there. Problem is I don't really like any of them. I write for orchestra. String sounds are important to me. I don't care if mute sounds are included. Strange coming from a trumpet player, I know. To me SSO has the best sounds but MuseScore does funny things with them. Oh, like swell on half notes. Or some sounds don't hold past a dotted half note. Or single note dynamics don't work.
Or in the case of Virtual Playing Orchestra, the wrong instrument gets loaded in some cases. The other problem with sfz is that you start MS and can go out for coffee and back before the software starts. Then you open a score and go out for a second cup before there is sound in playback.
So I'm using the default sf3 HQ (for SND) and the solo horn (because there is no solo horn in the default) and some strings from Virtual Playing orchestra.
It's really hard to find a one size fits all font. I have four computers. I've considered setting each one up with a different font to be used for different situations. Probably won't. Too lazy.
In reply to Here's my list of things I… by bobjp
~~4 computers?~~ I mean... so disatisfying that none works pefectly or doesn't have the most realistic sounds. And I have seen the same issue, one note dynamics, with VSCO, kinda sad xD. But I don't care when the instruments are loaded wrongly, I just put the correct instrument in the channels back again...unless that's not what you mean. But I don't think with sfz it takes SOOO much time for musescore to load. Surely it takes some time but like for 5G I had downloaded and loaded (VSCO, VSLC) it took around 1-2 minutes (probably if I had used Windows would be worse LOL) COUGH. And besides Timbers of Heaven isn't for Ubuntu so I'll pass that. I shall now check all others! Thank you...
In reply to ~~4 computers?~~ I mean… by [DELETED] 32872726
By the way I think every instrument can sound cool sometimes... just look at how Stravinsky used them in his 1960 Rite of Spring recording. xD
In reply to By the way I think every… by [DELETED] 32872726
By the way those sf3 HQ sounds... where can I find them? I can find only sf2
In reply to By the way those sf3 HQ… by [DELETED] 32872726
Actually I see what you mean... The Piccolo in virtual playing orchestra isn't a piccolo... rather a horn or something like that.
In reply to Actually I see what you… by [DELETED] 32872726
In what soundfont? That probably isn't GM compatible then
In reply to In what soundfont? That… by Jojo-Schmitz
Virtual Playing Orchestra. This font is based on several other fonts, including SSO. For some instruments, the wrong sound is in playback. I don't remember exactly, but one example might be that I specify flute in the mixer for the flute part in the score. But playback is a trumpet. Probably a font problem, rather than a MuseScore problem.
In reply to Virtual Playing Orchestra… by bobjp
Indeed, it it is not GM compatible you have to to the instrument to sound assignments manually yourself
In reply to Indeed, it it is not GM… by Jojo-Schmitz
I contacted the developer and they said that the sounds work perfectly in Sforzando. I shall look at them again to see what might be the problem.
In reply to Virtual Playing Orchestra… by bobjp
Yes I heard exactly that XD
In reply to By the way those sf3 HQ… by [DELETED] 32872726
Help > Resource Manager
And at the same place you found the SF2 one
In reply to Help > Resource Manager And… by Jojo-Schmitz
They are Sfz's
In reply to They are Sfz's by [DELETED] 32872726
? sf3 HQ and sf2 HQ sure is not SFZ
In reply to ? by Jojo-Schmitz
OH you were talking about those xD Well I can find only sf2 HQ soundfonts but not sf3
In reply to OH you were talking about… by [DELETED] 32872726
they are at the same spot though, ftp://ftp.osuosl.org/pub/musescore/soundfont/MuseScore_General/
And the SF3 installed via https://musescore.org/en/handbook/language-translations-and-extensions#…
In reply to they are at the same spot… by Jojo-Schmitz
No. I meant I cannot find them on any website... But I think I won't download them anyway, bit disatisfied with sf2 ones.
In reply to Here's my list of things I… by bobjp
So I tried Sonatina , Virtual ,symphonic sounds and HQ but none will do. I think the best ones, even for few instrument sounds, are VSCO CE's sounds because they probably have been made in a studio. But i hate that they are so big in space andthe download file contains sounds which do not have sfz's XD. Just questions:
1) Where do I find the Orchestra Pack
2) and where saint james one? That one might be awesome because I saw this: https://vbfasr307.weebly.com/blog/saint-james-orchestra-soundfont but can't find a download link.
In reply to So I tried Sonatina ,… by [DELETED] 32872726
MuseScore_General_HQsf3 is included with MuseScore. In the Fluid tab click the load button and it will appear in the list.
From what I can see, all the free fonts out there are based on a few basic libraries. All have been recorded in a studio and originally for use in a DAW. A DAW works nothing like MuseScore. To get sounds to work in MuseScore takes changing the font in ways that kind of dumb it down. That's an over simplification. But notation can't manipulate sound the way a DAW can.
Some people have done a lot of great work and put these fonts out there for free. Assume.
But they will never sound as good a library you would pay for to use in other software like Dorico.
Your quest for just the sounds you want will, I suspect, lead you to picking an choosing a combination of several fonts. I.E. strings from one font,Muted trumpet from another, Percussion from another, and so forth.
I use a combination of two.
I use MuseScore to compose for orchestra. Many people seem to use it to reproduce orchestra scores. Not sure why. Notation software doesn't do a good job of that.
How do you want to use MuseScore?
In reply to MuseScore_General_HQsf3 is… by bobjp
No, the HQ one is not included with MuseScore. It is available as an extension though
In reply to No, the HQ one is not… by Jojo-Schmitz
Yes you are right. Now O don't remember how I got the HQ. As an extension?
In reply to MuseScore_General_HQsf3 is… by bobjp
For the time being I just want to use it to rewrite one my favourite finale of my favourite piece xD. But it's a rare revision and that's why I want to write it down.
In reply to Here's my list of things I… by bobjp
The vanilla is directly for musescore using? or using with another DAW
In reply to The vanilla is directly for… by jose.riuk
Vanilla? You mean VSCO's? Well those are sfz's but can be used in Musescore through Zerberus... But I do not recommend those anymore, they do not include all playable notes... I mean, high end and low end notes of the instruments.