Synful releases Synful Orchestra

Synful has released Synful Orchestra which they modestly describe as "The Most Realistic and Expressive Music Synthesizer in the World". It is available for Windows 2000/XP as VSTi and DXi plug-ins and is based on Synful's patented Reconstructive Phrase Modeling (RPM) technology.

Real instruments have many ways of moving from note to note: slurs with varying amounts of portamento, lightly tongued or bowed note transitions, fast runs, detached hard attacks, etc. These note transitions are the connective tissue of musical expression. Synful Orchestra models these transitions. Synful Orchestra models the way notes are sustained, the graceful onset of vibrato, breath sounds, the sound of the bow on the string, the change of tone color as a note becomes louder or softer.

The RPM Phrase Database contains musical phrases for each instrument. These are not recordings of isolated notes but complete musical passages that represent all kinds of articulation and phrasing.

When Synful Orchestra receives MIDI input it looks at the pitch, velocity, amount of separation or overlap between notes, note duration, volume, pitch wheel, and mod wheel to determine what kind of phrase is being played. Synful Orchestra searches the RPM Phrase Database for fragments that can be spliced together to form this phrase. These fragments represent transitions between notes, slurs with portamento, lightly tongued transitions, aggressive fast bowing, rapid runs, long sustain regions with graceful vibrato, and noise elements like flute chiffs and bow scratches. Synful Orchestra stretches and shifts these fragments in time and pitch so that they combine to form the final output.

A single note in Synful Orchestra may be built from three or more rapidly spliced phrase fragments. Splicing ordinary PCM sampled sounds in this way would create unacceptable warbles and clicks. Synful Orchestra uses a patented form of additive synthesis in which sounds are generated from combinations of pure sine waves and noise elements. This gives Synful Orchestra the ability to rapidly stretch, shift, and splice phrase fragments while preserving perfect phrase continuity.

Key Features:

• RPM instruments include Piccolo*, Flute, Oboe, English Horn, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet*, Bassoon, French Horn, Trumpet, Trombone, Tuba*, Violin, Viola, Cello, Contrabass.
• Exceptional realism and expression using Synful RPM Technology: RPM note transition modeling, intelligent phrase fragment search and splice, RPM additive synthesis, infinite note extend without loops.
• Entire orchestra fits in 32M of memory.
• 80-160 real-time voices on P4 1.5 GHz.
• RPM controls include Harmonic Tilt, Harmonic Parity, Transient Noise Trim, Sustain Noise Trim, Gain, Tune, Pitch Wheel Range, Delay for Expression, Synful Pitch Wheel mode for realistic portamento and pitch slide effects.
• Natural timbral vibrato controlled with Mod Wheel.
• Simple standard MIDI usage.

* Piccolo, Bass Clarinet, and Tuba will become available in the near future through a free update to Synful Orchestra. All other instruments are currently available.

Synful Orchestra costs EU€358 / US$479. A demo version (~45MB) and several audio examples are available.