how do I slur notes?

[Junktabot]

So I'm creating instrumental loops, and I have figured out how to adjust velocity and pitch and whatnot, but I can't figure out how to simply slur notes. Could anyone out there tell me how, please? That is, I want to join notes of different pitch so that, for example, my C half note followed by A# half note will sound like a C_A# whole note instead of two seperate notes.

[Acoustica Eric]

Not quite sure what you mean by slur, do you mean create a chord?
Just put two notes into the same period of time.
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[Sungodv]

I've seen MIDI notes slured by the use of a pitch wheel, but I'm not sure how you would go about that with a mouse click. I was unable to replicate it with a mouse and had to go back to the keyboard pitch wheel and retrack to get the desired result.
There probably is a way, it's just above my pay grade.
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[Junktabot]

Well, I've been trying to do it with the pitch wheel, but it's so messy and inconsistent. I just can't believe that a program with such a wide range of effects and tools wouldn't be able to do something as basic as slur notes. Thanks for the suggestion, though.

And two answer the first responder, a slur is not playing two notes at the same time. A slur is when two or more consecutive notes of different pitch (for example, a C, an A#, and then a B) are executed in a smoothly connected manner with no break.

[Acoustica Eric]

ok, so playing one note and transitioning into another? Like bending up to the second note? yes it would seem like you would use a pitch wheel for that.
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[Junktabot]

Alright, but how exactly? Suppose I wanted to go from a C# to a D. How would I do that using the pitch wheel so that it sounds like a smooth transition? Rather, how do I determine what increase in pitch corresponds exactly to a half-step or step up the scale? Also, the range on the pitch wheel seems to be limited.

edit: I've kind of got the pitch wheel figured out, but there's still the problem with range. It seems that 5000 is about equal to a half-step up the scale, but I can't seem to adjust it further than 8192.

[Acoustica Greg]

Hi,

The pitch wheel range will vary with the virtual instrument you are using, and you might even be able to adjust the settings on it, (depending on the virtual instrument).

You can also manually enter pitch wheel data at the bottom of the Sound tab. Change the Velocity setting to Pitch Wheel and then use the mouse to enter the pitch wheel data in the area to the right of that setting.

Greg

[Junktabot]

I appreciate the response, but I've gone through a pretty wide and diverse selection of instruments on here, and it seems that the pitch wheel tops out at 8192 for every one of them, which equals is about three fourths of a step. I've tried looking up the pitch wheel in the "help" section, but all I get is a very general topic on Controller Information. If you could give me a more detailed description as to how I can go beyond the 8192 max of the pitch wheel (rather, how I can increase pitch by a full step or more) it would help a lot.

If three fourths of a step is the limit, this is quite a limitation. While I certainly enjoy mixcraft and think it's a great product, it strikes me as odd that there's not a simple function or button for slurring notes, as that's a rather basic thing in music composition, particularly with string and wind instruments (I'm mostly using the virtual string and wind instruments here).

[Acoustica Greg]

Hi,

Select the Minimogue virtual instrument, then click "Show Details," then click Edit. On the left side there's a control called "P-Bend Range." You can increase that setting.

Beyond that, it's just a matter of finding a virtual instrument with the pitch bend range that you're looking for. Mixcraft can load virtual instrument plugins from other companies.

Greg

[Junktabot]

Alright, thanks for the info. I'm getting the hang of pitch modulation. That said, this is still an incredibly imprecise and roundabout way to simulate slurred notes. Just in case slurring still isn't clear, here's a link to its definition:

"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slur_(music)"

Aside from going in and modulating pitch and whatnot, does Mixcraft not have a simple button or function for connecting notes in this way?

[Acoustica Greg]

Hi,

No, Mixcraft doesn't have a single button that would allow you to slur notes. Whether any such button would work would depend on the virtual instrument you had selected, because not all virtual instruments support that, but thanks for the suggestion!

Greg

[miken]

I take it you mean "legato playing" where the attack is not so evident on the second note when you move from one to another note?

I haven't come across any software or technique other than using a midi controller with velocity sensitive keyboard I'm afraid, I use an M-Audio Oxygen 49 and the VST instruments within Mixcraft (for instance Flute or strings) and get the legato/slurred effect by adjusting the manner of how I play.

By this I mean that I use a heavy touch on the first note and then lift the weight of my hand as I play the second note ... imagine moving your hand down on the first note and then up as you play the second?.

ok, so I'm a classically trained pianist but that's the best way I can describe the technique not sure if it helps you other than to indicate that its possible without fiddling with bend wheels etc. I guess the controller hardware seems to be the fix in my scenario.