SFORZANDO

SFORZANDO
INTRODUCTION
Sforzando is a MIDI instrument that plays SFZ files, which have the extension .sfz
These SFZ files contain information about how audio samples (typically .wav files) are
mapped across a keyboard, and are usually stored in a folder with the samples
themselves.
You can convert some other filetypes to SFZ by dropping them onto the interface :
these include WAV files and soundfonts (.sf2)
At UNSW we have a large collection of soundfonts on the Classwork server, which
can be individually drag/dropped onto the Sforzando interface in order to convert
them to SFZ :
Classwork - Documentation – Audio – Resources – Soundfonts.
If you’re looking for particular instruments that are not in that collection, do an
internet search for free soundfonts (.sf2); or for .sfz files themselves. Note that audio
samples are included in a soundfont file (.sf2); but are stored separately from .sfz files
within a folder.
FILE MANAGEMENT summary
The first time that you drop a soundfont onto Sforzando, it asks you to nominate a
location to store the converted sounds and files. You should nominate inside your Pro
Tools folder, where it will create a subfolder called ‘ARIAConverted’.
However …
-
If you later move your session folder to a new location (e.g. inside a different
folder), you need to re-set the file path – so always work in the same location.
-
When you start a new session, you need to re-set the path to your new
session folder before converting any new files.
These processes, and some basic operations, are covered in the following instructions.
USING SFORZANDO for the FIRST TIME
If you’re working primarily on campus, it’s best to create your session on the DATA
partition, or copy your existing session to there, and then work in that location every
time.
This will avoid file management problems for instruments like Sforzando, Reaktor,
and Structure Free.
Instructions :
Insert Sforzando into an instrument track.
Drop a soundfont on the interface (a collection of soundfonts can be found at
Classwork - Documentation – Audio – Resources – Soundfonts)
The following dialogue will appear :
Click OK and navigate to your Pro Tools session folder. This will create a folder called
‘ARIAConverted’, where your converted files will be stored :
By default, Sforzando will show the INFO tab , and the name of the SFZ preset will
be showing in the FILE bar :
PLAYING SFORZANDO
You can play Sforzando from :
a MIDI keyboard; on the graphic keyboard on the Sforzando interface; or from the
MIDKeys virtual keyboard app.
Keys that have sounds on them are highlighted. When you play them, they turn blue :
Playing further down the key increases the velocity. Mostly, this means the sound
will play louder, but in some .sfz files other changes will be triggered (different
samples activated, frequency alterations etc.) :
Playing sounds from a MIDI keyboard is clearly the best option, as you can control
velocity by how hard you play the keys.
CHOOSING PRESETS from an SFZ file
Depending on how they’ve been programmed, .sfz files converted from soundfonts
may have between 1-128 presets. These may be entirely different collections of
sounds :
In the example above, I can choose 13 different presets from “Latin 1”.
Click the file name, navigate Converted – SF2 – Latin 1 sf2 – (presets)
CHOOSING PRESETS continued
You can also navigate through presets in a file using the up-and-down arrows next to
the file name :
CHOOSING SFZ files
If you’ve already created or loaded a number of different sfz files in the same
session, you can also switch between them in the menu :
In the above example, I have five different SFZ files to choose from. Each of these
may contain a number of different presets. Sitar only has one preset.
IMPORTING A PRE-EXISTING SFZ file
If you’ve downloaded a pre-existing SFZ file (and associated audio files in a folder)
from the internet; or want to load an SFZ file from another Pro Tools session, you can
import the SFZ file from the menu :
BEWARE : This does not move the SFZ file into your Pro Tools folder : it only links to
it in its current location. You should copy the existing SFX folder into your session’s
‘ARIAConverted’ folder before importing it.
USING SFORZANDO for the SECOND TIME
As I noted in “Using Sforzando for the first time’, your Pro Tools folder should be in
the same location each time (suggestion : on DATA, not in any sub-folders), as
Sforzando requires this in order to automatically load your SFZ files.
If your session is in a different location, Sforzando will not load the files, and you will
need to reset the file path, as follows (although it will be easier to close your session,
and move the Pro Tools folder to the previous location instead) :
Instructions :
Click the SETTINGS tab :
At the left of the new screen you will see User files path & Converted files path :
For both of these :
- Click the SET button.
- Navigate to the ARIAConverted folder in your Pro Tools folder
- Click Open.
After this, your SFZ files will be available to choose from the menu, but you will need
to re-load them.
USING SFORZANDO in a NEW SESSION
If you start a new Pro Tools session, but have previously used Sforzando in another
session, you need to re-set the file paths to the new session before creating or
loading new SFZ files.
(If you don’t do this, newly-converted SFZ files will still go to the old location, instead
of being stored in your new session, and you may lose them)
Instructions :
Insert Sforzando in an instrument track.
Click the SETTINGS tab :
At the left of the new screen you will see User files path & Converted files path :
For both of these :
- Click the SET button.
- Navigate to your Pro Tools session folder.
- Click Open.
This will create an ‘ARIAConverted’ folder in your Pro Tools session folder.
Any new files you create will now be stored there.
SFORZANDO RESOURCES
Sforzando is a freeware instrument, available in various plug-in formats.
http://www.plogue.com/products/sforzando/
For Pro Tools 10 or 11, get the AAX format.
For Pro Tools 9 or older, get the RTAS format.
Freeware SFZ files (.sfz) and freeware Soundfonts (.sf2 - more common) can be
found online if you search e.g. “free sfz instruments”; “free soundfonts”.
Examples :
http://ariaengine.com/free-sfz-sounds/
http://soundfonts.homemusician.net/
There is also a collection of free soundfonts at :
Classwork server - Documentation – Audio – Resources – Soundfonts.