When I compose with microtones, there’s only one software that I use: Pianoteq. In this video, I explain my composing workflow using Pianoteq, Logic Pro, and Sibelius. Nothing in this video is sponsored. About Pianoteq (taken from their website): Pianoteq is an award-winning virtual instrument which you can install on your computer (PC/Mac). It is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and will even run on some ARM-based boards such as the Raspberry Pi. It can be used both in standalone mode and as an instrument plug-in in VST, AAX, and AudioUnits hosts. What makes Pianoteq superior to other virtual instruments is that the instruments are physically modelled and thus can simulate the playability and complex behaviour of real acoustic instruments. Because there are no samples, the file size is just a tiny fraction of that required by other virtual instruments, making Pianoteq perfect for any laptop.
It’s actually a lot different now 🤣 but those are the same chords I use. I noticed it sounded too much like microtonal Steve Reich, so I sprinkled some slow Haas-style glissandi in there in between the chords. We’ll see how the quintet handles that 🤓
Thank you so much for posting all of your videos. It has helped me so much. I'm transferring with an AA in music into a four year to get my BM in music composition. You helped me so much with curating my composition portfolio. You're amazing and such an inspiration! Thank you!! If you have the time, I'd love to see a video on your composing (creative) process. I want to write a piece for choir, and while I've done SATB stuff in college, I'd love to hear your perspective on it!
Wow Samantha, thank you for the very nice comment! I’m glad to have helped in some small way. A full-on start to finish creative process video would be interesting to do. Good luck with your new piece for choir!
Not bad.. I've been looking to play microtones as easily as shown here as well. Will try this out. I use dorico pro 4 + Noteperformer for microtonal playback, which in some regards looks a lot simpler than having to work in a seperate DAW while loading up many instances of pianoteq like you do here. It plays back any instruments in a specified temperament.
Oh yes I’ve seen some instances of Dorico handling that well, though I’m too much of a Sibelius dinosaur at this point to make the switch 🤣 - I really like the creative freedom of working directly in the DAW and separating myself from the notation software. I feel like I get stuck in the same patterns if I am writing directly into the notation software (I guess the same could be said for using a DAW, but since I’m not naturally inclined to use the DAW to compose this doesn’t really apply to my workflow).
Even though I've already been composing and arranging with microtones, this video is still helpful! Thank you for making it! I do have one question: have you composed in microtonal tuning systems other than 12-TET's multiples? 24-TET (quarter-tone tuning) and 48-TET (eighth-tone tuning) are the two multiples you discussed in this video. 17, 19, 22, 27, 31, 34, 41, and 53-TET are all very interesting microtonal tuning systems.
I hope midi/programming software one day doesn't confine us to a grid that's so set in stone... Also goes for the horizontals, would be so cool if we could drag a snapped 8th note around and have it automatically lengthen or contract in order to fit differently sized 8th notes over time. The horizontal stuff isn't an issue with midi itself though, just how things like FL's piano roll let us program it. I can think of SO many ways to improve it all, I hope they get with it at some point. I sometimes automate my rhythm to create a groove without having to program midi tediously, but that too comes with serious limitations and weirdness. Microtonal and in some other ways less conventional production is full of limitations that can often be circumvented by extra steps. There is so much value in learning to be okay with placeholder sounds etc., and that's extra true here. Get the idea out as you flow musically, then do tedious stuff like sampling synths that don't conform to our tuning etc.
Would love a video about effective ways to use microtones/pitfalls to avoid. I noticed that in Maqams, there are one or two microtones that are often a fourth apart (B quarter flat and e quarter flat maybe), making me think that the microtones in Arabic music for example were a way to solve the Tritone situation, whereas in western music they solved it by using the leading tone in V-I. Also, I’ve seen composers, like Brett dean in string quartet 2, or ligeti in his viola sonata, use microtones as a way to explore the space in between the notes, making the point of arrival sometimes being the actual note, or in Corigliano symphony 2 movement one, where the microtones are used as a way to go up a chromatic line. But how do you think about chorales? So far I really like the “E-A quarter flat-C chord” but I don’t know why that is. Not sure how correct I am but these are just hypothesis I’ve thought up.
For me to be honest it was a very gradual process. At first I would use just one or two “microtones” from the maqam in some pieces (i.e. if you look at my “early” pieces in this style, shifting sands and Kaman fantasy - then as my ear got more acclimated I used them in more textural ways like in my Takht and Hawa, then I got more comfortable with my ear and started using them as chords in my String quartet No. 2; and now in the woodwind quintet I’m composing actually right now (referenced in this video) I actually created a full set of pitches that I’m using to create the harmonies and trusting that those initial pitches that I chose will yield interesting results just by rote repetition of these pitches in my head and on my Pianoteq software until my mind can make connections that I didn’t know were there. it is a VERY gradual process over many pieces but that is the only way to create a personal voice that doesn’t sound quite like anything else in my opinion.
This is such a new area for me personally...I haven't even checked finale to see if there is a notation available for quarter tones in this way. However in the notation playback version you played, it sounded like an homage to Steve Reich (which is a compliment by the way), but in the microtonal version, it sounds like a completely different work, and yet still fascinating. Are you at the point where you hear the microtonal elements in your head without the aid of this Pianoteq???
I don’t like working in the notation software because I can’t ideate efficiently. It sounds like an homage to Reich now which I did not intend so I did end up changing it pretty significantly which I will share later in the summer when the quintet records the work. No, I can’t hear the pitches properly without the aid of Pianoteq, especially if I’m dealing with chords. I’m actually kind of suspect of anyone that says they can, but that’s a story for another day.
Amazing video, I really appreciate all your videos and I've learned a lot from all of them. You may get somehow similar effect in logic pro too. Setting/ MIDI/ Sync/ MIDI Sync Project Settings/ Tuning. Here you can detune and it'll affect all logic sound libraries and instruments. However, it's not as powerful as Pianoteq which can detune each individual note. Maybe it'll be a good option for some students to save some money. 🙂
This isn’t a sponsored thang… there are no links… Here is where to go to get our software. Here are the plans. To be able to do any micro-tuning, you will need to pay at least $269. 😂😂😂 No.
When I compose with microtones, there’s only one software that I use: Pianoteq. In this video, I explain my composing workflow using Pianoteq, Logic Pro, and Sibelius. Nothing in this video is sponsored.
About Pianoteq (taken from their website):
Pianoteq is an award-winning virtual instrument which you can install on your computer (PC/Mac). It is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and will even run on some ARM-based boards such as the Raspberry Pi. It can be used both in standalone mode and as an instrument plug-in in VST, AAX, and AudioUnits hosts.
What makes Pianoteq superior to other virtual instruments is that the instruments are physically modelled and thus can simulate the playability and complex behaviour of real acoustic instruments. Because there are no samples, the file size is just a tiny fraction of that required by other virtual instruments, making Pianoteq perfect for any laptop.
the video we all needed!
The secret sauce is out of the bag 🤣
yooooooooo! what a jam! cant wait to listen to it in the premiere
It’s actually a lot different now 🤣 but those are the same chords I use. I noticed it sounded too much like microtonal Steve Reich, so I sprinkled some slow Haas-style glissandi in there in between the chords. We’ll see how the quintet handles that 🤓
Thank you so much for posting all of your videos. It has helped me so much. I'm transferring with an AA in music into a four year to get my BM in music composition. You helped me so much with curating my composition portfolio. You're amazing and such an inspiration! Thank you!!
If you have the time, I'd love to see a video on your composing (creative) process. I want to write a piece for choir, and while I've done SATB stuff in college, I'd love to hear your perspective on it!
Wow Samantha, thank you for the very nice comment! I’m glad to have helped in some small way. A full-on start to finish creative process video would be interesting to do. Good luck with your new piece for choir!
Not bad.. I've been looking to play microtones as easily as shown here as well. Will try this out.
I use dorico pro 4 + Noteperformer for microtonal playback, which in some regards looks a lot simpler than having to work in a seperate DAW while loading up many instances of pianoteq like you do here. It plays back any instruments in a specified temperament.
Oh yes I’ve seen some instances of Dorico handling that well, though I’m too much of a Sibelius dinosaur at this point to make the switch 🤣 - I really like the creative freedom of working directly in the DAW and separating myself from the notation software. I feel like I get stuck in the same patterns if I am writing directly into the notation software (I guess the same could be said for using a DAW, but since I’m not naturally inclined to use the DAW to compose this doesn’t really apply to my workflow).
Even though I've already been composing and arranging with microtones, this video is still helpful! Thank you for making it! I do have one question: have you composed in microtonal tuning systems other than 12-TET's multiples? 24-TET (quarter-tone tuning) and 48-TET (eighth-tone tuning) are the two multiples you discussed in this video. 17, 19, 22, 27, 31, 34, 41, and 53-TET are all very interesting microtonal tuning systems.
Yes and no - 🤣 - I know that’s not a helpful answer! Sometimes it’s not that simple when working with real musicians
I hope midi/programming software one day doesn't confine us to a grid that's so set in stone... Also goes for the horizontals, would be so cool if we could drag a snapped 8th note around and have it automatically lengthen or contract in order to fit differently sized 8th notes over time. The horizontal stuff isn't an issue with midi itself though, just how things like FL's piano roll let us program it. I can think of SO many ways to improve it all, I hope they get with it at some point. I sometimes automate my rhythm to create a groove without having to program midi tediously, but that too comes with serious limitations and weirdness.
Microtonal and in some other ways less conventional production is full of limitations that can often be circumvented by extra steps.
There is so much value in learning to be okay with placeholder sounds etc., and that's extra true here.
Get the idea out as you flow musically, then do tedious stuff like sampling synths that don't conform to our tuning etc.
Would love a video about effective ways to use microtones/pitfalls to avoid. I noticed that in Maqams, there are one or two microtones that are often a fourth apart (B quarter flat and e quarter flat maybe), making me think that the microtones in Arabic music for example were a way to solve the Tritone situation, whereas in western music they solved it by using the leading tone in V-I. Also, I’ve seen composers, like Brett dean in string quartet 2, or ligeti in his viola sonata, use microtones as a way to explore the space in between the notes, making the point of arrival sometimes being the actual note, or in Corigliano symphony 2 movement one, where the microtones are used as a way to go up a chromatic line. But how do you think about chorales? So far I really like the “E-A quarter flat-C chord” but I don’t know why that is. Not sure how correct I am but these are just hypothesis I’ve thought up.
For me to be honest it was a very gradual process. At first I would use just one or two “microtones” from the maqam in some pieces (i.e. if you look at my “early” pieces in this style, shifting sands and Kaman fantasy - then as my ear got more acclimated I used them in more textural ways like in my Takht and Hawa, then I got more comfortable with my ear and started using them as chords in my String quartet No. 2; and now in the woodwind quintet I’m composing actually right now (referenced in this video) I actually created a full set of pitches that I’m using to create the harmonies and trusting that those initial pitches that I chose will yield interesting results just by rote repetition of these pitches in my head and on my Pianoteq software until my mind can make connections that I didn’t know were there. it is a VERY gradual process over many pieces but that is the only way to create a personal voice that doesn’t sound quite like anything else in my opinion.
This is such a new area for me personally...I haven't even checked finale to see if there is a notation available for quarter tones in this way. However in the notation playback version you played, it sounded like an homage to Steve Reich (which is a compliment by the way), but in the microtonal version, it sounds like a completely different work, and yet still fascinating. Are you at the point where you hear the microtonal elements in your head without the aid of this Pianoteq???
I don’t like working in the notation software because I can’t ideate efficiently. It sounds like an homage to Reich now which I did not intend so I did end up changing it pretty significantly which I will share later in the summer when the quintet records the work. No, I can’t hear the pitches properly without the aid of Pianoteq, especially if I’m dealing with chords. I’m actually kind of suspect of anyone that says they can, but that’s a story for another day.
Amazing video!!
Hey Sofia! Hope you're well -- glad you liked it!
Amazing video, I really appreciate all your videos and I've learned a lot from all of them.
You may get somehow similar effect in logic pro too. Setting/ MIDI/ Sync/ MIDI Sync Project Settings/ Tuning. Here you can detune and it'll affect all logic sound libraries and instruments. However, it's not as powerful as Pianoteq which can detune each individual note. Maybe it'll be a good option for some students to save some money. 🙂
Thanks for the suggestion! Just pinned it, I appreciate your comment here.
This isn’t a sponsored thang… there are no links…
Here is where to go to get our software. Here are the plans. To be able to do any micro-tuning, you will need to pay at least $269. 😂😂😂
No.
Links aren’t sponsored, didn’t earn money from making this. There is an academic discount if you’re a student. That’s what I did 🍪