Will composers abandon real orchestras in favour of new software | Music | guardian.co.uk
You see, my string quartet is being performed not by a group of flesh-and-blood players, but by the Vienna Ensemble, a software tool developed by the Vienna Symphonic Library project. VSL was the brainchild of Herb Tucmandl, a sometime cellist with the Vienna Philharmonic, whose sideline scoring films gave him first hand experience of the frustrations faced by almost every composer in history: how to get your music performed quickly and cheaply. Professional orchestras simply aren’t available for general hire, and even if they were, 80 warm bodies and 80 priceless instruments will set you back a bare minimum of an arm and a leg. Even a string quartet – just four players – can cost in the region of £300 an hour or more.

Seems like a great tool to hear a composition, but it won’t replace the sound of 60 people making music together… with intention and dedication…

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