Add a sustain pedal in sfizz

Hi all,

I would like to add a sustain pedal (automation) in a MIDI track with sfizz.
So I would have to insert Controller 64.
But in Automation → Processor automation → sfizz it starts from Controller 128 up to 511.
So how do I add an automation for the sustain pedal?

[Ardour 8.1 on Linux]
Thank you,
a.

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Yeah, there is something not right there. Ardour should show Sustain among the automatable MIDI controllers, but doesn’t. Not sure whether this is a bug in the MIDI map data of sfizz or in Ardour.

As a workaround: record some MID from a controller, which includes Sustain data, and then use “Automation → Show Existing Automation”, as shown in the screenshot.

Yes, I can do that, thanks.

It would be interesting to introduce something like a “Lollipops for MIDI Sustain”, where you can choose between two states on and off, so you can control the sustain of each MIDI note. So a method independent of the plugin I use.
Thank you,
a.

But sustain doesn’t actually work like that. It’s a continuous controller; the receiver is under no pressure to connect sustain value changes and notes.

This is what MPE is all about (and to some degree, parts of MIDI 2.0)

This works well for me:

Sfizz 1.2.0 VST3

It’s a bug somehow. All MIDI tracks should provide the full list of all 16 * 127 controllers for automation.

I think I asked about this before and @x42 mentioned some setting I had to change. It’s to do with this menu.

image

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Another solution I found is this:

  1. Create an empty MIDI track (none plugins)
  2. Insert Controller 64 automation
  3. Add sfizz plugin

a.

It’s the LV2 version… Use the VST3. Sigh

Nitpick: it’s a Control Change message, and thus a MIDI Channel Message, i.e. it applies to all notes on the same MIDI channel. As Paul mentioned, MPE works around this limitation of channel messages. It does this by assigning a new channel to every new note played.

The MIDI 1.0 spec says:

Control numbers 64 through 69 are assigned to functions normally associated with switches (i.e. sustain or soft pedals). However these controllers can be used to send any continuous value.
[…]
If a receiver is expecting switch information it should recognize 0-63 (00H-3FH) as “OFF” and 64-127 (40H-7FH) as “ON”

So while Sustain (CC #64) can be a continuous value 0…127, it should normally be interpreted as a switch,. The MIDI spec uses the term “continuous controller” for those Control Change messages, whose controller number is assigned by default to hardware controllers, which actually generate continuous values, like e.g. the ModWheel.

Yes, changing “Plugin Provided” with “MMA → Generic”, it seems to work!

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Ah, so SFizz provides its own MIDNAM file that doesn’t list sustain as a viable control message.

Fair points, and thanks for being precise about it.