Keep Musical automatic vibrato enabled for the current phrase behavior. During a sustained stopped pitch, width and speed can bloom, retreat and change their relationship. Across a legato line, hand motion continues between notes. Separate contacts allow a brief settling of the hand.

Velocity, expression and phrase direction contribute to the result. The performer follows the actual note/touch history; it does not know a notated beat hierarchy or invent score accents. Supply important emphasis through velocity, expression and timing.

Vibrato character	Typical use
Baroque	Brief, restrained ornaments; useful for transparent contrapuntal lines
Classical	Moderate width with gentle growth and release
Romantic	Broader arrival, followed by faster, narrower continuation
Pop	Delayed, focused motion around an established pitch
Authored / CC	Directly programmed rate and width

Open strings have no left-hand vibrato. A straight open note is expected.

Control it without aftertouch

Assign a fader to CC17. Move it to emphasize or calm the hand while the profile continues shaping the sustained note. This is the normal live control.

For a straight stopped tone, send CC17=0 and set the aftertouch route to Off. Aftertouch routed to Vibrato can otherwise add motion.

For a precisely authored contour, use CC76 rate and CC77 width. These direct controls take over the automatic shape. Use Vibrato Auto to return to phrase-based development.

The Left Hand page also exposes onset, development, asymmetry, variation, fingertip motion and phrasing amount. A fixed width/rate target need not make the Play amount slider oscillate; look at the Hand readout to see the actual motion.

Shifting and portamento

Normal finger changes, an anchored reach and an audible position shift are different gestures.

Enable Portamento/CC65 when you want a shift to be audible. Overlap notes on the same string. Latch that string first if Auto would choose a crossing instead.

Shift gesture	Result
Light shift	A lighter transition and clear arrival
Singing slide	A more audible connection with supported arrival
Anchored reach	A reach within the hand frame, using Finger change time
Previous guided	The manually guided contour for prepared performances

Position shift time / CC5 sets 15–300 ms. Finger change time / CC83 sets 2–24 ms for the smaller contact transition. Shift contact motion / CC30 controls the contact change that lightens a shift.

Start with Light shift and a moderate time. Use Singing slide for a deliberate expressive connection. Leave portamento off for a discreet phrase unless you want an audible glide; a pitch interval alone does not establish a same-finger position shift.

Pizzicato, tremolo and harmonics

Pizzicato

Tap MIDI 39. Note velocity shapes the pluck. Pizzicato projection / CC8 adds 0–12 dB of displacement strength; it is useful for a concluding accent without raising the whole instrument.

Pluck point / CC84 changes the location along the speaking string. Finger damping and string position influence the release. High-register pizzicato naturally has a shorter body-supported decay than low pizzicato; holding a MIDI key is not a request for an indefinite plucked sustain.

Return to a bowed articulation for the next arco phrase. Pizzicato does not consume an automatic bow stroke.

Tremolo

Tap MIDI 40 and hold the musical pitch. Tremolo rate / CC82 spans 3–16 individual strokes per second. A down-and-up pair therefore counts as two strokes.

Automatic tremolo can respond to dynamics. Sending CC82 gives a fixed manual rate; Bow → Follow dynamics releases that override.

Use Hair tilt / CC23 to change the contact: 0 is full hair, 1 is edge hair. Sounding point and pressure also influence the texture. Keep Acoustic pizzicato / tremolo and Refined articulation response enabled for the current behavior.

Natural harmonics

Hold MIDI 53, then play an open-string base key:

String	Base input	Default sounding octave
G	G3 / 55	G4 / 67
D	D4 / 62	D5 / 74
A	A4 / 69	A5 / 81
E	E5 / 76	E6 / 88

Release the harmonic hold to return to ordinary touch. The open input identifies its physical string even if a different string was previously latched. This dedicated natural-harmonic hold requires Refined articulation response.

Artificial and selected harmonics

Hold MIDI 54, or turn on Harmonic touch/CC87, and select the harmonic type on Left Hand or with CC96.

CC96 value	Type	Sounding interval above the base
0–31	Artificial fourth	+24 semitones
32–63	Natural octave	+12 semitones
64–95	Natural twelfth	+19 semitones
96–127	Natural double octave	+24 semitones

Input the base pitch, not the resulting harmonic. For example, artificial fourth touch on A4/69 produces A6/93; you do not need to enter both finger pitches as a chord.

The dedicated MIDI 53 hold defaults to a natural octave; the natural twelfth and double octave selections choose the higher partials. If using latched CC87, send 0 to restore normal touch.

Harmonics are modeled approximations. Bow point, load and touch can make their response more or less stable; they should not be treated as ordinary stopped notes with the same aggressive bow settings.