Sibelius ;big romantic orchestra score add extended instrumentation based on needs, perhaps saxophone quartet, accordion, rythm section, drums, bass, etc; export midi/ everything to Ableton Live(my preferred DAW), add U-he synths diva etc., phaseplant, valhalla reverb, EQ with fabfilters pro-Q and then export the whole shebang.
I have used Cubase,Sonar as DAWs before since the 90's worked with all kinds of sample libraries spitfire, project sams, berlin wdw, etc.
These sample libraries can be a lot of work both with the amount of tracks, automation with all the different articulations, and getting a good mix. Can take a lot of time, may be worth it for the added fidelity of the individual sounds, for me, time can vary up to over a month for a 20min complex(varying musical parameters) full romantic orchestra piece. Sometimes I need to recalibrate orchestration to a more mixing/mastering approach. Fitting in the sounds freq. spectrums, mixing and panning instruments.
Currently I am relying on compromising time spent vs sound quality(perhaps). Focusing more on the score. Have a good enough orchestral background(sibelius + note performer) with added synthesis / effects.
The added synthesizers/effects/reverb I like to believe are the gold packaging. Can also be the modernising / break against the old element.
This workflow has drastically improved my worktimes, enabling me to churn out pieces in one to a couple of days instead of month/s
Hope that info was helpful :)
