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Words are typed in above each note

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VirSyn burst onto the plug-in scene several years ago with Tera, their superb semi-modular synth.
This combined analogue synthesis with FM, additive and modelling techniques. Next was Cube, an advanced additive instrument that brought a once-befuddling technology to our desktops in an easy-to-understand package.

Then came Cantor, VirSyn's 'singing synthesizer'. This featured some of the technologies used in Cube but was a wholly new type of instrument that promised to give electronic musicians the ability to create vocal parts via a piano roll-style interface.

Like many groundbreaking instruments, Cantor was perhaps slightly misunderstood. Those who expected to be able to push a few buttons and then suddenly have a top-quality session vocalist bursting from their speakers were left disappointed.

It was undeniably innovative, but the results sounded more like they'd come from the mouths of Daleks than Dean Martin. We certainly struggled with it. As hard as we tried, our Cantor projects sounded little better than a Cylon with toothache.

The biggest problem with the first version of the software was its GUI. While the piano roll was familiar enough, arranging syllables and phonemes across a grid produced sterile, static sounds that only vaguely resembled singing.

Fortunately, the new and updated Cantor is far easier to get to grips with. A variety of improvements have been made to the interface and also to the intelligibility and level of realism.

What should be said, however, is that Cantor 2 is most emphatically not being sold as a substitute for a real singer, so if you approach it in the hope that it is, you'll undoubtedly be frustrated. If you adjust your expectations, though, you may find a formidable ally.

In use

Initially, Cantor 2 seems identical to its predecessor. The Score page still looks like a piano roll, and alternative pages are accessed via tabs along the left-hand side.

Notes are drawn into the score in the usual fashion, and syllables and words are typed above the horizontal blocks that represent each note. Once typed, phonetic representations of the words are shown beneath them.

You get the same allotment of tools as before (selection, pencil and erase tools are all available) but the Score page contains a couple of very important additions in the form of pitch and volume buttons. Clicking on these reveals fully flexible envelopes that can be manipulated to produce realistic vibrato and dynamic changes.

We can't overemphasise the significance of these additions: the pitch envelope enables you to easily and intuitively create both subtle pitch fluctuations and the sweeping, bent notes that are typical of good vocal performances, while volume envelopes allow you to create dynamic expression.

Once you've entered your notes and lyrics, they can be played back via standard transport controls. You can select the tempo and make basic changes to the vocal timbre right from the Score page, while gender, glide time, breath and other options can also be adjusted.