Scoring software with more than MIDI

Does anyone know some good scoring software that can basically take a MIDI and use a bunch of samples to make it sound a whole load better? I've got sibelius which is great for scoring, but MIDI sounds pretty basic. I know software out there exists which can take a score and substitute in real recordings of an orchestra and such to make it sound pretty close to the real thing - but I don't know what any of those programs are called or where to find them. Ideas anyone?

I used to use Modplug. Haven't tried it in years, but it does basically what you're describing via .mod, .s3m, etc.

http://www.modplug.com/

I use "Reason." It precisely fits your description. It's a pricey thing, and the only reason I was able to obtain a copy for myself was through college discounts.

PM a link to one of the midis in question, and I'll quickly run it through Reason for you to decide for yourself.

EDIT: Oh, and here's their official site. http://www.propellerheads.se/

I would mention garageband, but you need a mac. Works great, tho.

The problem with garageband and modplug are that at the end of the day, they're still nothing more than midi. Modplug comes close, but it stops short of applying acoustics calculations and is severely limited to .mod and .mid standards. Same with Fruityloops (or whatever it's called). They all rely primarily on (though rather good) procedural sample creation, while Reason takes the soundfont concept and pumps steroids into its veins.

Seriously, send a midi my way and I can have a rough cut for you in very little time.

Check yer email!

Received.

Modplug ... and is severely limited to .mod and .mid standards.

Actually Modplug can export Wave (which can be converted to MP3 with the free program Audacity) or MP3 (if you have some sort of encoder). Also, the samples used to make the music can be imported from wave sound files (so they can be as realistic as you want), but im sure Reason is a better program...

Anything can be exported to wav/mp3. I was talking about the quality, which wav file imports do not begin to address. WAVs < SoundFonts < Reason Soundbanks.

Check your E-mail, Ash.

Fruity loops does this, and I think LMMS does, or will eventually.

If im not wrong your bascically talking about what is sometimes called audio instruments, which take MIDI information and apply realistic sounds to them. Logic has some nice instruments. Reason is definately the bad boy. Its essentially just a clever sample player.

At my 'studio' I use cubase and reason, but i end up using logic quite alot too.

Let me know how you get on

i use FL studio, and its not at all midi, you get pretty much everything you do in reason, all the eq's multiband compressors all that jizz, ive used reason and logic but i prefer FL studio. its nice and shnazzy.

and fl studio can do percisely this

Yeah, I think FL Studio has a bum rap as a silly techno program. It can actually do a lot of stuff once you get into it.

I've never used Reason though so I can't compare it.