Mute / con sord. sounds like pizzicato on bowed strings

[Dima-S-Jr]

Issue type

General playback bug

Bug description

No response

Steps to reproduce

1. enter any notes/group of notes
2. add the text instruction mute (translated into my language, this instruction is called "con sord.") to any of the entered notes.
3. activate the MuseScore Basic profile
4. click play

Screenshots/Screen recordings

https://github.com/musescore/MuseScore/assets/134041121/71062f0e-a980-4955-88f4-d4744399c306

MuseScore Version

OS: Windows 10 Version 2009 MuseScore version (64-bit): 4.2.1-240230937, revision: github-musescore-musescore-d757433

Regression

I don't know

Operating system

Windows 11

Additional context

This only occurs with the MuseScore Basic profile.

[wizofaus]

Just found this myself - seems like it should be an easy sort of thing to fix, but already being worked on?

[cbjeukendrup]

@wizofaus It doesn't look like it, so feel free to give this a try!

[MarcSabatella]

Since there presumably aren’t mute samples in MS Basic (or other GM soundfonts), I guess the proposed fix is to simply ignore the direction? Or perhaps somehow diminish the volume?

[wizofaus]

Whatever the normal behaviour is when no sample exists - I would assume to ignore it. Of course you can have mute and pizzicato both active with string instruments, so I don't how the system would handle that were we ever to have more complete samples. You can already adjust the dynamic level by other means (and I'd even suggest that if a section is marked "mf con sord" it should still played at a dynamic level essentially the same as "mf senza sord").

[DaddyLudwig]

Yeah con sord isn't really a volume thing, it's a timbre thing.

[wizofaus]

Anyway for now I've just modified the "articulation" maps so that "mute" maps to a sensible MIDI program. I've also changed it so that the "mute" technique only changes brass instruments to use the MIDI "muted trumpet" preset (previously it applied to every single wind instrument). Technically I fudged this by just checking that the enum value was Horn or >= than "Tuba", which is the lowest-valued MIDI brass instrument preset other than Horn. Obviously a long way from ideal, but a great deal better than having, e.g. muted clarinets sound like trumpets (accepted, muted clarinet isn't often called for). Mind you using a muted trumpet for French Horn is hardly ideal either.

[wizofaus]

Is there a reason this still has no status? @Dima-S-Jr