It would be nice if one could retain the best of both worlds by having a DAW (hopefully not just Cubase but Logic as well 
) and Dorico directly “talk” to each other via some sort of enhanced, super-charged, new “rewire” protocol, etc. but where changing something in one program affects the other in some way (and I know another thread has also mentioned the idea of a Dorico “plug-in” for notation). This way those of us used to micro-tweaking a mock-up in a DAW can continue to do so, but connect it to Dorico for notation. If this was offered I might even consider switching to Cubase (even as a long-time Logic user) if needed …
Barring this, I DO think that NotePerformer feels somehow like the “future” of notation playback if there were some way to improve the depth of sound playback and the diversity of algorithms beyond more classically-oriented scores. It’s just so “idiot-proof” to use and is such an excellent trade-off vs. the time I’m finding it’s taking to try and program Dorico with my other virtual instruments. I’d be curious if Dorico might have plans down the line to integrate some sort of automatic expression with an enhanced built-in library similar to what Note Performer has done, since many who use notation don’t necessarily have the computer-programmer mindset (or patience!) to tweak our libraries along the lines of what’s lately been suggested, Expression Map-wise, etc., which requires some serious “down in the weeds” thinking.
As far as the NotePerformer “look ahead” feature making it hard to do step or realtime MIDI input, maybe there would be some way to temporarily turn off the “look ahead score interpretation” when you’re recording/entering something in, similar to the “Low Latency Mode” button in Logic Pro (where invoking it turns off all plugins, reducing system latency when you record but - of course - also temporarily bypassing the overall sound of your mix until you turn it off again).
- D.D.