What is Portamento and Legato Mode on Virtual Synthesizers?

[Numero Uno]

I mean still new to sound design and virtual synthesizers. I have noticed that many VST synthesizers feature both portamento and legato modes. Can you all explain what this means?

 

[Black Panther]

Legato is a smooth transition from one note to another, but there's no break between notes. So legato is a monophonic mode that slides pitch between overlapping notes.

Portamento refers to the continuous transition from the last pitch to the current pitch, beginning at the start of a new note. Glide means to continuously shift from the current pitch to the next pitch, starting sometime during the current note, finishing the process the moment the next note begins.

 

[Numero Uno]

And what is the portamento knob?

 

[Black Panther]

And what is the portamento knob?

The portamento knob will tell you how long the time it takes from sliding from one note to the other. The sliding or gliding rate is usually determined in milliseconds (ms)