Spitfire Audio Introduces EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS for their EMS VCS3 Inspired Virtual Instrument

Published on Sep 3, 2015 Spitfire Audio

"Spitfire Audio adds another ‘off-grid’ twist to evolving, EMS VCS3-inspired VIs for its Producer Portfolio

LONDON, UK: Spitfire Audio, purveyors of the finest virtual instruments from the finest musical samples in the world, is proud to announce availability of PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS, the latest creative chapter in its evocatively-named, evolving EVO GRID series of ‘off-grid’ sample-based virtual instruments initially inspired by the trailblazing late-Sixties-vintage EMS VCS3 portable analogue monosynth and perfectly executed for the Native Instruments KONTAKT platform-compatible Producer Portfolio range — itself launched to satisfy repeated requests for drier-sounding, more manipulative samples for more non-orchestral material, as of September 18…

Following on from the success of Spitfire Audio’s prototypical PP017 EVO GRID 001 STRINGS and its phenomenal PP020 EVO GRID 002 STRINGS followup, as implied by name, PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS takes the so-called ‘Evo’ concept from its inception in strings into the wonderful world of woodwinds. What is an Evo, exactly? Evos are hyper-long, sample-based articulations that evolve — sometimes subtly, sometimes severely — over time before looping. These are then organised on a grid so users can plot which evolution or ‘Evo’ sits on which key range, resulting in a GUI (Graphical User Interface) inspired by the breakthrough British EMS VCS3, which made musical history upon its introduction in 1969 by being the first commercially portable synthesiser available anywhere in the world, thanks to its innovative modular matrix-based patchboard dispensing with the telephone exchange-like cabling of other (much larger) modular systems in favour of making space-saving connections with (removable) coloured pins.

PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS heads on a similarly flexible sonic bearing, but within the computer-hosted context of a truly 21st Century sample-based virtual instrument fit for ‘off-grid’ minimal musical explorations. Employing some of the UK’s finest, most progressive, and avant-garde woodwind players performing beautifully-orchestrated long notes that increase in intensity and expression, evolving into out-of-this world soundscapes, this eclectic collection of woodwind evolutions designed by Ben Foskett foster an exceptional edge to anyone’s musical endeavours. Returning to record at the ultra-dry, yet warm-sounding surroundings of Central London’s Air-Edel Recording Studios using the finest vintage microphones, Neve preamps, and the last Cadac studio console ever built, ‘Foskett & Co.’ set about creating a product that oozes originality and positively provides inspiration to all that use it. The result? 3,312 superlative samples — some 18.5GB of uncompressed .WAV files — that do just that by doing things with woodwinds that are totally unexpected, yet uniquely musical in execution.

At Air-Edel Recording Studios two subtly different performing lineups — Band A comprising FLUTE (3), ALTO FLUTE (1), BASS FLUTE (1), CONTRA BASS FLUTE (1), Bb CLARINET (3), and Bb BASS CLARINET (3); Band B comprising OBOE (3), COR ANGLAIS (2), Bb CLARINET (2), Bb BASS CLARINET (1), Bb BASS CLARINET (1), BARITONE SAX (1), and BASSOON (3) — led Spitfire Audio to ultimately provide PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS users with a nuanced selection of sounds. Some are more reedy-sounding, others more flutey. This time the resultant Evo count stands at a healthy 48 spread across 12 pitch regions — including an additional five grids of wonderfully-warped, saturated, and totally transformed versions of each and every Evo — resulting in an almost infinite number of possibilities. Pressing the save button is important… all the more so given the many randomisation options that are also provided!

Fortunately for (potential) PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS purchasers, Spitfire Audio has helpfully seen fit to carefully curate those extraordinary Evos into a number of spring-right-out-of-the-box-style patches — from seemingly-simple tutti-type affairs, featuring all Evos evenly spread across the keyboard, through to various diagonal patterns, as well as a handy feature for randomly creating pinned patterns from the near-infinite number of configuration possibilities — perfectly demonstrating not only the tense and extreme elements of the library but also the effortlessly-engaging ‘episodic’ Evos! Easily-accessible front panel-positioned FX controls (for Reverb, Delay, and Tape Sat.) help make this into a tool truly designed for producers — hence the Producer Portfolio range association, as well as composers, editors, and sound designers alike. Anyone needing a spellbinding solution from the moment they touch the keyboard, in other words! Like the self-explanatory SIMPLE TENSE SCARY subtitling of the PP017 EVO GRID 001 STRINGS and TRADITIONAL EPISODIC EXTREME subtitling of PP020 EVO GRID 002 STRINGS before it, PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS can be as time-saving as the trailblazing EMS VCS3 was once space-saving.

Saying that, PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS perfectly compliments that recently-released PP017 EVO GRID 001 STRINGS sample-based virtual instrument — an extraordinary collection of long, evolving chamber strings orchestrated by Ben Foskett before being given Spitfire Audio’s adventurous Evo treatment — and its PP020 EVO GRID 002 STRINGS sibling. Says Spitfire Audio Director Paul Thomson: “We’ve got a collection of incredible players here — very progressive, avant-garde wind players, playing beautifully-orchestrated long notes from Ben Foskett that evolve with increases in intensity and expression and different techniques to give you a really beautiful series of long, evolving tones that you can use to work with in a similar way to the STRINGS EVO GRID releases. The EVO GRID GUI is the same as before, so you’ll recognise all of the controls. There are lots and lots of possibilities — millions of possibilities, in fact, so it’s a really creative tool. We’re very proud of it. It’s very different from the strings evolutions that we’ve put out so far, but it’s very, very useful.”

Indeed it is. In this day and age of delivering more musical content against a backdrop of diminishing deadlines and budgetary constraints, composers are often asked to engage the listener by doing very little — least of all changing notes, all those EVO GRID releases represent Spitfire Audio’s masterplan for providing them with a solution to this taxing conundrum. Just ask award-winning composer — and fellow Spitfire Audio Director Christian Henson. Commissioned to write 13 hours of music for a sprawling, epic TV series, but with no budget for orchestra and only three months in which to do it, a quick string sampling session subsequently ensued, during which he fortuitously recorded a series of greatly differing long strings evolutions. Staggered by the resulting sample instrument, where the chaotic nature of different evolutions placed over different intervals made for exciting and unexpected results, he semi-seriously stated, “I could literally hit a big C minor chord, hold my sustain pedal down, reach for my sandwich, and the thing would still be writing itself a minute later while I was wiping mayo off my beard!” From the smallest seed… and all that jazz.


PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS and its PP017 EVO GRID 001 STRINGS and PP020 EVO GRID 002 STRINGS sample-based virtual instrument siblings can be purchased and downloaded directly from Spitfire Audio for £179.00 GBP (subject to VAT within the EU) from here:
http://www.spitfireaudio.com/products-page (Note that Spitfire Audio’s free Download Manager application for Mac or PC allows you to buy now and download anytime while a full version of Native Instruments KONTAKT 5 is needed to run these Producer Portfolio products.)


For more in-depth info, including an ear-opening audio demo, please visit the PP025 EVO GRID 004 WOODWINDS webpage here: http://www.spitfireaudio.com/pp-evo-grid-4-woodwinds"

Spitfire Audio Mercury — Unearthly Sounds from Hollywood's Secret Weapon

video upload by Spitfire Audio

Spitfire Audio collaboratively creates MERCURY library like no other by harnessing hotshot Hollywood instrument designer Chas Smith’s unearthly sounds for all


“Chas’ instruments have been a crucial part of all of my film scores, and although I’m a little sad that I will no longer have him all to myself, I am thrilled that he has finally succumbed to years of urging on my part and has at long last collaborated with Spitfire Audio.”

- GRAMMY® Award-nominated composer, keyboardist, record producer, and remixer Charlie Clouser (Saw, Wayward Pines, Nine Inch Nails), 2022


LONDON, UK: created in close collaboration with hotshot Hollywood instrument-builder Chas Smith, famed for transforming disused metal into Hollywood’s most menacing, most mysterious instruments for forty years (yet still sought after by blockbuster film composers needing to score the awe-inspiring, the mystical, the mechanical, and the alien), sound- specialising British music technology company Spitfire Audio is proud to announce availability of MERCURY — harnessing his unearthly sounds for all by sampling 14 of the hotshot Hollywood instrument-builder’s most celebrated acoustic instruments, then fusing, warping, and reinventing them in Solar, Spitfire Audio’s new eDNA-powered synthesiser, to deliver 600+ organic and synthesised textures, tones, and pads perfect for tweaking, twisting, and recombining to unleash the sinister, unshackle the industrial, and unveil the impossible worlds orbiting just beyond reach — as of August 25…

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Spitfire Audio Announces Availability of New ORBIS Library - One-of-a-Kind Synthesizer

Walkthrough: Orbis Uploaded on Jul 16, 2019 Spitfire Audio

"Paul takes us through the new Orbis library- a one-of-a-kind synthesizer born out of rare recordings from around the globe, presented in Spitfire's sophisticated eDNA Engine."

Official press release follows:

Spitfire Audio announces availability of ORBIS plug-in presented in eDNA engine as a horizon-expanding ‘world synth’

“Great film music often blends sounds from different cultures to create a rich tapestry; ORBIS lets you infuse your music with DNA from around the world — from incredibly useful, original recordings through to beautifully evolving textures.”
- Paul Thompson, composer and Spitfire Audio co-founder


LONDON, UK: Spitfire Audio is proud to announce availability of ORBIS — offered as a horizon-expanding ‘world synthesizer’ standalone plug-in, presented in the sound-specialising British music technology company’s sophisticated eDNA engine, enabling exceedingly creative access to 2,500 extraordinary sounds born out of organic performances treated and transported to new dimensions, designed for progressively-minded composers as a gargantuan creative compendium comprising distorted loops to evolving textures and visceral one-shots, subsonic low-end to ethereal pads, perfect for producing rich-sounding, panoramic scores from nature documentaries to sci-fi movies — as of July 18…

Sometimes a score needs more than an orchestra. ORBIS reimagines the work of David Fanshawe (1942-2010), an English composer, sound explorer, and ethnomusicologist who travelled the globe to gather an archive of approximately 2,000 hours of music, documented for posterity at a time of great change. “The present is almost history; every day is worth recording.” So stated the man himself.

However, ORBIS itself is so much more than a collection of organic field recordings; rather it includes 90% treated content, with over 200 presets, plus loops, textures, one-shots, and pads created by Spitfire Audio’s accomplished team of engineers in its own journey of sonic discovery, distilled — alongside clean recordings, rich in history, character, and emotion — in the sound-specialising British music technology company’s sophisticated eDNA engine to provide users with virtually endless parameters and possibilities for enhancing their own scores with the DNA of countless cultures from across the globe.

Enduring and enthralling, David Fanshawe’s rarefied recordings have already made themselves heard in scores to major movies such as 1997’s Seven Years In Tibet (John Williams) and 2002’s Gangs Of New York (Howard Shore); now they are ready and able to empower anyone’s scoring sensibilities as an essential resource for producers, composers, or sound designers intent on seeking out new sounds — or even civilisations! After all, sounds are the fabric from which music is weaved.

With that thought in mind, maybe it was inevitable that Spitfire Audio would creatively cross paths with the David Fanshawe World Music Archive. As such, ORBIS was effectively conceived back in January 2015, when widow Jane Fanshawe introduced Spitfire Audio co-founder and composer Paul Thomson to the global sonic explorer’s namesake legacy. “Listening to these extraordinarily vivid recordings is like looking through a window into a different time and place,” pronounces the clearly captivated listener.

Literally placing them into a different time and space, Spitfire Audio subsequently handpicked thousands of extraordinary sounds from those extraordinarily vivid recordings, really resulting in a so-called ‘world synthesizer’ since ORBIS users are able to delve deeper into some of the most rare and distinctive sounds and loops on the planet, rich in history, character, and emotion encompassing a range of cultures and communities, many of which no longer exist; enhancing every sound still further with ORBIS’ own exploratory eDNA is inevitable.

Imagine the eDNA engine as a set of two turntables alongside a highly-sophisticated DJ mixer. It includes two sound bays — A and B, each designed to create differing sonic treatments, with individual and independent modulators and control of TRIM, BEND, GLIDE, CLONE, TUNE, ADSR (envelope), HI-PASS (filter), LO- PASS (filter), and WOBBLE (modulating VOLUME, PITCH, and FILTER). Furthermore, the GATE SEQUENCER allows for independent gating of those two bays and unified control of amount, speed, and LENGTH of sequence. These two signals are then unified with an x-fader; move between the sounds with the mouse or the factory default-assigned modulation wheel. Elsewhere, eDNA’s five-stage FX (effects) path contains 41 custom plug-ins, including preloaded bespoke IRs (Impulse Responses). The BAY A FX and BAY B FX stages affect sound bay A or B, while an AUX FX stage can be sent via the layers or MASTER FX stage.

Obviously ORBIS easily enables sonic journeying of its own doing. Discover hundreds of presets treated in various ways, with Spitfire Audio’s acclaimed sampling expertise and technology twisting and turning every sound through 3,000 lines of code! Some sound subtly manipulated while others are heavily processed, unrecognisable from their original source material.

Musically-speaking, ORBIS travels far — from playable one-shots and short phrases to tuned and untuned rhythmic loops and recordings up to a minute long. Ultimately, unearthing sounds with subtle movement, complexity, and evolution is an ear-opening experience. Throbbing basses and pulsing loops, ideal for dance music; thunderous drones, subsonic low-end and visceral, tortured drum hits, for adding movement and depth; Blade Runner-style synths, made from antelope horns; and ethereal pads and breathtakingly beautiful evolving textures, for three-dimensional cinematic soundscapes... the very nature of ORBIS’ design takes its users to new levels of sonic exploration and adventure. A lifetime of inspiration as an essential resource awaits anyone creatively climbing aboard.

As to the finished product’s potency, Paul Thomson is clearly qualified to comment, enthusiastically ending on a high note: “This is a really rich tapestry of sounds; it’s almost like a new kind of ‘world synth’ which goes from the raw sounds that are incredibly useful all the way through to beautiful, undulating, evolving textures made from these incredible organic recordings.”

ORBIS can be purchased and digitally downloaded as an AAX-, AU-, and VST-compatible plug-in that loads directly into a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) for a time-limited introductory promo price of £229.00 GBP (inc. VAT)/$269.00 USD/€269.00 EUR (inc. VAT) until August 1, 2019 — rising thereafter to an RRP of £299.00 GBP (inc. VAT)/$349.00 USD/€349.00 EUR (inc. VAT) — from here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-z/orbis/"

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SPITFIRE's eDNA EARTH Organic Synthesis

Published on Sep 3, 2014 Spitfire Audio

"Spitfire successfully pilots next-gen soundware back to EARTH with elemental eDNA release

LONDON, UK: compositional tools creator Spitfire Audio is proud to announce availability of the first phase in its eDNA (Electronic DNA) project, EDNA01 - EARTH — a mouth-watering, once-in-a-lifetime collection of electronic sounds served up from the most valued collection of orchestral recordings on the planet, creating the next generation of soundware for the next generation of music makers, as of September 12...

Fact: Spitfire Audio has spent the last decade creating the world’s finest orchestral library. But the simple fact is that this was never its prime objective. Often words are never enough, in fact, yet the tantalising EDNA01 - EARTH teaser did just that with a carefully chosen few: SPITFIRE DIRECTIVE: MAY 2004... PROJECT CODENAME: GAIA... OBJECTIVE: INFILTRATE THE WORLD’S GREATEST ORCHESTRAS... MINE SONIC ORE... TO CREATE RAW COMPONENTS FOR... eDNA... PHASE #ONE... EARTH ORGANIC SYNTHESIS.

Intriguing, isn’t it? So what on earth is EDNA01 - EARTH, exactly? Easy answer. For the last five years Spitfire Audio has been cherry-picking its way through the best musical moments from seven years’ worth of orchestral recordings and placing them through a series of extraordinary analogue and digital signal-warping chains to create the largest sound set of jaw-dropping, next-generation, organic-sounding electronics ever heard anywhere on earth. Either this is some of the best hyperbole ever written or something special has been happening behind closed doors, waiting for the right moment to be unleashed upon the unsuspecting music-making masses, more often than not already jaded by the morass of identikit, mainstream, and clichéd dance and pop sounds already available elsewhere. EDNA01 - EARTH is far from this, and far more besides, however. Hearing will be believing, believe us. Now that’s another fact to chew on! And here’s some more serious food for thought...

While Spitfire Audio has been hard at work recording the finest orchestral players for several years now, practising its collective craft of carefully creating the best strings, brass, woodwinds, and percussion libraries in the world to let loose on musicians the world over, coming from a background of the first wave of EDM (Electronic Dance Music), many here have hungered to get their hands on those superb sounds for further ill-gotten gains — hence the best orchestral recordings being saved to an above top secret hard drive to act as a repository for raw material. The elemental ore or set of polished diamonds, waiting to be roughed up all over again, if you will. While this proved to be a drawn-out process, it was well worth waiting for, that’s for sure!

Indeed, five long years were spent experimenting with orchestral warping techniques, finding the most rarefied analogue outboard and synths with which to filter, mangle, and much more besides, as well as commissioning and creating bespoke digital signal paths. Sounds were pulled up from that top secret hard drive, fed through an awesome multistage signal path, then left simmering overnight to create the most delicious and sometimes just plainly ‘wrong’ sets of sounds. Spitfire’s supremely talented team of multi-award-winning composers, producers, technicians, and engineers subsequently set about pairing down over a terabyte of data to more manageable musical chunks — the very best of the best with which to create a set of multi-sampled sound-sets that became the very building blocks of EARTH itself. Indeed, these were then meticulously organised by sound type into even more manageable sound banks, ready for future release when the time was right.

Rightfully so, Spitfire Audio — in partnership with Blake Robinson — has been hard at it for the last several years or so, cleverly creating some of the most intuitive and ingenious scripts, simple to use GUIs, and attractive front ends for its ongoing series of virtual instruments for Native Instruments’ industry- standard KONTAKT platform for Mac (OS X 10.7 or higher) and PC (Windows 7). Around a year ago, Spitfire Audio wiped the slate — or should we say script? — clean, and set about creating a monstrous new script engine, called eDNA (Electronic DNA), into which those ear-opening EARTH sound banks were effectively transplanted. ‘EARTH - Beta’ was then duly distributed around Spitfire’s state-of-the-art studio complex in central London, where the team truly went to town to create a quite frankly jaw-dropping selection of the most original, haunting, beautiful, epic, fat, angry, and downright unpleasant sounds you’re ever likely to set ears upon — here, there, or anywhere (else). EDNA01 - EARTH’s ingenious GUI genuinely fosters exploration into hitherto uncharted sonic vistas, all of which are a knob or slider away from being tweaked to belong to the user as they themselves see fit. Mangle (via the main MIX window) and add effects galore (via the main FX and MOTORISED FX windows)... it’s all there for the taking and more!

Who better to extol the many musical virtues of EDNA01 - EARTH than Spitfire Audio co-founder Paul Thomson. “There’s huge scope for you to get in and start making your own sounds with all this stuff,” says the working composer. “We are really excited about this one. It’s very useful, and it’s the kind of thing that we’ve been hankering after for a long time — especially Christian [Henson] and myself, who are always looking for some great, unusual synth sounds. The advantage of the way that we’ve put this library together is that you won’t hear the same sound that you’re using on your one- hundred-million-dollar blockbuster on the documentary about the lifecycle of the fruit fly the following day! So you can really dig in and create sounds that are your own signature in here.”

There you have it, then. An awesome-sounding collection of 1,900-plus basic instruments mangled into 1,001 custom patches across several so-called factory and artist ‘cartridges’ by Spitfire Audio’s award-winning team of composers, sound-smiths, producers, and engineers. eDNA (interface) and EDNA01 - EARTH (cartridges)... what a beautiful combination. Everything needed to take anyone ‘out there’ — and back to earth again!


EDNA01 - EARTH can be purchased and downloaded directly from Spitfire Audio for an attractive introductory price of £129.00 GBP (subject to VAT within the EU) — rising to £149.00 GBP (subject to VAT within the EU) on October 1, 2014 — from here: http://www.spitfireaudio.com/products-page (Note that this is a free Native Instruments KONTAKT PLAYER library — no additional purchases necessary to run this product to its full potential.)

For more detailed information, please visit the dedicated EDNA01 - EARTH webpage here: http://www.spitfireaudio.com/edna01-earth"

Spitfire Signature Library via The Human League's and Heaven 17's Martyn Ware

Spitfire presents: MARTYN WARE - NIC library

Published on May 29, 2014 Spitfire Audio·114 videos

"A look at our new signature library from the synth pioneer Martyn Ware - founder member of The Human League and Heaven 17
http://www.spitfireaudio.com/martyn-w..."

And the press release:

"Spitfire swells Signature Range with synthpop production pioneer Martyn Ware

LONDON, UK: compositional tools creator Spitfire Audio is proud to announce availability of MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS — the latest addition to its swelling Signature Range of sample libraries (where legendary composers, producers, and sound-smiths curate award-winning sonic DNA for future music-makers) for Native Instruments’ KONTAKT 4 or 5 (Mac OS X 10.7 or higher and Windows 7 or later) — as of May 30...

A distinctive pattern, product, or characteristic by which someone or something can be identified. So reads a typical dictionary definition of the word signature. Spitfire Audio’s Signature Range sample library luminaries certainly have a signature sound, hence the apt appellation. As one of the most successful, influential, and prolific film composers of his generation, Hans Zimmer — with whom Spitfire Audio previously collaborated on the HZ PERCUSSION - LONDON library, a definitive collection of hybrid cinematic widescreen percussion ensemble excellence — surely needs little in the way of introduction, for example.

Today it is with great pride that Spitfire Audio welcomes another trailblazer to its legendary Signature Range sample library lineup with MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS. This time namesake legendary synthpop production pioneer Martyn Ware — founding member of electronic trailblazers The Human League and synth-funksters Heaven 17, and also a revered record producer in his own right with a sizeable number of super-successful credits to his sought- after name with over 50-million sales worldwide for the likes of ‘Queen of Rock ’n’ Roll’ Tina Turner, American singer-songwriter Terence Trent D’Arby, and eternal electro-poppers Erasure — offers up an exclusive collection of favourite analogue synth and drum sounds from his prized collection of rarefied electronic delights. These include Korg’s mid-Seventies-vintage Mini-KORG 700 ‘simple’ analogue monosynth and the Roland System 100 semi-modular monophonic synth with which Martyn made his name on early Human League classics like ‘Being Boiled’ — though the examples used on MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS were actually gifted to Martyn by Erasure synth Svengali Vince Clarke (who openly admitted to being influenced by those early electronic recordings) upon discovering that Martyn had long since sold his originals — and the early-Eighties-vintage Jupiter-8, Roland’s first truly professional programmable analogue polysynth that formed the backbone of Heaven 17 hits like ‘Temptation’. Before making their own distinctive mark on the hit parade, prior to owning a drum machine, Martyn and his Human League (and Heaven 17) synth-playing partner Ian Craig-Marsh’s make do and mend modus operandi involved rhythmically riding faders on the aforesaid System 100 and its associated Model 104 Sequencer to create bass and snare drums on the fly! Little wonder, then, that the then-young Vince Clarke sat up and took note during his fledgling Depeche Mode days.

Having joined forces with Vince Clarke to form The Illustrious Company, combining their talent to exploit the creative and commercial possibilities of their unique three-dimensional sound technology in collaboration with fine artists, the performing arts, and corporate clients worldwide, Martyn extensively lectures on music production, technology, and creativity at universities and colleges around the world when not working in his studio space at London’s Tileyard Studios complex — coincidentally, also home to Spitfire Audio!

By way of further background to the welcome MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS release, Spitfire Audio co-founder Paul Thomson tellingly pays tribute to the accomplished individual in question before going on to introduce the latest Signature Range sample library itself: “Martyn’s a legend in the electronic music field. He’s a founder member of The Human League; his first massive hit was ‘Being Boiled’. And then he left to form Heaven 17 with Ian Craig-Marsh; they had another massive hit with ‘Temptation’, although American audiences may be more familiar with the hit ‘Let Me Go’, which was played hugely on KROQ and MTV over there. He went on to produce with huge success; he helped relaunch Tina Turner’s career with ‘Let’s Stay Together’ and ‘Private Dancer’. He produced Terence Trent D’Arby, Marc Almond, Erasure, and many others. His early albums were direct precursors, in many ways, to the directions that hip-hop took Stateside when it went electro in the early Eighties. We believe that the key to sampling synths is not just good signal chain, but it’s also the curatorship of the sounds, and this is a rare opportunity to share in Martyn’s sonic approach — the buttons and dials that he tweaks to suit his taste and his heritage. So we get to see what he can come up with on these machines — fantastic synths like the Roland System 100, Jupiter-8, and the Korg 700. We’ve also got a warped collection, which is kind of sound designed from this original material. We’ve got some modern interpretations, but it’s largely curated to be in the spirit of Martyn’s style — how the young electronic acts in the UK inspired the likes of Afrika Bambaataa with the burgeoning electro and hip-hop scene Stateside in New York and the South Bronx.”

It goes without saying, therefore, that Martyn Ware and his creative cohorts proved inspirational back in the day while MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS clearly is inspirational today to anyone looking to make musical use of a broad selection of pads, leads, drums, effects, tempo-locked sequences, and all manner of curios created by the man himself, with additional sympathetic sound design by award-winning composers and producers — all presented in ‘Super Mono’ to provide a selection of channels processed via vintage Class-A analogue outboard. With over 270 piquant presets — some with up to five distinctly-different mixable signal paths — providing a total library size of 13.5 GB in compressed downloadable data from 25.1 GB of WAV files totalling 11,016 samples, such musical inspiration from a true trailblazer is unlikely to dry up anytime soon. Just ask the now-not-so-young Vince Clarke — all set to release his 16th studio album with Erasure, his third successful group since first hearing Martyn Ware’s time-honoured Human League tones 30-plus years ago!


MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS can be purchased and downloaded directly from Spitfire Audio for an introductory promotional price of £75.00 GBP (subject to VAT within the EU) until June 12, 2014 (rising to £99.00 GBP thereafter) from here: http://www.spitfireaudio.com/products-page (Note that this will require a full version of Native Instruments KONTAKT 4 or 5 to run.)

For more detailed info and individual demos from Spitfire Audio co-founders Christian Henson and Paul Thomson skilfully showcasing MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS’ creative sound design visit the dedicated webpage here: http://www.spitfireaudio.com/martyn-ware-no-illegal-connections

Watch Spitfire Audio co-founder Paul Thomson’s telling MARTYN WARE - NO ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS video walkthrough here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdmFXFj7GQw"

Spitfire Audio Fractured Strings - A New Force Of Nature

video upload by Spitfire Audio

"Award-winning composer Paul Thomson takes you to the edge of the world and beyond with Fractured Strings. Created in collaboration with Hans Zimmer’s prestigious scoring collective Bleeding Fingers Music and London’s finest string players, this small ensemble library features an eight-piece string ensemble and two soloists, brought to life in the unparalleled acoustics of AIR Lyndhurst Hall, complete with 15 signal paths.

Fractured Strings introduces an innovative approach to articulations that delivers inspirational surprises through intervallic performances and new modal colours with unparalleled depth and realism. Introducing our brand new Scale Mode technology, these sophisticated, emotive movements and textures reflect the intricacies, patterns and contrasts found in natural phenomena — as heard in BBC's #FrozenplanetII.

Explore Fractured Strings here - https://bit.ly/3xEL8h1

00:00 - Trailer
1:00 - Interview with Bleeding Fingers Music
7:02 - Walkthrough
7:47 The Scale Mode
10:38 - The Articulations
15:40 - The EVO Grid
19:33 - The Seventh Reach
21:10 - The Solo Instruments"

And the press release:

"Spitfire Audio works with Bleeding Fingers to forge FRACTURED STRINGS as a new kind of chamber string library introducing a novel approach to articulations

“Early on in the process of scoring Frozen Planet II, we looked at the patterns of splintering ice and the individuality of snowflakes; in creating FRACTURED STRINGS, we worked closely with the Spitfire [Audio] team and London’s best players to represent these natural phenomena in musical performances — creating a toolkit that became the foundation of our score for the show.”

- Frozen Planet II composers James Everingham & Adam Lukas, 2022


LONDON, UK: created in close collaboration with Bleeding Fingers Music, the Emmy Award-winning and BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Award-nominated composer collective, hand-selected and mentored by Hollywood hotshot Hans Zimmer (as a multi-Academy Award- and GRAMMY® Award-winning film composer of some serious standing), sound-specialising British music technology company Spitfire Audio is proud to announce availability of FRACTURED STRINGS — itself introducing a novel approach to articulations as a new kind of chamber string library featuring a 10-piece ensemble inspired by the Arctic and brought to life in the unparalleled acoustics of Lyndhurst Hall in London’s legendary AIR Studios, served up as an AAX-, AU-, VST2-, and VST3-compatible (NKS-supporting) proprietary plug-in with 15 signal paths and infinite intervallic possibilities, designed to infuse any gestures, leaps, and cellular motif anyone might compose with warmth, colour, and humanity — as of September 22…

Being billed as a journey through Earth’s frozen worlds, home to unique and remarkable wildlife, it is little wonder that Santa Monica, CA, USA-based Bleeding Fingers Music were looking for a library that could not only support scenes of frozen silence but also scenes of action, tension, crisis, and drama when composers Hans Zimmer, James Everingham, and Adam Lukas started scoring the small screen wonder that is Frozen Planet II, the 2022-broadcast British nature documentary series co- produced by the BBC and The Open University as a sequel to 2011’s Frozen Planet. Putting it this way, James Everingham and Adam Lukas collectively comment: “Early on in the process of scoring Frozen Planet II, we looked at the patterns of splintering ice and the individuality of snowflakes; in creating FRACTURED STRINGS, we worked closely with the Spitfire [Audio] team and London’s best players to represent these natural phenomena in musical performances — creating a toolkit that became the foundation of our score for the show.”

Serious demands demand serious solutions, so a small section of London’s finest string players were brought by the Spitfire Audio team tasked with bringing Bleeding Fingers Music’s requirements to life in the unparalleled acoustics of Lyndhurst Hall — home to many a blockbuster film scoring session by Hans Zimmer and many more — in London’s legendary AIR Studios. The ten players concerned closely collaborated with the Bleeding Fingers Music team and Spitfire Audio’s own collective of composers, conductors, and engineers there to create a vast suite of intricate decorations, leaps, and swells.

So who better to formally introduce the finished FRACTURED STRINGS, then, than Spitfire Audio co-founder Paul Thomson — truly no stranger to the wonderful world of music-to-picture scoring himself as an English composer for film, television, and video games, as well as a music technologist to boot: “This is our latest collaboration with Bleeding Fingers [Music], and it is a set of unique and original content made for the BBC show Frozen Planet II. It showcases a huge amount of string articulations and gestures — wispy, ice-y, ethereal fragments that we have never before recorded, and that you can't play very easily with existing string libraries.”

CLICK FOR MORE »

Spitfire Introduces BT PHOBOS Polyconvolution Synthesizer

Published on Mar 31, 2017 Spitfire Audio

Playlist:
Spitfire Presents - BT Phobos Feature
Spitfire Presents: BT Phobos
In Action: BT PHOBOS Trailer Music
Spitfire Walkthrough: BT Phobos
In Action: BT Phobos Basics

"BT PHOBOS Polyconvolution Synthesizer sees Spitfire Audio aiming for the stars with notable namesake co-creator

LONDON, UK: Spitfire Audio, purveyors of the finest virtual instruments from the finest musical samples in the world, is proud to announce availability of BT PHOBOS — conceived in close collaboration with notable namesake American composer (The Fast And The Furious, Monster, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider) and electronica pioneer BT (Brian Transeau) as a must-have Polyconvolution Synthesizer for any AAX-, AU-, VST-, and VST3-supporting DAW (Digital Audio Workstation), and lending itself to writing cinematic electronic, epic, and hybrid compositions, courtesy of its liquid, morphing, and transformational convolution capabilities — as of April 13...

All of which begs some serious questions: what, exactly, is BT PHOBOS? One of Mars’ moons, maybe? A synthesizer? A tool for creating colossal cinematic and electronic rhythms? An engine for endless spectral combinations of wide, lush pads and ambiences with propulsive rhythmic figures? Is it a sound library of an astronomical vintage synthesizer collection, bespoke beats, field recordings, live acoustic and orchestral treatments, micro-rhythms, percussion, and textures? Truth be told, that’s just scratching its stellar surface — inspiration-wise or otherwise!

On the face of it, at its core BT PHOBOS is, indeed, a synthesizer — albeit a soft synth based on the unexplored precept of polyconvolution as a synthesis engine. Extraordinarily adept American audio engineer, composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter, and technologist BT came up with the idea many moons ago when working with sound design — polyconvolution... as a synthesizer. So what, exactly, does that mean? Well, what it means is: instead of using convolution — a piece of software (or algorithm) that creates a simulation of an audio environment — for reverb or modelling an amplifier’s distortion circuit, why not make a ‘reverb’ impulse response tonal? Why not, indeed. In fact, BT did just that, and, in doing so, found that combining something rhythmical with something tonal (as an impulse response) yielded some of the most modern, liquid, and percolating responses he had ever encountered — exactly the kind of sounds he had been searching for while scoring music for films and games... those elusive sounds suited to satisfying the most demanding directors’ wishes. Words like, “Movement and a feeling of drive, yet subtly...” need no longer prove problematic — thanks to BT PHOBOS!

BT brought a whole new musical meaning to the ‘Special Relationship’ between the United Kingdom and United States by working in close collaboration with Spitfire Audio to combine over 20 GB of his own personal bespoke libraries into a tonal engine, enabling BT PHOBOS users ultimately to filter, pulse, rhythmically cut, and sculpt impulse responses that are harmonic, melodic, and tonal. Then play them polyphonically.

Put it this way: one of the most significant solutions BT PHOBOS provides is giving composers an ability to engage their audiences for extended sequences and cues without sounding repetitive or ‘loopy’. Leaning on an all-new, realtime interface interaction allows BT PHOBOS users to evolve, transform, and warp their molecular musical patterns according to nuanced changes within a scene.

So since BT PHOBOS cleverly challenges the convention of loops, tones, and how they are used in a convolution, central to its operation is a beautiful bespoke GUI (Graphical User Interface) implemented to cultivate creativity through fostering familiarity. Which is why, when clicking on the name of any (sound) SOURCE or CONVOLVER, users are greeted by exactly the same browser. Better still, users can automate many of the powerful and unique controllers central to the BT PHOBOS vision. Which is why modulation MAPPINGS — the way in which functions are mapped and then ‘modulated’ (or changed) in realtime or automated via controllers — are key to many presets, and applied both to SOURCE/CONVOLVER. Cutting-edge sound source advanced controls (to further adapt each SOURCE, such as ATTACK, DECAY, SUSTAIN, and RELEASE; START OFFSET; FILTERS; and GATES) and convolution advanced controls (to further adapt each CONVOLVER and its impulse response — similar to SOURCE controls, providing the same functionality for each CONVOLVER) carry creative composers into an almost limitless inspirational musical well... well, there are actually 90 sextillion-plus combinations of sounds, so inspiration is guaranteed to never run dry!

If — like BT before you — you are on a musical mission to explore strange new sound worlds... to boldly go where no composer has gone before, be assured that BT PHOBOS pushes compositions into emotional, evocative, expressive, and truly new voyages of discovery like no other soft synth plug-in that has gone before it."

http://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-z/bt-phobos/

CInematic DEPECHE MODE With SPITFIRE AUDIO ORIGINALS

video upload by Woody Piano Shack

"Process of making a cinematic orchestral soundtrack version of ENJOY THE SILENCE by DEPECHE MODE using SPITFIRE AUDIO ORIGINALS CINEMATIC SOFT PIANO and SPITFIRE AUDIO ORIGINALS CINEMATIC FROZEN STRINGS sample libraries in ABLETON LIVE."

MORE WOODY PIANO SHACK
► WEBSITE https://woodypianoshack.com - additional links there.
► SUPPORT http://bit.ly/wps_support
► MUSIC https://woodypianoshack.bandcamp.com

SPITFIRE AUDIO LABS Free Plugins - Latest Releases

video upload by Woody Piano Shack

"Demo of the latest SPITFIRE AUDIO LABS free VST plugin sample libraries TAPE PIANO, CELLO MOODS, MICAH'S CHOIR, HARMONIC FLIGHTS, FOGHORN.

For the other 45 plugins, including SOFT PIANO, GLASS PIANO, STRINGS, CHOIR, GUITAR; DRUMS, PERCUSSION and stunning cinematic pads and orchestral instruments check out this earlier video where we play all 45 of them!

SPITFIRE AUDIO LABS Free Plugins - Demo of them ALL! [posted here]

Before you let me know, I made the video right before they released the new VINTAGE DRUMS, but fear not, we'll cover it in the next catchup."

Novation Introduces FLkey 49 & 61: New Additions to the Ultimate FL Studio MIDI Keyboard Range

video upload by NovationTV

Press release follows:

NOVATION INTRODUCES FLkey 49 AND FLkey 61 TO THE AWARD-WINNING FLkey RANGE

HIGH WYCOMBE, U.K. - June 8, 2023 – Novation proudly announces the latest additions to their FLkey range: the FLkey 49 and FLkey 61. These new models are specifically designed to provide an enriched, hands-on music production experience for FL Studio users.

Building on the success of the award-winning FLkey Mini and FLkey 37, these new models offer a larger key count and additional features, thus catering to the ever-growing demands of the FL Studio user community. Developed in collaboration with Image-Line, creators of FL Studio, the FLkey 49 and FLkey 61 provide seamless integration, enabling users to stay in the groove without switching back to the computer.

"We're proud to present the FLkey 49 and FLkey 61," said Sam Counihan, Senior Product Manager, Novation. "These extensions to our FLkey line provide FL Studio musicians with a broader canvas for their creativity, enhancing their musical journey."

FLkey 49 and FLkey 61 allow for a hands-on music production experience, with controls for FL Studio's Sequencer, Channel Rack, and Mixer. The controllers include Scale and Chord modes for creative play, along with Sequencer Mode for programming beats fast. The controllers also include essential buttons for easy access to transport, score log, undo, redo, quantise, and metronome triggering. Presets can be browsed in Image-Line plugins directly from the controllers. Additionally, the controllers come bundled with a range of software from AAS, Spitfire Audio, XLN Audio, and Klevgrand, as well as a 6-month trial of FL Studio Producer Edition.

Key Features of FLkey 49 and 61:

• Seamless Integration with FL Studio. Produce music easily with essential controls at your fingertips.

• Mixer and Channel Rack control. Adjust volume and pan with eight knobs, nine faders, and nine

fader buttons.

• Step sequencer. Take control of FL Studio’s step sequencer and program drums easily.

• Pattern Pad mode. Select and edit patterns directly from the pads.

• Channel Rack playability. Play directly into the Channel Rack from FLkey 49 and FLkey 61’s pads.

• Scale mode. Choose your scale and always hit the right note.

• Instrument control. Trigger FPC and SliceX with the pads for more expressive beats and melodies.

• Plug-in control. Tweak Image-Line plugins and record natural-sounding automation with eight knobs

and nine faders.

• Creative Chord Modes. Three chord modes–Fixed, User and Scale–unlock rapid song building and

performance. Play custom chords and chords in different scales with just one finger.

• Preset browsing. Find your favourite presets from Image-Line plugins directly from FLkey 49 and

FLkey 61.

• Custom Modes. Assign custom controls to the pads and knobs on FLkey 49 and FLkey 61 to tailor

your music production workflow.

Included Software:

• FL Studio Producer Edition – 6 Month Trial

• XLN Audio Addictive Keys

• AAS Session bundle

• Spitfire Audio Expressive Strings

• Klevgrand DAW Cassette

• Klevgrand Roverb

Warranty:

Novation provides a three-year warranty, ensuring repair or replacement due to a manufacturing fault, offering reliability wherever you are in the world.

Pricing and Availability:

FLkey 49: $229.99 FLkey 61: $279.99

FLkey 49 and FLkey 61 are now available for pre-order at all leading musical instrument retailers and can also be ordered directly from our online store at store.focusrite.com.

For more information, please visit: novationmusic.com/flkey

Spitfire Audio Introduce LABS Synth Strings for Free

video upload by Spitfire Audio

"Download LABS Synth Strings for FREE: https://labs.spitfireaudio.com/synth-...

🌞 Save 40% on individual libraries and up to 50% with Collections during Summer Sale: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/ - Offer ends Aug. 8th

These classic synth textures have been created from the infamous Solina String Ensemble — a 70s string synthesiser, used on countless iconic disco and rock records. From fuzzy, warm vibrations to bright stabs that cut through the mix, LABS Synth Strings has been recorded at Spitfire HQ by Harry Wilson & Hannah Roberts-Owen, and comes complete with sampled modulation and processed pads — equally at home on a Herbie-style record as it is on a Blade Runner-style blockbuster template."

SPITFIRE AUDIO LABS Free Plugins - Demo of them ALL!

video upload by Woody Piano Shack

"Demo of the SPITFIRE AUDIO LABS free VST plugin sample libraries. You'll hear the famous SOFT PIANO, STRINGS, CHOIR, GUITAR; DRUMS, PERCUSSION and stunning cinematic pads and orchestral instruments. We'll also feature the newly released GLASS PIANO."

► WEBSITE https://woodypianoshack.com - additional links there.
► PIANO INSPIRATION SERIES http://bit.ly/inspiration_welcome
► SUPPORT http://bit.ly/wps_support
► MUSIC https://woodypianoshack.bandcamp.com

HAINBACH's new software instrument with @Spitfire Audio​ made from vintage test equipment

video by HAINBACH

"In which I show what you can do with 'Landfill Totems', my new software instrument library with @Spitfire Audio​. From ambient to house and techno, to scoring, this instrument based on obsolete vintage test equipment covers a lot of ground. Available now for 29$/EUR in AU, VST2/3 and AAX format.

00:00​ Intro
00:16​ Sound Demos
01:19​ Music Demos
02:26​ Scoring a Documentary
04:50​ Scoring an AR app
05:40​ In other hands
08:13​ Instruments used
08:50​ Dev interview
12:39​ The album
13:53​ How much?
14:20​ Hardware jam


Get it here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-...​ (12.5% of all sales go to @WasteAid​, UK non-profit charity dedicated to sharing waste management and recycling skills around the world, fighting poverty, plastic pollution and climate change.)

Album: https://hainbach.bandcamp.com/album/l...​ (ships from UK)"

Close Machine // Ambient Techno with Roland SE-02 and Electron Digitakt

video upload by Stefano Mattia

"Lately I've been drifting towards a more ambient/melodic techno kind of style. I came up with quite a few ideas, and this is the first one I decided to bring to completion. My main objective is to incorporate acoustic elements, such as piano and strings, with electronic instruments, my SE-02 and the Digitakt, in an organic and cohesive mix, and eventually make some music in the style of Kiasmos, Nils Fahm, Christian Löffler, Two Lanes, etc.

In this track, I wrote a really simple piano line (NI Noire), and built the rest around that. I wrote the drums on the Digitakt and recorded them via Overbridge. I think the Digitakt excels in generating original ideas, especially when playing with the func-track trick to edit all tracks at once. The bass line comes from Diva, and I think it sounds surprisingly good, whereas the SE-02 plays the lead part.

Strings are Spitfire Audio's Cinematic Frozen Strings and the beautiful cello part comes from marvellous (and free!) Cello Moods library by Spitfire Audio Labs.

Enjoy!"

Neoclassical soundtracks with Spitfire Audio | Native Instruments

Native Instruments

"With this in-depth walkthrough Homay Schmitz takes us through Spitfire Audio's scoring tools and how you can use them to craft your soundtrack.

Save big on supernatural soundscapes and award-winning composer tools for a limited time:
https://www.native-instruments.com/sp..."

Spitfire Audio and Blankfor.ms Present: Tape Synths

video upload by Matt Lowery

"What a beauty of an instrument! One of my favorite people/artists (Blankfor.ms) is teaming up with the absolute best in the sample instrument game (Spitfire Audio) to create Tape Synths. It's a remarkably beautiful collection of analog and digital synthesizers, processed through tape machines, modular, and more. It's a sample library just oozing taste, tone, and beauty.

00:00 Intro/Controls
02:12 ADSR controls
03:48 Pads
08:10 Keys
12:39 Arps
14:45 Blankfor.ms Presets"

SPITFIRE AUDIO ORIGINALS - They Did A Wurli

video upload by

"Demo and walkthrough of newly released SPITFIRE AUDIO ORIGINAL WURLI, a VST plugin sample library of the famous Wurlitzer 200A electric piano."

MORE WOODY PIANO SHACK
► WEBSITE https://woodypianoshack.com - additional links there.
► PATREON http://bit.ly/woody_patreon
► MUSIC https://woodypianoshack.bandcamp.com

Spitfire Audio LABS Scary Strings Free Plugin | The Plugin Minute | SYNTH ANATOMY

Published on Mar 29, 2019

"In the latest The Plugin Minute episode, I play around with the Spitfire Audio LABS Scary Strings, a new free virtual instrument plugin for PC & Mac.

More info here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/labs/

#spitfireaudio #thepluginminute #orchestral

Join the Patreon page to get access to free sound content (sample & preset libraries, free plugins... & participate on exclusive giveaways) https://www.patreon.com/synthanatomy"

(Music Only) Rescoring an Action Sequence - Behind the Scenes - Spitfire Audio Competition 2020

Published on May 20, 2020 ChrisLody

"You can find the original completion entry with the action scene footage here: [below]

So I entered the recent Spitfire Audio rescore competition with a crazy idea, 'I'll do a picture in picture thing to show what I'm doing and submit that I though'. Not only is that a stupid amount of work but it goes against the rules of the competition so I decided so split that idea off into another video so I can show it in more detail and without the sound effects and copyright problems from my submission. So here it be. Enjoy"

Punching Metal - Westworld Scene Rescore #westworldscoringcompetition2020

Published on May 20, 2020 ChrisLody

NAMM 2020 Spitfire ALBION Neo Orchestral Library

Published on Jan 17, 2020 sonicstate

"A new extension to the Albion collection from Spitfire audio, with more muted and flautando voicings as well as additional synthesized sections.
Available for preorder now, 59GB download, uses Kontakt player."

See this post for additional details on Spitfire's ALBION Neo.