Amicus717

Info here: https://musicalsampling.com/barker-clarinet/ "Barker Clarinet is a true legato clarinet library performed by conductor and educator, Joshua Barker. Recorded at Orb Studios in Austin, TX – we aimed to create an agile, emotive clarinet. We recorded all of the performances with natural, progressive vibrato. In our view, this helps warm up the sound and expands the emotional range of the instrument. Each patch was produced to more uniquely address certain contexts. The Emotional patch includes a more subtle style of vibrato – fragile but confident. The Workhorse patch is an agile, mezzo-forte instrument – great for traditional, upbeat contexts. The Fat Lead was actually recorded in the same space as Sasaki Trumpet/Austin Saxes – initially intended as an energetic compliment to those two libraries. What we found is that it also serves as an excellent, emotional instrument for strong, dramatic contexts where you really want the clarinet to properly sing. Lastly, we included a Breaths patch – to help sell the performance with both short inhales and longer, subdued inhales with the clarinetist in the ready position."

Really like the chord progressions in this one. Quite lovely. I listened on my AT M50x earphones, and it all sounded nice to me. Clear and warm.

I liked this a lot. Fun listen. And I also caught a Pink Floyd-ish vibe to all this. Pretty hypnotic.

So, I spent yesterday evening messing around with Celtic ERA 2, and I like it quite a bit. However, I'm a total sucker for this kind of stuff -- I use these kind of ethnic libraries a lot, and can't get enough of them. So, take this mini-review with a chunk of salt. If you've already got Celtic ERA 1, and you like it, then I think this a great addition for $99. The new instruments are excellent, and I know I'll find them useful. The additional pipes and flutes are especially awesome, with a great vibe and lots of articulation options. I have a thing for wooden and folk flutes -- I must have 20 or 30 various folk flute patches from a whole bunch of libraries, including Tarilonte's other Eras, and they have become a huge part of my sound. Celtic ERA 2 adds some really nice ones, including the Asubia, which Tarilonte describes as a Galician Ocarinne. It's got a unique flavor, and I don't have anything quite like it in my collection. The additional bag pipes are great, and really nicely recorded. Same for the new percussion instruments. They added a skin snare and a tom that sound really good, to my ears, and should be easy to add to a percussion mix. Finally, Tarilonte tossed in a few extra Soundscape patches, which are always a welcome addition. I also like the new interface -- less busy, and much easier on the eyes. So, I think this is a no-brainer upgrade for original Celtic Era fans. If you're new to the Celtic Era library, but this kind of instrument collection would be useful, then you should give this library a serious look. These are great patches, and the instruments on offer cover a lot of ground. Of note: Personally, I find Tarilonte's libraries have a learning curve, and programming them takes a bit of work if you want things sounding realistic. Many of the instruments have lots of articulation selections beyond the basic legato/sustain/staccato options, including various ornaments, trills, slides, and the like. So, to get full value from them requires an investment of time. But if you put in the effort and have the knack for it, the results are usually pretty spectacular. Also, this is an Engine library, and I know some folks really don't like Engine's interface. I'm not exactly keen on it myself, with it's too-small controls and circa-1998 interface. But it gets the job done, it's quite stable on my system, and I really don't find it a problem. Considering how awesome Tarilonte's libraries are (I have all the Eras), it's totally worth the minor irritation. As always YMMV, but I'm really happy I got this one.

Of course, I've already bought it, and will give it a run through tonight, let folks know how it all sounds. Not that we need to worry -- Eduardo's stuff is awesome...

The upgrade page for Celtic Era owners: https://www.bestservice.com/celtic_era_2_upgrade.html $99 pricing...

Info is here: https://www.bestservice.com/celtic_era_2.html The authentic Sound of Celtic Myths Let us take you on a musical journey back in time. With Celtic ERA 2 by Eduardo Tarilonte the gates to the high north have been unlocked. Discover Celtic culture through sounds which have shaped Ireland's landscape musically for generations. Eduardo Tarilonte's Celtic ERA 2 marks a major upgrade to his Celtic instrument collection, adding additional instruments as well as a revamped and streamlined GUI. Celtic ERA 2 proves to be not only the perfect instrument collection for film scores and TV documentaries about the Emerald Isle, but also for composers that want to add unique and high quality sounds to their music. Top Features at a Glance 25 GB library with a total of over 25,000 samples 36 Celtic Wind, String and Percussion instruments, rich in detail and recorded in pristine quality Four additional instruments from the Bronze Age: Cranyx, Cornu, Dord and War Horns All instruments consist of extensive multisamples (24 bit/44.1 kHz) with several dynamic levels, various articulations, round-robin, real legato as well as glissando samples Recorded using selected Kahayan U47-microphones into preamplifiers by the same manufacturer Recorded by outstanding musicians of the Irish music scene Including authentic phrases as MIDI-patterns as well as inspiring soundscapes

I keep wondering if I'd find it useful. I've heard nothing but good things, but I honestly don't know if it would suit my kind of music...

Just saw these (I don't check this forum nearly enough). Thanks for making them available. I use VSL stuff on a regular basis.

Available here: https://www.vsl.co.at/en/News/2022-08_String_Special "Take advantage of fresh offers on all string libraries of the Synchron Series, SYNCHRON-ized Series and the Big Bang Orchestra, only through August 31, 2022!"

Info is here: https://www.steinberg.net/promotion/ $116.00 (reg $194.00)

Available here: https://musicalsampling.com/amber/ "Performed by Amber Balltzglier, Atelier Series Amber is the first of it’s kind – a true, triple-tracked legato vocal library. That means we recorded all of the performances three times (per vowel) and stacked them on top of each other. This way the subtle inconsistencies in speed/pitch between each vocal take can play off each other, resulting in a performance/sound that resides somewhere between a solo vocal and a choir. "

Since we have a theme going...

Update: the Sale page is now live https://sonuscore.com/step-up-sale-2022

I don't recall seeing it any lower than this. That's a pretty great price. I have it, and it's a pretty good library for what it is - by that, I mean it's a great sketching library, and also a nice accessory library to Sonokinetic's phrase-based ones. It's recorded in the same hall with the same players, I believe, so it blends with the loops pretty seamlessly. I use it for both of the above purposes, and I also like the sound of the high strings when the mod wheel is dialed in low - they have a certain quiet sheen that I like, and I use them in my template as a kind of sordino articulation. Da Capo's got some weird limitations, though. The instrument note range is a bit tighter than I'd like for the strings (they don't go as high as you'd expect), and the brass has no trumpets, which I always thought was pretty strange; it's just tubas/trombones and french horns. There are legatos for the strings, brass and woodwinds, but the transitions are really subtle and understated. The woodwinds are breathy in the middle range, and I'd hesitate to leave them exposed in the mix or arrangement. The percussion samples sound nice, but the instrument selection is limited -- just the very basics, from bass drum and timps to snares, toms and cymbals. It's enough to work with for very basic drafts and test arrangements. So for sketching, or adding some orchestral vibe behind a prog rock tracks, or similiar, I think Da Capo is a pretty good product. If you're planning on doing any hardcore orchestral work, you'll want more.

Available here: https://www.bestservice.com/deals/step_up_promotion_2022_up_to_50_off_4319.html Includes crossgrades for Eduardo Tarilonte's libraries, which is always a good value...

Sonuscore is showing a "Step Up Sale 2022" on their website (and I got an email about it). Seems that upgrades to The Orchestra will be available at a discount for the balance of August. Note: However, the sale page is currently "not found". I would presume that's a temporary error. https://sonuscore.com Sale Page (currently not working): https://sonuscore.com/step-up-sale-2022

Update: Sonokinetic has reported to me that they have fixed the issue. I took a look at my cart, and it now reflects the "completion price" listed on the sale page. So, all good. Gotta say, this is quite the deal...

I'm seeing a discrepency between the price listed on the sale page, and what is in my cart, however. I've already contacted Sonokinetic about it... Yan, I'd be curious if you are seeing the same thing. My sale page price is €376,86, but this is the price actually in my cart €628.75

71% off bundles, and up to 50% off single instruments. The bundle price will be adjusted based on what you already own, so there will be no paying twice for the same library, which is rather a nice touch. Info is here: https://www.sonokinetic.net/sale Ends in two weeks.

Drums of War 3 is out. For any owners of the previous libraries, you may have a unique 20% off coupon in your inbox, so check there first: https://cinesamples.com/product/drums-of-war-3 Also, a percussion sale at Cinesamples: https://cinesamples.com/productGroup/on-sale/

Check it out here: https://cinesamples.com/ End of Life stuff, being discontinued on July 1st: https://cinesamples.com/productGroup/end-of-life

Fly to LA and offer John Williams $25,000 to tutor me in orchestration.

Available here: https://emergenceaudio.com/product/cello-textures/

Starts today, runs for 14 days: https://www.native-instruments.com/en/specials/2022/music-production-suite-5-offer