Spitfire Audio releases Symphonic Extras

Spitfire Audio ships SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS as perfect companion piece to SPITFIRE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA release recorded at AIR Studios

Spitfire Audio is proud to announce availability of SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS — enabled as the perfect companion piece to the leading sounds and sample libraries creator’s cornerstone SPITFIRE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA release recorded at London’s legendary AIR Studios (or, indeed, any of its best-selling series of ALBION... libraries that each uniquely fulfils the promise of providing everything needed to score a film in one product) by providing a wealth of unusual sounds captured from first-call session players in Lyndhurst Hall’s hallowed acoustic, ably capable of creating sound design textures or acting as substitutes for more standard choices in the orchestral palette to give a unique edge to anyone’s sound world — as of January 30…

Conventionality clearly has its place in the orchestral palette, as evidenced by SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS embracing an instrument that falls squarely into that category — an immaculately maintained baroque Harpsichord, performed by London-based virtuoso Steve Devine. Effectively every sound anyone could conceivably desire from this spectacular instrument is covered, courtesy of a full compliment of registers.

Readily representing a non-standard piano in SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS’ substitutes for more standard choices in the orchestral palette, however, is a super-useful Plucked Piano sample set — performed by none other than Spitfire Audio co-founder Paul Thomson, also an accomplished composer in his own right — providing users with a very useful alternative to any tuned orchestral percussion. Put it this way: with its long ring-out, the bass notes are fantastic for adding to long, low orchestral tension. Indeed, it can double as a prepared piano or even sound otherworldly, like an organic string synthesiser. Switching between the tape — recorded to an analogue (Studer A827) multitrack — or digital — direct to Avid’s Pro Tools (via Prism Sound convertors) — signals is instantly on tap.

The Aluphone is a truly unique sound, conjured from a row of tuned aluminium bells, performed by first-call percussion virtuoso Paul Clarvis. As an exciting addition to the mallet family, this is familiar, yet different — a magical, metallic texture to use in scores and add both interest and uniqueness in equal measure.

Meanwhile, the Steel Drums are performed by notable percussionist Frank Ricotti to provide SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS users with wide-ranging textures spanning hauntingly beautiful soft layers through to searing metallic bite. Better still, these instruments — impressively featured in American musician and composer Cliff Martinez’s superb score for the psychological sci-fi film Solaris (2002) — have been performed with some of the overtones gently restrained to also provide a familiar, yet different representation of their sound.

As a shimmering, spine-tingling tuned percussion instrument used in Hollywood scores for its mysterious, sinister sound, the Cimbalom’s distinctive, metallic tones can cut through the orchestra. Ultimately, users of SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS have Czech-born Hungarian musical instrument-maker Vencel József Schunda to thank for the layout of the instrument in question, which dates back to 1874 in Budapest, based on his modifications to existing hammered dulcimer instruments already present in Central and Eastern Europe. Outside of those areas, popularisation of the instrument was helped by Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, music pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher Zoltán Kodály, and also renowned Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS’ collection was performed by pre-eminent player Greg Knowles, known for his contribution to The Hunger Games blockbuster (2012).

Since Scraped Percussion includes a collection of progressive, unconventional percussive sounds created using imaginatively played percussion instruments and objects — off-beatly encompassing a bicycle wheel and polystyrene cup! — in the capable hands of Paul Clarvis, SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS users can expect to benefit from a series of bowed, brushed, and scraped sounds born out of his experience as the go-to percussionist for A-list film composers and artists looking to enhance their scores by adding contemporary sonic architecture with an edge. As a wonderful collection of exceptionally unusual percussion noises, each object and instrument used has been explored with every possible performing style by Paul Clarvis — cymbals articulations alone include Bowed Long, Bowed Short, Serrated Long, Serrated Short, Stick Long, Stick Short, Superball Long, and Superball Short, for instance.

It is fair to say that the Hg2O collection really represents Spitfire Audio’s take on the waterphone, played by Paul Clarvis as a classic percussion instrument in AIR Studios’ legendary Lyndhurst Hall. Here, though, the leading sounds and sample libraries creator goes beyond the vintage horror stereotype to rival its inspirational beauty. By way of a brief explanation, the waterphone consists of a stainless steel resonator bowl with a cylindrical neck and bronze rods of different lengths around the rim; the resonator itself is filled with water to give the instrument a vibrant, ethereal sound that has appeared on countless film scores, records, and live performances. Both bowed and drummed performances — with and without movement — have been sampled by Spitfire Audio in great detail; the resultant resonant characteristics of the bowl and rods in combination with the movement of the water immediately evokes mystery and suspense. It is possible to control the water level — front empty to half full and full — via the UI (User Interface). It is fair to say, surely, that the glass-half-full idiom irrefutably applies to anyone using the Hg2O collection... or any of the orchestral palette-enhancing instruments included in SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS for that matter!

Musically speaking, performer Paul Thomson clearly could not agree more. “This collection of extraordinary sounds gives a wealth of organic, real world content that I use regularly — both to expand the sound world of the orchestra with interesting substitutions, such as the Aluphone in place of the celeste or glockenspiel, or the Plucked Piano instead of the harp, but also to add otherworldly sound design to my tracks; this organic sound design element is the combined experience of two world-class, first-call percussionists creating new, unusual sounds for many blockbuster film scores,” he concludes, adding: “Having it all in one extensive package is the perfect toolkit to accompany my orchestral libraries.”

Presented in Native Instruments’ KONTAKT 7 virtual instrument platform, the NKS (NATIVE KONTROL STANDARD®)-ready/AAX-, AU-, VST2-, and VST3-compatible, 19.1 GB download-sized SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS library is available for MacOS 11, 12, or 13 (latest update) and Windows 10 or 11 (latest Service Pack) for £99.00 GBP (inc. VAT)/$99.00 USD/€99.00 EUR (inc. VAT) from here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/spitfire-symphonic-extras

Anyone who does not already own KONTAKT 7 is invited to download KONTAKT 7 PLAYER for free; though SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS will work with both KONTAKT 8 variations, it does not need either.

Spitfire Audio’s namesake Spitfire Audio app allows anyone to buy now and download anytime, and is available for free from here:

Watch Spitfire Audio’s premiere of SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS — including its tempting trailer and a welcomed walkthrough with company co-founder Paul Thomson — here:



For more in-depth information, including some superb-sounding audio demos, please visit the dedicated SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC EXTRAS webpage here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/spitfire-symphonic-extras









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