zircon Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 If you've been hanging out in #ocrwip for the past year, you've probably heard either Will (bustatunez) or myself mention this project we've been working on - a Kontakt format sample library based around various Indian instruments, namely the sitar. After hundreds of hours of painstaking editing and testing we're all done, and it's now available! Here's what I posted on KVRAudio: Impact Soundworks is proud to announce the release of our latest sample library, Sitar Nation: Classical Instruments of India!As the title suggests, this is a sample library focusing exclusively on several instruments considered to be part of the foundation of Indian classical music: the sitar, tampura, tabla and baya. The end result of our meticulous recording, editing, and programming is the deepest and most detailed samples of these instruments ever released. Besides a variety of standard techniques, we also created a host of special FX patches - more info on that below. (Note: for complete information about the product, check out the full PDF manual, downloadable from our support page, as well as the product page) All audio was recorded at 24/44.1 and programmed in Kontakt format (version 2 and above), "unlocked" so you can take the raw WAVs and import them into your sampler of choice, chop 'em up, or generally do whatever you want with them (besides give them away!) A total of three mic position are available for any of the non-FX sounds - close, room, and ambient, with the "ambient" position actually being created through a number of Kontakt effects, allowing for total control over the wetness of the sound. Kontakt scripting appears in a number of patches to make editing easier and playing more expressive. INSTRUMENTS INCLUDED Handcrafted, Gourdless Sitar - Performed by Thomas Flanagan, the sitar we recorded is a custom-made instrument crafted from wood that seasoned for seven years! Articulations include plucking (thumbed and picked), mordents (quick 'turns'), strums of the chikari (rhythm) strings, whole tone bends, glissandos at different speeds and both major and minor tonalities, basic phrases and tremolos. Thorough velocity and round robin sampling was used for many articulations, with up to four layers and three round robin groups. Tampura - Traditionally an instrument played by an apprentice sitar player to accompany an expert. Though the body is smaller than the sitar, the simple, open drones it produces have a unique timbre that provide an excellent rhythmic base. Tabla & Baya - A set of two custom-made, carefully tuned hand drums performed by Jeremy Dyen. The sheer number of strokes possible for the tabla or baya alone is staggering, but we chose to thoroughly record some of the most widely used and recognizable techniques such as both edge, open and muted strikes as well as multiple pitch bends in different directions and at different speeds. Every stroke was recorded with nine velocity layers and three round robins to allow for seamless, human performances. Special FX - From the unprocessed audio content, we created a number of patches using both offline and Kontakt processing to open up a whole new dimension in sound. For example, "Livewire Drone" takes sitar drones and uses FM synthesis and waveshaping to 'electrify' the timbre of the sitar. "Deep Chime" uses extensive granular synthesis to create an ominous, semi-harmonic orchestral chime hit with a reverberant ambiance. The two "Shaped Kit" patches use ring modulation and waveshaping to turn the tabla and baya into an electronic percussion set. AUDIO DEMOS * Traditional Demo 1 - Traditional playing techniques in a rather free rhythm and improvisational style. Uses 100% Sitar Nation. * Ambient Demo - Our library has very realistic samples, but when you delve into the FX patches it can pull off some very deep, ambient sounds. This demo is an example of a film-style cue written entirely with Sitar Nation. * Psychesphere - A wide range of patches from our library (non-FX) used in the context of an electronic, 'psychedelic' composition written for a video game. * Dark Exploration - Dark, tense underscore created entirely using Sitar Nation sounds (primarily FX patches.) * Nun Kun Peaks - Another example of the sounds being used within a groovy electronic composition. This track shows off how both the traditional and FX patches can be combined to form a totally new texture. --- Sitar Nation: Classical Instruments of India is available now as a download product via our online store for $119 (US). We are currently using Paypal as our payment platform and will be adding Share-It within the next week. Whether you are a pop producer, composer for media, New Age artist or anything in between, we think you'll find it both useful and highly enjoyable to play! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue123 Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 w00t! I'll be able to buy it over here in England, right? Those samples are awesome. While I'd use something like Quantum Leap's RA for more general ethnic scoring, I would definitely use this a lot as well. The sound quality is superb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kizyr Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 ....I may actually have immediate use for this. Particularly the tabla samples. One question... does this include any samples of the harmonium? It's a real common instrument, but I don't think it's as well-recognized outside the subcontinent. KF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 If it isn't Sixto playing the sitar i'll be very disappointed. ;_; Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted September 17, 2008 Author Share Posted September 17, 2008 Thanks for the interest! OA, unfortunately Sixto did not perform these We did, however, hire expert performers who had been playing the instruments for a LONG time and in fact had their own custom-made stuff. It wasn't cheap but we wanted people that really knew their technique backwards and forwards. w00t! I'll be able to buy it over here in England, right?Those samples are awesome. While I'd use something like Quantum Leap's RA for more general ethnic scoring, I would definitely use this a lot as well. The sound quality is superb. Yes, we will ship anywhere in the world. As a Ra owner I agree that it is better for a wide selection of many instruments - however, I was disappointed when I found that you could not really go deep into any one instrument. There are lots of libraries with 16 velocity layers and multiple round robins of a violin or piano. Why not ethnic instruments too? If this does well, we will likely be doing more in this vein. ....I may actually have immediate use for this. Particularly the tabla samples.One question... does this include any samples of the harmonium? It's a real common instrument, but I don't think it's as well-recognized outside the subcontinent. KF We didn't sample the harmonium, as when we looked at the scope of what we wanted to do, we figured the four instruments included would be the most recognizable and versatile for the most people. However, there's certainly a lot that we'd love to sample, so budget permitting, perhaps we will do this for a volume 2! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big giant circles Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 Guys, I can personally vouch that this library is going to be AMAZING. I don't think there's another sitar VST that's going to come close. The awesome thing is, there's sounds that go beyond just a mere sitar. Andy's whipped up some really stellar modified "FX" patches that'll make your head spin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sole Signal Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 Grats on the release! Wish you guys the best. Samples sound superb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vurez Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 Anybody who knows me will know that I'll be interested in this. I'm getting tired of my current sitar samples and have been hoping for something more extensive. It sounds great zircon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kizyr Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 Just took a listen to those samples. Man, Psychesphere does well in bringing out the tabla samples. You can almost feel your palms hitting the drum. We did, however, hire expert performers who had been playing the instruments for a LONG time and in fact had their own custom-made stuff. It wasn't cheap but we wanted people that really knew their technique backwards and forwards. I think it shows in the quality. We didn't sample the harmonium, as when we looked at the scope of what we wanted to do, we figured the four instruments included would be the most recognizable and versatile for the most people. However, there's certainly a lot that we'd love to sample, so budget permitting, perhaps we will do this for a volume 2! True and very understandable. Most of the music I grew up listening used a lot of the harmonium and tabla, so when I think of South Asian music, those two are the first ones that come to mind--maybe followed by the sitar and dhol. KF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Taucer Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 I will definitely be getting this. By the way, what's a round robin? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted September 18, 2008 Author Share Posted September 18, 2008 Thanks for the interest & kind words, everyone! It's a feature on samplers that switches the sample being played when you hit the same velocity multiple times. For example, for most sample libraries, if you hit "G" really hard over and over you hear the EXACT same WAV. It sounds fake. What we did hear was record three round robins per velocity for almost everything, so if you hit the same key repeatedly at the same velocity, it actually sounds like slightly different plucks or strokes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Taucer Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 Sweet. Any plans for future libraries? I'd like to put in a request for a detailed library of ethnic woodwinds (shakuhachi, duduk, pan flute, etc) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted September 18, 2008 Author Share Posted September 18, 2008 Yeah, we have some plans for future libraries, though at the moment ethnic woodwinds are not on the main list. This is because Bela D Media has already put out a couple ethnic wind libraries- http://beladmedia.com/index-1.html We would do them if they were part of a themed collection, though. For example, "Classical Instruments of Japan" or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vurez Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 A library for traditional Japanese instruments wouldn't be a bad idea actually. There aren't many libraries that fill that niche and I'm not aware of a single one that actually focuses on it. There's Chinee Kong, but they just do Chinese instruments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jillian Aversa Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 There are plans for a future vocal library of moi, in fact... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue123 Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 Yeah, we have some plans for future libraries, though at the moment ethnic woodwinds are not on the main list. This is because Bela D Media has already put out a couple ethnic wind libraries-http://beladmedia.com/index-1.html We would do them if they were part of a themed collection, though. For example, "Classical Instruments of Japan" or something. I would love to see a library of similar quality instruments from the far east- perhaps a "Sounds of the Orient" package may do nicely? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smenelian Posted September 19, 2008 Share Posted September 19, 2008 The sitar is one of my favorite instruments. You can probably count me in on this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted September 25, 2008 Author Share Posted September 25, 2008 We'll have some new demos + info coming up very soon. Slightly off-topic, but: http://www.zirconstudios.com/pics/EMusician_ISW_Impact_Steel.jpg Our first product, Impact: Steel (which was basically all Will) got written up in Electronic Musician this month! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Taucer Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 Two questions: First, when will we get the details of any planned group buy/OCR discount? Second, when will you begin taking preorders? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted October 5, 2008 Author Share Posted October 5, 2008 Actually, what we're going to do is this: preorders will begin today at a rate of $20 off (so $99 for the whole thing!) for OCR forumgoers only. Group buys have more or less the same impact in the end - reducing the price, and simply lowering it for you guys until the 20th seems to make the most sense No worries about tracking or anything, and you get the discount no matter what. Before I get to the purchase info, a few updates: * The final size of the library is 2.76 gigabytes. * Will made a demo of the library used in a very traditional, improvisational style. Click here to listen - keep in mind this is ALL Sitar Nation! * We are including an assortment of percussive MIDI grooves. Just drag and drop the files into a sequencer track set to tabla, baya, or both, and you'll instantly have rhythmic loops that can sync to any tempo. Future updates will have even more grooves. * We've decided to make the product available as a download rather than a physical CD. This way, you don't need to worry about shipping & handling costs or shipping time. We'll have the file broken up into multiple archives which you can access through our secure download system once the product is released. --- To purchase Sitar Nation: Classical Instruments of India for the temporary, OCR-only preorder price of $99, just click on the button below! Feel free to post if you have any questions, comments, problems, etc. or email us at support@impactsoundworks.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Taucer Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 Preordered Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
audio fidelity Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 this is very impressive zircon - its a really well put together solid project great work! i wasn't ready to jump for just an indian instrument sample library but those fx patches are making me reconsider. i know its not customary for sample libraries to divulge all the patches and articulations but I'm just still curious whats all included. thanks and keep it up - would be looking very forward to voice sample library Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted October 5, 2008 Author Share Posted October 5, 2008 The standard patches include sitar plucking (x4 velocity levels, from soft strokes to hard, thumbed to picked), mordents (fast 'turns'), chikari rhythm strums, low drones, tampura drones, tremolos (w/ legato), sitar whole tone bends, glissandos (fast, slow, major, minor, etc), phrases (five @ multiple pitches, keyswitched), tabla (multiple strokes, lots of velo/rr), baya (multiple strokes/velo/rr) - there are 17 FX patches, including twisted pads, soft pads, bell and flute-type textures, and alterations of main patches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Pezman Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 How long before the discount runs out? I'll be switching OSes in about a week... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted October 6, 2008 Author Share Posted October 6, 2008 It ends October 20th, so 15 days from now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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