SYMPHONY SERIES - PERCUSSION
About the SYMPHONY SERIES of Products SYMPHONY SERIES PERCUSSION is part of the SYMPHONY SERIES of KONTAKT Instruments. This series supplies composers with a comprehensive tool set for creating highly realistic orchestral productions with an expansive sound full of character. PERCUSSION allows you to use a production-ready STEREO mix or create your own mix from CLOSE, MID, FAR and SPOT microphone positions. On the dedicated Mixer page, a parametric EQ, convolution REVERB, COMPRESSION and FILTER effects let you adjust the sound to suit any project you're working on. Five performance controls are pre-assigned to MACHINE controllers and the KOMPLETE CONTROL S-series of keyboards.
Choosing the Right KONTAKT Instrument
PERCUSSION ships with a total of 66 KONTAKT Instruments (.nki files). To help you select the right one for your specific task, here is an overview of the included Instruments. Single Instruments Single Instruments are KONTAKT Instruments that only contain articulations from a single percussion instrument. Single Instruments can be found in the following folders: ▪ Cymbals: a collection of cymbals and gongs ▪ Drums: percussion instruments with membranes, like Bass Drums, Snares, and Toms ▪ Metal: metallic percussion that are not part of the Cymbals selection, for example: Triangles and Bells ▪ Wood: percussion for which wood is the main sound source, for example: Castanets and Guiro Tuned Percussion Like the Single Instruments, the Tuned Percussion contain only one percussion instrument in an nki. However, these instruments are tonal and can be played chromatically. Examples include: Glockenspiel and Marimba. Kits Kits contain a number of different percussion instruments in one nki. In some cases, these are an easier way of getting all of the percussion you need into your track, but with less flexibility in the mix options.
Performance Controls
When you load a PERCUSSION Instrument, the Performance Controls are the most prominent feature of the Instrument's user interface. These controls are used to refine the response and sound.
The Dynamics control is assigned to the Mod Wheel (MIDI CC 1) by default. It allows you to control the loudness and intensity of the Tremolo articulations (rolls) in real-time. That way, you can easily automate intensity changes to e.g. transition from leading to supporting passages. If the Dynamics control is not available, because there are no Tremolo articulations in the loaded Instrument, it is still present and displays an intensity meter for the incoming MIDI notes.
The Attack control allows you to increase the fade-in time per note, which can change the hardness of the initial transient. By setting the Attack time to higher values, you can cause the notes to fade in slightly, giving the notes a soft and gentle character. 3.1.3 Release The Release control applies an additional envelope to the fade-out phase of the notes. Reducing the Release setting to 0% shortens the naturally recorded reverb tails to a minimum, producing a very “dry” sounding result, which can sometimes make the result sound artificial. However, this can be very useful when adding internal or external reverb effects, as this allows the additional reverb to avoid conflicting with the natural sampled ambience. 3.1.4 Tuning The Tuning control sets the overall pitch of the instrument(s). Even if the instrument is not tuned percussion, matching the tone of a drum to the key of your track can help fit it into your mix. 3.1.5 Velocity The Velocity slider controls the dynamic range of the MIDI notes. The dynamic range is unaffected when the slider is in the central position. Turing the slider down will make the incoming notes softer and turning it up will make them louder. 3.2 Mapping All of the Single Instruments have a Mapping page which displays the articulation mapping for the Instrument.
Drum Head Resonance Simulation
As well as Round Robin samples, some Instruments have Drum Head Resonance Simulation (DHRS). This system takes previous notes into account and triggers a sample with the appropriate “drum head ringing” level. Instruments with DHRS can be identified in the Performance view showing 10 Round Robin states with different dot sizes.
* Field Drum
▪ Field Drum Off
▪ Rototom 1
▪ Rototom 2
▪ Rototom 3
▪ Snare 1
▪ Snare 1 Off
▪ Snare 2
▪ Snare 2 Off
▪ Snare 3
▪ Snare 3 Off
▪ Timpani
▪ Tom 1
▪ Tom 2
▪ Tom 3
* Tom 4
If any of these instruments are part of a Kit, they will still include their DHRS feature
About the SYMPHONY SERIES of Products SYMPHONY SERIES PERCUSSION is part of the SYMPHONY SERIES of KONTAKT Instruments. This series supplies composers with a comprehensive tool set for creating highly realistic orchestral productions with an expansive sound full of character. PERCUSSION allows you to use a production-ready STEREO mix or create your own mix from CLOSE, MID, FAR and SPOT microphone positions. On the dedicated Mixer page, a parametric EQ, convolution REVERB, COMPRESSION and FILTER effects let you adjust the sound to suit any project you're working on. Five performance controls are pre-assigned to MACHINE controllers and the KOMPLETE CONTROL S-series of keyboards.
Choosing the Right KONTAKT Instrument
PERCUSSION ships with a total of 66 KONTAKT Instruments (.nki files). To help you select the right one for your specific task, here is an overview of the included Instruments. Single Instruments Single Instruments are KONTAKT Instruments that only contain articulations from a single percussion instrument. Single Instruments can be found in the following folders: ▪ Cymbals: a collection of cymbals and gongs ▪ Drums: percussion instruments with membranes, like Bass Drums, Snares, and Toms ▪ Metal: metallic percussion that are not part of the Cymbals selection, for example: Triangles and Bells ▪ Wood: percussion for which wood is the main sound source, for example: Castanets and Guiro Tuned Percussion Like the Single Instruments, the Tuned Percussion contain only one percussion instrument in an nki. However, these instruments are tonal and can be played chromatically. Examples include: Glockenspiel and Marimba. Kits Kits contain a number of different percussion instruments in one nki. In some cases, these are an easier way of getting all of the percussion you need into your track, but with less flexibility in the mix options.
Performance Controls
When you load a PERCUSSION Instrument, the Performance Controls are the most prominent feature of the Instrument's user interface. These controls are used to refine the response and sound.
The Dynamics control is assigned to the Mod Wheel (MIDI CC 1) by default. It allows you to control the loudness and intensity of the Tremolo articulations (rolls) in real-time. That way, you can easily automate intensity changes to e.g. transition from leading to supporting passages. If the Dynamics control is not available, because there are no Tremolo articulations in the loaded Instrument, it is still present and displays an intensity meter for the incoming MIDI notes.
The Attack control allows you to increase the fade-in time per note, which can change the hardness of the initial transient. By setting the Attack time to higher values, you can cause the notes to fade in slightly, giving the notes a soft and gentle character. 3.1.3 Release The Release control applies an additional envelope to the fade-out phase of the notes. Reducing the Release setting to 0% shortens the naturally recorded reverb tails to a minimum, producing a very “dry” sounding result, which can sometimes make the result sound artificial. However, this can be very useful when adding internal or external reverb effects, as this allows the additional reverb to avoid conflicting with the natural sampled ambience. 3.1.4 Tuning The Tuning control sets the overall pitch of the instrument(s). Even if the instrument is not tuned percussion, matching the tone of a drum to the key of your track can help fit it into your mix. 3.1.5 Velocity The Velocity slider controls the dynamic range of the MIDI notes. The dynamic range is unaffected when the slider is in the central position. Turing the slider down will make the incoming notes softer and turning it up will make them louder. 3.2 Mapping All of the Single Instruments have a Mapping page which displays the articulation mapping for the Instrument.
Drum Head Resonance Simulation
As well as Round Robin samples, some Instruments have Drum Head Resonance Simulation (DHRS). This system takes previous notes into account and triggers a sample with the appropriate “drum head ringing” level. Instruments with DHRS can be identified in the Performance view showing 10 Round Robin states with different dot sizes.
* Field Drum
▪ Field Drum Off
▪ Rototom 1
▪ Rototom 2
▪ Rototom 3
▪ Snare 1
▪ Snare 1 Off
▪ Snare 2
▪ Snare 2 Off
▪ Snare 3
▪ Snare 3 Off
▪ Timpani
▪ Tom 1
▪ Tom 2
▪ Tom 3
* Tom 4
If any of these instruments are part of a Kit, they will still include their DHRS feature
SYMPHONY SERIES – PERCUSSION
The full-sized set of professional scoring tools. SYMPHONY SERIES – PERCUSSION offers flexibility, versatility, and a creative workflow. With 55 individual percussion instruments, five separate mic mixes, on-board effects, and ergonomic controls, it’s the precision set of tools needed to cover any scoring task, from film to games to studio.
- 29 GB (compressed)
- 55 recorded instruments
- 66 NKIs, including 7 Kits
- Tremolo, Crescendo Roll, Flam, Edge variations and FX articulations
- Drum Head Resonance Simulation
- 5 microphone mixes including spot microphone, with Mixer page
- Effects page with EQ, Reverb, Compression, and Filter
SYMPHONY ESSENTIALS – PERCUSSION
SYMPHONY ESSENTIALS – PERCUSSION offers the same professional sound in a compact library of the 18 most important percussion instruments. A wide range of articulations, powerful performance features, on-board effects, and a unified workflow make this an essential tool for composers and producers of all genres.
- 4 GB (compressed)
- 18 recorded instruments
- 21 NKIs, including 1 Kit
- Tremolo, Crescendo Roll, Flam, Edge variations and FX articulations
- Drum Head Resonance Simulation
- 1 stereo microphone mix, no Mixer page
- Effects page with EQ, Reverb, Compression, and Filter
AT A GLANCE: SYMPHONY SERIES - PERCUSSION
| Product type: | Sampled orchestral percussion instruments |
| Number of libraries: | Available in two versions as SYMPHONY SERIES or SYMPHONY ESSENTIALS |
| For use with: | Free KONTAKT 5 PLAYER, or KONTAKT 5 |
| Download size: | 29GB - SYMPHONY SERIES / 4GB - SYMPHONY ESSENTIALS |
| System Requirements: | FREE KONTAKT 5 PLAYER or KONTAKT 5 (version 5.6.8 or higher) Please also see the KONTAKT 5 PLAYER system requirements and the KONTAKT 5 PLAYER FAQ - Intel i5 processor recommended. |
