Hollywood Strings Gold Edition from EastWest is a virtual instrument featuring a huge collection of beautifully recorded string instruments, while simultaneously providing extensive control over the sound and performance. Recording for Hollywood Strings took place at EastWest Studio 1, the same studio where many Hollywood soundtracks and television themes were recorded with a live orchestra.
Heading this project were co-producers Doug Rogers, Nick Phoenix and Thomas Bergerse, and sound engineer Shawn Murphy, who has recorded and mixed the scores for more than 300 feature films. The exceptional sounds of the virtual strings are the result of having a top sound engineer, a beautiful-sounding recording studio, an incredible selection of microphones, the best analog and digital recording equipment, and top Hollywood string players.
The library provides a large scoring-stage sound along with a more intimate scoring-stage sound. Hollywood Strings has many new features including the finger position controllable by the user, so you can play as far up the strings as you want and get a fuller, more romantic Hollywood sound. Vibrato intensity and extensive dynamics are controllable by the user.
Extensive multi-dynamic true legato has been sampled for all sections in 2 different categories – slurred and portamento, resulting in unsurpassed legato performance. The library features a single microphone position (mid-tree).
- Recorded in the famous EastWest Studios 1
- Neve 8078 mixing console
- Meitner ADC converters
- Single microphone position
- Multiple finger positions for all sections including open strings
- 2 unique styles of legato interval sampling, including slurred legato and portamento sliding legato, sampled at 3 and 2 dynamics respectively, all with speed control – that's 5 passes of legato intervals, all sampled in long format so each note has time to breath
- Basses only have slurred legato
- Up- and down-bowed sustains, all at 4 finger positions, at least one full octave on each string:
- 5 dynamics at non-vibrato
- 5 dynamics at vibrato
- 3 dynamics at molto vibrato
- Extensive runs
- Playable runs
- Spiccato runs for violins
- Other articulations:
- Bartók pizzicato
- Col legno
- Detaché up and down bows with finger positions and 4 dynamics
- Flautando for violins
- Harmonics for violins
- Marcato short, 3 dynamics, round-robin x 4
- Marcato long, 3 dynamics, round-robin x 4
- Measured tremolo, 4 dynamics
- On-the-string staccato, 4 dynamics, round-robin x 8
- Pizzicato, 4 dynamics, round-robin x 4
- Repetitions, 3 dynamics
- Ricochet, 3 dynamics, round-robin x 2
- Spiccato, 4 dynamics, round-robin x 9
- Staccatissmo, 4 dynamics, round-robin x 16
- Staccato, 4 dynamics, round-robin x 9
- Slurred staccato for violins, 4 dynamics, round-robin x 9
- Sul ponticello tremolo for violas
- Tremolo, 4 dynamics
- Trills (major and minor), 3 dynamics
- Sordino effect available for all patches
- Release trails for everything
- Custom Python scripting
- 16 x 1st Violins (9/7 divisi mode)
- 14 x 2nd Violins (8/6 divisi mode)
- 10 x Violas (6/4 divisi mode)
- 10 x Cellos (6/4 divisi mode)
- 7 x Basses (4/3 divisi mode)