Vienna Symphonic Library Synchron Strings Bundle Standard Library Virtual Instrument (Download)

Vienna Symphonic Library Synchron Strings Bundle Standard Library is a virtual instrument that offers a vast library of string performances masterly played by Vienna's top string players and their fine instruments.

Elite Strings Standard Library at a Glance

Library of smaller-sized string ensembles performed by elite string players and recorded with the signature ambience of the Synchron Stage Vienna scoring stage

22 instruments: 6 first violins, 5 second violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos, 3 basses

60.9GB library with more than 271,310 samples.

Employs 4 phase-coherent microphone configurations

Includes Synchron Player—runs in standalone mode or operates within VST, AU, AAX formats

Coherent Performances, Authentic in Every Nuance

The main approach for Synchron Elite Strings was to let the 22 A-list musicians play cleverly devised scores (often for more than half an hour, to capture the musicality and mastery of real-life performances as a coherent source of sampled articulations. The captured variants of expression derived from these authentic performances enable you to seamlessly combine different playing techniques and nuances such as various note beginnings, arcs, and releases of notes, into one coherent piece of expressive music.

Long and Interval Articulations

All long notes, legatos, and portamentos offer three vibrato variants (regular, molto, sans), four different starts (soft, regular, fast, marcato/sfz), as well as regular and soft releases.

With legatos and portamentos, the different note-start variants apply only to the first notes of the phrases, while the following notes feature a smooth legato or portamento connection.

The Performance Détaché articulations: Intervals of up to an octave were recorded, but each target note was played with an extra bow stroke. These separate notes are still connected by the Synchron Player’s algorithms, for very realistic phrases that differ from passages performed with single note détachés. Tremolos, measured tremolos, and trills also offer legato variants for fluid note transitions.

Due to the small number of players, agile variants of legatos and détachés are especially precise and versatile, while at the same time vibrant and authentic because they were all derived from long performances.

Microphone Configurations

Solo 1 mic, small condenser (mono)

Mid mic—tube, front of ensemble (L/R)

Main/room mic—Decca Tree stereo (L/R)

Main/room mic—Decca Tree mono (center)

Long Notes

Sustained notes without, with regular, and molto (except basses) vibrato, espressivo

Normal and soft release

Soft, normal, fast, and marcato/sfz attack

Performance Legato

Legato regular and agile

Without, with regular, and molto (except basses) vibrato, espressivo

Normal and soft release

Soft, normal, fast, and marcato/sfz attack

Portamento

Portamento performances without, with regular, and molto (except basses) vibrato, espressivo

Normal and soft release

Soft, normal, fast, and marcato/sfz attack

Dynamics

Sforzato

Soft swell

Crescendo short and long (2/4 sec)

Diminuendo short and long (2/4 sec)

Tremolo

Tremolo regular and marcato

Measured tremolo, 120/130/140/160 BPM

Trills

Trills half tone and whole tone

Trills minor and major third (except basses)

Pizzicato

Pizzicato regular (basses: tight and loose)

Snap or Bartók pizzicato

Col legno

Violins and violas: battuto

Harmonics

Short notes

Long notes

Tremolo

Performance Détaché

Détaché performances regular and agile

Without, with regular, and molto (except basses) vibrato

Normal and fast attack

Long Notes

Sustained, regular vibrato, molto vibrato, senza vibrato

Espressivo piano

Very soft (pianissimo and flautando)

Vibrato crossfade options

Attack and release variants for basic articulatons except molto and senza vibrato

Legato

Legato, regular vibrato, molto vibrato, senza vibrato

Espressivo piano

Very soft (pianissimo and flautando)

Vibrato crossfade options

Attack and release variants for basic articulatons except molto and senza vibrato

Legato Agile

Legato agile with attack and release variants

Auto-speed option with regular legato

Portamento

Portamento with attack and release variants

Dynamics

Sforzato

Soft swell with normal and soft release

Crescendo short and long

Diminuendo short and long

Tremolo

Tremolo sustained, marcato option, and regular sustains crossfading option

Measured tremolo, 120/130/140/160 BPM, normal, and cut release

Trills

Half-tone trills

Whole-tone trills

Harmonics

Sustained

Tremolo sustained

Crossfading options sustained/tremolo and regular/harmonics

Ponticello

Short notes, bold, and agile

Sustained

Legato

Tremolo sustained with marcato option

Crossfading options with regular articulations

Key Features

String Library recorded with the signature ambience of the Synchron Stage Vienna scoring stage

Played by members of the Synchron Stage Orchestra

Employs four phase-coherent microphone configurations, recorded simultaneously to provide a broad range of room sound options

Mic setups can be mixed to dial in the sound you're looking for, from close and focused to broad and ambient

Sections of 1st violins (14), 2nd violins (10), violas (8), cellos (8), and double basses (6) were recorded separately at their designated positions on stage

Up to 8 velocity layers and 80 variations per note

Realistic legato performances

Includes short notes, long notes with various attacks, legatos, scalable vibrato intensities, and note repetitions

Optimized algorithms require a minimum of manual articulation switching

Mix your string sound in stereo, 5.1 surround, or 9.1 Auro 3D (or any other immersive audio format, such as Dolby Atmos)

Runs in standalone mode, or operates within VST, AU, RTAS, AAX formats

Includes Vienna Ensemble mixing host and Vienna Instruments player - fully compatible with Vienna Ensemble Pro and Vienna Instruments Pro (available separately)

Microphone Configurations

Close mic—mono

Front mic—front of ensemble (L/R)

Main/room mic—Decca tree stereo (L/R)

Main/room mic—Decca tree mono (center)

Articulations

Short notes: 8 velocity layers, 10 variations

Long notes—with vibrato: 8 velocity layers, 10 variations

Long notes—no vibrato: 8 velocity layers, 10 variations

Long notes—portato: 6 velocity layers, 10 variations

Long notes—lyrical: 4 velocity layers, 10 variations

Sforzando: 4 velocity layers, 4 variations

Sforzando—crescendo: 4 velocity layers, 4 variations

Legato—regular: 8 velocity layers

Legato—slurred: 8 velocity layers

Legato—fast: 8 velocity layers, 6 variations

Tremolos: 5 velocity layers

Trills—half-tone: 5 velocity layers

Trills—whole-tone: 5 velocity layers

Pizzicato: 5 velocity layers, 8 Variations

Snap pizzicato: 1 velocity layer, 8 Variations

Releases damped

Releases ringing

Synchron Stage Vienna

5813 ft2 (540 m2) hall optimized for film music recordings and sampling sessions

Lush and warm sound with precise localization of all sound sources, both in depth and in the stereo or surround environment

Average reverb time of 1.8 seconds

Key Features

Production-ready musical textures and loops, from breathy, spherical pads, to pulsating or even aggressive patterns and rhythms

Large 50 piece string ensemble, divided in 6 sections: 14 first violins, 10 second violins, 6 first violas, 6 second violas, 8 cellos, 6 double basses

Recorded at the company's scoring stage, Synchron Stage Vienna

Total flexibility for wide creative possibilities—almost every feature can be combined

Large selection of presets in ten categories

Includes easy-to-use Synchron Player with high-performance playback engine

Intuitive access to articulations with three preconfigured real-time controllers: Bow Style (CC 1), Velocity (CC 2), Density (CC 3).

Multiple microphone arrays provide a wide variety of stereo sonic possibilities

Each musician was recorded separately with a dedicated microphone, and all signals were downmixed to produce an optimized section sound

Ten Preset Categories

Spherical Textures—slightly pulsing effects with aleatoric rhythms and random bow changes

Spherical Chord Textures—based on the so-called Alpha chord

Character Textures—screaming and shouting high strings, grumbling low strings, aleatoric cluster

FX with Random Pizzicatos—dirty and aggressive sounds with high bow pressure, ethereal outer space sounds performed behind the bridge, staggered, pulsating bow-bouncings on a string, melodic ornaments in the Ionian scale

Glissandos—regular and fingered, available in regular, half-tremolo, and ponticello bow styles

Rises & Hits—upward runs and glissandos with high dynamics and exaggerated crescendo, and speed variations

Clusters—short and long note clusters, as well as glissando clusters with speed variations

Harmonic FX—freaky sounds with slightly detuned harmonics or upward and downward glissandos

Pizzicato FX—random pizzicatos in various tempos or finger glissandos after the pizzicato

Special Pads—various breathy sounds with strings tuned down a minor third

Inspiration XFades—crossfading combinations from different preset categories

Microphone Positions

Room Mix—downmix of positions 6 and 7 (L/R)

1. Close Mics—for each ensemble (mono each)

2. Mid Mic—front of high string ensemble (L/R)

3. Mid Mic—front of low string ensemble (L/R)

4. Main/Room Mic—Decca tree stereo (L/R)

5. Main/Room Mic—Decca tree mono (Center)

Synchron Player

Simple-to-use audio engine with enhanced streaming performance

Allows you to quickly step through the articulations, select their variations, and explore how the preconfigured controllers (Density, Bow Style and Velocity Crossfade) affect the loaded preset

Includes an internal mixer with 5-band EQ, individual delay settings for run time compensation, algorithmic reverb, phase switching, and panorama controls

About the Composer, Orchestrator, and Conductor

Born and raised in Vienna, composer and conductor Johannes Vogel graduated from the Vienna University of Music and Performing Arts as a percussionist with honors

He started his career as a musician with the Vienna Philharmonic, the orchestra of the Zürich opera house, and the Camerata Academica Salzburg

As a composer, his film and TV music projects include the MGM/Paramount production Hercules, with Dwayne Johnson, and Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak; The Colony with Emma Watson and Daniel Brühl, as well as numerous episodes of the German TV series Der Bergdoktor

Since 2016 Johannes Vogel has been the principal conductor at Synchron Stage Vienna, with most of the film music productions at Vienna’s new scoring stage recorded under his baton, including scores by Hans Zimmer, Harry Gregson-Williams, Rupert Gregson-Williams, Lorne Balfe, and many others

About the Alpha chord (Spherical Chord Textures)

The spherical chord textures are based on the Alpha chord, which is composed of two symmetric, layered diminished seventh chords, with a whole tone gap in-between

In Synchron FX Strings I, this chord is featured in its basic form (on the center key of C) and in two inversions