Sounds & Samples

Spitfire Audio have a long, impressive resumé of high-quality instruments and libraries, and are no strangers to the pages of FM Mag. Alongside their usual attention to detail, in terms of the performance and recording aspects of their orchestral libraries,

Spitfire often employ a range of ways to maximise the usefulness and immediacy of many of their collections. Kepler orchestra is no exception and features a chamber orchestra recorded in the wonderfulsounding AIR Studio 1 (familiar to users of other Spitfire collections). The focus this time is on late 20th-century American systems composition style, and as a self-confessed fanboy of Steve Reich, I was looking forward to taking it for a test drive.

Weighing in at a pretty hefty 38GB, and with more than 18,000 samples, Kepler orchestra comes as a series of Kontakt-based instruments divided into orchestral sections and underlying styles. Spitfire’s Mercury Synth plays host to the so-called ‘Warped’ section of the library, where content is extruded through a range of sound design and manipulation processes. The more straightforward material is accessed via an interactive grid system (Evo Grid), where different phrases are mapped independently across the keyboard. This allows for the creation of some very interesting textures, with various overlapping timings – and this is before you get to the multiple mic-mixing and effect options. There is quite a bit of variation here, with different approaches on how the elements interact in the form of varying ‘Grid’ types – including ‘Dopplers’, ‘Shards’, and others.

Overall this is a great sounding collection. However, as with previous Kontakt-based libraries from Spitfire, I had some issues with the small size of certain aspects of the GUIs – an update on this front would be welcome across the range. It is also important to note that you’ll need a very powerful computer (check the system requirements online), as this is a real CPU hog. Bruce Aisher spitfireaudio.com

VERDICT 8.9