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Best bang for your buck: fresh start Orchestral libraries?

Again thanks for the thoughtful replies, I'll get some time this weekend to explore those options and more.

@SoNowWhat? I'm definitely for the larger sections being played more in the background to the piano/vocal/lead, and can cheat a bit with some creative toning on sections, but for the most part will take the backseat and not need to be completely believable, just sounding great with little effort on my part.

I have many live instruments at my disposal to play for more prominent individual solo parts, and can begin to build other libraries to complement individually if/when the need arises. But for now, ya definitely more of a 'coverall', strings being most important, lush evolving background strings specifically that might make you swoon just by holding down a chord, then Brass, almost epic but not quite. I just don't want to be so specific -- even though I have a plan, it can change, and I always appreciate raw opinions -- they allow me to do a bit of research too!

Edit: @ism I just quickly looked up Olafur Arnalds Chamber Evolution before heading to bed, that's the kind of stuff I'm after mainly - something you can hit some chords on and it sounds incredible on its own, and more than incredible as a background support. If there's a complete orchestral library that does that, or mostly does that well, that would be what I'd love - at least to start with.
 
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Normally I recommend libraries with individual instruments, but for you, I would recommend something like Albion One or The Orchestra. Albion's patches make it easy to put down a background pad of orchestral sound. Plus it comes with percussion and some great synthy stuff. Kind of the basis for a lot of the Evo libraries.

The Orchestra can do the background pad plus it has this wonderful engine that will sound great behind other music.

If you want to go with individual instruments, I would be a +1 on HWO Gold. It is on sale often, sometimes at a really great price. Although I love my Spitfire Orchestra, it doesn't come with percussion and it is about 5 times the price unless you get it on sale. Then it is only 2.5 times the price.
 
Normally I recommend libraries with individual instruments, but for you, I would recommend something like Albion One or The Orchestra. Albion's patches make it easy to put down a background pad of orchestral sound. Plus it comes with percussion and some great synthy stuff. Kind of the basis for a lot of the Evo libraries.

The Orchestra can do the background pad plus it has this wonderful engine that will sound great behind other music.

If you want to go with individual instruments, I would be a +1 on HWO Gold. It is on sale often, sometimes at a really great price. Although I love my Spitfire Orchestra, it doesn't come with percussion and it is about 5 times the price unless you get it on sale. Then it is only 2.5 times the price.
But isn't it probably better to get a library with solo instruments so as to properly learn part writing along the way?
 
I'm definitely for the larger sections being played more in the background to the piano/vocal/lead, and can cheat a bit with some creative toning on sections, but for the most part will take the backseat and not need to be completely believable, just sounding great with little effort on my part.
Ok, that's a different approach I thought it was.
I often produce additional string/brass tracks for songs. In my experience all this big orchestral libraries doesn't work if they are recorded in big rooms. Behind tight drums and a pop rhythm section everything recorded in halls (like Albion) sound like a big backing pad. If an intimate acoustic picking guitar gets lost in a mix the orchestral stuff gets lost twice. There are some exceptions like brass stabs or horn countermelodies. But for song compatible orchestration dry and less epic libraries work best. And definitely single instruments/sections work better than ensemble libraries. Otherwise an Omnisphere string pad will do it as well.
 
Again thanks for the thoughtful replies, I'll get some time this weekend to explore those options and more.

@SoNowWhat? I'm definitely for the larger sections being played more in the background to the piano/vocal/lead, and can cheat a bit with some creative toning on sections, but for the most part will take the backseat and not need to be completely believable, just sounding great with little effort on my part.

I have many live instruments at my disposal to play for more prominent individual solo parts, and can begin to build other libraries to complement individually if/when the need arises. But for now, ya definitely more of a 'coverall', strings being most important, lush evolving background strings specifically that might make you swoon just by holding down a chord, then Brass, almost epic but not quite. I just don't want to be so specific -- even though I have a plan, it can change, and I always appreciate raw opinions -- they allow me to do a bit of research too!

Edit: @ism I just quickly looked up Olafur Arnalds Chamber Evolution before heading to bed, that's the kind of stuff I'm after mainly - something you can hit some chords on and it sounds incredible on its own, and more than incredible as a background support. If there's a complete orchestral library that does that, or mostly does that well, that would be what I'd love - at least to start with.
I think that gives us more to work with in terms of what you are looking for. And I’d definitely suggest looking at SF Albion’s and the OA Evos (Chamber or Full section).
 
But isn't it probably better to get a library with solo instruments so as to properly learn part writing along the way?
But that's not what he wants to use it for. I find it funny that Albion One is the first thing recommended for film scoring, yet that is when you should rec individual instruments because it is close to classical writing. Yet it isn't being recommended here.
 
A sleeper, especially for pop music, is Kirk Hunter's Virtuoso Ensembles. I have been performing a set of songs by Burt Bacharach-Hal David here in LA and when I created the backing tracks in Logic Pro, they somehow worked better than HS, CSS, and the others I own, including Kirk's Concert Strings.

I dialed out the cell and basses in one instance to create a "High Strings" and the violins and violas in another to create "Low Strings" and it just worked great.
 
Again thanks for the thoughtful replies, I'll get some time this weekend to explore those options and more.

@SoNowWhat? I'm definitely for the larger sections being played more in the background to the piano/vocal/lead, and can cheat a bit with some creative toning on sections, but for the most part will take the backseat and not need to be completely believable, just sounding great with little effort on my part.

I have many live instruments at my disposal to play for more prominent individual solo parts, and can begin to build other libraries to complement individually if/when the need arises. But for now, ya definitely more of a 'coverall', strings being most important, lush evolving background strings specifically that might make you swoon just by holding down a chord, then Brass, almost epic but not quite. I just don't want to be so specific -- even though I have a plan, it can change, and I always appreciate raw opinions -- they allow me to do a bit of research too!

Edit: @ism I just quickly looked up Olafur Arnalds Chamber Evolution before heading to bed, that's the kind of stuff I'm after mainly - something you can hit some chords on and it sounds incredible on its own, and more than incredible as a background support. If there's a complete orchestral library that does that, or mostly does that well, that would be what I'd love - at least to start with.


So definitely check out Orchestral Swarm and Time Macro. Which have textural articulations across the orchestral choirs.
 
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But that's not what he wants to use it for. I find it funny that Albion One is the first thing recommended for film scoring, yet that is when you should rec individual instruments because it is close to classical writing. Yet it isn't being recommended here.
OP said they wanted to get into orchestration so why wouldn't they want to learn how to properly orchestrate?
 
A sleeper, especially for pop music, is Kirk Hunter's Virtuoso Ensembles. I have been performing a set of songs by Burt Bacharach-Hal David here in LA and when I created the backing tracks in Logic Pro, they somehow worked better than HS, CSS, and the others I own, including Kirk's Concert Strings.

I dialed out the cell and basses in one instance to create a "High Strings" and the violins and violas in another to create "Low Strings" and it just worked great.
+1 on this

I always forget about them, but this was the kind of thing I was thinking of when I recommended Albion. I used to use Solid State Symphony for this type of sound, but it is a little synth sounding. Kirk Hunter's is much better.
 
OP said they wanted to get into orchestration so why wouldn't they want to learn how to properly orchestrate?
You're right. He did originally say that. But then he said he wanted stuff for the background for other types of music for which ensemble patches would work better. :)

I agree though, for a long term solution, something like EWHWO would be a reasonable price option and would last for a long time. I sometimes regret wasting a lot of money on ensemble orchestras. But they do serve a purpose. And they are much more fun to sit an play than a bunch of individual articulations. ;)
 
Since i would advise you to not use combined sections libraries like Albion, Arks and such, but rather giving you most flexibilities and learning the real deal of orchestration sequencing. (i see those combined section libs are handy as quick scribbling down ideas not useful for the end composition, because of limitations.. OR as additional layers to your compositions)

here are some orchestra libs with separate sections (e.g. violins one, two, violas etc etc) with good quality (not the "my first sony/casio/kawai" type of sound that is):


attractive in terms of pricing (allmost/full orchestra bundles):
- Eastwest Hollywood orchestra is quite good (although i personally dislike the play engine and the long loading times). Either cloud (gold) or purchase during sales (diamond)
- VSL Special editions (old or synchronized versions). (very dry though) (vol1 might be enough)
- Spitfire Audio Studio orchestra. (this (standard version) is dry-ish library, in a studio setting, not stage setting) The bundle contains woods, strings, brass, no prercussion. Bring in the percussion lib and you have a full orchestra.

Less attractive in terms of pricing, yet personally i like more in sound
- Spitfire audio Symphonic orchestra (with or without the complete variant) or the Chamber Orchestra if you want smaller sections in the strings. Bring in the percussion lib and you have a full orchestra.
- Berlin series from orchestral tools (Woodwinds, brass, strings, percussion) sold separately.
(be sure to look out for their expansions too if you need special sounds, e.g. solo woods, or muted brass)
- Cinesamples cinesymphony complete bundle (only when on sale!)


Now more on their own libraries, for mixing and matching (they don't have either a complete orchestra yet, or are specialized into some sections of the orchestra).

- Cinematic Sampling: Cinematic studio line (currently only Piano, strings, solo strings and brass. Woods and percussion will follow later this year).
sounds very lush and realistic. much love from all kinds of composers for the sound and ease of use. I love the strings library for the romantic almost soaring sound
- AudioBro products (strings brass and childrens choir) Very realistic, very flexible. In the right hands (read: it requires tweaking) can yield very good results.
- Embertone Joshua Bell Violin, very good sampled stradivarius violin. Pleasantly playable, yet sounding quite realistic out of the box.

note1: Ofcourse you can mix and match libs all you want. We all do eventually. (because each lib has it strong and weakpoints) E.g. you could go for brass from the Cinematic sampling Cinematic studio Brass and the strings from AudioBro's LA scoring strings and the woods from spitfire audio symphonic woodwinds etc etc and make your orchestra that way. However i would advise against doing so, when you are beginning. Reason is each library developer uses different controls, differen gui's etc. So it's way steeper to get knowing the libraries in a mix and match approach. Also some libraries need work, to fit a library (in sound) from a different developer (think room ambience, EQ etc).

Note2: these are just some examples to get you going into you discovery of libraries and such... do the research, listing carefully to demos from users, even walktroughs etc..

Virtual orchestration is an expensive endavour.. be prepaired! (the "i want more" is likely to sneak up on you sooner or later)
 
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Just one library? Albion One... I know that the sections are blended together but* they're blended in a way an orchestrator may double parts anyway.
 
if I had to choose, just one orchestral library - I would go for either Albion V tundra, Jaeger or Metropolis Ark 1 /depends heavily on the genre of music/ . At the same time they compliment each other incredibly well.
 
hey there, long time score fan just getting started here.

i am in the same position and i am leaning towards NI Orchestra Essentials which is 50% off the whole summer. i have many other orchestra VST tabs opened right now but i believe in the end i will get NI Orchestra Essentials.

here's why:

1. when i got my midi keyboard and needed a good piano VST to go along with it, i found The Grandeur through a survey here on vi-control -- BTW we need more of those instruments surveys, they are the best, maybe a dedicated sub-forum? idk

2. for my modest PC, SSD space is scarce resource, i have no intention of getting hundred of GB of EastWest or whatever. most NI libraries i have surveyed are space efficient. as a programmer, that is the kind of details that really resonates with me.

3. i got used to the (free) kontakt interface

4. my second library was NI Percussions Essentials which was on sale on christmas

5. and now the whole Essentials is on sale for the summer (if only i had waited a few months lol)

my goal is to not get overwhelmed because i am still learning. so i have a hard time understanding why people recommend sounds.com or EastWest. that's the best way to overwhelm someone who is barely starting...

but anyways, that's my story as of now
 
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