Menu
What's new
By:
Filters

Emotional, intense strings game music - soaring strings, pacific, etc?

wilson421

wilson421

New Member
Hello!

I originally got into virtual instruments because I wanted to make custom music for a game I'm working on with a really detailed and long story (JRPG). I'm pretty serious about the music part, which led me here.

I started writing some music recently, and I realized that my biggest problem is recreating the energy/feeling of anime/jrpg battle music, which are crucial for the game to feel energetic during big battles and crucial moments

an example from an anime soundtrack that demonstrates some of that bombastic flair:

another great example from a JRPG:

* fast tempo
* melody with heavy strings/horns
* notes played with intensity

My current string libraries (as you can see I took advantage of the Albion sale):
Albion One
Albion V (Tundra)
Albion NEO

I think I have pretty good low and intense shorts, and percussion with albion one, and excellent coverage of delicate/beautiful longs/shorts on the high end with neo/tundra (for non-battle music)

But what should I be looking at? I currently feel like I'm missing a "core" strings library with proper sections, and I don't have solo violin/viola/cello that would be good for really high-intensity runs and melodies.

I listened to a bunch of demos, Pacific Ensemble seems to be gushing with emotion. For solo, I was also looking at tina guo for cello, and Sonixinema legato cello/violin. Alternatively, non-solo for a similar effect: Spitfire appasionata. Also soaring strings which is a bit older but seems to fill a really useful niche with fast high notes on violin/viola. Any opinions or experience on those two, or other libraries that would be worth considering?
Click to read more...
 
Last edited:
doctoremmet said:
These are not solo libraries.
Click to expand...
you're right, edited the post. I mistyped, I wanted to write that I was thinking whether appasionata/soaring would work instead of solos for fast/high notes to add intensity

as you can tell I'm not sure what I need yet though I know the approximate result I'm hoping for :grin:
 
doctoremmet said:
If you want to do intense, Soaring Strings are indeed an excellent option (so are Adventure Strings). Restricted, but they both do what they aim for really well. Very playable. But quite niche of course.



Maybe wait for Vista II to release. It will take a while but it sounds very promising to my ears.
Click to expand...

Seems like a good strategy, I also wonder about layering, whether it's better to layer libraries from the same developer or different ones. For example, from your experience, does layering work better between different developers recording in different styles in different rooms, or with the same style/room?
 
Trash Panda said:
What’s your budget?

Do you want wet and distant like your current libraries or a dry and intimate studio sound like JRPGs? Somewhere in between?

Tokyo Scoring Strings examples:


Berlin Strings:
Click to expand...

thorwald said:
I strongly recommend Tokyo Scoring Strings.

Since you know Octopath Traveler, you know what they sound like too.

Cheers!
Click to expand...
To answer you, after listening to like a hundred strings comparison videos on youtube I realized I seem to have a preference for wet libraries + expressive (rather than neutral) to capture the players and room for their unique character. Maybe that's why I didn't fall for TSS despite it being what I should want? Didn't really realize that jrpg/anime is dry until you pointed it out.

Budget... well I'm willing to splurge if it's for the right thing :) so generally not an issue

So maybe there's a huge stylistic gap between what I've been enjoying listening to lately and what I like to compose with.. in that case maybe it's more about compositional style and chord progressions than tone.

Great youtube btw, subbed
 
Last edited:
The obvious answer would be Tokyo Scoring Strings. But I would caution against chasing after any particular popularized sound and instead just go for whatever feels correct for you. Here are a few examples of how a composer does something so brilliant that I never stopped to wonder what strings library I should use to emulate them - since to my mind it was obvious that they could have done something incredible with almost any instrument. You know these genius composers make their musical choices seem like destiny. But really, they would have made a banjo and a percussive toothpick ensemble sound like a must have sound library if they wanted to.





 
doctoremmet said:
Maybe wait for Vista II to release. It will take a while but it sounds very promising to my ears.
Click to expand...
A fair recommendation as early alphas sounds better than nearly anything we’ve heard in sample world - but be prepared to wait an indeterminate amount of time from 6 to 72 months.
 
I don't own Tokyo Scoring Strings (....YET 😈 ) but I agree that it's probably a really logical choice for OP. Maybe there's a summer sale coming up from ISW...

Love them or hate them, a lot of the most classic JRPGs make judicious use of Miroslav Strings (now available through IKM for pretty cheap, usually) and, in particular, the Roland ROMplers (JV1080/2080, XV5080, etc). String patches from those modules sound, to me, immediately like the right vibe for these games, and a modern trick is to layer these with either real players or high-quality current sample libraries.

Granted, I'm on a huge classic Roland module kick right now. Absolutely love them. I grew up playing JRPGs from the very beginning of the genre (back when they called it "Dragon Warrior" in the States) and those modules scratch the itch of the '90s and '00s classics perfectly.
 
wilson421 said:
or solo, I was also looking at tina guo for cello, and Sonixinema legato cello/violin. Alternatively, non-solo for a similar effect: Spitfire appasionata. Also soaring strings which is a bit older but seems to fill a really useful niche with fast high notes on violin/viola. Any opinions or experience on those two, or other libraries that would be worth considering?
Click to expand...
GYPSY FIDDLE from Red Room Audio might work for you.
redroomaudio.com

Traveler Series Gypsy Fiddle - Red Room Audio

Passionate Gypsy fiddle library for Kontakt recorded in Sofia, Bulgaria with 20 core & extended articulations and 15 traditional ornaments, plus 650 Phrases & FX! 4 performance modes, customizable double stops, adjustable bow attacks and rebowing options & more! Features TACT articulation...
redroomaudio.com

It seams to fit the style of the violin in video you posted. I'd look at Bohemian Violin from Virharmonic too.
virharmonic.com

Bohemian Violin

SOUL CAPTURE SERIES - THE WORLDS FIRST VIOLIN VIRTUAL PERFORMER THE VIRTUAL INSTRUMENT THAT BECAME A REAL BOY Creating music has never been so easy, with the help of our Virtual Performer making split second decisions based on your playing input, inspiring you to write lyrical lines like never...
virharmonic.com virharmonic.com

Emotional violin, viola, and cello from Best Service are the solo strings I use most often. The violin and viola are very nimble and can get passionate. There are many legato bow styles to choose from. Because of this they can be aggressive with lots of built in emotion, or flat and controlled depending on what bow style you chose. I used the Emotional series in this piece. One of the instruments is real, can you tell which one?



I would not recommend Tina Guo or Sonixinema legato for fast intense melodic lines. They are best suited for slow playing due to their slow legato transitions. They lack the ability to play fast passages with strong attack. Sonixinema has their modern series, which may be better for that. There are also the Chris Hein libraries to check out, and
wilson421 said:
But what should I be looking at? I currently feel like I'm missing a "core" strings library with proper sections,
Click to expand...
If you want super passionate portamento and lots of control over portamento and legato speed as well as great dynamics, I'd look at 8dio Agitato. This is for emotional melodic lines. It is also quite affordable. At the time of writing this, it is only $48. I find it even more emotional and controllable then Performance Samples strings. ( I have Vista )

If you want a do it all string section library, that is wet and extremely nimble with a lot of articulations and play styles to choose from, I'd recommend Berlin Strings. It has special articulations for super intense passages and has ostinato, portamento, Many different types of short notes and tremolos as well as many different types of performed swells and diminuendos etc. Yes, it is extremely expensive, but you get what you pay for. There's little it can't do.
I used them in my piece, Merry Christmas Beethoven. The link starts where the strings start.


I actually started composing the piece using TSS. It has a great performance patch with layered round robin short notes. So it is super playable without needing to do much keyswitching. In the end, I switched to Berlin Strings. TSS is mostly dry. It takes work to get it to fit with wet libraries. TSS is also heavy sounding. In a classical concerto style piece, I needed something brighter and less heavy. Berlin Strings also has ostinato articulations that worked perfectly for my piece.

Berlin Strings is on sale right now. They seldom go on sale, so this is a good time to get them.
www.native-instruments.com

Orchestral Tools offer 2024

Get Orchestral Tools’ flagship Berlin Series bundle including strings, woodwinds, percussion, and brass at an exclusive price.
www.native-instruments.com www.native-instruments.com

VSL Synchron Strings Professional would likely be another contender for a do everything string section.
 
Last edited:
wilson421 said:
To answer you, after listening to like a hundred strings comparison videos on youtube I realized I seem to have a preference for wet libraries + expressive (rather than neutral) to capture the players and room for their unique character and that sound of being in a huge room. Maybe that's why I didn't fall for TSS despite it being what I should want? Didn't really realize that jrpg/anime is dry until you pointed it out.

Budget... well I'm willing to splurge if it's for the right thing :) so generally not an issue

So maybe there's a huge stylistic gap between what I've been enjoying listening to lately and what I like to compose with.. in that case maybe it's more about compositional style and chord progressions than tone.

Great youtube btw, subbed
Click to expand...
Thank you!

Knowing your preference, you’d probably get along well with Cinematic Studio Strings and Solo Strings. They’ve got plenty of room, they’re super passionate stylistically and do the flowing/soaring thing well. Solid workhorse if you like the tone.
 
Op if you do settle on TSS, I have a copy I am allowed to resell so I can offer a decent price. They are really good, I just have too many libraries at this point.
 
To add to what has been said... TSS would be pretty good. The dramatic vibrato and thick, "heavy" sound would fit the bill nicely, especially once the 2.0 update drops. You'd just need to sculpt the sound a bit to fit your wet libraries. I'm sure you could do it with eq, reverb, spatial effects, and the included mic positions. To be more specific about "spatial effects", I occasionally slap a bit of Panagement on an instrument when I feel that it's too "close." That might help. I don't own TSS, though, so take that with a grain of salt.

I also agree that 8Dio's Agitato, although it's not a "bread-and-butter" string library would be a great choice... it'd give you nimble and expressive legato with playable runs and lots of grit and passion. You can also use the runs mode for melodies if you need more speed or angrier legato transitions. At 45 bucks, it's cheap enough that you could just grab them and blend them with whatever other library you choose, as it's that good in my opinion. But if you want more of the same string section, you could look into 8Dio's Adagietto or Anthology, which are based on the discontinued Adagio. Both have their strengths and weaknesses, but if you're interested, I'd buy Anthology and then ask 8Dio's support for a free cross-grade to Adagietto. I own these and use them a lot.

I'll give an honorable mention to Vivid Strings... the legato can move quickly enough for more nimble melodies, but it's not enough for runs, so I blend it with runs from other libraries when I use them. That said, the small sections and expressive playing would be right at home in a JRPG. Intro pricing has sadly expired on the first violins (they went up to 79 dollars), but the celli are still only 30 dollars.

You might also be interested in LA Scoring Strings or Spitfire's (EXPENSIVE) Chamber Strings - based on my digging on this forum to investigate that "anime" string sound, Japanese composers have used these libraries and maybe the 8Dio strings too.

If you want to hear Agitato/Adagio in action, this piece uses them rather well. I forgot about it for a while, and when I was looking for it, I thought for a moment that it was actually from One Piece. 😅It's not from that, obviously but it gives me a similar feeling.
 
Last edited:
Nigel Andreola said:
Emotional violin, viola, and cello from Best Service are the solo strings I use most often. The violin and viola are very nimble and can get passionate. There are many legato bow styles to choose from. Because of this they can be aggressive with lots of built in emotion, or flat and controlled depending on what bow style you chose. I used the Emotional series in this piece. One of the instruments is real, can you tell which one?



I would not recommend Tina Guo or Sonixinema legato for fast intense melodic lines. They are best suited for slow playing due to their slow legato transitions. They lack the ability to play fast passages with strong attack. Sonixinema has their modern series, which may be better for that. There are also the Chris Hein libraries to check out, and

If you want super passionate portamento and lots of control over portamento and legato speed as well as great dynamics, I'd look at 8dio Agitato. This is for emotional melodic lines. It is also quite affordable. At the time of writing this, it is only $48. I find it even more emotional and controllable then Performance Samples strings. ( I have Vista )

If you want a do it all string section library, that is wet and extremely nimble with a lot of articulations and play styles to choose from, I'd recommend Berlin Strings. It has special articulations for super intense passages and has ostinato, portamento, Many different types of short notes and tremolos as well as many different types of performed swells and diminuendos etc. Yes, it is extremely expensive, but you get what you pay for. There's little it can't do.
I used them in my piece, Merry Christmas Beethoven. The link starts where the strings start.


I actually started composing the piece using TSS. It has a great performance patch with layered round robin short notes. So it is super playable without needing to do much keyswitching. In the end, I switched to Berlin Strings. TSS is mostly dry. It takes work to get it to fit with wet libraries. TSS is also heavy sounding. In a classical concerto style piece, I needed something brighter and less heavy. Berlin Strings also has ostinato articulations that worked perfectly for my piece.
Click to expand...


TY so much for these reccs on solo especially. I'm quite blown away by the Chris Hein and Emotional series.. they push the limits of how good I thought VIs can sound.

It seems I'd need to pick up a SSD before considering berlin (I've got like 100gb left), but that's a ridiculously good deal...

Do you think the Emotional violin is a bit easier to use than Hein? Just from some youtubes it seems like Emotional violin articulations are in a pretty straightforward list to choose from, hein interface looked hardcore.

And thanks so much for the replies everyone, I didn't expect such incredibly good information so quickly. I'm glad I found this forum, truly.

I just can't decide yet on TSS. The 2.0 update fast runs example from this same forum seems like it'll take the nimble note transitions to the next level.

Tokyo Scoring Strings 2.0 Development Progress - New previews on page 5 (early April)

Kontakt Player 7 is free, either way. 🙂
vi-control.net vi-control.net

with the smaller section size should I be comparing TSS to chamber orchestra libraries?

Also spitfire chamber strings was mentioned, I've also been thinking about them a lot, does anyone know whether spitfire chamber essentials (let's say "90% of the time") has enough of the articulations to get by?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom