Chris Hein Orchestral Brass EXtended

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Orchestral Brass Instruments in unheard perfection!

Chris Hein Orchestral Brass EXtended is an extensive orchestral brass library meeting highest expectations regarding sound quality, expression and applicability. What started out as a functional and fun brass library in its first iteration, has been taken to the next level with the EXtended Version. 

Producer Chris Hein has brought his thirty years of sampling experience into this masterpiece, giving the user maximum flexibility, highest level of customization and benefit in use. For the EXtended Version Chris Hein pushed the limits of Kontakt scripting and modelling to power the most realistic and dynamic brass collection ever seen.

Instruments Overview

While the original library featured nine instruments, Chris Hein Orchestral Brass EXtended comes with twelve instruments in total. Included are all nine original instruments plus three additional instruments, six ensemble instrument patches, and two effects articulation patches. All in all, Chris Hein Orchestral Brass EXtended contains 20 GB of additional content - more than twice as much as the original library and over 43,000 new samples.

Instruments from Orchestral Brass Complete:  three Trumpets, three Trombones, and three French Horns recorded as individual instruments and as three ensembles. Each instrument builds upon almost 8,000 single samples, 14 articulations and up to eight dynamic layers.

Additional instruments in the EXtended Version:

F-Tuba, Sousaphone, and Euphonium.

In fact, these three Low Brass Instruments have more articulations and samples than the original Brass Instruments - there are 24 articulations in total for each of the Tuba, Sousaphone and Euphonium.

In addition to 5 different sustains, 6 different shorts and 5 different special articulations, you’ll find:

• Added Repetitions in 16th and 8th notes with adjustable speed

• 6 new short articulations and hundreds of stunning one shot effect samples

Chris has sampled these instruments in exquisite detail, with 16 dynamic layers for the normal shorts. This provides a huge range of variation and expression. Short repetitions, dirty attacks, growls and ornaments were deliberately recorded with character and expression, so they’ll bring unparalleled realism to your parts, simulating the natural playing nuances of a real-life player.

Ensembles Overview

For an epic Hollywood sound Chris Hein added six Ensemble Instrument patches using the same mixing techniques he used for his Ensemble Strings library, Chris has created extra large, epic Brass Ensembles from a careful mixture of the solo instruments. Thanks to the sonic quality and the extremely wide dynamic range, this version of Orchestral Brass offers instantly fat and full sounding Ensembles for each instrument group.

Included are

Trumpet Ensemble large, Trombone Ensemble large, Horns Ensemble large, Low Brass Ensemble, Full Brass Ensemble, Full Brass Ensemble without the Trumpets

The low brass ensemble is a particular highlight, with extended articulations including: Ensemble repetitions, 6 new short articulations, 12 different Note Heads and a large variety of spectacular Ensemble Effects.

More Features inside Orchestral Brass EXtended

• Note-Head Variations - Changing the Note-head variations has always been a standout feature of Chris Hein libraries, and with Orchestral Brass EXtended the number of different attack articulations increases from 6 to 12. This is the easiest way to bring more character, variations and nuance to your brass performances. Instantly switch between all versions of clean or dirty attacks by just moving the Note-Head fader.

• Simulated Mute Controls - The simulated mute controls inside Orchestral Brass EXtended are effective, realistic and first and foremost lots of fun. Because they’re modelled, rather than sampled, Orchestral Brass EXtended consists of a reasonable size without multi-sampling every different type of mute. All the EXtended instruments are armed with the mute modelling, accessible from the front panel. Included are five different Mutes: Bucket, Cup, Harmon, Straight, and Stop mute.

• True Legato - The instruments of Chris Hein Orchestral Brass Complete offer true legato. The corresponding in-depth recordings and edits result in unexpectedly realistic sounds with perfect note-transitions. At the same time you can expand these realistic articulations by additional, artificially inserted legatos.

• Perfect Dynamic Transitions thanks to Phase Alignment - All samples were fully aligned in phase. Accordingly, the instruments offer perfect seamless transitions of dynamic layers without sonic degradation.

The User-Interface

The custom-tailored user-interface for Kontakt Player not only offers numerous functions to adapt the library's sound character and articulations but also provides immense configuration choices to live up to specific demands and workflows. At the same time, you can effectively play the library without any deep edits. Pre-programmed key-switch-presets allow fast tryouts of all available types.

Thanks to four "Dynamic Modes", the "Note-Head Designer", "Key-Vibrato", "Hot-Keys" and the revolutionary concept of articulation-presets, the user-interface will give you the impression to really play these instruments live.

Inside Orchestral Brass EXtended the playback engine received a few tweaks - the most notable one being the “offset” fader within the Legato engine. This offers a whole new world of portamento transitions, from a full slide between two notes, to a more subtle glide. Using the offset function in combination with the speed fader brings and even wider range of options, especially when using MIDI controller data for automation inside your DAW.

Orchestral Brass Sounds tailored to Perfection

Both the high quality gear such as selected Neumann microphones and the musician's significant performances drive the sound aesthetics. Unlike the award-winning Chris Hein – Horns, this library takes advantage of the renowned WDR Symphonic Orchestra.

For this library, dry close mic'ing was an intentional decision. All instruments were recorded individually avoiding any crosstalk. Despite that CH Winds Compact incorporated the inevitable interaction of an orchestra. Therefore, the participating musicians used headphone monitoring, to complement each other, forming perfectly balanced ensembles. Consequently, time-dependent articulations such as Dynamic Expression achieve an especially coherent tone, allowing you to combine individual instruments for perfectly matched ensembles.

Including free Kontakt Player (version 5.7 or higher)

For registered owners of Chris Hein Brass Complete and Chris Hein Chris Hein Brass Compact there are discounted updates/upgrades available:

• Chris Hein Orchestral Brass EXtended UPD - With the update from Chris Hein Orchestral Brass Complete to the Extended Version you get three additional low brass instruments plus 6 additional ensemble patches.

• Chris Hein Orchestral Brass EXtended UPG - With the upgrade from Chris Hein Orchestral Brass Compact the Extended Version you get three additional low brass instruments plus 6 additional ensemble patches.

Excerpt

"There are many orchestral brass libraries on the market ranging in different styles and character, Orchestral Brass Complete gives me more than enough control to write for Brass in any context. The Expressive Dynamic articulations really bring my lyrical lines to life and the shorts give me enough bite for those epic fanfares."

Full video review for Chris Hein Orchestral Brass at "samplesspotlight"

CONCLUSION

Chris Hein Orchestral Brass turned out to be a marvelously expressive library with extensive control options over every parameter you could possibly think of – and more. The sound quality of the massive amount of samples is absolutely top-notch and lets you perform both fragile solo parts and soaring, blaring ensemble lines alike. The dry and close-mic’d recording method allows for comprehensive placement options and opens up a broad range of use – from pop arrangements to massive orchestral pieces.

A real upside of Chris Hein Orchestral Brass is its wonderfully easy and smooth playability. The instruments sound awesome out of the box and together with a multitude of different articulations, they enable you to play convincing brass lines. Also the “FX” articulations like rips, falls and runs are very usable and blend well into a performance.

At the beginning, I was wondering why there was no tuba or cimbasso included, since this instrument type usually represents the lower range the brass section in an symphonic orchestra. But playing around with the trombones, I realized quickly, that there really was no need for a lower instrument. The playable ranges of both trombones and french horns go down so low, that they can easily take over a convincing tuba part.

I, and I know that I’m not alone with this, am always in search of an orchestral brass library, that is able to cut through even the densest arrangements without sounding too honky in the upper dynamic levels. After spending quite some time with this virtual instrument, I think I may have found the remedy.

For a price of 299 $, Chris Hein Orchestral Brass Complete offers you a superb sounding orchestral brass section that is a breeze to play and at the same time features a myriad of control options to provide the highest flexibility possible. Well done, Mr. Hein!

full TAS review for CH Orchestral Brass

Dank Phase Alignment gelingen dynamische Übergänge fließend und ohne Verfärbungen, auch bei schnellen Wechseln. Die Samples sind lupenrein aufgenommen - in feinster Audioqualität und angenehm trocken.

Fazit:
Chris Hein Orchestral Brass Complete setzt Maßstäbe mit einem natürlichen und außergewöhnlich präsenten Klangcharakter. Alle Instrumente sind fließend dynamisch spielbar, dank Phasenanpassung durchgängig ohne Klangverfärbungen. Echte Legatosamples ermöglichen einfühlsame Soli. Die Entscheidung, unterschiedliche Short- und Stakkato-Spielweisen im fließenden Wechsel anstelle von Round-Robin-Samples einzubinden, führt zu einem ausdrucksstarken Spielvergnügen. Die Ensembles eignen sich für effektvolle, breit angelegte Bläsersätze - ideal für epische Filmmusik. Grundsätzlich eignen sich diese Blechbläser aber auch für Klassikanwendungen und entpsrechend ausgerichtete Pop-Arrangements.

Unterm Strich ist Chris Hein ein Meisterwerk gelungen, das zu einem fairen Preis angeboten wird.

+ ausdrucksstark dynamisch spielbar

+natürlicher, authentischer Klang

+umfangreiches Angebot an Artikulationen

+fließender Wechsel zwischen Attack-Varianten

+großartiger, epischer Ensemble Klang

+ausgereiftes Skript

Andreas Ecker für KEYS 07/2016

Fazit (Auszug)

Was will ich groß sagen?! Klingt genauso, wie man sich das von orchestralen Bläsern vorstellt. Die Holzbläser klingen schön warm und nuanciert, das orchestrale Blech von hauchig matt bis rotzig frech. Es sind beide Libraries auf alle Fälle sehr gelungen. Man erkennt die klanglichen Eigenheiten und Timbres der jeweiligen Instrumente deutlich und gut unterscheidbar. Kombiniert mit den angebotenen Artikulationen und dem Vibrato lässt sich damit auf alle Fälle schon ein Großteil an „orchestralen Bedürfnissen“ abdecken. Und das zu durchaus moderaten Preisen!

Wer also nicht wirklich auf ausgefuchsteste Anpassungsmöglichkeiten angewiesen ist und wem die gebotenen fünf Artikulationen reichen, der ist mit der „Light“ Version der Chris Hein Libraries bestens beraten.

Ganzer CH Brass/Winds Test bei BuenasIdeas

Chris Hein has done it again. Orchestral Brass Complete instruments sounds so authentic and detailed that you can easily use as solo instruments or all together in a crowded orchestral arrangement.

Excerpt:

Impressions

The whole library is very detailed, with a great set of carefully chosen, fine sounding articulations. All instruments sound very detailed with a well defined, clear and sharp attack and a strong and stable tone. Snappy attack and sharp tones cause those Brass section parts to easily cut through the mix without loosing their original character. The best thing about this library is that all sounds are programmed and sampled at such a high quality level that all instruments can stand their own, allowing you to use them as solo instruments that will sound authentic even without any additional background music or noise.  On the other hand the sound great in any crowded orchestral arrangement, nicely blending with all other orchestral instruments (of course, with a touch of a common reverb used on the whole orchestra helps).

The orchestral brass parts produced with this library sound great even by simple use of different articulations for different note lengths, without any need of additional programming. On the other hand, if you are a control freak, there are still plenty of controllers that can occupy your attention for a long, long time, fixing and taming the tiniest detail. I’m not that sort of person. If something sounds right, then it sounds right, and Orchestral Brass Complete sounds just perfect.

A. Arsov for Sound Bytes Magazine

Complete CH Orchestral Brass review at Sound Bytes Magazine