One such section is the so-called Wolfenstein low strings, consisting of 12 double basses seated in a circle with eight cellos positioned in front. In support of the ‘fundamentally huge’ sound the makers strive for, MA1’s orchestra features unusually large sections and line-ups which don’t follow classical tradition. Where Lang’s film was silent, this collection is anything but: it focuses on the upper end of the dynamic range, from mezzo-forte up to a “very, very loud” fortissimo. The library contains large orchestral strings, brass and woodwind sections, male and female choirs, percussion, grand piano, rock drum kit, overdriven electric guitar and a bass guitar, the latter being the only instrument recorded outside the Teldex facility. Like Orchestral Tools’ Berlin Woodwinds and Berlin Strings (reviewed in SOS March 2013 and August 2014 respectively), Metropolis Ark 1 (henceforth called MA1) was recorded from multiple mic positions in Berlin’s historic Teldex Scoring Stage, famed for its classical recordings. I think sonically it fits very well our imagination of how Lang’s Metropolis could sound, although it has nothing to do with its original soundtrack.” In a further combined tribute to the film’s Berlin origins and the library’s recording location, the makers named the sections after the street names around the studio. Why ‘Metropolis Ark’? “The ‘Ark’ part symbolizes a kind of vessel in which the spirit and atmosphere of the 1927 movie is preserved in a modern interpretation, in the form of a sample collection. We had a vision of a monumentally big orchestra that is unique, bold but also highly versatile and flexible for arrangers.” We wanted to capture instrument ensembles which are simply monumental. In the early days Berlin had very big cinema production studios and this movie was one of their biggest, most expansive projects.

Company founder and composer Hendrik Schwarzer explains: “Metropolis was the first full-length science fiction movie. Orchestral Tools go up to 11 with a large-scale symphonic library inspired by a sci-fi masterpiece.Ĭonceived as an homage to Fritz Lang’s revolutionary 1927 film, Orchestral Tools’ Metropolis Ark 1 sample library aims for size and massive power.

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