NOVO PACK 02 – Rhythmic Textures by Heavyocity Review

Heavyocity Rhythmic Textures is another release in the NOVO Pack family and does not require NOVO. The new Rhythmic Textures offers rhythmic elements played by an intimate chamber string ensemble.

You may ask yourself “Who is Heavyocity?” Heavyocity Media develops award-winning Virtual Instruments for the modern composer and sound designer. The instruments don’t contain the typical sounds that form the foundation of most composers’ setups. Heavyocity philosophy is simple: Provide cutting edge, inspiring instruments and sounds that supercharge creativity, formatting them in ways that enhance productivity. One of the main goals of Heavyocity is to provide those perfect “go-to” signature elements quickly and effectively. Heavyocity did send a review copy with no strings attached.

Installation

You download the library with the help of Connect, the download is installed 17.2 GB uncompressed (12 GB on Disk with NI lossless compression). Kontakt 5 (Player) ver 5.6.8 or later is required. The library is Komplete Kontrol integrated (NKS-ready). Don’t forget to do a bath re-save in Kontakt to reach shortest load times.

Sound

Rhythmic Textures includes strings that are moving, expressive, this new release is different from the Intimate Textures Novo Pack 1 (see our Review here)

Rhythmic Textures delivers 16 truly unique ensemble articulations, From cellos layering sul pont tremolos over swells, to violin staccatos played over col legno tapping:

• Violins
  16 Articulations: Tremolo Pushes, Bow Drops, Tremolo Swells, Sul Pont Waves, Pulse Waves, Sliders, Tremolo Waves, Rhythm Soup, Pedal Waves, Pedal Swells, Tremolo Pulses, Tense Pulses, Off Echoes, Off Accent, Col Legno Brushes, Raindrops
• Violas
  16 Articulations: Tremolo Pushes, Bow Drops, Tremolo Swells, Sul Pont Waves, Pulse Waves, Sliders, Tremolo Waves, Rhythm Soup, Pedal Waves, Pedal Swells, Tremolo Pulses, Tense Pulses, Off Echoes, Off Accent, Col Legno Brushes, Raindrops
• Celli
  16 Articulations: Tremolo Pushes, Bow Drops, Tremolo Swells, Sul Pont Waves, Pulse Waves, Sliders, Tremolo Waves, Rhythm Soup, Pedal Waves, Pedal Swells, Tremolo Pulses, Tense Pulses, Off Echoes, Off Accent, Col Legno Brushes, Raindrops

It was recorded in Reservoir Studios, NY by Engineer Satoshi Noguchi, performed in three and four-person violin, viola, and cello ensembles. Mixed by Ari Winters, Neil Goldberg, and Dave Fraser.

Violin played by Guillaume Pirard, Laura Lutzke, Sarah Parkington, Leonor Falcón. Viola played by Colin Brookes, Sarah Parkington, Leonor Falcón, Miranda Sielaff, Dominic Destefano, and Cello performed by Andrea Lee, Jeffrey Zeigler, Lydia Parkington.

RHYTHMIC TEXTURES covers 6 common string instruments:

• I Violins – Detache Textures
• I Violins – Sustained Textures
• II Violas – Detache Textures
• II Violas – Sustained Textures
• III Celli – Detache Textures
• III Celli – Sustained Textures

Through the NOVO-Engine you create rhythmic patches, more synthetic sounding strings, and novel musical beats and underscore.

Like the other NOVO products, this is not a traditional string library. It is an addition to your main string instruments. Traditional string libraries focus on realistic performance and a natural sound sometimes recorded in special locations. Heavyocity with Rhythmic Texture Designer focuses on sound design and sonic creativity. I spend the most time in the Rhythmic Texture Designer amazed on what I could create in this module.

User interface & Usability

The used NOVO engine comes with additional sound-shaping features that are also key to the other NOVO releases and has made the whole series such a success. The UI was designed by Alex Zhukov, Dave Fraser, and Ari Winters.  Overall the ease of use factor of the library is generated through one of the many included tools and settings in a usable UI.

Rating:  Five out of five stars

NOVO PACK 02 – Rhythmic Textures and the other NOVO release are a great starting point when you work on your next cinematic score. Rhythmic Textures is perfect for composing to picture, games, and television and could be easily one of your best investments you make.