Spitfire Audio has partnered with Hans Zimmer to create a spectacular string sampling library, aptly named Hans Zimmer Strings, which will be available on 28 March.Arguably one of the greatest — certainly one of the most prolific — film composers of our time, notable for innovatively integrating electronic sounds with traditional orchestral arrangements, Hans Zimmer himself has often said, “The true magic of sampling is when you are creating something that’s impossible in reality.” ISpitfire Audio adopted Hans Zimmer’s approach to large group-sampling and has taken it to another level entirely by assembling no fewer than 344 of the greatest players in London to perform on this library and recording them at AIR Studios.

By breaking down those players into violins (grouped as 60 full, 20 right, 20 centre, 20 left, and 20 galleries), violas (20 centre and 20 wide), cellos (60 full, 20 right, 20 centre, 20 left, and 20 galleries), and basses (24 centre), the production team had the freedom and flexibility to sample them performing a large number of playing techniques.Said company co-founder and composer Christian Henson: “When you gather large string forces it is like the thread count with Egyptian cotton sheets; the higher the count, the silkier the feel,”

Added co-founder and composer Paul Thomson: “Hans Zimmer Strings offers an oceanic patina of strings and articulations. Where some techniques are often angular, here they suddenly take on a fresh beauty; try out the Col Legno Trattos, a totally unique sound.”Submits Paul Thomson: “This really will make you feel like you can create something totally new and extraordinary sounding — for example, the first experience of hearing 60 exceptional cellists playing muted as softly as possible is so memorable! Being able to realise my own musical ideas with this unusual creative toolkit is extremely inspiring.”

Hans Zimmer Strings is available as a (AAX, AU, VST2, and VST3) plug-in so that it can be used in DAWs directly.

More on Hans Zimmer:

Read our interview with production music company Bleeding Fingers about how they the score for Blue Planet II was created with Hans Zimmer.