Javelin Strings
Volume 1

The “short” version

Javelin Strings: Volume 1 is a flagship sample library dedicated solely to “short” notes.

We sampled each articulation in more than one context, including static, phrase-based (aka repetition samples), re-bowed, distinct up and down bows, and with specific tempos and energy levels so that the samples can adapt to the speed and context of your music more naturally.

We aimed to capture every useful note length and articulation, from a single bounce of a ricochet, right up to short expressive sustains, and everything in between. The depth of sampling surpasses the current industry standard, for which we hope to set a new benchmark.

In addition to what will be the most comprehensive selection of ‘standard’ shorts, are a number of performative articulations, typically impossible to recreate convincingly with traditional samples. Mordents, falls, scoops, slurs, trill and tremolo bursts, all bring energy and lesser-explored colours to your work, with a particular usefulness for action and faster-paced music.

Some quick stats :

  • 7 lengths of standard shorts recorded
  • 12 "performative" articulations
  • Repetition, non-repetition, and bow-change samples
  • Up and Down bow directions where applicable
  • 5 context-sourced styles of spiccato

The backstory

As media composers, our writing process often begins and ends in the DAW, regardless of whether it will be recorded by live musicians or not. The capabilities and options within our sample libraries influence our musical output – we write only what our tools are capable of satisfactorily producing.

The issue, is that when the sample libraries available to us are modelled from the same set of standards, there is the risk of contributing to a “sameness” and lack of musical diversity within the combined output from the industry.

We all know what “sustains” and “staccatos” sound like, and will write our music accordingly. But what if musicians (and thus music) were capable of more? Spoiler – they sure as heck are!

This brings us to the first primary objective of Javelin Strings:

Encourage and increase diversity of composition by making more advanced articulation options accessible and intuitive to use

One weakness in sample-based productions is that they lack the musicality and “humanity” of subtle variation within a phrase. I’m not talking about timing or pitch – it’s about the nuance of how a note is articulated by a performer within a musical context. To put it another way; a “staccato” in one piece of music is not performed the same as a “staccato” in another. But when our sample libraries only offer one staccato, there are very limited opportunities for sculpting a phrase in a natural way for every musical context.

We have approached sampling and virtual instrument building to offer this natural variation, both automatically and manually, to not only enhance the sonic quality of phrasing and performance in your productions, but to also encourage exploration of phrase-building that will result in more colorful and engaging compositions.

Thus, our second primary objective:

Raise the bar in musicality (and "realism") in sample-based productions

Things are getting a bit wordy, so here’s a few more quick-fire principles Javelin Audio is guided by:

  • Set the standard – If it doesn’t bring anything new, don’t bother.
  • The functionality loved by power-users, made usable for everyone
  • Push the industry forward, not downward
  • Be an asset to the composer community

Javelin Audio has ambitious ideas for sample libraries, especially when it comes to orchestral strings. As a brand new independent developer, our resources are limited, so in order to achieve the depth and quality of sampling we strive for, it is necessary to split up our overall goal into a modular approach. While we could have settled for ‘just another string library’, that would go completely against our reasons for pursuing this.

We are not splitting volumes by section. Instead, Javelin Strings: Volume 1 will be the ultimate library of short articulations.

I know, I know… that’s a big call! But here’s why I believe it’s appropriate…

Overall, Javelin Strings was approached with depth and versatility in mind – from the section sizes to the microphone positions, the articulation choices to the instrument programming – this pony knows a lot of tricks!

We’ve covered all the shorts you’d expect from a strings library, but we’ve gone a step further and recorded several variations of each, allowing each articulation to adapt to the context of your music.

We’ve also captured several extended articulations that are not typically included in a library, but are used frequently in composition, both from the concert music realm and the film music world.

Javelin Strings was recorded at Trackdown, on the Simon Leadley Scoring Stage. This is Australia’s largest and most in-demand scoring stage for orchestral film and video game scores. In recent years, Trackdown’s recording credits have included:

Three Thousand Years of Longing (Junkie XL), World of Warcraft: Shadowlands (Blizzard), Mortal Kombat (Benjamin Wallfisch), Mad Max – Fury Road (Junkie XL), Happy Feet 2 (John Powell), Peter Rabbit 2 (Dominic Lewis), Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (Mark Mothersbaugh), The Lego Batman Movie (Lorne Balfe), Star Wars: Visions (Kevin Penkin), Marvel Studio’s ECHO (Dave Porter), Marvel Studio’s “What if…?” (Laura Karpman, Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum), Diablo IV (Blizzard)… need I go on?

Javelin Strings was engineered by Craig Beckett, Trackdown’s in-house engineer, and a key component to the sound of all the projects listed above. There is nobody more qualified than Craig when it comes to getting the best sound out of Trackdown’s space and the equipment within.

The engineering decisions including microphone positions, placement/heights, microphone choice, player seating positions, ensemble sizes, and even down to how many empty chairs were left in the room during recording, all result in an impressively “expensive” yet controlled sound, that will make mixing a breeze – not only when used by itself, but especially in a mix with other sample libraries or professional recordings.

We have every intention to record and offer our take on longs and legatos, once Volume 1 has been released. It will then be available as a separate volume, with an option to bundle with volume 1 for new customers.

MORE DETAILS TO FOLLOW SOON . . .