WAR OF THE WORLDS
An infamous radio broadcast presented back in 1938 illustrated the immense power of
imagination and sound. The lines between reality and theatre were so blurred that audiences
believed that an invasion was occurring. Today with the curtain pulled back we have a much
better understanding of fantasy and reality; or do we?
As creators for music, film, video games, etc., we have opportunities not possible even a few
years ago. Through the advancement in areas of computers and music production, we have a
virtually limitless palette of sonic possibilities to bring a composer’s dreams and even their
worst nightmares into reality.
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Today we will take a look at one such resource; Morphestra 2 produced by Sample Logic.
Morphestra 2 is designed to work with the full version of Native Instruments KONTAKT which
has become the industry standard when it comes to sample library creation and performance.
Morphestra 2 brings together a staggering amount of content featuring over 1,100 sound
sources, 635 sound cores, 3,300 instruments in the 26GB library.
DIY NO MORE
When you first start to browse through the immense amount of content you experience right
away sounds that would be impossible to achieve on your own. The majority of composers do
not have access to full studio facilities, equipment and instruments necessary to get these
intriguing sounds, Sample Logic has done the heavy lifting for you.
The content for Morphestra 2 is derived from vintage synths, software, processed samples of
real-world instruments. I can only envision stacks of keyboards, racks of modular synths and
effects, combined to create a virtual sonic laboratory inside of Morphestra 2.
OTHER WORLDS UNDER YOUR CONTROL
Having so much material in one library might sound a little intimidating but when all of the
power is contained in one instrument it makes getting started a thing of beauty.
Journey Of Discovery
The first thing with a massive instrument like this is to get to know the library itself; this means
going through each instrument preset and writing down what particular sounds speak to you
and your current project.
Morphestra 2 provides some basic sound and instrument categories to start from but allows
you to jump off from them to create custom presets for recall later.
Finding The Source
Each “sound core” in Morphestra 2 can have up to two different sound sources. From there
you can use various effects and controls to bring the sound to life. You can select from the over
3300 instruments included. Each core features controls for dynamics, effects, animation and
modulation routing. Just having one available is powerful but we are just getting started.
Core Times Four
The real power of Morphestra 2 comes when you combine up to four of the sound cores. The
potential here takes things into an entirely different level as not only can each core be edited
but the four cores together can be treated as one massive sound performance engine.
Remember that each single sound core can have up to two sources so combining all four you
have up to 8 different sound sources at your disposal.
Traveling To New Dimensions
Morphestra 2 features a groundbreaking X/Y zone mixer that allows you to control the 4
different sound core zones. This gives you amazing control over how Morphestra 2 performs
dynamically.
Animating The Imagination
When you think you have seen everything Morphestra 2 has to offer you then discover the Step
Animator/Arpeggiator; this takes thing further down the inevitable “black hole”.
What the animation features allow you to create are virtual musical arrangements and ideas
within themselves. You will find that some of the presets you can choose from will spark new
and fresh musical ideas that you can build on as you are searching for the perfect match for
the sonic worlds you are building.
Approaching infinity
So here we are looking at all of the creative possibilities and then Morphestra 2 surprises us
with possibly one of the most amazing features yet; randomization!
Morphestra 2 has given the musician the ability to roll the dice so to speak and create new and
random sounds. Each time you select the Random button you are presented with brand new,
most likely never before heard sound settings. Most of Morphestra 2’s parameters can be
“armed” to be included in the randomization process so this gives you flexibility over the exact
parameters you may not want to be randomized in this process. The combinations are
staggering.
The beauty of having this random feature is that the hope is you might stumble upon a happy
accident of sorts and create something that fits just right. Another powerful way to use the
random feature is to spark new ways of thinking outside of the box. We all tend to fall back on
habits and routines when composing or working with sound design and the random feature is
just a very useful way to shake us up at times.
SO WHAT WILL YOUR NEXT WORLD SOUND LIKE?
There is so much we see and hear in the theatre of our minds. Having tools like Morphestra 2
allow us to bring the sounds only heard by us in our imaginations into the real world.
All I ask is that you let me know we are listening to your latest release and not panic over
another invasion from Mars.
Morphestra 2 is available now from Sample Logic.
