[New release] Q&A with the creators of VALVES

Kaiwan_NI

Drop any questions you have for the makers of VALVES - a new library for brass instruments from Native Instruments.

INSTANT BRASS TEXTURES

VALVES is a KONTAKT-based instrument that lets you create warm, authentic sounds from a brass ensemble with a single note or chord. Shipped with 100 preset phrases and 72 in-effect presets, you can edit each phrase to your liking or build your own from scratch using a fully editable sequencer. If you're looking to add a French horn, Flugelhorn, Euphonium, Trombone, or Tuba, to your production, VALVES is for you.

Learn more about VALVES here.

https://youtu.be/70xVVmPeVSk

EXCLUSIVE Q&A FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS

To celebrate the launch of VALVES, e-instruments - the team behind its development - is happy to answer any questions you have about the instrument.

Whether you're curious about the creation process, wanna find out more about the features before taking the plunge, or already own it but wonder how to achieve the sounds you have in mind, drop your questions in the comment section below.

Every week, we'll pick questions for the e-instruments team to answer. This thread will be open until 10 February, 2023.

Looking forward to all your questions!

Aaron McPherson

Curious as to why the sequencer is limited to articulations - there appears to be a arpeggiator, but Kontakt Play instruments usually allow you to sequence velocities, panning, and effects, if not pitch.

Vagus

What an interesting instrument, and a great way of opening up composition. Looking forward to when you do this with a String Quartet.

The quesiton I'd have is this: With a library such as this, with the ability to create your own phrases, it does lent itself to expansions (perhaps modern, vintage, expanded time singatures etc. Is this something you'd consider, even perhaps a 'best of community' bank?

Okrasonic

Can the output of Valves be captured as MIDI notes? For example, if I have Valves loaded on Track 1 of my DAW, would I be able to route the MIDI output (through a bus, perhaps) to Track 2, which is set to record MIDI input?

I love the sounds, phrasing, arrangement, etc. of Valves, but I'd like to learn something from it. Capturing the output as MIDI (which I could work with further) would be nice.

Sorry if this is an overly basic question, but I've looked at a few overviews and haven't found anything about this capability yet.

SmokeyJoe

Why no trumpets or saxophones?

The instrument looks interesting but without these I don't really see the point.

mountain lion

Does it sound very different to session horns?

Wide Blue Sound

The walkthrough is great. Congrats on releasing such an inspiring library!

Steven L Smith

Thanks for this opportunity!

Question 1: Given that Kontakt's output routing is so flexible, why didn't this include separate output options?

NOTE: this is common with many of Komplete's Kontakt offerings and is especially disappointing with multi-instruments like this. I hope that this can be a design priority moving forward.

Question 2: Any possibility of adding a trumpet alternate for the Fluegelhorn ?

(I love the flugel but for some of the presets I heard the clarity of the trumpet overtones on top would be an asset).

Thanks for the great work on this!

cnnryng

My question is why hasn't this been added to Komplete 14 Ultimate?

Monochrome

@cnnryng Because it came out after Komplete 14's release. Newly released products do not get added retroactively.

Kaiwan_NI

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/49351#Comment_49351

Hi @SmokeyJoe thanks for your question. Here's what the e-instruments team has to say:

"Our goal was always to create a soft, mellow and warm section sound that was unique from other brass ensembles. We spoke to a lot of composers and arrangers and had a detailed look at what instruments would produce that sound best and to get the really soft, emotive sound we were after, and picked the instruments that we feel do this the best." 

So if you're looking for warm brass sound specifically, this is for you.

Kaiwan_NI

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/49936#Comment_49936

I'd say yes, given the answer from the e-instruments team above. 👆

Kaiwan_NI

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/49230#Comment_49230

Thanks @Aaron McPherson. Please find below an answer from the e-instruments team:

"The dynamics (aka velocity) of each articulation block can be set in the sequencer by clicking on a block and dragging up or down and this is key to creating the most vivid and expressive phrases. The Valves concept is to give you the realism of a human ensemble so the core sound is very much focussed around the professionally recorded articulations with the goal being a realistic sounding section, all coming from the same space sonically. Even with lots of effects turned on, the core of the sound is always five instruments playing as an ensemble.

So for us the approach for the sequencer was more of a canvas for the virtual players, rather than the approach that you might find in the case of a synth sequencer/arpeggiator. Do keep in mind though, that you could always automate these parameters in your DAW if you wanted to."

Kaiwan_NI

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/49232#Comment_49232

From the e-instruments team:

"Providing this is technically possible, we’re always keen to hear these kinds of requests from customers and will always consider anything that there is a big demand for. We will certainly bear this suggestion in mind for the future."

Thanks for the suggestion @Vagus!

F1308

Congratulations.

For the library and for its price.

Same concept, as asked by other members, should thoroughly be applied to other libraries.

BUT before doing so I invite the developers to add a little vertical bar to those already available patterns, indicating the possibility to place other patterns AFTER that bar so that they will be sounded ONLY after KEYOFF.

A little step for any library, a huge leap for orchestration, specially for the keyboardist that pretends playing all tracks simultaneously.

F1308

Next step: remove the valve section and sell the shell so as to use any instruments one might like.

Call it Active Patterns Orchestrator, for example, and just add a full orchestra to start with so as to go selecting instruments from.

Then sell other voices such as fujara, valiha, didgeridoo, duduk, etc to fullfil anybody's needs as collections compatible with it, the APO collections.

Yes, compatible with the Active Patterns Orchestrator, remember?