Rating: 4.5 Stars
Performed by vocalists with “influences ranging from folk, pop and indie [and] classically tuned voices”, Westwood Instruments’ Alt Choir provides a collection of sounds perfect for human, intimate and tense vocal writing.
The 16 vocalists were recorded in separate SATB sections, which are presented in individual patches alongside an ensemble patch. From the first note, the recording and performance quality is evident. The tone is quiet and pure, with emotional movement, even on the conventional sustain sounds. You can hear the individual singers, but they are blended really nicely. The Episodes (more on this later), Improv, Sustains and Chatters patches are just teaming with inspiration. You could hold a chord for days with these evolving sounds, and still be engaged. The two flavours of legato — standard and Improv (a really fun alternative with more movement in the sustain samples) — sound beautifully smooth and realistic.
Episodes is very cool, providing certain keys with performances which move between notes, depending on the key signature you choose. So if you select G major, for example, G, B and D will trigger ‘moving’ samples while the rest of the keys will trigger one note. It would be great to have some sort of key detection or key combination input option for this sound but still, this is very cool.
Short ‘ahs’ and ‘ohs’ are also on offer, as are some gorgeous tempo sync’ed swells over ‘ah’, ‘mm’ and ‘oh’ vocalisations. Some round robins on the shorts are a bit pitchy but this could actually aid realism. Each section also comes with a collection of body and vocal percussion, which sounds excellent.
The moving fifths, thirds and seconds articulations are sublime — inspiring performances that move between notes.
Additional articulations appear in some of the patches. Within these, highlights include the pitched whispers, which are a sort of ‘sussh’ sound that exude indie film score. The moving fifths, thirds and seconds articulations are sublime — inspiring performances that move between notes, and the basses singing in fifths is a great addition.
The close mic gives an even more intimate sound than the provided mix, and as The Nave studio doesn’t boast a huge wash of reverb, the room and gallery mics still provide a tight sound which can be augmented with the onboard reverb.
The textures patch for the most part provides subtle synth sounds that match the aesthetic of the main patches, and in some of the sounds you can hear the original recordings poking out, which is nice.
This 20.9GB library runs in the free Kontakt Player version 6.6.1 or higher, and Westwood’s familiar interface provides a great array of options for control including legato speed, keyswitch options, effects and more.
Westwood Instruments have been on a roll, producing great‑sounding, interesting alternative instruments. Alt Choir is no exception and provides great value at its price.