Great staccato strings and ostinatos are essential in modern cinematic and orchestral music for film, TV, video game soundtracks etc. They provide the energy, pulse, rhythm and drive.
But if your string sample library has a lot of short note variations, you can do so much more. Runs, riffs and even short note motifs! =)
Which are the best orchestral sample libraries for short strings? Here are my favorites:
1. Berlin Strings
With Berlin Strings you get a huge range of articulations to compose your short strings parts with, including what they call “blurred” articulations which you can mix in for more realistic slurred note transitions in faster passages.
2. Cinematic Studio Strings
What I mainly love about Cinematic Studio Strings is the ability to play your short strings parts live using the MOD-wheel. And it has 4 variations, from the shortest spiccato to bold sforzandos. Not only that, but the layout is shared with their brass and woodwind libraries, which as a composer is amazing. Because this means you can often copy and paste parts between instruments, and it will work straight away without having to re-program key switches.
3. BBC Symphony Orchestra
This library includes the entire fundamental orchestra, so not only strings. However the strings sound very good, and the mix is not too wet which makes it nice for short strings with focus and bite. If you get the Pro version you can even create your own mixes with various microphones.
4. Afflatus Strings
This string library simply sound amazing, and is still among my top 3 string libraries ever made, simply because the sound and tone of it. It does not have that many short note variations, but wow does the short notes have bite. Very good for short note parts that you want to be heard and felt in the mix.
5. NOVO – Modern Strings
NOVO has a very hybrid processed sound, and this work best for short strings in more “epic” style music in my opinion. It does not feature many short note variations, but the low ensemble have spiccato and marcato, both of which are extremely powerful. All in all, NOVO is great for very bold short string parts in your music.