The ultimate sampled harpsichord collection
A fascinating instrument with an immediately evocative sound, the harpsichord is essential for baroque music. But it can do much more than powdered wigs and petticoats—it’s also a great way to add nuance and flair to contemporary pieces.
And what’s even better than a harpsichord? Two harpsichords. The Berlin Harpsichords collection features one French- and one Italian-style instrument—both painstakingly captured at Teldex Scoring Stage. This means they blend perfectly with the rest of the Berlin Series. And importantly, with Miroire—our baroque period ensemble.
Two vintage harpsichords meticulously sampled with multiple stop combinations.
Highlights
French harpsichord with 3 stops
Italian harpsichord with 2 stops
Multiple stop combinations
Harp-stop articulation for ‘guitar-like’ tone
Percussive effect staccato articulation
Round robins for sustains and staccatos
6 blendable mic options
Recorded at A440 Hz at the Teldex Scoring Stage
About the instruments
The French harpsichord is modeled after a Henry Hemsch instrument from mid-18th century Paris, and features three stops as well as a harp stop. The various stop options give it a range of possible voices, but overall the French harpsichord has a clear, crystalline, and bell-like tone. This particular instrument was built by master craftsman Christian Fuchs in Frankfurt, Germany, in the year 2000.
The Italian harpsichord (pictured below) combines the most desirable elements from multiple Italian originals. This beautiful interpretation of the Italian style was built by Berlin’s own renowned harpsichord builder Markus Fischinger in 2013. It has two stops and a rich, dark, and full-bodied tone.
Recorded at Teldex for cross-library consistency
Berlin Harpsichords gives you 6 mic positions to work with: A choice of close and spot mics, the standard tree mics, and a surround channel for space and distance. The harpsichords were recorded at Teldex Scoring Stage using the exact same techniques and mic setup as many other Orchestral Tools collections to blend seamlessly with the Berlin Series, for example. And this cross-library consistency also makes Berlin Harpsichords the perfect complement to Miroire—our collection of baroque instruments and voices. In fact, these two collections are combined in one bundle for the ultimate baroque and renaissance toolkit.
Runs in SINE
Mic merging
Preserve your system resources: Fine-tune your mix using multiple mic positions, then merge into a single channel within the player.
Greater usability
SINE is designed to complement the compositional workflow. Create on the fly with auto keyswitch options, and easy remapping tools.
Download single instruments
Choose only the instruments and mic positions that you currently need—no need to download the entire collection at once.
Orchestral Perspectives
Berlin Harpsichords
The ultimate sampled harpsichord collection
Teldex Scoring Stage, Berlin
SINE version requirements
Works with Orchestral Tools’ SINE Player—NOTE: Latest version required!
Size
19.6 GB of samples (5.7 GB SINEarc compressed)
24Bit / 48KHz Patches
SINE system requirements
Mac: macOS 10.13 or higher | Intel Core i5 or similar | Apple M1 chipset supported | At least 8 GB RAM (16 GB+ recommended)
Windows: Windows 10 | Intel Core i5 or similar | At least 8 GB RAM (16 GB+ recommended)
Formats supported: Standalone, VST, VST3, AU, AAX
Kontakt version
Kontakt 5.8.1 full version is required to run this collection
Please note: Kontakt versions bought after Aug 22, 2023 can be upgraded to SINE for a support fee of 10% of the regular collection price