9 Soundware Releases Air EXS24 Instrument

Air by 9 Soundware is an instrument in EXS24 format. The concept behind the sound set was to use sounds generated by air to create a transparent-sounding percussive instrument. Functionally similar to a hi-hat, the instrument was designed to add rhythmic movement to arrangements, but in a subtler manner. The samples are of quick blasts of air created with a gas duster, a flyswatter, and a clothesline. The wind sounds, which are delicate and difficult to control, were painstakingly recorded, edited, and programmed into an EXS24 instrument with a high level of sonic detail. While minimalist in approach, the sound set features a wide range of timbres, with many variations on simple bursts to complex sounds that capture the motion of the objects. Air includes 84 sounds (sampled at 2-21 velocities for a total of 402 samples) that are mapped across a 7 octave range in an EXS24 instrument. The 28 MB download includes 1 .EXS file and 402 WAV files (24-bit/44.1 kHz). Air is available online now for $29.99.