Native Instruments releases "Discovery Series – Cuba" and "Abbey Road 50s Drummer" Kontakt instruments

Native Instruments has released Discovery Series – Cuba, the latest installment of their Discovery Series – the range of Kontakt Instruments based around specific musically vibrant locations. They also recently released Abbey Road 50s Drummer, a Kontakt instrument featuring the sound of two classic drum kits from the 1950s.

Discovery Series – Cuba celebrates the sounds of the master musicians of Havana – rich, varied, and joyful music that encompasses the melodic and rhythmic traits of son, rumba, salsa and merengue. Kontakt users can now add the special flavor of Cuba to almost any production style – from house and techno to pop, indie, and world styles.

Discovery Series – Cuba delivers a host of meticulously-sampled instruments arranged into melodic and percussive ensembles. Its eight melodic and nine percussive ensembles are organized into authentic instrument combinations, expertly compiled to reflect the varied styles of Cuba's musical landscape – suitable for traditional projects as well as contemporary pop and dance productions.

Cuba offers a library of rhythmic patterns and harmonic progressions – all easily tweakable to fit specific productions using the powerful, built-in sequencer. A more human feel can be applied via the Groove and Feel knobs. Users can also adjust microtiming at the instrument level for an added level of rhythmic nuance. The Intensity knob adjusts the overall velocity of the performance, and 6/8 or 4/4 timings can be selected depending on the production style.

Also included is a mixer section featuring studio quality effects, including Solid EQ, convolution reverb, tape saturation and compression.

Discovery Series – Cuba is available now for $99 / 99 € / 9800 YEN at the NI Online Shop.

Abbey Road 50s Drummer features the sound of two classic drum kits from the 1950s. The kits provide the distinctive drum sound of the era, which was necessary to compete with the electrified instruments gaining popularity at the time. Recorded with both state-of-the-art and period equipment at Abbey Road Studios in London, 50s Drummer also includes a groove library, mixer presets, and a new set of brush articulations, delivering the authentic feel of rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country, and jazz from the 1950s.

Abbey Road 50s Drummer features rare instruments from the very earliest years of popular music. The first kit is an early 1950s Gretsch Cadillac Green Nitron with a 20" bass drum, 12" rack tom and 14" floor tom. Its toms are tuned low, providing a smooth, open sound that still allows excellent placement in a mix full of amplified instruments. The second drum kit is a late-1950s WFL kit. The WFL provides 20" kick drum, 12" and 13" rack toms, and a 16" floor tom. The WFL kit's toms are tuned high, offering a brighter tone that perfectly complements the Gretsch. Each kit features three different snare drums from the same period, offering a wide tonal variety and added degree of customization. The kits are outfitted with a selection of 1950s Zildjian A and K cymbals to round out their authentic vintage tone.

50s Drummer was recorded at London's Abbey Road Studios in the legendary Studio Two. Alongside traditional microphone techniques, vintage RCA 44-BX and AKG D12 microphones, a REDD.17 valve mixing console and valve tape machine were used for 50s Drummer's vintage channels. Users can dial in these 'vintage channels alongside the modern state-of-the-art equipment for a seamless tone spectrum, ranging from completely modern to period-accurate vintage and anywhere in between.

New brush articulations were also recorded especially for 50s Drummer to reflect the playing techniques of the decade. Its extensive groove library encompasses early rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country, and jazz, as well as a wealth of contemporary rhythms, affording users an effortless way to begin sketching out complete drum recordings. Regardless of genre, producers looking to add original 50s flavor to their productions will relish the recording quality, ease of use, and attention to detail in Abbey Road 50s Drummer.

Abbey Road 50s Drummer is available at the NI Online Shop for $99 / 99 EUR / 9800 YEN.