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Table of Contents
(Click on an Item to Go to Page)
Free Piano VSTs ............................................................................................................ 1
Ivy Audio: Piano in 162 (Win/Mac) .................................................................................... 1
Tascam: CVPiano (Win) ....................................................................................................... 2
Yohng: 4Front R-Piano (Win/Mac) ..................................................................................... 2
Safwan Matni: Jazz Baby (Win) .......................................................................................... 2
Frozen Plain: Victorian Music Box (Win/Mac) ................................................................... 3
Free Orchestral VSTs ................................................................................................... 3
Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra (Win/Mac) ....................................................................... 3
Blakus: pocketBlakus: Solo Cello (Win/Mac) .................................................................... 3
DSK Overture (Win) ............................................................................................................. 4
Samsara Cycle Audio: Ocarina (Win)................................................................................. 4
DSK Brass (Win) ................................................................................................................... 4
Free Drum / Percussion VSTs ................................................................................... 5
Subaqueous Music: Free Taiko Drum Rack ...................................................................... 5
Samsara Cycle Audio: Kettle Drum (Win) ......................................................................... 5
Mildon: Otobongo (Win) ...................................................................................................... 6
Samsara Cycle Audio: Tabla (Win) .................................................................................... 6
Free Guitar VSTs ........................................................................................................... 6
Ample Sound: AGM Lite II (Win/Mac) ............................................................................... 6
DSK Guitars Acoustic (Win) ................................................................................................. 7
Free Vocal / Choir VSTs .............................................................................................. 7
Ivy Audio: Clare Solo (Win/Mac) ........................................................................................ 7
DSK ChoirZ (Win).................................................................................................................. 7
Tronsonic: The Expressive Tron (Win/Mac) ..................................................................... 8
Free Ethnic VSTs ........................................................................................................... 8
DSK Asian DreamZ (Win) .................................................................................................... 8
DSK World StringZ (Win) ..................................................................................................... 8
DSK Indian DreamZ (Win)................................................................................................... 9
Free Ambient, Sound Effects, and Sci-Fi VSTs ...................................................... 9
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Xoxos: Sounds Of Nature (Win) ......................................................................................... 9
DSK: Ethereal PadZ 2 and Darkness Theory 3 (Win) ..................................................... 9
HG Fortune: Altair 4 (Win) ................................................................................................ 10
Sasje: Dark Drones (Win/Mac) ......................................................................................... 10
Free VST Sites ............................................................................................................. 10
About the Author .................................................................................................................... 11
About Midi Film Scoring ......................................................................................................... 11
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Every composer has had to devote several hours over the course of many years tolearning about composing music. Each VST instrument or tool we use for composinghas its own learning curve, and once we pass the time it takes to learn a program, wecan creatively and freely compose music.
More often, what takes longer than learning how to use a new program is finding thatprogram in the first place. The Internet is filled with a huge variety of audio loops aswell as top-quality VST plugins – many of which are free – but out of those, less arehigh quality and worth the time to learn to use.
This resource will help decrease the time it takes to find the best free VST instruments,allowing for more time to learn each one and begin composing music with it. These
VSTs are what I call the essentials: a basis of instruments to get in your collection,learn to use well, and then eventually build off of.
Free Piano VSTsOut of all other instruments, piano is one of the most necessary when composing forcinematic styles of music. It's easy to leave out much of the dynamics when making asynth version of a piano. As a result, high-quality sampled piano VSTs are often veryexpensive. Here are a few of my favorite free piano VSTs and a few other useful piano-style VSTs.
Ivy Audio: Piano in 162 (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
Piano in 162 is possibly the best free piano VST and arguably better than a lot ofexpensive VSTs as well. It's a sample library of a Steinway grand piano that brings alarge, epic feel that is difficult to simulate.
It's available for Kontakt, and if you don't use Kontakt, they also have SFZ format todownload as well. I used this one in Kontakt and I really like the simple user interface.
Adjusting the close and the ambient meters can give you a lot of variety in the VSTbefore even using any external effects. For my classical-style piano album, "Passing Of
A Day," I experimented with a number of piano plugins and layered effects overtop to
simulate a live performance, and this free VST held its own against an expensive pluginI had purchased.
Piano in 162 is ideal for composers who need anything from a faint piano melodybehind an eerie synth or a full soundtrack centered around a full real-sounding pianoitself; this VST can do it all. The only caution is that it is over 5 GB of space. It'sdefinitely worth the space and a great deal to get, but if you don't have that kind ofspace available, then the next VST by Tascam is for you!
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Tascam: CVPiano (Win)
Free VST Download
This one has some awesome benefits as well that make it one of the best free piano
VSTs. It's based on a 7'4" KAWAI grand piano, which I will always choose over a synthor upright piano.
Compared with many high-end piano plugins, the major bonus with the way Tascamcreated this one is that it uses significantly less CPU and memory. In orchestralcomposing, CPU becomes more and more of a concern, and Tascam used a methodthat allowed enormous versatility to the dynamic expression you can get from thepiano.
This piano has all the workings for any sounding piano needed. Just adjust the micpositions and reverb for either an upfront classical-style soundtrack, or distant andmore reverb for an epic and suspenseful song.
Yohng: 4Front R-Piano (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
This is another piano VST that's even easier on space than the Tascam. The userinterface is extremely simple, and the sound of the piano could be used for a variety ofvideo game soundtrack styles. It would especially work well with retro or vintage videogames.
The major difference with this piano is that it isn't based off a real piano – it's designedto imitate a specific keyboard, and it has a vintage overdrive on top of the sound. Therearen't really any customization options, but for the little space it takes up, it achieves itspurpose as a simple straightforward keyboard VST.
Safwan Matni: Jazz Baby (Win)
Free VST Download
As composers, at times we may run into a situation where we need to quickly compose
music for a restaurant or a specific decade. Jazz is a much-needed genre that can beforgotten about, so it's always good to be prepared with a decent jazz piano VST.
Jazz Baby is another very small and simple VST. It wasn't designed to be a multigenre,versatile piano; it's purely for the purpose of expressing an aged feeling in an old casinoor bar. It also works well in a western setting.
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Frozen Plain: Victorian Music Box (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
This is a VST that I have personally used many times in several genre styles. A music
box can be used in place of a piano in a soundtrack; in the background it can sound likea distorted piano. Or, in a more literal aspect, it can be used for the sound that iscoming out of a music box in a movie or game.
The reason this specific music box is my favorite is that it is very genuine sounding; Iwouldn't be able to tell that it wasn't a real music box. Also, with all of thecustomizations in the VST, you get more than just a music box: It can become anambient synth and many other interesting sounds depending on how you use it.
Free Orchestral VSTs
Depending on the type of soundtrack you're working on, orchestral instruments can beeven more important than a piano. In my experience, they're the hardest VSTs to findfree and good quality.
Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
One of the most amazing things for a soundtrack composer starting out is to be able tohave a complete orchestra. When I first started composing orchestral music with MIDI,
I was privileged to find this orchestra. No matter what soundtrack you're making – whether an indie film or a futuristic video game – this orchestra has something that youcan use. It contains several strings, brass, woodwinds, grand piano, chorus, and a lot ofpercussion.
This VST is the best free resource I have. It sets you up with the essentials of anorchestra, and from there you can use other VSTs to add to it. The format is SFZ, whichcan be used in a sampler, or you can use the free SFZ players that are readily available.I thought the quality was excellent; I loaded them into Kontakt and began using thestring section immediately to expand my piano soundtracks into full orchestras.
Blakus: pocketBlakus: Solo Cello (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
The previous Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra contains all the string sections; however,when using a solo instrument as a focus in a soundtrack, especially a romantic or ahistorical period drama, the higher the quality the better. The wonderful thing about
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this VST is that it has such clean and real-sounding vibrato and movement – anawesome addition to your orchestra.
DSK Overture (Win)
Free VST Download
The difference is very great between synths that are designed to sound like stringinstruments and VSTs that are actual recorded instruments. DSK Overture, however,really brings an impressive synth to the table of orchestral instruments. This VST worksreally well with fantasy adventure video game soundtracks that are orchestra-based yetdon't have quite a "real" sound.
The user interface is very cool and it has 4 layers for you to toggle the instruments andhow each is playing. The built-in effects sound very high-end, and it contains 40different orchestral instruments that you can mix and mold to your liking.
Samsara Cycle Audio: Ocarina (Win)
Free VST Download
In fantasy adventure movies and games alike, the ocarina often has a presence. Theocarina even became the focal point of one of the best-selling adventure games inhistory – all the more reason to have a go-to good-sounding ocarina at your fingertips!This ocarina has 8 different presets and loads of knobs for customizing. It's the perfectall-in-one ocarina VST.
DSK Brass (Win)
Free VST Download
As I mentioned before, jazz can be a genre that we forget to prepare for composing. Togo along with the jazz-style piano I recommended, this is a brass VST that is specificallydesigned to imitate a small jazz group. With plenty of customization options, DSK Brasshas two instruments contained in each VST that can be swapped out (saxophone,trumpet, etc.) and – just like all DSK VSTs – they have great-sounding effects built in.
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Free Drum / Percussion VSTs
In addition to the awesome percussion that comes in Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra,here are a few other free drum VSTs that are important to have in your collection.Sometimes the key to having an epic drum section powering through a heavy rhythm isto have multiple layers of different drums playing together.
Subaqueous Music: Free Taiko Drum Rack
Free VST Download
Not only are taiko drums a requirement for nearly all epic movie and game themes, butthis VST even more so. It's a free pack that Subaqueous made available for any DAW;for Ableton users he made an Ableton pack as well as SFZ and one-shot samples.
These are wonderful-quality taiko drums, better than I have heard in any free taikobefore. The live pack is amazing because he layered a ton of different hits under eachhit, which gives you the ability to customize nearly endlessly, and it also gives a hugereal-sounding variety to every hit.
In my song "The Coming War," I added a low-pass filter to the lowest-sounding one sothat I had a very deep impact as the song built up. Gradually the strong, full-soundingtaiko drums come out for each downbeat mixed with some electronic percussion. This
VST is perfect for getting heavy, epic taiko drums and using them for unsettling deepimpacts.
Samsara Cycle Audio: Kettle Drum (Win)
Free VST Download
The same makers of the ocarina I recommend created Kettle Drum, which is a timpanidrum VST. It may seem that timpani is mostly needed just for typical classical music,but after listening closely to the majority of huge Hollywood movie soundtracks, timpanidrums are very regularly used. Most themes made for battle scenes have timpani inthem, so the more drums in your collection the better.
With this simple VST, you can adjust everything you would need to change on a set ofreal timpani drums: pitch, vibrato, shape, and of course, each EQ.
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Mildon: Otobongo (Win)
Free VST Download
No composer's instrument collection is complete without a set of bongos. These are
very simple, with just a volume knob and a hi-pass knob.
Bongos can be used in several genres of soundtrack music. Subtle light percussion in anepic battle theme pairing with the violins in between each heavy low hit on thedownbeat. They can also be paired nicely with guitars for a scene in the country, theWild West, or a peaceful future free from technology. This is a straightforward, great-sounding VST.
Samsara Cycle Audio: Tabla (Win)
Free VST Download
Another great addition from Samsara – percussion and drums sampled from an Indiantabla. This VST includes 16 sample selections with a very cool bend control option. It's agreat VST for immersing your listeners into another country's culture. Whether you'rescoring for a film in another country or an action game that crosses over differentborders, this VST is a great find.
Free Guitar VSTs
Guitars have been accompanying orchestras and other instruments in soundtracks for
many years. Electric guitars can help convey aggression in a war scene or a one-on-onefight. An acoustic guitar can reflect peace and serenity.
Ample Sound: AGM Lite II (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
Ample Sound has instruments for bass and electric guitar as well, but their free acousticguitar VST is excellent. It has the perfect sound for a soundtrack backing a sad drama.Even realistic strumming is attainable. The effects pedals that come with it work well foradding delay to a single pluck of a string, giving emotionality to a dark or depressingscene.
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DSK Guitars Acoustic (Win)
Free VST Download
Just like the previous guitar VST, DSK also has bass and electric guitar VSTs. But DSK
even has an acoustic nylon string and steel string for added variety depending on whatyou need from your guitar. To my taste, the Ample Sound has a more well-roundedsound for a real guitar, but DSK has a lot of different options to choose from. Also, this
VST has a sound that leans toward more of a blues or jazz feel, which could work reallywell for a romance drama.
Free Vocal / Choir VSTs
Real-sounding human voices are extremely difficult to imitate well with synths. Becauseof the cost of recording a group of professional singers, true recording vocal libraries
can be expensive. Depending on your need for vocal parts, some loops can be used inthe background of a soundtrack. Here are three VSTs that can help fill in the gap.
Ivy Audio: Clare Solo (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
Clare Solo is, as its name suggests, a solo vocal library. Instead of the sound of a fullchoir, it has a limited use for a beautiful solo female singer. Clare Solo isn’t as full a VSTas Ivy Audio’s Piano in 162, but it can work well for a simple female melodic vocal line.Even without any external effects, the voice has a very nice quality. The major
difference between this VST and the next two is that the next ones are not designed tosound like realistic voices, so keep this one on hand.
DSK ChoirZ (Win)
Free VST Download
DSK has shown that they are a great resource for composers on a budget or juststarting out. They deliver good-quality, user-friendly VSTs in a huge variety. This VST
has three layers of vocal parts and individual filters and LFOs for each, giving you the
ability to make whatever choir you need. It wouldn't work as well for a solo singer, butthe other uses are extensive.
For any sci-fi game or movie that needs some pads or synths, use this and give it anamazing organic sound. Any epic adventure soundtracks dealing with a temple, religiousplace, or ancient civilization are not complete without this type of choir addition.
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Tronsonic: The Expressive Tron (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
The Expressive Tron continues along a similar idea, except it's composed of actual
recordings of flutes, strings, cellos, and choirs and re-recorded to worn tape. Itguarantees a unique character, but not the same high quality that DSK offers.
This is a very interesting VST to have for inspiration and the variety of flute, strings,and choirs all together. It's ideal for adventure, fantasy, or sci-fi video games. It has aunique vintage user interface that makes you want to tweak the tape rolls and speeddials for more interesting expressions.
Free Ethnic VSTs
To go along with the previous tabla instrument, these are three instruments I havefound useful to help convey culture or location. They sound amazing, and all have aselection of several instruments. Despite including between 6-8 instruments in eachone, they by no means let the quality suffer. Every one of these instruments can beincluded into a full orchestra and will sound great.
DSK Asian DreamZ (Win)
Free VST Download
This is the best free collection I have found of Asian instruments, with 7 in total –
everything you need to compose for a side-scrolling adventure game with levels inChina or Japan, or to bring some oriental feelings into a young adventurer'sorchestrated theme song. It even includes an Asian percussion kit.
DSK World StringZ (Win)
Free VST Download
Where DSK's Asian DreamZ leaves off, their World StringZ pick up. Instruments includeCeltic harp, koto, dulcimer, and 5 others. These instruments fit perfectly into anysoundtrack for a game or movie with a setting of Ireland or Scotland, as well as fantasytime period movies or games involving a medieval or Renaissance timeframe.
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DSK Indian DreamZ (Win)
Free VST Download
Just like the previous two, this VST is another great find. This one focuses on the
instruments of India: sitar, sarod, and even a tabla. The veena is my favorite and worksreally well for a sad theme. All three of these VSTs have excellent pass filters andreverb that allow you to place your instrument where you want it in the virtualorchestra or to create a slightly different instrument sound altogether.
Free Ambient, Sound Effects, and Sci-Fi VSTs
In today's popular styles of soundtrack music, there are most often a lot of synthesizersand effects mixed in – even with an orchestrated song. It's a great way to make theorchestra fuller or build anticipation in a section without the strings. In a horror movie
or game, a quiet unsettling ambient effect will be evolving until the frightening impactand event. These synthesizers are easier to find free, and they are more often goodquality. Sound effects can often be used just from a .wav file and mixed into thebackground of a soundtrack to add some depth.
Xoxos: Sounds Of Nature (Win)
Free VST Download
Nature is a set of a couple of different VSTs. The one entitled Fauna produces syntheticanimal vocalizations – a very useful tool if your music needs any growls or animal
noises in the background.
The other one, Oscine, includes bird noises, rain, insect sounds, thunder, and wind.Especially being free, these are really interesting programs and complete in a settogether.
DSK: Ethereal PadZ 2 and Darkness Theory 3 (Win)
Free VST Download (Ethereal PadZ 2)
Free VST Download (Darkness Theory 3)
If you haven't figured out by now, DSK is an extremely extensive resource for newsoundtrack composers. Not only do they have several orchestral instruments for free,but they also have pads like these two that have the ability to create a lot of the reallyintriguing textured synths that are heard in so many popular soundtracks. Powerful sci-fi, suspense, or horror genres absolutely need these types of pads.
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HG Fortune: Altair 4 (Win)
Free VST Download
Altair 4 is a must-have for any suspense and horror composer. Even sci-fi and fantasy
genres could really benefit from this VST. The sounds that come out of Altair are themost synthetic and artificial you can come up with.
With 3 LFOs for your use, there are a lot of wobbling and eerie sounds you can placeinto a soundtrack or just use to create background interest.
Sasje: Dark Drones (Win/Mac)
Free VST Download
Dark Drones is one of my most recent favorite finds. I loaded it into Kontakt and wasamazed at the quality. Sasje created 42 individual drones with knobs for scream,crunch, and flanger. As you can imagine, the potential for sounds is endless when youinclude the EQ and tune knobs.
I really enjoy this one because it's really dark and heavy. Depending on the soundtrackit's used for, if it's really artificial and electronic, you can bring the scream or crunch onand have some disturbingly gritty sounds to move in and out through your soundtrack.
Just like with real instruments, the better your instrument sounds and the higher thequality of its design, usually the music will be better. But today there are so many
awesome free instruments and resources for soundtrack composers. In the right hands,combined with just the right amount of compression and reverberation, amazing movieand video game soundtracks can be made.
Free VST Sites
In addition to these instruments that I have found useful, I do use samples on occasionas well. Here are some websites that I use often and follow for instruments and samplepacks that eventually become my favorites, or at least to help flesh out a theme orsoundtrack.
Bedroom Producers Bloghttp://bedroomproducersblog.com
DSK Musichttp://www.dskmusic.com
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VST 4 FREEhttp://www.vst4free.com
About the Author:
Jordan Livingston, working under the name Audio Overpass, has a longstandingcareer in the industry. Over the course of 20 years, he has studied music theory andcomposition and has been classically instructed in piano performance, as well as self-taught on several other instruments. He has studied the instruments in each section ofan orchestra, to expertly record and master. Using that knowledge in combination withmodern programs and virtual instruments, he composes scores for video games andfilms. With his musical background and his training in orchestration and electronicmastering, he merges the boundaries between different styles and genres for uniquesoundtrack experiences.
[email protected]://audiooverpass.wordpress.com/music/https://soundcloud.com/audiooverpass
**Please note that the author is not affiliated with Midi Film Scoring apart from hiscontribution of this valuable resource. Therefore please direct all site-relatedqueries to the editor at [email protected]. Thank you!
About Midi Film Scoring:
Midi Film Scoring is a resource site for aspiring TV, film, and game composers. Wepublish film scoring tips and tutorials, news about free VST instruments and the bestsample libraries, and other useful information for composers who work primarily withvirtual instruments and MIDI sequencers.
Follow Us: Facebook Twitter Google+ YouTube
Check out our regularly updated resources for film and game composers on
www.MidiFilmScoring.com:
Quickstart Guide
New to the site? Start with this roundup of Midi Film Scoring's top resources forstudents interested in composing for film and TV or other media.
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Find Film Scoring Jobs Online
Learn how to find film scoring jobs and game audio jobs online with this guide.
Understand the different film scoring opportunities that are available.
Online Film Scoring Courses
A regularly updated guide to the best online film scoring courses, programs, andschools. Includes free courses and tutorials for film and game composers.
Best Film Scoring Books
A list of the best film scoring books and the best orchestration books. Also includesbooks on game audio and MIDI orchestration techniques.
If you're interested in partnering with Midi Film Scoring, get in touch with us today [email protected].
