Electroacoustic reflections
Exploring the concept of sonic reflections and refractions, MIRRORS is the harmonious marriage of analog synthesis and acoustic orchestral performance. A collaboration with celebrated instrument creators SLATE + ASH, MIRRORS sends synthesized source material through an aural looking glass of orchestral ensembles, unearthing the symmetries of electroacoustic expression.
MIRRORS blurs the boundaries between experimental synthesis and expansive orchestration.
Highlights
45 pairs of synth and orchestral sounds
Bespoke engine and interface
97 sound design presets, 232 Kontakt snapshots
Evolving pads, long notes, and textures
Three mixable mic positions with bleed control
Source synth material made by SLATE + ASH
Orchestral ensembles and synthesized source material sampled in Teldex
Synthesis meets orchestral grandeur
MIRRORS explores both experimental analog synthesis and traditional orchestral sampling. The collection originated from synthesized source material from our Bristol-based collaborators—glitched textures, fractured oscillations, and hyper-processed ambiances. Together, we then put these sounds through a prism of orchestral performance, recording their precisely orchestrated mirror images, all with unwavering attention to the minutest details.
As an object approaches a mirror, it becomes harder to tell where it ends and its reflection begins. Likewise in MIRRORS, synthesized sounds give way seamlessly to orchestral performances, resulting in a set of tools tailor-made for sparking your creativity, creating atmospheres, or setting scenes.
Sounds made to be reorchestrated
SLATE + ASH created the source material for MIRRORS under the guiding principle of making sounds that evoke a distinctly acoustic feel. With their labyrinth of patch cables, modular devices, and analog synths, they tapped into more organic soundworlds, sculpting breath-like fluttering, microtonal harmonics, and warm tones that evolve over time.
Hugh Brunt of the London Contemporary Orchestra then re-orchestrated these sounds for live performance, capturing all the minutae—every texture, swell, and flutter, and even the synthetic idiosyncracy of pitch stretching. This called for traditional strings, brass, and woodwinds, but also out-of-the-box instrumentation like verrophone, bowed crotales, or even rustling plastic bags. With Brunt conducting, and additional aesthetic guidance of composer-producer Yair Elazar Glotman, we recorded the orchestral ensembles at Teldex Studios in Berlin with our typical attention to detail and fidelity.
Notable collaborators
Hugh Brunt
Hugh Brunt, who re-orchestrated and conducted our recording session, is the co-founder of the London Contemporary Orchestra and has done arrangements for household names like Radiohead, Beck, and Imogen Heap. As a conductor, he’s worked on films such as The Master, The Matrix Resurrections, The Whale, and many more.
Yair Elazar Glotman
Yair Elazar Glotman is a Berlin-based composer and musician who wrote and produced the score for Reptile. In addition to his own music, he’s played contrabass or provided additional music for critically acclaimed films including Joker, All’s Quiet on the Western Front, and Mandy. For MIRRORS, he produced and guided the recording sessions.
About SLATE + ASH
In the world of experimental sound design, few sample instrument creators have the same cachet as the Bristol-based studio, SLATE + ASH. Their focus on the creative processing of acoustic and electronic source material makes them the perfect match for a collaboration with us—complementing, augmenting, and mirroring our explorative spirit and commitment to quality.
Recorded at Teldex
In addition to recording the orchestral ensembles for MIRRORS at the storied Teldex Scoring Stage in Berlin, we amplified the source material on the scoring stage, recording it from the same microphone perspectives. This means, not only are the images and reflections in MIRRORS remarkably cohesive, they are also easy to blend with other Orchestral Tools collections.
Scoring Tools
Mirrors
Electroacoustic reflections
Teldex Scoring Stage, Berlin
Software
Kontakt 7.10.7 or higher
Works with free Kontakt Player or full version
System requirements
macOS 13, 14, or 15 (latest update), Intel Core i5 or highger CPU; compatible with Apple Silicon
Windows 10 and 11 (latest Service Pack)
Graphics card with support for Direct 3D 11.1 (Feature Level 11_0) or higher
Supports ASIO, Core Audio, and WASAPI
Size
33 GB of samples (20.4 GB compressed)
24Bit/48KHz patches