Samplebase has announced the release of two new SoundBlocks for Satellite, Samplebase's free sample-synth player.

Gloria – Cathedral Organs [$39]

Gloria – Cathedral Organs by Stratus Sound+Vision features a broad collection of Pipe Organ sounds from three different locations, including a classic large stone and stucco cathedral, and a smaller wooden church. The largest of the three is a massive instrument that is built into the side of a mountain overlooking San Francisco Bay.

Rather than recording each organ rank (groups of pipes) separately, producer Jim Miller recorded several carefully chosen combinations of "stops." The result is an authentic and wide-ranging variety of commonly used organ sounds perfect for sacred, historical, and theatrical music, or for wherever one's creative currents flow.

Gloria was programmed exclusively for Satellite. Each combination of stops is offered separately on individual multis in Satellite, and there are also "virtual manual" multis, where each of three MIDI channels has different combinations that can be played with different controllers, or in a multi-track sequencing environment. An assortment of pedal tones is also included. Users can easily adjust the ambiance in Gloria by moving the mod wheel, or remove Satellite's ambiance completely and use a convolution reverb.

Organs include: Faith Presbyterian Organ in Tallahassee, Florida (a church pipe organ in a medium-sized acoustic setting); Queen of Peace Catholic Church Organ in Ocala, Florida (a large stone-stucco cathedral acoustic setting in one of Florida's biggest churches); Littlefield Organ in the San Francisco Bay area (the largest organ with 32' pedal tones in a grand acoustic setting).

Scarlatti Harpsichords [$39]

Scarlatti Harpsichords by Stratus Sound+Vision features two sampled harpsichords, custom built by skilled craftsmen. The first harpsichord, built by John Germer, was designed after instruments used by the famous composer and performer Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757), and is therefore considered to be of Italian design. It was sampled with a double set of 8 foot strings, then with a set of 4 foot strings added. The second harpsichord was designed and built in the Flemish style by William Dowd, and is slightly quieter, warmer and with a "woodier" tone. It has two keyboards (manuals), the uppermost with a single set of 8 foot strings, while the lower manual has a set of 8 foot and 4 foot strings.

All of the patches in Scarlatti Harpsichords feature release samples of the quills falling into place on each string, contributing to the realism of the harpsichord's unique sound. The variety of tones available in this SoundBlock affords opportunities for creating authentic period music, theatrical and film scores, and adventurous pop and rock.

Scarlatti Harpsichords was produced by Jim Miller and was recorded and programmed for Satellite to meet the exacting demands of professional musicians.