Available for download, SONUSCORE Lyrical Cello Phrases is a virtual instrument and sample library for Native Instruments’ Kontakt. It provides the sound of a lyrical cello, and while it has a single-note legato layer, that’s not quite the point of this instrument. Instead, this instrument is built around the concept of a phrase instrument. The people at SONUSCORE enlisted cellist Mátyás Ölveti, whose dulcet tones are prominently featured in the Elder Scrolls Online MMO game. Mátyás played flowing, evocative melodies in every key, many scales, and in many modes—phrases which were impeccably recorded and organized by the developers into a layout that is easy to manipulate as you compose.

The idea is to connect all these themes into something wholly new; to that end, intuitive keyswitches have been provided to transition between themes, sections of themes, keys, and to some extent, the phrasing of these themes. While it is simple for any composer under a deadline to use this software for quick mockups, the developers of Lyrical Cello Phrases hope that you can, like a Musique Concrète composer—or hip hop producer—daisy-chain and layer phrases together to make unique expressions of your own. As such, this is a useful tool for composers working in video game and in film.

These phrases have been recorded rubato, so they do not conform to a conventional tempo. However, if you need them to line up to the grid, you can use the Speed parameter in the GUI to slow or accelerate the tempo of the phrase in real time, subtly nudging the phrase in time. This is MIDI-controllable, and you can assign it to your mod wheel or other compatible destination. 

An effects section provides a four band EQ, delay, reverb, and the ability to switch between long legato or short legato. Over 70 phrases were provided in all, spread amongst 12 themes. A full version of Native Instruments’ Kontakt version 5.6.8 or later is required to run Lyrical Cello Phrases, and the virtual instrument can operate on both Mac and Windows platforms. It will require just under 3.1GB of hard disk space.