David Forner – Barbarian Cello 1.2.0 (KONTAKT)

Barbarian Cello is designed to convey the raw and powerful sound of the cello. This instrument has been carefully crafted to provide the most authentic and lively sound possible.

An innovator in the field of advanced bowing techniques, Barbarian Cello is inspired by the manner of performance of classical string instruments. It offers a versatile sound that fits seamlessly into a variety of musical genres.

Barbarian Cello uses the revolutionary mechanism and bowing techniques also used in the Lux Violin.

Repeat Bow Mechanism

The Barbarian Cello features a unique repeat bow mechanism, carefully designed to minimise note repetitions during long bowing sequences. This is achieved by using up to five variations of each note, completely eliminating the “machine gun effect”. In addition, the repeats are extracted from the musical phrases, which guarantees a natural and authentic sound.

Legato Mechanism

The instrument uses two types of legato transitions, automatically activated depending on the playing style, which is ideal for fast passages. Normal transitions have been meticulously recorded over an octave range up and down. Fast transitions cover the interval of a perfect fourth, allowing for flawless execution of fast ornaments and passages.

Wide Possibilities

The Barbarian Cello offers a wide range of articulations, covering the entire dynamic range from extremely soft to extremely loud sounds. Legato, harmonics, flautando, three types of swells and more are available. In addition, long notes provide both soft and hard attacks, which significantly expands the range of expressive possibilities of the instrument. Short articulations were isolated from musical phrases to achieve maximum naturalness and smooth transitions between notes. Particular attention was paid to the spiccato technique, represented by 12 variants of alternating samples and 5 dynamic layers.

User Interface

The interface offers three operating modes:

1. Key switches. Allows you to switch articulations using the red keys in the upper register of the keyboard.
2. Split keyboard mode. Allows you to divide the keyboard into two parts: for example, play sustain on the left side, and legato on the right.
3. Morph mode. Allows you to transform one articulation into another, which is especially useful, for example, for transforming flautando into harmonics or creating other combinations.

Separate patches are also available for those who prefer to work with them or want to save resources.

Articulations

• Lyric legato •
  Medium legato •
  Soft legato
• Sustains
• Sustains without vibrato •
  Flautando •
  Sul Tasto
• Harmonics
• Overpressure Sul Pont sustains
• Tremolo
• Sul Tasto to Sul Pont tremolo
• Long Marcato
• Short Marcato
• Long Swells
• Short Swells
• Short Swells (slow attack)
• Spiccato • Staccatissimo
• Staccato
  •
  Pizzicato

Features

• Unique re-bow mechanism •
  Several types of smooth legato transitions
• Rich set of articulations with many options for alternating samples (round robin)
• Two types of attack for sustain
• Natural and expressive sound
• Keyswitch, keyboard split and morph modes for maximum flexibility

Version 1.2.0 (2025-04-15)

Added:

• New Barbarian Cello (Lux Violin KS).nki patch, which matches the key switches layout in Lux Violin. This will allow users who have both libraries to use them together more conveniently.

Version 1.1.0 (2025-04-15)

Improved:

• Legato: Improved transitions in all three legato types for a smoother sound
• Legato key switch system: You can now switch between different legato types without releasing the current note
• Legato releases: Smoother and more natural decay of notes in legato mode