EastWest announces Quantum Leap Stormdrum 3 (Featuring PLAY 4 software)

EastWest has announced a new collection of percussion samples in Quantum Leap Stormdrum 3 (SD3).

Stormdrum 3 is produced by Nick Phoenix, the creator of the Stormdrum 1 and 2. Phoenix collaborated with Mickey Hart, the Grateful Dead's "rhythm devil", as well as Greg Ellis, Chalo Eduardo, and Remo from Remo Drumheads. Together, the group captured over 90 gigabytes of all new percussion sounds for SD3.

Recorded in EastWest Studio A, Phoenix had access to the private collection of instruments from Mickey Hart's, and instruments hand-picked by Remo himself from his personal collection. All performances are by Mickey Hart and master percussionists Greg Ellis and Chalo Eduardo.

Stormdrum 3 features 5 user-controllable mic positions for each instrument (excluding performances), and includes Tempo Synced Percussion performances directed and performed by Mickey Hart, with Greg Ellis, Chalo Eduardo and Nick Phoenix.

Storm Drum 3 includes:

• Big Drums: large, deep and booming sounds, some more complex in nature. There are some real gems in here from Mickey's magical warehouse of one of a kind hand drums. Highlights in the epic genre here are The Beast, Double Headed Tree Drum, Lord Of Toms Ensemble and Dragon Ensemble.
• Gongs Clocks Waterphones: These instruments provide the iconic sounds of several gongs and waterphones, some played underwater. The "Clockworks" patches are the result of Nicks field recordings in 6 antique clock shops.
• Metals: This group includes bells, deep bowls, chimes, and cymbals collected by Mickey on his world travels. Some are well known like the Brazilian berimbau (which is played on a metal wire), others are unusual, such as hammered copper pots and handmade doorstop drums.
• Shakers: The instruments in this group include several made from naturally occurring objects, such as snake rattles, seed pods, and deer hoofs, in addition to the more common ganza, modern shakers and Mickeys mighty rainsticks. Playability here is key.
• Small Drums: a very large collection of smaller drums such as bongos, frame drums, and tambourines. Many of the Indian drums in this category are particularly special, such as the tuned tablas and madal.
• Taiko Family: taiko drums ranging from huge to small, many of the sampled instruments came from the collections of Mickey Hart and Remo, others came from the top taiko builders in Japan. They are played both individually and in ensembles.
• Woods: In this group there are unpitched sounds from wooden resonators; tuned chromatic instruments, such as a gourd marimba and a balaphone; the mighty gourd drum, a playable 12 ft. long redwood tree branch and wonderful scraped sounds, such as the Thailand frogs.

Stormdrum 3 is the first virtual instrument to include EastWest's new PLAY 4 software. In PLAY 4, EastWest replaced some third party components; added Avid's new AAX format that will allow Pro Tools 11 users to use EastWest's virtual instruments 64-bit, greatly improving performance; added new time-stretch software optimized for loops (with sync to sequencer); added a new mixer page (with sub-channels for mic positions), and other new features.

Finally, EastWest now offers SSL FX from Solid State Logic, and an upgraded EastWest reverb. The new FX section is available as an optional upgrade for all legacy EastWest PLAY collections, but will be included free for SD3 users. Customers who place a pre-order for SD3, scheduled to ship July 15, 2013, will be able to use the FX section for other PLAY collections as an additional bonus. The FX section includes a SSL EQ and Dynamics Channel Strip, Transient Shaper, and SSL's Stereo Bus Compressor; plus an upgraded "true stereo" reverb from EastWest, and new features.

Pricing & Availability: Available on July 15, 2013, for $395.