How to Get the BBC Orchestra to Play in Your Home for FREE

I was going to save this post until later on in the week but I see that the company I'm speaking about here has a 'Summer Sale' on just now! Figured that way if anyone came across this in the first week of publishing and liked what they saw, at least they could get some great discounts on everything.

What I'm going to be mainly writing about here though is:

 Spitfire Audio's FREE 'BBC Symphony Orchestra Discover'

I first came about Spitfire Audio when I randomly saw a competition that they were holding in conjunction with the television show 'Westworld'. They wanted you to download a roughly 4 minute clip from the show that had most of the audio stripped from it so you could compose your own score. No idea what I was doing, but I spent a few hours learning how to do this in Logic Pro and it was incredibly fun, rewarding and educational. I'd recommend giving something similar a go if you ever have the chance; no experience necessary to have a good time.

Spitfire Audio is a sample library developer based out of London, England. Formed by Christian Henson and Paul Thomson in 2007, they make samples for composers and musicians alike, their sounds being heard in Hollywood film scores as well as songs from Radiohead and U2 among countless more. They seem to focus on precision, professionalism and community with amazingly perfect sample sound packs which are often done in collaboration with other outstanding musical experts such as Hans Zimmer and various world renowned instrument players.

During this process I ended up on their email list and was excited to see the BBC Discover plugin being listed as free. All you have to do is fill out a questionnaire and wait two weeks for your download code. The questionnaire is definitely quite long but it actually has some interesting questions and I don't mind giving a bit of data or feedback, especially if it gets you something like this at no cost. If the survey filling out isn't for you I'd still easily recommend this at its low price of $49 USD. Even at that it's a steal but the survey is quite fun.

Here's what the interface looks like. Beautiful and easy to use:

Here are the main reasons why I think you'll love it:

1) 33 instruments including strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion options

2) Everything sounds absolutely incredible; so crisp and energetic

3) Lots of playing options to choose from (long, spiccato, pizzicato, tremolo)

4) Easy to use interface! Colour coded with simple click to switch between instruments

5) Built in reverb and dynamics options

6) Keyboard shown on bottom to know where you're at midi wise

While all these options add up to make it an incredible plugin, it really is the sound quality that sets it apart from anything else I've heard thus far. It really does feel like you have the symphonists sitting right next to you playing whatever your heart desires. This is what sets it apart and makes it a can't miss.

If you end up liking the 'Discover' series then they've got two more tiers, the 'Core' and 'Professional', both of which have quite a good discount at the moment if that's your thing. Another awesome support feature Spitfire Audio offers are the great YouTube videos they make that go through how to use the interfaces, how to record their instruments and much more! They're usually very informative and have a quirky/funny side to them as well.

While these packs may not be in everyones budget (mine included at the moment), the 'BBC Symphony Orchestra Discover' option is an incredible way to get a little taste of that 'Spitfire Audio magic' at absolutely no cost.

Get on this! :)

BPM

* Thanks to the BBC for the picture of the orchestra