As UVI brings us the audio equivalent of the greatest natural show on earth, we send Roland Schmidt north-bound

One instrument that never seems to fall out of favour is the humble piano. So versatile, it sounds perfect in just about any setting, from the Beatles to BT. But with such an abundance of piano libraries on the market, any new contender better have some serious tricks to call upon.

The Aurora

In previous packages, UVI has extensively sampled just about every piano available, as demonstrated throughout its product range. From the Model D to Keysuite Acoustic, the variety is pretty completist. So what does its latest piano-based instrument bring to the plugin table that we haven’t already heard?

Aurora is described as a textured piano library, providing 4.45GB of compressed samples, assigned across three layers, which combine to create an instrument patch. This begins with a new piano sample which UVI describe as a world-class concert grand piano. It doesn’t disclose the model or branding of the instrument, but it does tell us that sample capture was undertaken at the Guillaume Tell sound stage in Paris. During testing, we stripped the sample back to its bare bones; it has a brightness to the sound, suggesting that it may well be a Yamaha C7 or similar. This is important, because the C7 is a highly regarded concert and studio grand piano, balancing a depth of tone, with a brightness of response, which sits exceptionally well in a commercial mix.