Sonixinema Brute Flute

Working in close collaboration with virtuoso flutist Gareth Mclearnon, we spent weeks curating a list of rare and experimental Contrabass Flute techniques to create a library like no other. Capturing a huge range of never before sampled cinematic textures, harmonic embellishments, explosive articulations and true legato, we explored brand new territory and discovered the true potential of this magnificent instrument. Usually found within an orchestral setting, in recent years the contrabass flute has been used by innovative film composers such as Johann Johannsson and Jed Kurzel to create unique and intriguing sonic worlds. The textures that we captured from the contrabass flute are unique to this instrument, and many of them can’t be performed in the same way on a regular concert flute or a bass flute. Gareth brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table, and is known to be one of the most in demand and exciting flutists of his generation. The flute itself was handmade by Eva Kingma, a premium quality flute maker specialising in Alto, Bass and Contrabass flutes, and was designed exclusively for Gareth.

To capture Gareth’s performance on this magnificent instrument, we chose a dry scoring stage in the heart of London. We thought this was important as we wanted to record every nuance in intimate detail, providing clean and flexible recordings that can be used for an upfront, aggressive sound, or manipulated afterwards to create a spacious, cinematic sound. We recorded multiple microphone perspectives such as Close Mono, Close Stereo, Mid Stereo and Far Stereo, and used top quality microphones such as the Beyer M160, AKG C414, Neumann U87 and Neumann TLM103.