EastWest Quantum Leap Voices of Passion Virtual Instrument is a virtual instrument of Female Alto and Soprano vocalists from Wales, Syria, India, Bulgaria and America.

EastWest Play Buy One Get One Free Offer! Extended until November 30!
Purchase any qualifying EastWest Play software between September 5, 2008 and November 30, 2008, and get one of equal or lesser value FREE! The following proucts are eligible for this promotion:
Symphonic Orchestra Play Edition Platinum Plus, Symphonic Orchestra Play Edition Platinum, Symphonic Orchestra Play Edition Gold, Symphonic Orchestra Play Edition Silver, EastWest/Quantum Leap Pianos, Gypsy, Stormdrum 2, Goliath, Fab Four, Ministry of Rock, Voices of Passion
Click here for the Rebate Form
Rebate forms must be post-marked no later than December 15, 2008. Shipping charges apply.
Read the rebate form carefully for complete rules.
This offer is administered and fulfilled by EastWest ONLY.

Wow! Well, that’s the short-form review. To elaborate, these are superbly-recorded “ethnic” samples from Bulgaria, Syria, India, Wales (think Enya), and America (which tend toward more multisampled notes rather than idiosyncratic phrases). They play back through EastWest’s Play engine (32/64-bit, Windows/Mac, ASIO/Core Audio, VST/AU/RTAS) which itself is pretty cool, with convolution reverb, delay, artificial double tracking (chorus), amplitude envelope, and lowpass filter. There are also interesting tricks, like assigning mod wheel to sample start point—start anywhere within a phrase. Another is you can use the left, right, or both channels of a vocal (different channels use different mics) but if you use only one, you can synthesize a stereo spread. The Welsh vocal “phrase generator” is cool, too. Although initially it seems there are only a handful of presets, the “master” ones use keyswitching to access multiple articulations. There are also presets with individual articulations, and some with true legato. Print out the PDF manual—lots of options are hidden in those presets. While obviously geared for video and movies, the vocals are great for replacing that clichéd diva sound used in a lot of trance music, as well as for any kind of chill. Three words: Evocative, fascinating, and unique. Oh, and add “wow,” too. — EQ MAGAZINE

I almost jumped out of my seat the first time I instantiated this library and played a note. That’s how much personality these performances capture. The amount of attitude is in fact the strength of VOP and, in a sense, its limitation. Female singers from America, Bulgaria, Syria, and Wales were tracked, and EW made some very interesting decisions. Instead of performing actual words, the Syrian ladies, for example, intone a series of pitched phrases that “sound” real - at least to Western ears. The same holds true for the Indian and Bulgarian singers. Load the Bulgarian Master patch, for example, and you’re presented with a series of chromatically pitched phrases that you can switch between. The mod wheel is critical to the execution of convincing performances. It filters the sounds and adds a great deal of nuance to them. All of the sample sets in this library have convincing legato and portamento, and they highlight the beauty of PLAY’s DSP. In fact, there seems to be a lot going on underneath the PLAY hood, and the result - across the libraries - is, in part, a gorgeous set of legato transitions. - MIX

Voices of Passion contains samples of five really good solo female singers from around the world: Syria, India, Bulgaria, Wales, and America. The library contains a large variety of sounds and you can use it in many ways, but in general it’s very emotional and sets a mood…as the name implies. Like the other libraries in this review, the recordings and performances are terrific. The passionate voices are recorded with different mics in each channel, so you can choose between thicker and brighter sounds. Normally you’d use the default, which is a stereo mixture of the two going through a rich PLAY convolution reverb that’s mixed in very wet. The Indian and Syrian instruments are phrases—lots of them mapped to different notes in different keys (triggered by keyswitches). You can make the phrases start later with the mod wheel for more variety. Both these singers are remarkable—true virtuosos. Unlike the Indian and Syrian singers, the Welsh and American ones can be played like Western instruments—they have actual notes on the keyboard rather than phrases. Even though the singers cover a considerable range of sounds, the American and especially Welsh singers lean toward the breathy, ethereal side. Finally, the Bulgarian singer is in between: she sings mostly slow-moving phrases on one note. It’s very effective to play her polyphonically, because these independently moving vocalizations—not words—sound like a small group of women on independent lines. In general the programming makes Voices of Passion easy to play, which seems to be EastWest’s overall philosophy these days. My hunch is that this library will be especially popular among composers who do a lot of scoring. It’s pure emotion in a box. - VIRTUAL INSTRUMENT MAGAZINE

PLAY Advanced Sample Engine

PLAY is a 64-bit** (with 32-bit compatibility) Advanced Sample Engine with built-in Network Control* (plug-in or standalone). PLAY is Included with all new EastWest/Quantum Leap Virtual (software) Instruments. Updates for older software will be released as it is completed.

-Multiple Mic Positions
-All instruments were sampled with three different mic positions, allowing you to mix together any
    combination of mics using the interface for the ultimate in real-time tone and ambiance control. This
    feature enables users to customize the sound of the orchestra to their own requirements.
-Please note: while most computers suitable for running professional music software will run one of the mic
    positions (what you typically get with other orchestra libraries), you may need a more advanced system to
    have all options available.
-Mic Mixer
-Control all mic positions for the orchestra, choirs, pianos, and other instruments with multiple mic
    positions with the built-in mic mixer
-Now taken a step further, do it right in the patch
-Load, unload, adjust, pan, mute mic positions as you wish
-Load MORE thanks to 64-bit support**
-64-bit support** allows you to load many more instruments and voices, limited only by your system
    RAM (32-bit support is included also)
-While most high-end computers will support 16Gb, a very small set of high-performance enterprise
    computers (with Microsoft Vista Ultimate) can already use 128Gb of RAM. As hardware develops, the
    theoretical limit is 17,179,869,184 gigabytes = 16 exabytes, or 17 billion gigabytes!
-Networking Support*
-If you still need more power, our NETWORK CONTROL* allows you to load instruments on other machines
    controlled from your host computer
-No more trips back and forth between computers, no more KVM switching when loading projects
-No need to buy additional software
-The PLAY system is a professional fully integrated solution for those with the most demanding
    production requirements
-As Beautiful As It Sounds
-Interface designed to eliminate clutter, including only the controls needed for each individual virtual
    instrument
-All instruments are listed in one browser
-Easy to use browser displays all of your instruments
-Favorites section to group the instruments you use most
-Preview your instrument of choice in an easy-to-use column viewer
-Load instruments into one instance to take advantage of your sequencer's "instrument tracks", or many if you so desire.
-Interface automatically changes to display current instrument
-Articulations
-Forget browsing through complicated patch names: pick the instrument and play
-Turn on/off articulations as you wish
-Articulations list also serves as reference for all expressions within the instrument (no need to look up
    key-switches in charts)
-Save your favorite configuration for quick retrieval
-Legato Detection
-PLAY senses legato and repetitive playing and responds accordingly
-Stereo Handling
-PLAY allows the user to manipulate stereo samples in very useful ways
-Stereo Swap allows the user to instantly swap the left and right channels
-Mono from left , Mono from right, or Mono Sum allow for instant conversion from stereo to mono
-Playback Engine
-Highest quality resampling engine
-Built from the ground up to create the most intuitive instruments possible
-EastWest/Quantum Leap now design instruments every step of the way without compromise
-Effects Engine
-The best sounding and most powerful effects engine out there, built from the ground up for the highest
    possible quality
-Reverb section includes multiple impulse responses from halls, and the famous EastWest Studios and
    live chambers (more RIAA certified Platinum and Gold records awarded than any other studio)
-The smoothest filters you'll ever hear
-Security system
-Authorize purchased instruments easily using the industry standard iLok security system
-Offers complete portability, take your plugin anywhere you want, use it on any computer
-Easy to authorize and manage (up to 100 authorizations on one key)
-Platforms and Hosts
-AU, VST, Standalone, Intel Mac, PPC Mac, Windows XP and Vista, 64-bit, 32-bit
-Natively supported in all major hosts on all major operating systems - PLAY no matter what your platform
-More native support than any other plug-in
-Standalone: PLAY as many instruments as your computer can handle in one application
-Summary
PLAY isn't just a sampler. The PLAY SYSTEM is a professional, fully integrated sample playback software solution for those with the most demanding production requirements.
-Offers native support for more platforms than any other software engine
-Network support* for large, expandable systems
-The latest in technology (64-bit**, supports next generation operating systems)
-The highest sound quality (ground-up effects, highest quality interpolation)
-The best virtual instruments from the multiple award-winning EASTWEST/QUANTUM LEAP producers
-The most intuitive controls, custom designed for each library
-Complete portability

*Network support will be available after release.
**MAC 64-bit support will be available after release as a free download for all registered users.