Navigating the Spitfire Audio Albion Series

Introduction

At Spitfire Audio, we have created a vast catalog of sounds and tools for music makers that continue to inspire the next generation of composers. Arguably one of our greatest achievements is the ever-growing Albion Series, a range of “all-in-one” cinematic toolkits giving you everything needed to create broadcast quality scores right out of the box. Each Albion Edition is designed with a theme or genre in mind so that you can choose the toolkit that best serves the sonic environment you’re building. Thus, it can be difficult to know which Albion Edition is best for you. Here is a handy guide breaking down each library in detail.

It should be noted that certain editions of the Albion Range have been recently discontinued (e.g., Albion III Iceni, Albion II Loegria, etc.). This article focuses only on the remaining Albion libraries that we currently offer. 

Albion ONE

The first installment of this series, Albion ONE is a workhorse tool for many composers of all levels and is a fantastic first addition to any composer's collection. Albion ONE, the refreshed successor of the original Albion, is the most “traditional” library in the series. It contains a 100-piece orchestra recorded in Lyndhurst Hall at Air Studios in London, a definitive percussion ensemble, a comprehensive host of playable loops in addition to a massive array of synth presets, and legacy content from the original Albion. 

This library, just like all Albion libraries, is ensemble-based, meaning that each section or “choir” of the orchestra is included as opposed to individual instruments. Albion ONE is loaded with useful features including multiple mic positions (Close, Tree, Ambient, & Outriggers or CTAO) in order to get the perfect mix, the Ostinatum (a powerful custom engine allowing you to create thundering ostinatos and rhythmic density), hundreds of articulations and patches, and much more. 

Sonically, this library is best suited for “epic” cinematic scoring, easily yielding a “Hans Zimmer” sound. Although it is very powerful and expansive in nature, this library is just as capable of producing soft, emotive music making it extremely versatile. Below is an abridged breakdown of the Albion ONE folder structure:

Albion ONE Orchestra	Brass High	The Albion ONE Orchestra also includes legato patches, pre-orchestrated combinations, Individual articulation patches, playable phrased runs, CPU-friendly patches, etc.
	Brass Low
	Brass Mid
	Strings
	Woods High
	Woods Low
Brunel Loops	Brunel Loops includes hundreds of playable loops perfect for driving the rhythm of your score.
Darwin Percussion Ensemble	Darwin Percussion Ensemble	The Darwin Percussion Ensemble in Albion ONE also includes stereo mixes and legacy content from the original Albion.
	Easter Island
	Hyper Toms
	XXL Percussion
Stephenson’s Steam Band	Stephenson’s Steam Band is a vast collection of organic hybrid synth patches derived from processed orchestral recordings running in our eDNA Synth Engine.
The Albion Legacy	The Albion Legacy includes the best content from the original iteration of Albion and even atonal/aleatoric elements perfect for horror, suspense, thriller, and tension-building.

This library runs in the free Kontakt Player which can be downloaded on the Native Instruments site via Native Access.

Albion IV Uist

The next chronological edition of the Albion series is Albion IV Uist. Uist is a vast, encyclopedic collection of aleatoric, atonal, pre-orchestrated textures aimed at the horror genre. Featuring over 800 patches and articulations, the content for this library was conceptualized by our co-founder, Paul Thompson, orchestrated and conducted by Ben Foskett, and recorded beautifully in the Hall at Air Studios. In addition to the staggering number and variety of included sounds, there are the expected mic positions (Close, Tree, Ambient, & Outriggers or CTAO) as well as additional mixes for each patch by the acclaimed engineer, Jake Jackson. This library also includes warped, processed synths perfect for adding a unique yet classic edge to your horror scoring. 

Below is an abridged breakdown of the Albion IV Uist folder structure:

Stephenson’s Steam DNA	eDNA Construction Kits	The Uist Stephenson’s section gives you everything needed to create terrifying electronic sounds perfect for adding support to traditional atonal and aleatoric orchestration.
	Stephenson’s x2
	Stephenson’s x8
	Warps
The Albion Orchestra - Uist Sessions	Brass Hi	These include playable long notes (tonal/atonal), atonal/tonal phrases, atonal/tonal stabs, and atonal/tonal textures. Most patches are pitched allowing you to work within a certain key if desired. There are “audition” patches that allow you to hear the sound of each articulation from which you can choose individual pitched patches for each articulation.
	Brass Lo
	Strings Hi
	Strings Lo
	Woods Hi
	Woods Lo
The Albion Orchestra - Uist Sessions (JJ Mixes)	A copy of the original Uist sessions mixed by Jake Jackson.

This library runs in the free Kontakt Player which can be downloaded on the Native Instruments site via Native Access.

Albion V Tundra

Recorded at the very edge of silence, Albion V Tundra is an icy library featuring a huge orchestra playing at extremely soft dynamic levels. As the name may suggest, Tundra captures staggering Scandinavian beauty perfect for building beguiling suspense and tension in your music. This library was recorded in the Hall at Air Studios in London, curated and produced by our co-founder, Christian Henson. Tundra also brings new technology to the Albion range: our very own “Evo Grid” system and the usual mics positions (Close, Tree, Ambient, & Outriggers or CTAO).

Below is an abridged breakdown of the Albion V Tundra folder structure:

Albion V Orchestra	Included in the Albion V Orchestra are the typical ensemble sections as well as “Soft & Wild” patches for strings that focus on the “Scandi” sound.
Brunel Loops	The Tundra Brunel Loops span hundreds of patches including subtle yet chilling processed rhythms and patterns.
Darwin Percussion	The Tundra Darwin Percussion section includes silently intense hits and booms, incredibly useful for adding arctic oomph to your cues.
Stephenson’s Steam Band	Tundra Stephenson’s include soaring glacial reverberant organic synths.
Vral Grid Evo	Synths and orchestra are blended together to create the instant and inspiring writing tool that is the Vral Grid.

This library runs in the free Kontakt Player which can be downloaded on the Native Instruments site via Native Access.

Albion NEO

Focusing on intimacy and definition, the next chapter in the Albion story is Albion NEO, a neoclassical library featuring cutting-edge, modern, cinematic sounds with a chamber ensemble quality in mind. Perhaps the crowing gem of the Albion Series, this library is perfect for hybrid acoustic and hybrid orchestral scoring. Beautifully recorded in the Hall at Air Studios, this library takes full advantage of the beauty that Lyndhurst Hall has to offer to smaller ensembles. 

Each choir of the orchestra in this library are pre-orchestrated with out-of-the-box beauty in mind and is one of the only Spitfire Audio libraries to include saxophone in the raw sample content. Included are a revised collection of mic positions (Close, Close Ribbon, Tree, Ambient, and Outriggers), mixes, as well as hundreds of patches, articulations, and tools. Unique to this library is the addition of a Harmonium. 

Below is an abridged breakdown of the Albion NEO folder structure:

Albion NEO Orchestra	Strings A	The Strings section for Albion NEO were broken into two unique groups, A and B allowing you to tailor the sound to your preference or blend the two together to create a more “full” sounding string orchestra.
	Strings B
	Woodwinds
	Brass
Brunel Loops	The Brunel Loops in NEO bring something unique to the Albion Range in that they are pre-recorded inspirational patches to get you going on the composition process as opposed to purely rhythmic loops.
Harmonium	Albion NEO includes a beautifully recorded harmonium that blends well with the NEO Orchestra and adds a nostalgic pensive quality to any cue.
Selga Textures	Selga Textures and Stephensons Stem Band in NEO make up the Synth section of the library giving you hundreds of presets to choose from to create a more modern soundscape that perfectly balances with the NEO Orchestra.
Stephensons Steam Band

This library runs in the free Kontakt Player which can be downloaded on the Native Instruments site via Native Access.

Albion Solstice

The penultimate, meticulously detailed library in the series is Albion Solstice, a modern scoring toolkit that is derived from folk and heritage instruments, perfect for fantasy, sci-fi, and drama scoring while also transcending genre and style. Deviating from the Lyndhurst Hall tradition, Solstice was recorded at the renowned Castlesound Studios located in Edinburgh, Scotland, and focuses on the celebration of un-notated traditions that are key to the folk music mythos. The sheer range of this library is truly staggering, featuring everything from strings to the hurdy-gurdy, to electric guitars and modular synths. Solstice was curated and produced by our co-founder, Christian Henson.

Below is an abridged breakdown of the Albion Solstice folder structure:

The Cassette Orchestra	The Cassette Orchestra included in Solstice makes up the synth suite of the library featuring heavily processed organic sounds yielding haunting, warm textures adding a unique edge to any score.
The Drone Grid	The Drone Grid brings Evo Grid technology to Solstice.
The Solstice Orchestra	The Elders (strings)	The Solstice Orchestra is a comprehensive, encyclopedic tome with hundreds of patches, articulations, playable loops, textures, phrases, and more. Included also are three mic positions perfect for achieving the best mix for your music.
	The Callers (Brass & Winds)
	The Mystics (Pipes)
	The Blaggards (Band)
	The Hosts (Choir)
	The Generator Trio (Electric Guitars)
	The Gut Circle (Acoustic Guitars)
	The Nursery (Bells & Mallets)
	The Marauders (Percussion)

This library runs in the free Kontakt Player which can be downloaded on the Native Instruments site via Native Access.

Albion Colossus

The latest addition to the Albion Series and the first Albion library to run in our award-winning dedicated plugin is Albion Colossus, a titanic library bringing a whole host of new technology to the Albion Range. Colossus includes two orchestras (chamber and symphonic), synths, loops, and percussion, in addition to a wide variety of meticulously crafted articulations. Aimed at composers looking for an expansive sound, Colossus is perfect for Action & Adventure, Disaster, and Epic genres as well as being a useful tool for trailer music. The two orchestras were captured at Clockwork Studios, based in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall — the chamber orchestra in the New Auditorium, and the symphony orchestra in the Royal Concert Hall. Recorded using the same recording equipment and the same musicians.

This library runs in our dedicated plugin and does not run in Kontakt. You can access this library directly from your DAW.

The Albion Bundle

You can own all of the libraries included in the Albion Series for a discounted rate by purchasing the Albions Bundle. If you already own an Albion Edition, the cost of that library will be intelligently deducted from the Bundle price provided you are signed into your account.