Soundiron Oktobass Phrases

The Oktobass is the deepest concert string instrument, extending down to 16Hz.

It creates a thunderous, room-shaking growl at the low notes that transforms into a sweet honey-like tone at the high notes. We’ve sampled this bone-rattling beast in comprehensive detail, integrated into a massive sample pack of improvised melodic phrases. To play this 3.48 meter (11.5 ft) mammoth, you must climb a set of stairs onto a raised platform and operate a row of mechanical levers to control the fingerboard with your left hand, while you bow with your right. The size and cavernous resonances inside the body of the instrument produce a nuanced and complex tonal character, with intense stereo movement and subtle mechanical ornamentation when playing melodic phrases. We worked with Giorgio Riolo and Daniele Bertinelli to capture Nicola Moneta’s Octobass at its permanent home in his private gallery in Milan, Italy. It was recorded in a large open space, using a close pair of large-diaphragm cardioid mics at the F holes to achieve a dry and intimate sound with huge tonal power.