The Hollywood Strings virtual instrument will be presented in a series of online tutorials on Thursday, January 14, 2010, the same day NAMM 2010 opens at soundsonline.com/hollywood-strings.

Hollywood Strings is an advanced collection of orchestral string instruments that offers control over sound and performance while delivering creative power to composers and content producers for film, video, Web and music. Multiple finger positions for all sections, including open strings, are available.

This collection was engineered to include multiple finger positions throughout the entire range of the fingerboard of each sampled instrument. This range of positions allows composers to realize the true voicing and emotional content of a string section. Vibrato intensity and extensive dynamics, including five dynamics of up- and down-bowed sustains and notes, are also controllable by the composer. Extensive multidynamic true legato has been sampled for all sections in three different categories: slurred, portamento and bow change. Hollywood Strings has five user-controllable microphone positions including main pickup (Decca Tree), mid pickup, close pickup, surround pickup and an alternate vintage circa 1945 RCA ribbon room pickup.

Hollywood Strings will be available in two editions from February 15, 2010: The Diamond Edition ($1,695 list) includes all articulations and bowings, five user-controllable optional mic positions, 44.1kHz 24-bit and 16-bit samples and comes supplied on a pre-configured hard drive. The Gold Edition ($1,195 list) includes all articulations and bowings, except divisi, bow-change legato and sordino and offers single-mic position, 44.1kHz 16-bit samples supplied on dual-layer DVDs.