Spitfire Audio Aska Matsumiya - Crystal Bowls

Intrinsic Frequencies

A unique palette of expansive otherworldly textures, created from the rich, visceral vibrations of high-purity quartz crystal singing bowls, curated by award-winning composer Aska Matsumiya (Home, After Yang, Betty).

Traditionally known for their use in meditation practice and sound therapy, we've transported these otherworldly instruments into the cinematic realm by capturing a detailed and diverse range of performance styles in the resonant acoustics of the Hackney Round Chapel, London.

Mix and move between a wide spectrum of textures within our intuitively designed plugin to create intense atmospheric soundscapes - from percussive, shimmering shorts to deep, long-lasting resonances, as well as a range of contemporary warped presets.

Designed to breathe new life into any genre of music - from ambient minimalism to ethereal cinematic scores.

The essence and magic of crystal bowls lies in their unique vibrations - intrinsically linked to nature, their frequencies resonate at a cellular level, producing intense physical reactions. I was excited to see how we could expand the language of these stunning instruments to create unique textures. - Aska Matsumiya

Visceral Vibrations

At the heart of this library lies the deep resonant tones of a set of seven crystal singing bowls, captured at the healing frequency of 432Hz.

With the sound being close to a raw sine wave, its synth-like qualities can easily be moulded into any shape.

With the innovative vision of Japanese-born, Malibu-based composer and multi-instrumentalist Aska Matsumiya who has used these instruments widely in her scores and sound installations, we set out to expand the language of the instrument and unlock a rich new palette of otherworldly tones and textures, presented in an intuitive and inspiring plugin designed to conjure long-lasting ambient soundscapes and rich cinematic atmospheres.

Using various combinations of traditional mallets and contemporary drumsticks and brushes, we've captured both percussive, rattling visceral vibrations and sustained shimmering layered textures that sing, evolve and resonate through the whole body.

A range of contemporary warps offers further inspiration, transforming these reverberations into stunning, alien-like textures.

Features

• A 7-piece set of rare crystal singing bowls made from high-purity quartz
• Tuned to C, D, E, F, G, A, and B at a frequency of 432 Hz
• Recorded in the expansive acoustics of London's Hackney Round Chapel, with a clear and resonant reverb
• Presented in an elegant, user-friendly interface equipped with intuitive controls
• Four controls to help shape your sound - Attack, Release, Offset and Reverb (using an IR captured in the Round Chapel)
• 5 Crystal Bowl playing styles
• Mix between a range of six traditional and contemporary beaters - Brushes, Soft Mallet, Sticks, Rubber Mallet, Plastic Mallet, Hot Rods
• Two tuning fork sounds for higher, sharper tones
• One signal created from a mix of Close, Room, Gallery positions
• Six warped sounds made by running the crystal bowls through guitar pedals and granular synths

Aska Matsumiya

The Japanese, Malibu-based composer, artist and classical pianist is known for her genre-defying works spanning film, television, advertising and music production. She has scored Halle Berry's directorial debut, Bruised, and partnered with A24 and Kogonada on After Yang, in collaboration with composer Ryuichi Sakamoto. In 2022, she scored Steve Buscemi’s The Listener. She has collaborated with countless brands in the advertising space, including Porsche, Chanel, Hermes & Prada, and her song There Are Many Of Us was the main title track for Spike Jonze's film, I'm Here.

In television, Matsumiya scored HBO skateboarding series Betty with long-time collaborator Crystal Moselle, as well as her 2015 award-winning documentary The Wolfpack. Matsumiya was one of the composers for A24's Apple TV docu-series, Home, winning the 2023 Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Music Direction and Composition. She also scored K-pop group Blackpink’s 2020 documentary Light Up the Sky.

Matsumiya traces her experimental approach to music to her teenage years, when she dropped out of art school to go touring with punk bands; "I found freedom in punk because I didn't realise how much I felt suppressed by classical music - even though I love it." Matsumiya is currently working on a piano installation and album, and has scored acclaimed fantasy action series, The Spiderwick Chronicles, coming out in Spring 2024.