Toontrack EZX: New Orleans

As Authentic As It Gets

Five kits ranging from historic to modern, recorded in the heart of New Orleans!

If you're chasing the soul of drumming, all roads lead to New Orleans.

This is the city where the drum kit as we know it was born, where jazz and funk first took shape and where rhythm has never been just a musical element - it's the living pulse woven over centuries by African, Caribbean, French and Creole traditions, merging into that magical heartbeat we call groove.

For this EZX, Toontrack traveled there to capture an all-encompassing drum library under the supervision of one of the city's foremost experts on drumming, gear and groove: Terence Higgins (Dr.

John, Allen Toussaint, Dirty Dozen Brass Band).

The New Orleans EZX was sampled by Terence Higgins himself and recorded by multi-award-winning engineer, producer and mixer Misha Kachkachishvili at his Esplanade Studios, one of the absolute hubs of today's New Orleans recording circuit.

Located in the vibrant Tremé neighborhood and housed in a completely remodeled 14,000-square-foot early 1900s church, it's the largest recording studio in Louisiana.

The main recording room in Studio A alone boasts a staggering 3,400-square-foot space with ceilings up to 26 feet high.

Naturally, the ambience is awe-inspiring.

For this recording, however, the drums were partially sectioned off using gobos to create a lively yet viscerally close feel.

The EZX includes two separate libraries, Traditional and Artist, each featuring a range of instruments sourced and carefully selected by Terence.

The first fully hones in on the historical and includes a turn-of-the-century kit straight from the archives of the New Orleans Jazz Museum, complete with a unique set of crashes as well as a pair of rare "sock" foot cymbals - an early 20th century precursor to the modern-day hi-hat.

In addition, two extra bass drums - one of which came straight off stage at Preservation Hall - two rare snares - one of which is an antique parade drum - and a carefully selected set of percussion pieces pivotal to the New Orleans lineage are included.

These cover a washboard, two cowbells, a bottle, a pandeiro drum as well as a handmade wood-and-metal "junk" hi-hat providing a characteristically swampy sound.

Conversely, the Artist portion of the library features kits that are modern in comparison, all inspired by the sounds from the 1950s onward.

All in all, this will give you five authentic-sounding kits, each representing its own defining mile marker in the evolution of the inimitable New Orleans sound.

Aside from the drums and percussion, a versatile library of mix-ready presets engineered by Misha as well as a drum MIDI library of grooves and fills performed by Terence is provided, making sure you're off to a flying start producing anything from the traditionally jazz-tinged to the slinky street beats and second-line-inspired grooves that all scream New Orleans.

Timeworn, thunderous open-sounding bass drums, antique snares with that dark, subdued and papery snap to their tone, museum-like percussion pieces and kits that'll faithfully serve any vintage or modern soul, funk or roots-inspired tune, this EZX has it all.

If you're looking for a palette of the percussive colors that helped paint the intricate mosaic of sound that is the basis of the inimitable New Orleans groove, this EZX is as authentic as it gets.

Features

• Five kits for anything from traditional and modern jazz to soul and R&B to '70s funk
• Kits spanning early 1900s pieces to modern-day, including rare historical percussion
• Sampled by session drummer and award-winning recording artist Terence Higgins (Dr.
• John, Allen Toussaint, Dirty Dozen Brass Band)
• Recorded by multi-award-winning engineer/producer/mixer Misha Kachkachishvili
• Features two setups of kits configured as separate libraries: Traditional and Artist
• Includes a handpicked collection of traditional and rare percussion such as a washboard, bottle and more
• Features mix-ready presets for a broad range of sounds
• Includes a library of MIDI, performed by Terence and unique to the product