InterContinental: Your Portal to Non-Standard Sounds and Microtonality
In the world of digital music, where standard instruments and equally tempered tuning dominate, plugins that offer a way out of these constraints are a real treasure for the creative musician. InterContinental by Safwan Matni is such an instrument. It is not just another synthesizer or sampler; it is a Soundfont player with powerful microtuning functionality, opening the door to limitless soundscapes and authentic musical cultures from around the world.
As a musician, I always strive to find instruments that allow me to express unique ideas and experiment with sound. InterContinental makes this possible by combining the ease of use of Soundfont files with the deep possibilities of tuning customization.
What is Soundfont?
Before delving into the capabilities of InterContinental, it is worth understanding what Soundfont is. Soundfont (.sf2) is a file format that contains samples (recordings of real instruments or other sounds) and instructions for their playback (how they should change depending on the pitch, velocity, etc.). Essentially, it’s a compact format that allows you to pack entire virtual instruments or sound collections into a single file. There is a huge number of free and commercial Soundfont files that cover a wide range of instruments – from classical pianos and strings to rare ethnic instruments, synthesizer patches, and sound effects.
Using a Soundfont player, like InterContinental, allows you to easily load these files and play them in your DAW, expanding your sound palette without the need to install bulky sample libraries for each instrument.
The Power of Microtuning
The most exciting feature of InterContinental is its microtuning function. Microtuning is the ability to adjust the pitch of each individual note or even create your own musical tunings that differ from the standard 12-tone equal temperament tuning that we are accustomed to in Western music.
Why is this important?
- Authenticity of Ethnic Music: Many musical cultures around the world use tunings that contain intervals smaller than a semitone (e.g., quarter tones). Microtuning is essential for accurately reproducing melodies and harmonies in Arabic, Persian, Indian, Turkish, and many other musical traditions. InterContinental allows you to load standard microtuning files (.tun), making it an indispensable tool for composers and arrangers working with ethnic music.
- Experimental Music and Sound Design: Microtuning opens up new possibilities for sound experiments. You can create unusual chords, dissonances, or smooth transitions between notes that are impossible in standard tuning. This is the perfect tool for creating unique atmospheres, ambient textures, or avant-garde musical works.
- Fine-Tuning of Intonation: Even within Western music, microtuning can be useful for subtly adjusting the intonation of individual notes or chords, giving a performance a more “live” or specific character.
InterContinental provides a flexible interface for loading Soundfont files and applying microtuning files, allowing you to quickly switch between different sounds and tunings to find the perfect combination.
Technical Details and Compatibility
The InterContinental plugin is designed as a VST instrument for the Windows operating system (Win32). This means that you can use it in most popular digital audio workstations (DAWs) that support the VST format on the Windows platform.
Despite being a 32-bit plugin, many modern 64-bit DAWs have built-in bridges or support third-party utilities (like jBridge) that allow you to run 32-bit plugins in a 64-bit environment. Thus, InterContinental remains available to a wide range of Windows users.
Summary
InterContinental by Safwan Matni is a unique VST instrument that combines the functionality of a Soundfont player with powerful microtuning capabilities. It is an ideal choice for musicians who seek to:
- Use a vast library of available Soundfont sounds.
- Work with authentic ethnic tunings.
- Experiment with non-standard harmonies and melodies.
- Expand their sound palette beyond standard instruments.
If you are looking for an instrument that will help you discover new sound horizons and give your music a unique color, InterContinental definitely deserves your attention. Download it and start exploring the richness of sounds and tunings of the world!
