Full performances from a Grammy-nominated percussionist replace the limitations of loop-based libraries.
Tonalic, the performance library from Celemony (creators of Melodyne), has expanded with recordings from percussionist David Kuckhermann. At the centre of the update sits a calabash, a warm-sounding percussion instrument with organic resonance, and one that most producers have little experience deploying.
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Alongside it sit cajons, congas, udus and brush-played djembes – hand percussion that’s equally at home in singer-songwriter, pop, EDM and hip-hop contexts. What distinguishes these recordings from typical loop libraries is structural – Kuckhermann recorded full performances, not loops. That means variations, transitions and endings that follow the logic of live playing rather than repeating bar-by-bar samples. The nuance across those transitions represents a human performance rather than a click-locked repetition.
Kuckhermann brings substantial credentials to the work, as a Grammy-nominated multi-instrumentalist who learned from masters across Iran, India, Egypt and Turkey and more countries across Europe and Africa. His performing history includes time with Dead Can Dance and performances at London’s Royal Albert Hall, and brings that depth of traditional training into contemporary production. His recordings work across modern tracks, and don’t demanding specialised knowledge from the user.
Tonalic functions as a plugin inside any DAW, adapting recorded performances to your track’s chords, tempo and groove. The library expands every three months with new musicians and sounds. Existing subscribers and prepaid licence holders receive Kuckhermann’s recordings automatically at their next software launch.
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