Studio Special Woodwinds

Name: Studio Special Woodwinds
Price: 566.61 USD
Author: Vienna Symphonic Library

by Vienna Symphonic Library · Instrument · Sampled rare woodwinds and ensembles

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A library of less common woodwinds (alto and bass flute, oboe d'amore, heckelphone, Eb clarinet, basset horn, contrabass clarinet) plus flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon ensembles of three.

Each instrument has a full set of articulations and mixer presets, for €499 (about $567).

Best for: Acoustic Instruments. Genres: Ambient & Cinematic, Jazz, Acoustic & Classical.

Keywords: woodwinds, ensemble, sample-based, strings, dark, monophonic, thick.

What it does

Studio Special Woodwinds is Vienna Symphonic Library's collection of rare and low woodwinds plus small ensembles, for composers who want "unique colors" beyond the standard flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon. It plays in the free Vienna Synchron Player and was recorded at VSL's Synchron Stage Vienna.

Flutes: alto flute and bass flute, for darker, breathier lines below the normal flute range.
Double reeds: oboe d'amore and heckelphone, the baritone member of the oboe family.
Clarinets: Eb clarinet, basset horn and contrabass clarinet, from shrill highs to very deep lows.
Ensembles: flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon ensembles of three players each, recorded together.
Articulations: short and long notes, legato variants including fast legatos for trills, crescendos and diminuendos, fp, sfz, sffz, pfp, flutter tongue, trills and repetitions.
Sound and mixing: dry recordings with an integrated convolution reverb derived from Vienna MIR Pro 3D, and mixer presets that place each instrument on the Synchron Stage.
Single instruments: each instrument is also sold separately.

The library has 73,424 samples. It runs in the Synchron Player. Crossgrades are available from VSL's Standard and Full libraries. The pages mention no demo.

Source: Vienna Symphonic Library product page

When to use it

Studio Special Woodwinds is the pick when your template already has the four standard woodwinds and you need the instruments around them. Compared with BBC Symphony Orchestra Core and Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition, which record woodwinds as part of a full orchestra in a hall, it adds instruments those leave out, such as heckelphone, basset horn and contrabass clarinet, plus three-player ensembles. It is also dry, so unlike those hall-recorded libraries you set the space yourself with the built-in reverb or mixer presets. On its own it is not a complete woodwind section, and it is a specialist purchase rather than a starter library.

Best for: dark low woodwind colours, Romantic and late-Romantic orchestration, and thickening woodwind lines with real small ensembles.
Genres: classical, film and TV scoring.
Look elsewhere if: you only need standard woodwinds (VSL's Studio Woodwinds or BBC Symphony Orchestra Core cover them) or want the sound of a hall baked in (Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition).

Where to buy

Vienna Symphonic Library: $566.61 (Listed at €499; converted at €1 = $1.1355 (ECB rate, 29 Sep 2026))

Tutorials and reviews

VSL Studio Special Editions

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