Recording the Percussion for Novella Blackwater

In 2024 I teamed up with Westwood Instruments to record the percussion for Novella Blackwater — their newest virtual instrument library inspired by Americana, Western cinema, and wide-open landscapes. It’s a beautifully versatile toolkit for composers and songwriters, built around expressive strings, characterful solo instruments, and plenty of rugged, unusual textures.

My part of the project focused on Westwood’s largest untuned percussion ensemble to date. We captured a battered rusty oil drum, two very different snares (including a military snare with flams, drags and rolls), vintage toms, an old hand drum, cymbal stacks, and a handful of small but useful additions: jaw harp, claves, cowbell, thunder shaker, and seed shaker. Everything was recorded with multiple dynamic layers and round-robins to keep the playing natural and alive.

You can explore Novella Blackwater here and hear the full walkthrough on YouTube. It was a joy to record, and I’m excited to see what people create with it.