Overview

The Mervyn Warren Choir is a virtual choir instrument developed by Spitfire Audio, capturing the expressive power and unique timbre of an elite Black choir. Produced by Grammy-winning composer Mervyn Warren, it provides a versatile and detailed choral library aimed to enhance vocal production in genres like film music, pop, jazz, and R&B. The recordings were made at Evergreen Studios in Los Angeles with a group of professional singers and engineered by Grammy and Emmy winner Frank Wolf.

Features

• Includes 20 vocalists divided into sopranos, altos, tenors, and mega basses with a wide vocal range and techniques.
• Varied vocal techniques such as longs, yeahs, short staccatos, legatos, vowel morphs, stacked sounds, and aleatoric hairpins for rich textures.
• Body percussion kit featuring handclaps, stomps, fingersnaps, thigh slaps, and chest beats to add rhythmic and soulful elements.
• Vocal expressions including whispers, inhales, and exhales for realistic and emotional effects.
• Controls for dynamics, expression, vibrato, reverb, morph, and tightness within the Ensemble Engine plugin.
• Mixing options with close, room, and mix microphone signals.

Background and Production

Mervyn Warren, a versatile composer and five-time Grammy winner known for his work across multiple music genres, created this library in collaboration with vocal arranger Nikki Grier. The singers involved have contributed to projects with artists such as Beyoncé, Celine Dion, and John Legend. The product aims to go beyond traditional gospel improvisation with film-level precision and studio-grade performances.

Technical Information

• Requires Spitfire's Ensemble plugin (AU, VST2, VST3, AAX) to use within a DAW; appears as 'Spitfire Ensemble' plugin.
• Supported on macOS 11–15 and Windows 10/11 (64-bit), with recommended multi-core processors and 16GB RAM.
• File size approximately 11.5 GB.