How to blend synths and a string orchestra with Ólafur Arnalds and Spitfire Audio’s CellsAd feature with Spitfire Audio
Working alongside its frequent collaborator — the Emmy- and Grammy-nominated Icelandic composer and producer, Ólafur Arnalds — Spitfire Audio has produced a library that expertly straddles synthesis and string orchestra to produce evocative hybrids.

The sounds are undeniably gorgeous, but it’s Cells’s ability to generate musical variation that will do wonders for your workflow. Instead of writing string parts line by line, you simply hold down a note or chord and let the engine produce a range of musical ‘cells’ that constantly shift and change. These micro expressions can encompass different intervals but will never stray from the harmonies you’re working with.
The inspiration for this library comes from Arnalds experience working with live musicians. Rather than simply dictating exactly what should be played, the composer often collaborates with the performers, asking them to produce random variations in pitch, timbre, and expression. Cells takes that concept and introduces a set of intuitive randomisation tools to keep your sound ever-changing within a chosen key.
The results are often fascinating, surprising, and, most importantly, never static – taking you one step closer to the organic expression of real-life orchestral players on a scoring stage.
Merging strings and synthesisers

Combining strings and synths can produce some fantastic, hard-to-put-your-finger-on sounds. Straight out of the box, Cells comes with superb presets that merge organic and electronic textures for instantly atmospheric tones.
If you want to get more hands-on control over the exact balance between synth and string, Cells has you covered. The plugin comes with Spitfire Audio’s well-established eDNA engine which is custom built for such a purpose. To open this alternative user interface, click on the Mode menu and select Synth.

The interface centres around two ‘Sound Bays’ where you can load in samples. To start blending timbres, simply load a string sample into Bay A and select a synthesiser sample for Bay B.
We’ve loaded ‘Long Medium (Unison)’ and ‘Mallet Swarm 04’. Move the crossfader to hear how the two sources combine together.
Oscillating between the two sounds is the quickest way to produce evolving textures. Turn on the Oscillate Mixer checkbox and adjust the multiplier setting to 16x to hear a slow shift from one timbre to another. You can also choose how much of each sound will be fed into the mix by adjusting the small vertical sliders on either side of the crossfader.

This, however, is just the start — opening up the effects tab offers huge potential for further crafting. The string and synths each run through their own effects bays labelled ‘Bay A FX’ and ‘Bay B FX’. Select the one you want to work with, then experiment with the various effects by turning on the toggle and clicking on the effect name. From there, adjust the levels as needed.
How to use Ólafur Arnalds Cells in your music
This library effortlessly delivers drama and emotion. The sounds bubble and morph in a way that captures your ear and keeps you hanging on for more.
You can use it to build a chord progression with immersive depth and weight, and this makes it ideal for lush swells, and highly emotive passages. However, it’s also ideal for break-out moments where the strings spill into the foreground.
If you know the scale you’re working in, then adjust the Key setting to suit. This feature allows you to lock in your harmonic centre and play without worrying that you might accidentally hit a wrong note.
You can also break out of a key and play freely. Cells will automatically analyse the notes you’re playing and generate variations in the texture that fit perfectly within the given key.
You can do this in the Standard mode window by switching the variation engine to ‘Played’.
To change the kind of variation Cells produces, you can choose from a series of preset cards which each feature different images of musical notation. Some cells give an obvious idea of the result like ‘Intensity’ or ‘Motion’, while others like ‘Cirrus’ or ‘Clouds’ need you to play and discover the results.

Shaping your sound
Sometimes you might want a middle ground between keeping in the key of your music and breaking out to play a few chromatic notes that don’t belong. To set this up, click the toggle next to ‘Out-Of-Scale’ to turn the setting on.
If you want to refine the detail of your sounds, or make them feel more present in the mix, try experimenting with the dry/wet balance on Cells’ reverb. There are two ways to access the effects linked to each preset – either press the grey button in the centre of the interface, select your effect, and then change the master dial, or, you can click on the ‘FX’ tab and see all the audio effects side by side.

Finally, if you don’t know what scale you are playing in, then you can manually input your notes one at a time. The circles on the right-hand side of Cells’ interface represent all the intervals in a single octave, so all you need to do is choose the notes that you’ve been playing and the engine will automatically recognise the key and scale for you.
Cells sale
With the unique ability to create evolving string textures, paired with an organic palette of atmospheric synths, this plugin is ideal for anyone who wants to beautifully underscore moments of drama and emotion.
Cells features an engine that can instantly recognise the key you are playing in, but for those who want deeper control, the eDna alternative interface offers even more in the way of effects bays you can experiment with, an oscillator for crossfading your sound in a unique way, and plenty more options for further crafting your sound.
If you’re after a quick and easy tool for producing that hard-to-define sound of strings in synths melded together, save 20% on Ólafur Arnalds Cells now with Spitfire’s introductory offer.
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