Wavelet Audio has released Runa: Free Edition, an ancient stringed instrument for Kontakt Player, in celebration of the first anniversary of Runa Scoring Strings.
Runa Scoring Strings is a library inspired by an ancient stringed instrument, the Kobyz, which originated in Central Asia and is closely associated with countries like Kazakhstan.
The Kobyz has just two strings, one for melody and another for resonance, and a one-piece wooden body.
The exact origin story of the instrument isn’t one I could share with any guarantee it’s factual, since we’re potentially talking about something that occurred over 1,000 years ago.
But the folklore adds to the intrigue, and the historic connection to shamans and nomadic storytellers becomes perfectly fitting as soon as you hear its haunting tone.
The free version of this library comes with two articulations (Sustain and Staccato) and multiple legato types (True Legato and Re-bow Legato).
The contrast between the available articulations is stark, to provide a broader range of playing styles.
Sustain likely does most of the heavy lifting in a typical project, and Staccato is there when you need to play faster with perfectly defined notes.
The legato types are more interesting than the articulations and bring a high level of realism to the library.
You can play legato with beautifully smooth sustains or transitions, including trills with grace notes. Or you can use Re-bow Legato for more rhythmic patterns with authentic bowing, as you’d expect from a real player.
But what I like most about Runa: Free Edition is how many ways you can use it, thanks to the sound itself and the expressive control through velocity and keyswitching.
The sound can take the lead for haunting melodic lines or create a deep, droning bed for something else, like vocals or another Kobyz.
Even the drones have a haunting quality that makes it easy to picture some ancient ritual or storytelling session.
It’s the kind of sound I love to hear used sparsely in film; it’s raw and imperfect, and doesn’t need anything else.
Although, if you think it does need a little help, various snapshots take you well beyond the instrument’s natural sound, including polyphonic options.
Runa: Free Edition is compatible with the free Kontakt Player.
If you like the freebie and want to try the full version, you can buy it for $149 (usually $199) until August 1, 2026.
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Last Updated on July 17, 2026 by Tomislav Zlatic.
