With five new product releases, it has been a busy month in the world of virtual piano plugins. Could this be something to do with Christmas? The offerings in question come from Modartt, Native Instruments, IK Multimedia, Rhodes, and Roland. So let’s take a closer look…
Roland EARTH Piano
EARTH Piano is available through the Roland Cloud infrastructure — the home of all Roland’s software-based musical instruments.
EARTH Piano features seven base models that can be extensively modified to taste. They break down as follows…
Classic Grand – a big, full-range European-style voicing
Session Grand – a balanced piano based on Roland’s V-Piano
Artist Grand – an American-style grand
All Silver – an abstract instrument imagining what a piano with silver strings would sound like
Natural Upright – a contemporary upright
Natural Felt Upright – a softer emulation with felt placed between the hammers and the strings
Toy Piano – a bright, atmospheric emulation of the classic “plinkity” toy piano sound.
These instruments are produced using Roland’s most modern piano sound technology and combine multisampling with proprietary modelling techniques. The company has been making electronic and digital instruments for over 50 years, so they do have some form.
Global parameters such as temperament, stereo width, dynamic range, cabinet resonance, string resonance, and pedal noise can be fine-tuned. And each note’s pitch, volume, and character can also be adjusted to get the desired result. Venue controls place the instrument in various-sized environments (from cathedral to home), and a plethora of effects are also available.
EARTH Piano supports VST3, AU, and AAX plugin formats. The price until 30 November 2024 is $49.99 (thereafter $249.99). The software requires Roland Cloud Manager. There is a free 30-day trial through Roland Cloud Ultimate membership.
More information can be found on the Roland website and detailed specifications can be found here.
Launch Date: 30 October 2024.
Modartt Shigeru Kawai SK-EX Piano
Modartt’s Pianoteq is a powerful virtual instrument that utilizes physical modelling to simulate the sound and behaviour of acoustic pianos and other instruments. The company regularly releases new instrument packs to use with Pianoteq. These feature important makes and models, and Modartt has now released its Shigeru Kawai SK-EX Concert Grand piano pack.
The SK-EX Concert Grand is Shigeru Kawai’s prestigious flagship piano. It’s built by hand in Ryuyo, Japan, and no more than 20 are made each year.
The sound of the SK-EX is mathematically modelled. The results are then played and modified using the Pianoteq software, either as a standalone program or as a plugin (VST, AU and AAX) for a digital audio workstation.
Modelling means that there are no samples to store and therefore the software takes up very little memory space – it does however require more computational power, but this is well within the capacity of virtually all modern computers.
The SK-EX pack offers 15 different presets each with unique piano voicings, microphone placements and effects, etc. Modelling generally allows for more advanced user-editing options than sample based systems.
The Shigeru Kawai SK-EX Concert Grand pack for Pianoteq can be purchased for $49/€49. The Pianoteq software itself starts at $139/€139. A free trial version is available to Pianoteq users.
More information is available on the Modartt website.
Launch Date: 6 November 2024.
IK Multimedia Black Pearl B200
Black Pearl B200 is IK Multimedia’s eighth and final scheduled addition to its Pianoverse virtual instrument. Pianoverse is a collection of the world’s finest pianos all meticulously sampled using robot-assisted technology. These samples are used with the Pianoverse program again either as a standalone or as a plugin.
The new Black Pearl B200 virtual instrument has a rich contemporary-sounding air. It is based on the superb Bösendorfer 214VC grand piano. This is a relatively new model from Bösendorfer. At 7ft in length it is classed as a compact grand piano, but has many of the features of the larger 280VC. Being smaller though, it is generally considered more refined and better balanced.
The piano was sampled at the legendary Fonoprint Sudios in Bologna Italy — a 15th century convent — using DPA cardioid and omnidirectional microphones.
The sample pack features 25 piano presets – all can be extensively modified. The Pianoverse user interface, features four main screens – Piano, Space, Mix and Effects. The graphics are nicely designed and the controls are completely intuitive.
The Space screen is particularly effective. Here you can choose from 30 different locations with the sound modified accordingly. For example, Club puts the piano in a nightclub, and the on-screen image changes accordingly. Opera House introduces rich reverberations, and the image changes accordingly, whilst Iceberg puts the piano on an Iceflow and the sound becomes cold with a feel of isolation.
The other seven instruments in the Pianoverse are:
Concert Grand YF3 – based on the 9′ Yamaha CFIII concert grand piano
Royal Upright Y5 – based on the Yamaha U5 upright piano
Black Diamond B280 – based on the Bösendorfer 280VC grand piano
NY Grand S274 – based on the 9′ Steinway & Sons New York D-274 grand piano
Gran Concerto 278 – based on the 9’6″ Fazioli F278 grand piano
Hamburg Grand S274 – based on the 9′ Steinway & Sons Hamburg D-274 grand piano
Liberty Upright – based on a 1915 Koch & Korselt upright piano
IK Multimedia’s Pianoverse – Black Pearl B200 occupies approximately 30GB of disk space and sells for $99.99/€99.99. It can also be purchased as part of the Pianoverse MAX package which includes all the 8 above pianos for $299.99/€299.99 . More information can be found on the IK Multimedia website.
Launch Date: 17 October 2024.
Rhodes Anthology
Rhodes Anthology is the second software instrument package by the recently resurrected Rhodes company. Its previous release was the Rhodes V8/V8 Pro — a software version of its “real” hardware electric piano the MK8 .
Rhodes Anthology brings the sound of four classic Rhodes models to the table. These have been restored and optimised for sampling. And, strictly speaking, these are the only genuine authorised Rhodes emulations of these instruments.
Firstly there is the [Fender] Rhodes MK1 Stage 73 (from 1976) which appears on many classic hits from the likes of Herbie Hancock and Stevie Wonder. It was famously used on Riders on the Storm, by the Doors.
From 1965 comes the earlier and somewhat rarer [Fender] Sparkletop 73, so named for its silver/glitter top cover. These pianos have a brighter bell-like timbre. They feature on several Beatles tracks (played by Billy Preston) and on Miles Davis’ In a Silent Way album
The third model is the Rhodes MKV 73 from 1984. This features a range of improvements over earlier designs. The new hammer action and damper mechanisms give the instrument a smoother more mellow tone and allow the tines to oscillate more freely further enhancing that famous bell-like quality of the sound. It was the last new piano produced at the Rhodes factory
Finally, there is the Rhodes MK7 73. This model was produced between 2007 and 2010. The instrument was very similar to the MKV, the differences coming down to the manufacture of the various parts, and modifications to the pre-amp. The MK7 was the first Rhodes to incorporate MIDI.
Rhodes Anthology’s user interface is elegantly designed offering a wide range of sound editing features. The pre-amp and FX modules come from the Rhodes V8 Pro plugin.
Rhodes Anthology currently sells for $99.95/£99.95, and there is a 14-day free trial. For more information go to the Rhodes Music Group website.
Launch Date: 5 November 2024.
Native Instruments Claire
Claire is the latest virtual piano to come from the collaboration between Native Instruments and Galaxy Instruments. Previous releases include Piano Colors (2021), Noire (2019), Una Corda (2015), and Alicia’s Electric Keys (2024).
Why is the package called Claire? Well apparently “claire” is the French word for “clear”.
Claire is described as “meticulously sampled from a world-class 10 ft Italian concert grand piano known for its unmatched tonal clarity, depth, and power”. For legal reasons, Native Instruments asked us not to name the actual model, but it doesn’t take a genius to work out which one is being alluded to here. Italian… 10ft… that’s 308cm – arguably the largest piano currently in production, and renowned for its powerful and harmonically clear sound!
Claire is a Kontakt instrument, that is to say it uses Native Instruments’ Kontakt software as the host for its samples. Kontakt runs as a standalone piece of software, or as a plugin for a digital audio workstation.
The piano was sampled at Galaxy Hall in Belgium, using various microphones in different positions. The main page of the user interface lets you mix between close and room mikes, moving from a direct clear sound to one with more depth. And rather neatly, the image of the piano zooms in and out accordingly.
In addition to the usual range of sound editing and effects tools, Claire includes Native Instruments’ Particles engine in its package. This creative feature generates a cloud of additional notes based on those played on the keyboard. It’s a kind of super-arpeggiator, and produces some extremely interesting results.
Claire is supplied with 107 snapshots (preset set-ups) and occupies just under 30GB of disk space. It requires Kontakt Player 8.1.0+ (free), or Kontakt 8.1.0+, and sells for $149.00/£129.00. It is also available through Native Instruments’ subscription channels 360 Plus and 360 Pro.
More information can be found on the Native Instruments’ website
Launch Date: 7 November 2024.