ALT PIANO
UPRIGHT PIANO FOR KONTAKT
For every story you need to tell.
A piano with two different characters.
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ALT PIANO is the complete and unabridged big sister to our Upright Felt Piano.
We recorded an old, humble and character-filled upright piano from the 60s, with and without felt making this a piano with two very different characters. Soft and beautiful or bright and lively, or blend between the recordings to achieve a tone unlike anything else.
We also re-recorded the piano samples in three distinctly different and unique ways to create a series of textural sound layers, which can be mixed with the natural piano or used on their own.
With dozens of other unique and interesting controls, you can create a very diverse range of sounds all from just one instrument.
INSTRUMENT
Upright Piano
(an old one)
HIGHLIGHTS
Blend between felt and natural recordings
3 beautiful texture layers
Plenty of awesome and unique controls
REQUIREMENTS
Kontakt FULL
5.6.8 or above
Will NOT work on the free Player
GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE
Interface
As with all our custom designed interfaces, we want you to have a logical and clear layout with everything to hand.
FELT CONTROL
Natural or felted
(or somewhere in-between)
We recorded the piano twice. With and without felt which provides you with two very distinct characters. Both are full of subtle imperfections and individuality.
The natural sound of the piano without felt is bright and lively, whilst the felted recordings are soft and gentle.
But best of all, you don’t have to choose. We created a control that blends between the two recordings so you can dial in a sound that suits you.
TESTIMONIAL
“If you need a piano that is an amazing ‘go-to’ for multi purpose then this is the one. I’ve found it’s possible to get everything from intimate to epic from it very quickly.”
Lex Shellard
TEXTURE CONTROL
When you just need something more
If you need an interesting and deeper atmospheric feeling to your music, you can use the Texture control. We took the original piano samples and re-recorded, manipulated and filtered them to create a series of three different layers which blend perfectly with the piano because, well, they’re made from the piano.
TEXTURE 1
A I R
A light breathy sound created by our custom plugin chain of reverse reverbs and granular manipulation. Wait for the tail to hear this peaceful but slightly haunting sound.
TEXTURE 2
E A R T H
Using a noisy and temperamental Sony TC-121 Cassette-Corder from the 60s, we created a worn, warped and gently unsettling feeling for this texture. It’s all about the wow.
TEXTURE 3
E A R T H
We recorded the samples to tape through a beautiful Tascam MSR24s and then slowed back the tape speed to achieve a tone that’s a full octave deeper. You’re going to want some bigger monitors.
DEMO MUSIC
Listen to some examples
TESTIMONIAL
“A lovely piano that you can modify in all sorts of ways very quickly.
It has a nice warm tone to it and this instrument can be used in quite a few applications.
Need an intimate piano? Done. Need a distant pad? Done.”
TWIN COMPOSERS
Instrument walkthrough
A guide through the whole instrument. Listen to the huge range of sounds you can achieve, some of the Snapshot presets and an overview of the controls available.
Play Video
MICROPHONES
This is how we recorded it
We sampled the piano in the crypt of a church. It’s lived there for the past 10 years since a band we know have recorded all their albums in this unlikely place.
We used an absolutely world-class pristine signal path recording everything at 96kHz through legendary Neve 1073 pre-amps and Burr Brown AD convertors.
The signal started with a matched pair of Coles 4038’s as close as we dare put them to the hammers, to capture a really detailed sound. A stereo pair of AKG 414’s made an excellent job of providing a more natural and open perspective. We used a pair of SE-2‘s on the rear soundboard which gives you a boxy and bright sound. Finally we set up another stereo pair of AKG 414‘s right in the furthest and vaults of the room to record a really distant and ambient perspective.
All of these microphones can be mixed independently with the addition of a stereo width control per channel on the Kontakt interface so you can dial in exactly the sound you want.
TESTIMONIAL
“If you want a raw piano that sounds like a live recording you have to check out ALT PIANO.
It stands out from many of the other options on the market.”
Tyler Michael Smith
MAJOR CONTROLS
With great control, comes great responsibility
Untune
This isn’t a pitch shifter, this is a really precise control which allows you to make the piano sound like it’s fallen out of tune. You can make it sound anywhere between a day and a decade out of tune.
Transpitch
Tune the sound of the notes down, whilst retaining the right pitch by transposing them back up. All with one click. This creates a much richer and deeper sound and is a really interesting way way to alter the tone, instead of using EQ.
Pianist
Listen to the gentle creak of the chair, clothing foley and a hint of room ambience. You can control the intensity and the volume independently. We think this sounds as authentic and realistic as it gets to a live recording.
Piano
Four different controls and one master gain to set the sound of the sustain pedal being depressed and released. The sound of all the strings resonating when you press the pedal as well as the hammers returning after you release each key.
ADDITIONAL CONTROLS
Super-fine-tune
We set the start time of every single sample to create the most natural and characterful sound possible, whilst retaining playability. You can dig into the start of the sample if you want to lose the front end for either your own playing style or to lose the initial transient for tonal reasons.
Customise the sensitivity of the velocities right in interface of the instrument. Great if your MIDI keyboard isn’t that even when you play it, or just to help you get to the right dynamics.
We recorded the piano without the front on, but this switch simulates the difference in timbre between how the piano sounds if the front is either on or off.
Switch the entire recording perspective of all the microphones. Left is right and right is left. Great if you want the piano to sit in a typical orchestral setting, where the bass notes are on the right side of the stereo field.
We cleaned up all of the inherent signal noise that’s naturally introduced whilst recording. However if you want some of that back for added grit then you can do that. We’ve also included a control where you can change the tone of the noise.
SOUND CONTROLS
Shape your sound
8 curated reverb impulses all perfectly suited to the specific sound of this piano. From tiny intimate rooms, to big epic halls, you’ll be able to find something that fits your track very quickly.
A built-in delay that you can tempo-sync with the tempo in your DAW or your set freely to a specific time. You can also introduce some more motion with the panning control which alternates the delay between the speakers. You also have controls to set the damping and how much feedback you need.
A wide 3-band equaliser, set for the sound of the piano. Very quickly scoop or boost the frequencies you need to without having to reach for another plugin. A little goes a long way.
SNAPSHOTS
You're two clicks away
With so much control to get to know, we curated a set of 30 Snapshot presets to provide you with some excellent starting points. These will give you a wide variety of inspiration (if you need it) and also show you some interesting combinations you may not have thought of.
In two clicks, you can jump from a battered Tom Waits style piano that’s just right for a heartbroken ballad, to a deep textural sound that’s perfect for the start of an apocalyptic road movie.
Natural Piano
Indie Mix
The piano has been drinking
Lost in Reykjavík
Rob’s Felt Piano
As Real As It Gets
The Crypt
Only Earth
Huxley
Grain & Subtle Felt
TECH SPECS
Product Information
- Instrument Type: Piano
- 1 Kontakt Instrument
- Over 1300 Samples
- 6GB Uncompressed WAVs
- Full version of Kontakt 5.6.8 and above
- Mac OS X10.10 Intel Core Duo
- Windows 7,9,10 Intel Core Duo
- 2.5 GB download size
- Downloads with Pulse
- 5GB disc space needed during installation
PLEASE NOTE This instrument is only compatible with the full version of Kontakt 5.6.8 and above. It will not work with the free Kontakt Player.
TESTIMONIAL
“A very versatile, vintage sounding piano. It has, without doubt, a certain nostalgic character that will please modern composers, particularly those who are drawn to writing more intimate, Scandi styles of orchestral music.”
ADRIAN BANKS (BANKS AUDIO THEATRE)
FAQ
I'm looking for pristine concert grand piano, is this it?
Nope.
Will this work on the free Kontakt Player?
You need the full version of Kontakt 5.6.8 or above. It will NOT work in the free Player version of Kontakt. Please make sure you have the correct version before purchasing. If you need help, we have a fully-loaded guide to Kontakt which you can read here.
Can I get a free demo to try out?
Sort of . . . we have our infamous and free Upright Felt Piano, which uses the same felted samples and just a few of the essential controls you need.
Are these the same samples as Upright Felt Piano?
Yes, the felt samples are the same (although we’ve re-polished them all). The Natural piano samples (without felt) are only available on this instrument.
Can I use this in commercial releases?
Yes! What you can’t do is repackage the individual samples or re-release them as another sample library, but you can absolutely use them to make the next score to a film about making 500 million friends (and a few enemies).