Four Preludes - Garritan Steinway (Sosnowski)

[etLux]

Update: April 13, 2008

Hi All,

This started out with just a few little preludes to
provide a small taste of Gary's wonderful new Authorized
Steinway. But then, well, you know what happens.
I got to fiddling around, and came up with this (below);
a little experiment of mine... lol. Rather than start a
new post, I thought I'd just present it here:

Three Gaseous Preludes
David J. Sosnowski
Garritan Authorized Steinway Model D
Flash Player Presentation

davidsosnowski.com/gas/external.html

Click the > arrow on the left of the player to start
the playback.

Let me know if it works for all of you. It's tricky to
do and time-consuming -- but I'm tinkering with a way
to make it easier, so perhaps we can do more.

And now, back to the original post...

Four Preludes
David J. Sosnowski
Garritan Authorized Steinway Model D

These are a few miscellaneous preludes, little pieces
I do really just for fun. I've rendered them on Gary's
new Steinway.

As all of you know, I'm sure, as the Official Garritan
Village Technical Idiot, rendering is definitely not
my strong suit -- but even in my fumbling hands, by
gosh, what a beautiful instrument!


Prelude #17
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_17.mp3


Prelude #21
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_21.mp3


Prelude #27
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_27.mp3


Prelude #5
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_5.mp3


(If anyone has any trouble with the links, you can
also find these on the www.DavidSosnowski.com site,
down the bottom of the page.)


Update:

It occurred to me there haven't been any demos yet
with the soft pedal. This is #5 (transposed up a third)
done with Under Lid perspective and soft pedal...


Prelude #5 Under Lid with Soft Pedal
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_5s.mp3


While many piano samples simply mute or filter for the
soft pedal sound, the G.Steinway uses additional
samples of the real soft pedal sound.

All my best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[rolifer]

David

I came downstairs and figured I would record a few minutes of myself on the Piano. I get ideas and I need as much practice as I can get. I was listening to the replay when I decided to take a look here and what do I see? So I cut off my replay and take a listen.

Well, now I figure you owe me for a new keyboard and a new window, because I threw mine out the window.

I listened to them all, but have been letting # 17 run for a while now. I love it.

It is very cinematic in nature, which was probably not your intent, but it has a great feel to it and would work perfectly in a slow chase scene.

What got me was that you composed the feeling that I was trying to capture in my 4 minute piece and you did it in less than a minute.

The Steinway sounds Grand and I am still listening to 17 after 10 minutes.


Well done!!!

Ron

[klassical]

etLux - Very nice. Could you tell us what, if any, effects you used?

Compression, reverb, etc.?

Or is it the untouched Steinway output?

- k

[DPDAN]

Thank you for posting these David.

You crank these things out quick, I don't know how you do it!
Gotta love that piano
Dan

[Kinvint]

Blimey, Gov'nor!

How do you do it? How? Four pieces, all of which sound like they are being performed by a live pianist.

I am -as always, when I hear your work, David- overwhelmed by your mastery of this style of music.

**Gobsmacked**

Thank you, it was a pleasure hearing these (they are on loop now!)

Regards
Paul

[rpearl]

David,

These are lovely! At times it felt like a combination of Poulenc and Nancarrow - a bit of an odd pairing, but the complex rhythmic figures along with the at-times whimsical gesture made this come to mind. I really liked the slow one - but they all shine. And, such a wide range of figures and emotions in such a short space!

The Steinway is very capably played in your hands, so to speak. The rendering is quite nice - the crescendi on the double trills work so well, both as a gesture, as well as the way it is executed.

Thanks for sharing these. As always, your music is a delight.

[RichR]

As all of you know, I'm sure, as the Official Garritan
Village Technical Idiot

Let's not be so hard on ourself here. I think you have mis-stated this. You are actually the Quasi- Official- self stated - Garritan, large town challenged Technical-ly mind-challenged member of this community.:D

Or What ever you say you are, these pieces are beautifully done and show not only the steinways masterfulness but your compositional masterfulness as well. Nice, Nice works done on the standard of all pianos.

[trentpmcd]

Hi David,

I thought these preludes were great and went a long way in showing off the Steinway sound. Do you have (or are planning) a set of 24 of these?

Edit – after listening to these I went back and re-listened to a few of my preludes. Besides the fact that yours are compositionally more advanced (i.e., better) there is no comparison in sound - the Steinway just sounds so alive. I really have to save my pennies so I can get a Steinway of my very own.

[etLux]

ROFL! Ron, you're an article!

Send me the bill. I won't pay it, but I'd love to frame it.

Thanks for listening, my friend.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com



David

I came downstairs and figured I would record a few minutes of myself on the Piano. I get ideas and I need as much practice as I can get. I was listening to the replay when I decided to take a look here and what do I see? So I cut off my replay and take a listen.

Well, now I figure you owe me for a new keyboard and a new window, because I threw mine out the window.

I listened to them all, but have been letting # 17 run for a while now. I love it.

It is very cinematic in nature, which was probably not your intent, but it has a great feel to it and would work perfectly in a slow chase scene.

What got me was that you composed the feeling that I was trying to capture in my 4 minute piece and you did it in less than a minute.

The Steinway sounds Grand and I am still listening to 17 after 10 minutes.


Well done!!!

Ron

[etLux]

etLux - Very nice. Could you tell us what, if any, effects you used?

Compression, reverb, etc.?

Or is it the untouched Steinway output?

- k

Thanks for the good word, klassical.

Compression, no, never.

I was tinkering with these over and over again to get the
hang of treating sound with the G.Steinway, and I honestly
don't remember which has exactly what on it -- but a couple
of them are the native G.Steinway Ambience, and a couple
are SIR.

One thing I'm learning with the G.Steinway is to use just a
light layer. This becomes particularly important where the
G.Steinway's resonance is involved. If you get too heavy-
handed with reverb, even a little, you immediately begin to
obscure the detail inherent in the sound.

I've also noted a considerably greater sensitivity with the
G.Steinway when making mp3's. Pianos generally have very
fast transients and attacks involved, and .mp3's don't shine
at handling those to begin with. An .mp3 at 128 kbs sounds
dreadful. Even 160 kbs is marginal -- you can hear the
difference between the .wav I start with and the .mp3
clearly. 192 kbs or higher seems really necessary for this...
far more so than with the orchestral work I've done along
the way. These four are all at 256 kbs.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Thanks for listening, Dan!

I've got quite an inventory of these, to tell you the truth... lol.
It's a real pleasure for me to begin rendering some of them
with an instrument as phenomenal as the G.Steinway.

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com




Thank you for posting these David.

You crank these things out quick, I don't know how you do it!
Gotta love that piano
Dan

[etLux]

Wow! That's quite a reaction for such a little music, my
friend. I thank you!

But I've got to give a lot of credit to the G.Steinway...
it makes most anything sound good (even these... lol).
Much of it goes to the resonance, I think, the dimension
it adds to the sound. I've tried recording some of these
previously with other samples, but they always sounded
lackluster to me.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com




Blimey, Gov'nor!

How do you do it? How? Four pieces, all of which sound like they are being performed by a live pianist.

I am -as always, when I hear your work, David- overwhelmed by your mastery of this style of music.

**Gobsmacked**

Thank you, it was a pleasure hearing these (they are on loop now!)

Regards
Paul

[germancomponist]

)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~

Well done my friend!

Best,

Gunther

[Fredrik]

Sparkling performance à la Liszt!

Intricate rythmic patterns throughout your 4 preludes... my favorite theme is the no 21. With its stubborn and teasing character that is varied while repeated!

Addictive stuff David!


Fred

[valhalx]

David,

It was great to hear these again. They're sounding better than ever. My only question is, where are the accompanying fugues?

Bill

[Jun Yamamoto]

Four Preludes
David J. Sosnowski
Garritan Authorized Steinway Model D


David,

I enjoyed your preludes very much. Also I found that glissandi produces desired result with not only violin or viola but also piano. Steinway sounds great but I guess it should be too heavy for slower machines.

Sincerely,

[Rhap2]

David:

You contemporary Devil, you...........

Great sounding piano renditions. Also, thanks for the tips
on effects and mp3 rates. I will try mine at 256 to
see the difference. I have always done everything at
192, but I don't want to go "cheap" on the new Steinway
D.

I particularly like your third Prelude here ( No. 27, I think).
And, I must say that ALL the notes played sounded so
full and beautiful, but especially the bass notes. WOW, they
are Steinway Great...........they really make you listen to a
composition that on other pianos don't impress very much.

Thanks for your wonderful piano music, David.

Jack

[Pingu]

These are fantastic David! I wish I had half your piano-writing ability. I've been listening to no.17 over and over - the rhythmic play is simply wonderful.

And, as you say, the Steinway is incredibly expressive. Can't wait for mine!

[sosmus]

David:
What a delightful quartet of pieces. All different yet alike, all very interesting and compelling. In this day and age of rampant ADS, their brevity is a stroke of genius. A little devilish, I might add, as I almost missed that last, late chord in #3.

Steve

[etLux]

Hi Ron,

Thanks for giving these a listen.

David,

These are lovely! At times it felt like a combination of Poulenc and Nancarrow - a bit of an odd pairing, but the complex rhythmic figures along with the at-times whimsical gesture made this come to mind. I really liked the slow one - but they all shine. And, such a wide range of figures and emotions in such a short space!


I appreciate the company you put me in, Ron. One
thing I've grown sure of with the G.Steinway is, it
won't let you down -- regardless of style or type or
range of music.


The Steinway is very capably played in your hands, so to speak. The rendering is quite nice - the crescendi on the double trills work so well, both as a gesture, as well as the way it is executed.


The way the G.Steinway reacts... it's really remarkable
how close it is to the real instrument. Trills are one of
the things that often reveal the shortcomings of how a
piano library approaches a note. If the attack is at all
wrong, it'll come hit you in the snoot.



Thanks for sharing these. As always, your music is a delight.

Thanks again, Ron.

My best,


David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Let's not be so hard on ourself here. I think you have mis-stated this. You are actually the Quasi- Official- self stated - Garritan, large town challenged Technical-ly mind-challenged member of this community.:D


I think I need semantic assistance in unscrambling that... rofl!


Or What ever you say you are, these pieces are beautifully done and show not only the steinways masterfulness but your compositional masterfulness as well. Nice, Nice works done on the standard of all pianos.

Many thanks, my friend, for the kind words. It's a lot easier
to sound good when you have a great instrument to work with!

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Hi Trent,

Particularly pleased you made it by for a listen, my friend.

Hi David,

I thought these preludes were great and went a long way in showing off the Steinway sound. Do you have (or are planning) a set of 24 of these?


Oh, heavens no, I'm not nearly so organized and orderly. The fact
is, I have way over a hundred of these laying around. There's no
particular relationship amongst them.


Edit – after listening to these I went back and re-listened to a few of my preludes. Besides the fact that yours are compositionally more advanced (i.e., better) there is no comparison in sound - the Steinway just sounds so alive. I really have to save my pennies so I can get a Steinway of my very own.

Trent, of all people, this instrument truly belongs in your hands.
May I hope it soon finds its way there!

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~

Well done my friend!

Best,

Gunther

Thanks, Gunny! Glad you listened!

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Hi Fredrik,

Sparkling performance à la Liszt!


I steal shamelessly. I admit it. But only from the best.


Intricate rythmic patterns throughout your 4 preludes... my favorite theme is the no 21. With its stubborn and teasing character that is varied while repeated!

Addictive stuff David!


Fred

Thanks for the good work Fredrik; pleased you enjoyed.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

David,

It was great to hear these again. They're sounding better than ever. My only question is, where are the accompanying fugues?

Bill

There's a smart-**s, er, smart guy in every crowd... rofl.

Bill, I thought you'd had quite enough of my fugues by now.

Thanks for the listen and the good word, my friend.

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

David,

I enjoyed your preludes very much. Also I found that glissandi produces desired result with not only violin or viola but also piano. Steinway sounds great but I guess it should be too heavy for slower machines.

Sincerely,

Thank you for listening, Jun.

As for "horsepower" -- I am running a two-and-a-half year-old
machine, Pentium® D Processor 840 Dual Core Technology
(3.20GHz, 800FSB), 2G RAM... and it's no strain at all on that.

I also have all the G.Steinway samples on an external USB hard
drive, and that all works flawlessly.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Hiya Jack,

David:

You contemporary Devil, you...........


If you only knew.


Great sounding piano renditions. Also, thanks for the tips
on effects and mp3 rates. I will try mine at 256 to
see the difference. I have always done everything at
192, but I don't want to go "cheap" on the new Steinway
D.


I've had more than one recording engineer tell me that the
piano is, by far, the most difficult instrument to record well.

Another tip: I hope everyone will note this...

Like any library, it takes time to explore and learn. One
other area that really takes some getting used to is the
enormous dynamic range of this, so much like the real
Steinway D.

Any experience you've had previously with, say, GPO
Steinway and many other piano libraries really won't take
in the scope of the G.Steinway's dynamics.


I particularly like your third Prelude here ( No. 27, I think).
And, I must say that ALL the notes played sounded so
full and beautiful, but especially the bass notes. WOW, they
are Steinway Great...........they really make you listen to a
composition that on other pianos don't impress very much.


I caution caution caution not to judge too, too much
by my renderings, here, though, Jack. I'm barely, just
barely scratching the surface.


Thanks for your wonderful piano music, David.

Jack

Thanks again for your kind words, Jack.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

These are fantastic David! I wish I had half your piano-writing ability. I've been listening to no.17 over and over - the rhythmic play is simply wonderful.

And, as you say, the Steinway is incredibly expressive. Can't wait for mine!

Pingu, thanks for your kind comments, my friend. The piano
and I have had a very long and close relationship, over fifty
years; and that has much to do with writing for it.

Glad you liked #17... that seems to be a favorite... lol. Though,
according to Ron, it's really tough on window glass.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

David:
What a delightful quartet of pieces. All different yet alike, all very interesting and compelling. In this day and age of rampant ADS, their brevity is a stroke of genius. A little devilish, I might add, as I almost missed that last, late chord in #3.

Steve

An old performance quirk of mine. I think I lifted it from
Victor Borge, actually... see if you can fake the audience
out into thinking you're done, then just as they lift their
hands for applause, whip one finger in the air, stare sternly
at them... and strike that last note... rofl.

I used to whip these things off as encore improvisations,
and that was always great for a belly laugh from the
audience.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Update:

It occurred to me there haven't been any demos yet
with the soft pedal. This is #5 (transposed up a third)
done with Under Lid perspective and soft pedal...


Prelude #5 Under Lid with Soft Pedal
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_5s.mp3


While many piano samples simply mute or filter for the
soft pedal sound, the G.Steinway uses additional
samples of the real soft pedal sound.

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[trentpmcd]

Update:

It occurred to me there haven't been any demos yet
with the soft pedal. This is #5 (transposed up a third)
done with Under Lid perspective and soft pedal...


Prelude #5 Under Lid with Soft Pedal
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_5s.mp3


While many piano samples simply mute or filter for the
soft pedal sound, the G.Steinway uses additional
samples of the real soft pedal sound.

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

Hi David,

Thanks for posting this. I compared the two versions and certainly it does change the tone color quite a bit. I’m not familiar enough with the effect to comment on realism (the soft pedal sure doesn’t change the sound much on my old Baldwin spinet – not sure if it even works) but this sounded great.

[LouisD]

Wonderful little masterpieces ! I enjoy listening to your absolutetly finely crafted études. I wonder if you could briefly explain how you render your music through Finale with the new Steinway. I'm on the verge of ordering it, but I still don't understand how it works under Finale. Since Finale only deals with Native Instruments, how does one get the new Aria to work with Finale?

Thank you again for these lovely pieces.

[GrahamKeitch]

Hi David, these short preludes are fantastic. Each is a superb example of how to say so much with so few words - if you know what I mean! I particularly enjoyed the more mellow tones of no 5. Overall, the new samples have a lovely bright feel to them and I can see how some of this would be compromised at anything less than 256 mp3.

I shall take time out to listen to more of your piano music David, as these were most rewarding.

Kind regards, Graham

[Larry G. Alexander]

Delightful, Mr. David, just delightful!

For decades, I have always been such a close-minded, intolerant person as far as music is concerned. If music didn't have a "melody" along with pretty standard chordal progressions, I wanted no part of it. The older I get, the more I have begun deviating from that life-long path of beliefs. In this light, you are helping me to overcome my previous musical prejudices. Thanks for that.

I enjoyed your works very much. The new Steinway also sounds wonderful.

My best,

Larry

[etLux]

Hi David,

Thanks for posting this. I compared the two versions and certainly it does change the tone color quite a bit. I’m not familiar enough with the effect to comment on realism (the soft pedal sure doesn’t change the sound much on my old Baldwin spinet – not sure if it even works) but this sounded great.

Uprights and spinets rarely if ever have a true soft pedal.
They move the whole hammer part of the action closer
to the strings; or in some cases (mostly older pianos) they
may drop a thin layer of felt between the hammers and
the strings.

On a Steinway Model D, however, the soft (or una corda)
pedal shifts the entire action so that fewer strings are
struck for each note. The hammer also strikes the strings
with a somewhat softer region of the hammer felt when
the instrument is properly regulated. (The Model D used
for the samples had Steinway's best technician literally
hovering over it constantly throughout the recordings.)

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Wonderful little masterpieces ! I enjoy listening to your absolutetly finely crafted études. I wonder if you could briefly explain how you render your music through Finale with the new Steinway. I'm on the verge of ordering it, but I still don't understand how it works under Finale. Since Finale only deals with Native Instruments, how does one get the new Aria to work with Finale?

Thank you again for these lovely pieces.

In my case, I used Finale's export to make a midi file of the
piece; then loaded it in the standalone of the G.Steinway
to do the recordings.

However! That shortly will be irrelevant... per Gary's recent
post:

We'll soon be posting some virtual MIDI drivers that will work with the ARIA player and allow PC Finale users to play the Authorized Steinway.

Gary Garritan

That will open the G.Steinway up to all users of Finale
2008 and, I assume, a number of versions prior.

Louis, thank you for your kind comments, too, on these
little pieces.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Hi David, these short preludes are fantastic. Each is a superb example of how to say so much with so few words - if you know what I mean! I particularly enjoyed the more mellow tones of no 5.


Many thanks, my friend. I enjoy doing these little preludes;
not much work, instant gratification... lol -- they're really
just quick improvisations I used to do at the end of performances.

And, while I think of it, I've been meaning to do this somewhere
in this thread:

CAUTION!

Your results will differ!

My personal tastes are for very brightly voiced pianos; and
these recordings reflect that. But the G.Steinway is quite
capable of warmth (go listen to Dan Kury's work, it practically
comes out of the speakers and hugs you)... as well as the
big classic sound of the concert hall.


Overall, the new samples have a lovely bright feel to them and I can see how some of this would be compromised at anything less than 256 mp3.

I shall take time out to listen to more of your piano music David, as these were most rewarding.

Kind regards, Graham

Thanks again, Graham. I've redone all of the piano pieces
on my site with the G.Steinway -- but, once again, a caution.
Pieces like Piano Sonata #7 really aren't quite ready for
prime time... I've more work to do on them. While you can
take a midi file from something done with, oh, say the GPO
piano and pull it right into the G.Steinway, it doesn't do
justice, and it doesn't take full advantage of the great
dynamic range and sensitivity of the new instrument.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Delightful, Mr. David, just delightful!

For decades, I have always been such a close-minded, intolerant person as far as music is concerned. If music didn't have a "melody" along with pretty standard chordal progressions, I wanted no part of it. The older I get, the more I have begun deviating from that life-long path of beliefs. In this light, you are helping me to overcome my previous musical prejudices. Thanks for that.

I enjoyed your works very much. The new Steinway also sounds wonderful.

My best,

Larry

My heavens, Larry, that's quite unexpected -- but greatly
welcomed!

Yet, we are not so far apart, my friend. Though not always
readily apparent, what I write is firmly grounded, every note,
in the musical heritage you love.

Thank you, Larry. I believe this is one of the kindest posts
I have ever received.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[pianodoc]

David:

What nice pieces these four preludes are.

It's nice to hear these brief piano pieces as a contrast to the weight of the orchestra.

Your use of the instrument is amazing.

I especially remember the humor in the 2nd (Prelude 21) and the rich harmonic language of #27

Thank you for posting these for our pleasure.

David Mauney

[wrayer]

Update:

It occurred to me there haven't been any demos yet
with the soft pedal. This is #5 (transposed up a third)
done with Under Lid perspective and soft pedal...


Prelude #5 Under Lid with Soft Pedal
http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Prelude_No_5s.mp3


While many piano samples simply mute or filter for the
soft pedal sound, the G.Steinway uses additional
samples of the real soft pedal sound.

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com (http://www.DavidSosnowski.com)

As always, very impressive composing. Now, if that's Garritan Steinway I am even more impressed. Sounds like a live studio recording. Even on my very unsophisticated system I could almost hear the pedal going uo and down. Nice writing by the way!

[DDW]

OK, so, yeah, whatever, man... I guess these are alright, I mean... well, they sound pretty much, like, you know.... brilliant!!! :p (but nothing less is expected from you, Sosnowski!! ;))

Even my key-signature-loving wife was thoroughly impressed!

The Steinway sounds just incredible (the "under lid" version of #5 is my favorite, I think).

Fantastic instrument showing off equally fantastic music... thanks for the great demos, David. :)

Danny

[etLux]

Hi Bill,

Thanks for the good word on these...

As always, very impressive composing. Now, if that's Garritan Steinway I am even more impressed. Sounds like a live studio recording. Even on my very unsophisticated system I could almost hear the pedal going up and down. Nice writing by the way!

Actually -- you *can* hear the pedal going up and down, as well
as other action and mechanism sounds. These are included in the
G.Steinway (adjustable from 0-99, of course, so you can trim them
from inaudible on up). This, the way releases are handled, and a
host of other careful detailings in the sound lend significantly to
the realism of the Garritan instrument.

In these, I kept the mechanism sounds relatively mild -- but if you
listen carefully you can, from time to time, hear them. To me,
this is an important factor: Even if you are normally not very
consciously aware of these sounds, subconsciously you expect
them; and if they are not present, the ear says, "bogus!"

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

OK, so, yeah, whatever, man... I guess these are alright, I mean... well, they sound pretty much, like, you know.... brilliant!!! :p (but nothing less is expected from you, Sosnowski!! ;))


Aw. you're just buttering me up, Danny... rofl. Not that I mind.
But you're not getting out of paying me the five bucks you owe
me, regardless... lol.


Even my key-signature-loving wife was thoroughly impressed!

The Steinway sounds just incredible (the "under lid" version of #5 is my favorite, I think).


I like the Under Lid perspective a great deal, myself -- most
especially for terser, more brusque "modern" writing where
you really need the crisp clarity of it and the relatively bright
voicing.

Yet, it's also capable of gentleness. The una corda version
of #5, to me, has a really lovely color and feel to the sound.



Fantastic instrument showing off equally fantastic music... thanks for the great demos, David. :)

Danny

Thanks again, Danny. I'm no ace at rendering, certainly;
so, credit where due, I blame the G.Steinway for anything
I got right... lol!

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[sunbird]

David,

What fun pieces! And combined with the Steinway a pure delight!
I enjoyed most #21 and #5... :wow:
I'm inspired to try and create such fun pieces myself... :p

Yudit

[etLux]

David,

What fun pieces! And combined with the Steinway a pure delight!
I enjoyed most #21 and #5... :wow:
I'm inspired to try and create such fun pieces myself... :p

Yudit

Absolutely, Yudit!

Little wingdings like this are wonderful for sharpening
and tightening writing skills. Aside from which, they're
just plain fun...

Pleased you enjoyed them!

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[DelCarry]

David - Great to hear just piano from you - very playful, eccentric, dynamic and as usual very well done. You "notation guys" still blow me away! I listened to all of your pieces.

So, what is this soft pedal for? You can tell I have been in the midi world too long - almost forgot and it used to be one of my favourite pedals in a previous life.

I would be curious to hear a comparison review between the new Garritan piano and the Pianoteq Piano. Sounds like the New Garritan Steinway is a worthy contender from what I've heard so far. I would guess they won't do a trial or demo version. Trying it out is really the only way to know what you like.

Del

[klassical]

"Actually -- you *can* hear the pedal going up and down, as well
as other action and mechanism sounds." - etLux

I *did* hear them in a couple of the pieces but didn't know what they were at first. I thought they were some unfortunate audio artefacts and was concerned that the Steinway wasn't as good as I'd hoped. Only when #27 ended with a sustained chord which stopped at exactly the same time as the sound, did I realize that it had to be the pedal sound.

- k

p.s. Why not put all 100+ of your Preludes into book form? You might be able to give Ligeti's Etudes a run for the money. :)

[etLux]

Update:

Hi All,

I got to fiddling around, and came up with this (below);
a little experiment of mine... lol. Rather than start a
new post, I thought I'd just present it here:

Three Gaseous Preludes
David J. Sosnowski
Garritan Authorized Steinway Model D
Flash Player Presentation

See the main post for the player and some background
on it, here: Main Post (http://northernsounds.com/forum/showthread.php?t=60171).

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[Garritan]

Update: April 13, 2008


davidsosnowski.com/gas/external.html
David,

Very nice. It plays! And better than I do!

Thanks for posting this.

Gary

[efiebke]

David . . .

Your Four Preludes. . .

They are just so beautiful to listen to.

The piano graphic is very cool too, Dave! :)

This music is my first "audition" of the Garritan Steinway. Sometime before the end of the year I'm going to add this to my modest (but ever growing) collection of sound libraries!! :D

But your music. . . . Listening to these piano pieces adds fuel to my hungry musical soul.

Peace and much gratitude to you, David! :)

Ted

[etLux]

Hi Del,

Pleased you made it by for a little preview of the Steinway.

David - Great to hear just piano from you - very playful, eccentric, dynamic and as usual very well done. You "notation guys" still blow me away! I listened to all of your pieces.


Are you really so sure it's notation... lol?

I will verify that I'm a little eccentric, though. Just
a little. Barely noticeable on a dark night...


So, what is this soft pedal for? You can tell I have been in the midi world too long - almost forgot and it used to be one of my favourite pedals in a previous life.


This is covered pretty well in the Steinway manual, which sayeth:

By shifting the entire action of the piano, fewer of the strings for each
note are struck, and the hammer contacts the strings with a softer
region of felt. This lends a much leaner, more delicate color and behavior.

Note that this is true of Steinway concert grands. But spinets,
uprights, and lesser pianos may do anything from move the action
closer to the strings to drop a layer of felt between the hammers
and strings... not quite the same thing.

The G.Steinway also uses real samples with the soft pedal down,
rather than simple muting or filtering as in other libraries.


I would be curious to hear a comparison review between the new Garritan piano and the Pianoteq Piano. Sounds like the New Garritan Steinway is a worthy contender from what I've heard so far. I would guess they won't do a trial or demo version. Trying it out is really the only way to know what you like.

Del

I don't know what Gary's intentions are on those matter, Del
(trial or demo versions). But there is a demo page up, here:
http://garritan.com/steinway_demos.html

It's still very early, so just a few demos are posted so far --
but keep an eye on that page... from what I hear, many more
demos are being prepared.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

"Actually -- you *can* hear the pedal going up and down, as well
as other action and mechanism sounds." - etLux

I *did* hear them in a couple of the pieces but didn't know what they were at first. I thought they were some unfortunate audio artefacts and was concerned that the Steinway wasn't as good as I'd hoped. Only when #27 ended with a sustained chord which stopped at exactly the same time as the sound, did I realize that it had to be the pedal sound.

- k

p.s. Why not put all 100+ of your Preludes into book form? You might be able to give Ligeti's Etudes a run for the money. :)

I'm still more than a little clumsy with the mechanism
sounds in the G.Steinway, klassical; so don't judge
too much by what I did... lol. They're adjustable, of
course -- and I haven't had quite enough time yet to
refine the use of them as much as I'd like. Given that,
I tried to be very conservative with them.

I will say this, from working them. Even barely at the
edge of hearing? The ear knows they're there -- and
likewise knows if they are not!

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

David,

Very nice. It plays! And better than I do!

Thanks for posting this.

Gary

Welcome, Gary.

Tell you the truth, it was really really difficult
to get my big fingers on all those little keys...

I just have to get a bigger monitor!

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[nikolas]

David,

I know you're online right now!

First of all: [b]Why didn't I get an e-mail notification about the preludes, but only the violin piece? HUH??!?!?![/c]:mad: (kidding of course).

These little preludes (who ever heard of long ones anyway? :D) are fabulous. Compositionally, performed, sound, everything! Just BRILLIANT! Freaking brilliant! Amazing!

There's nothing I can say, but I sure can ask for a bit:

Do the other 19 ones with the Steinway and post them (or sell them. They would be worth, I bet).

No, really, these are simply stunning works!

[etLux]

Hiya Ted!

My apologies for not getting back sooner to this. My ISP's
been going up an down like a yo-yo for the last three days.

David . . .

Your Four Preludes. . .

They are just so beautiful to listen to.


Many thanks, my friend... I'm pleased you found beauty in
these little pieces. Of all I do, these small preludes are
perhaps the most enjoyable to write.


The piano graphic is very cool too, Dave! :)


Ted, you did know that's a player -- not just a graphic?
Not sure I was clear enough about that... click the arrow
on the left of it, and it plays sync'd to the keyboard --
a little eye-candy... lol.


This music is my first "audition" of the Garritan Steinway. Sometime before the end of the year I'm going to add this to my modest (but ever growing) collection of sound libraries!! :D


Ted, to me, this one's a "must have". I've listened to
every piano library I could lay my hands on; and the
G.Steinway stomps every one of them.

I'm still learning the finer points of using it; and the
recordings in this thread were made a while ago --
but as I learn more about handling the dynamic
range more astutely and laying back off the sound
treatment? I literally cannot tell the G.Steinway
from the real deal.


But your music. . . . Listening to these piano pieces adds fuel to my hungry musical soul.

Peace and much gratitude to you, David! :)


And likewise to you, Ted!

Always my best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Hey Nikolas,

Pleased you made it by for these, my friend.

David,

I know you're online right now!


I am not.


First of all: Why didn't I get an e-mail notification about the preludes, but only the violin piece? HUH??!?!?!:mad: (kidding of course).


To tell you the truth, these were such incidental pieces,
it didn't occur to me. I didn't think they'd really take all
that much interest... lol.


These little preludes (who ever heard of long ones anyway? :D) are fabulous. Compositionally, performed, sound, everything! Just BRILLIANT! Freaking brilliant! Amazing!


Nikolas, I have no idea what to say! My heavens. Thank
you so much for the kindness -- but most of these are
just little improvisations I'd toss off as performance
encores. I'd scribble them down sometimes; but what
box in the cellar they're in I have no idea, so these I just
did from memory.


There's nothing I can say, but I sure can ask for a bit:

Do the other 19 ones with the Steinway and post them (or sell them. They would be worth, I bet).


The problem is there are over a hundred of these... rofl!
But eventually, I promise I'll get to them all. Presuming
I live to be 100 or so, of course.


No, really, these are simply stunning works!

Thank you again, Nikolas! A little bonus: I'm reworking
Piano Sonata #7... a little preview of a more recent
recording not yet on my site:

Piano Sonata #7 Movement II (http://www.davidsosnowski.com/cgi-bin/l/t.pl?www.davidsosnowski.com/Piano_Sonata_No_7-Mvmt_2_-_Version 0.01.04.08.2008.mp3)

Always my best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[jsp2]

Outstanding work, David!

I've been listening to your Preludes over the past couple days. (I'm partial to #5)

All of them are masterfully crafted, and certainly a testimony to your musical skills. (wish I had a bit of that!.. spare some?)

Terrific work as usual, David.

Jeff

[DelCarry]

Ted, to me, this one's a "must have". I've listened to
every piano library I could lay my hands on; and the
G.Steinway stomps every one of them.

I'm still learning the finer points of using it; and the
recordings in this thread were made a while ago --
but as I learn more about handling the dynamic
range more astutely and laying back off the sound
treatment? I literally cannot tell the G.Steinway
from the real deal.


David - in light of what you have said above, have you tried the Pianoteq demo piano package?? Of course samples are very personal and subjective and all that but some just "are" better or closer to the "real deal"!

I also have found that when the keyboard action is like a piano, the samples seem to sound better as opposed to an organ/synth keyboard. Part of the whole experience. Of course sample technology has come a long way.

And... I'd like to also add to my earlier post that I could tell doing these short pieces was a lot of fun for you - Which I think really comes through!

Del



Del

[etLux]

HI Jeff,

Outstanding work, David!

I've been listening to your Preludes over the past couple days. (I'm partial to #5)

All of them are masterfully crafted, and certainly a testimony to your musical skills. (wish I had a bit of that!.. spare some?)

Terrific work as usual, David.

Jeff


Pleased you enjoyed them, Jeff. I'm partial to the soft pedal
version of #5, myself. That piece wasn't really intended for
it -- but I love the G.Steinway's soft pedal sound.

Thanks for listening!

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

David - in light of what you have said above, have you tried the Pianoteq demo piano package?? Of course samples are very personal and subjective and all that but some just "are" better or closer to the "real deal"!


Absolutely, Del -- it *is* very subjective. It depends on what
you want to use a sample set for, for one thing; and for another,
what your expectations and your background are. I've been
playing for half a century, and I'm very much a classicist, for
instance -- so what I expect in a piano sound is probably very
different from, say, someone doing popular or Jazz work.

I also hasten to add an echo of what Gary Garritan often says:
there are many good tools out there; and the more good tools
in your arsenal, the better.

Concerning Pianoteq, yes, I'm well familiar with their piano;
and they're doing some remarkable work for which I very loudly
and clearly applaud them! The path they're on is, in my
opinion, extremely promising. Yet, at present, from my
personal perspective, the sound does not quite convince me.


I also have found that when the keyboard action is like a piano, the samples seem to sound better as opposed to an organ/synth keyboard. Part of the whole experience. Of course sample technology has come a long way.


You're not kidding -- compared to where the technology was
even five years ago, I'm like a kid in a candy shop... lol! And,
yes, the right keyboard is an important factor: I've always
found that a "soft" (unweighted) keyboard is very difficult to
handle, at least with piano samples; and others who have
spent their lives on a real piano keyboard have made similar
comments to me.


And... I'd like to also add to my earlier post that I could tell doing these short pieces was a lot of fun for you - Which I think really comes through!


Oh, yes! Thanks for the additional input, Del; good food
for thought.

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[musictom]

Let me add my kudos for the amazing compositions, performances, and renderings!! I believe you may have sold more copies of the Garritan Steinway due to these beautiful pieces than any other marketing could do!! :)

I'm curious as to what kind of keyboard you used to play these. For me (someone who graduated with a piano performance degree many, many years ago, LOL) finding the perfect weighted keyboard has been somewhat of a holy grail. I've owned everything from the Roland A-80 to a Peavey (yes, actually a Peavey) 88 note controller, to a Studiologic and an M-Audio Keystation Pro 88 (Ugh, what a DOG!!!)

Anyway, at the risk of hijacking the thread, I'd love to know what you (and perhaps others) are using for an 88 note controller.

Once again, congratulations on some fantastic playing!

Tom

[Rhap2]

MusicTom:

I own a Peavey C8p keyboard controller. It is magnificent with 4 sliders, 2 modwheels, and a pitchwheel, plus 4 MIDI outs and 2 MIDI ins. That's class.

However, Peavey does not make keyboards anymore. If you really want a
great piano feel, look at the Yamaha KZ8. It lists for about $799, but I don't
know what the street price is yet. Yamaha has a great record for making
good keyboard controllers that feel like "real" pianos. With that and the
Garritan Steinway D, you will be in piano paradise...........

Jack

[musictom]

MusicTom:

I own a Peavey C8p keyboard controller. It is magnificent with 4 sliders, 2 modwheels, and a pitchwheel, plus 4 MIDI outs and 2 MIDI ins. That's class.
Jack

I loved my C8p. Great keyboard, and I'm sorry Peavey doesn't make it anymore. I almost forgot —~the other keyboard I really liked was the Alesis QS8 — I really liked the feel of that keyboard as well, but I literally wore the thing out over about 5 years of steady playing.

I've got the Garritan Steinway on order, and can't wait! From what I've heard, I'm sure it's going to blow away both my Bosendorfer 290 and Akoustik Piano samples.

Tom

[etLux]

I loved my C8p. Great keyboard, and I'm sorry Peavey doesn't make it anymore. I almost forgot —~the other keyboard I really liked was the Alesis QS8 — I really liked the feel of that keyboard as well, but I literally wore the thing out over about 5 years of steady playing.

I've got the Garritan Steinway on order, and can't wait! From what I've heard, I'm sure it's going to blow away both my Bosendorfer 290 and Akoustik Piano samples.

Tom

Recently I played a StudioLogic TMK-88 midi controller briefly;
seemed fairly decent, though I didn't spend much time with
it. Might be a good low-cost alternative @ ~$199... though
I hasten to add I've little familiarity with this area.

I'd really like to hear more from others who *do* know the
various keyboard controllers well, too, as the G.Steinway has
got me about persuaded to go buy one... lol.

David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

MusicTom:

I own a Peavey C8p keyboard controller. It is magnificent with 4 sliders, 2 modwheels, and a pitchwheel, plus 4 MIDI outs and 2 MIDI ins. That's class.

However, Peavey does not make keyboards anymore. If you really want a
great piano feel, look at the Yamaha KZ8. It lists for about $799, but I don't
know what the street price is yet. Yamaha has a great record for making
good keyboard controllers that feel like "real" pianos. With that and the
Garritan Steinway D, you will be in piano paradise...........

Jack

Thanks Jack. Also:

FORUM:

Anyone with recommendations on good keyboard controllers
for to use with the G.Steinway, I'd be most interested to hear;
and I'm sure so would others.

Best,


David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[etLux]

Hi Tom,

I note you've just joined us in December, Tom.

Welcome aboard!

Let me add my kudos for the amazing compositions, performances, and renderings!! I believe you may have sold more copies of the Garritan Steinway due to these beautiful pieces than any other marketing could do!! :)


LOL... maybe I should be working on commission, eh? Seriously,
thanks for the kind words, my friend; but as I keep telling people
in my private correspondence -- you've essentially got two
choices with the G.Steinway.

If you just do a quick rendering and don't fuss much -- it's going
to sound great. But if you spend a little time and care, then it'll
sound... fantastic!


I'm curious as to what kind of keyboard you used to play these.


I don't own or use a keyboard of any kind, Tom. All
of my renderings are done strictly in (Finale) notation.


For me (someone who graduated with a piano performance degree many, many years ago, LOL) finding the perfect weighted keyboard has been somewhat of a holy grail. I've owned everything from the Roland A-80 to a Peavey (yes, actually a Peavey) 88 note controller, to a Studiologic and an M-Audio Keystation Pro 88 (Ugh, what a DOG!!!)

Anyway, at the risk of hijacking the thread, I'd love to know what you (and perhaps others) are using for an 88 note controller.


That's not hijacking, Tom. I'm interested, and I'm sure
many, many others are, in what's out there for keyboard
controllers, which ones are best for this kind of use...
Thanks for bringing it up!


Once again, congratulations on some fantastic playing!

Tom

Thanks for the compliment, Tom; but as I say... the
two-button "keyboard" (mouse) did all the work on this
round.

Thanks again for the kind comments and the listen!

My best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com