Topic by TyroneSlothrop

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Topic: How do I change resonance characteristics for sustain pedal in PRO?

I have Pianoteq 6.7 PRO. How can I change the resonance characteristics for the sustain pedal in this version?

In particular, I would like to emulate Beethoven's 1817 Broadwood, but with one of the modern pianos like the Bechstein. One of the big differences is in the sustain (for example, in Moonlight Sonata, the entire first movement has a continuous sustain pedal down, which doesn't work on a modern piano).

Can someone help with the specific change I would need to make? I am running Pianoteq on a Mac with the latest OS.

Reply by jcfelice88keys

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Re: How do I change resonance characteristics for sustain pedal in PRO?

TyroneSlothrop wrote:

I have Pianoteq 6.7 PRO. How can I change the resonance characteristics for the sustain pedal in this version?

In particular, I would like to emulate Beethoven's 1817 Broadwood, but with one of the modern pianos like the Bechstein. One of the big differences is in the sustain (for example, in Moonlight Sonata, the entire first movement has a continuous sustain pedal down, which doesn't work on a modern piano).

Can someone help with the specific change I would need to make? I am running Pianoteq on a Mac with the latest OS.

Hello Tyrone,

If you are looking to perform the Moonlight Sonata's first movement without dampers, you might experiment for yourself with the three Soundboard Sliders (Impedance, Cutoff and Q Factor), and combine these three sliders with playing with low note-on velocity.   Try comparing the damper pedaled sound with their default positions (~1.00) and then vary any or all of them to 0.30, 0.30 and 0.20, all the while playing softly with the damper pedal depressed.  I happen to like when the three sliders are reduced to approximately 0.45 to 0.50.  Your mileage may vary.  I cannot guarantee you will be thrilled by the sound, but it's a good start.

Cheers,

Joe

Reply by Stephen_Doonan

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Re: How do I change resonance characteristics for sustain pedal in PRO?

TyroneSlothrop wrote:

In particular, I would like to emulate Beethoven's 1817 Broadwood, but with one of the modern pianos like the Bechstein. One of the big differences is in the sustain (for example, in Moonlight Sonata, the entire first movement has a continuous sustain pedal down, which doesn't work on a modern piano).
Can someone help with the specific change I would need to make?

In addition to experimenting with the soundboard settings as suggested,

Try this--

1. Open Pianoteq --> Options --> MIDI
2. Find the sustain-pedal mapping entry (usually MIDI controller 64) in the Global MIDI Mapping list
3. Change the range settings of that entry to: 0  (in the first field) and somewhere between .40 and .65 (in the second field)

The two fields at the right of the entry represent the minimum and maximum amount of sustain (or damper efficiency) you desire (0 represents no sustain, when the pedal is not pressed; 1.00 is 100% sustain, when the pedal is pressed; 0.65 is 65% sustain (partial damper) when the pedal is depressed completely).

Set the second field to as low an amount of sustain as you desire. You can click and slide in the field with the mouse to quickly change values.

Last edited by Stephen_Doonan (05-04-2020 21:34)
--
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Reply by jcfelice88keys

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Re: How do I change resonance characteristics for sustain pedal in PRO?

Stephen_Doonan wrote:
TyroneSlothrop wrote:

In particular, I would like to emulate Beethoven's 1817 Broadwood, but with one of the modern pianos like the Bechstein. One of the big differences is in the sustain (for example, in Moonlight Sonata, the entire first movement has a continuous sustain pedal down, which doesn't work on a modern piano).
Can someone help with the specific change I would need to make?

Try this--

<...>

Set the second field to as low an amount of sustain as you desire. You can click and slide in the field with the mouse to quickly change values.

Hello Stephen,

I had forgotten about the method you had mentioned.  Sounds like a great idea to me!

Cheers,

Joe

Reply by TyroneSlothrop

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Re: How do I change resonance characteristics for sustain pedal in PRO?

Thanks to both of you!

I'll be trying Stephen's idea first as it seems simpler!

Reply by tmyoung

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Re: How do I change resonance characteristics for sustain pedal in PRO?

Also, new in 6.7, you can experiment with the new Resonance and Resonance Duration Equalizers which are under the main EQ window.  While I haven't worked with those much yet, they may offer more novel and precise ways of solving the problem with little effort (e.g. if you want shorter treble resonance and longer bass resonance or vice versa).

Though, I would personally recommend trying it on the historical instruments like the free KIViR set (1826 Graf), the Karsten Collection (1808 Wiemes), or the Kremsegg Collections (1796 Broadwood or 1829 Besendorfer) even if it's just for comparison.

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Reply by sandalholme

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Re: How do I change resonance characteristics for sustain pedal in PRO?

I can confirm that you can play the Moonlight's 1st movement senza sordini on the 1808 Weimes as Beethoven intended. I wonder that if a modern grand could be modified to enable this to be done what the sound would be like.