Shigeru Kawai EX - Instrument Wish

Good video and sound. I also like your playing style. Regarding the Shigeru, I'm not sure if it's similar to Yoshiki's piano custom built by Kawai?

Sounds sumptuous David, and agree your playing! is wonderful, really of a stately quality, beautiful to see.

A few weeks back I spent time playing the onboard Kawai sounds here (older CN-37 upright type and MP11). Although I do like them (and enjoy the upright via its own sound sys) there's still something sort of missing for me, depth of detail - but they do record well and you can make them growl with some primping in a DAW.

In case I hit on something enjoyable for you, I thought I'd go back to the "Grand K2" Pianoteq piano and push it around a little to give myself a sense of the Shigeru I played. Don't yet know if I'm fully satisfied - but it sounded pretty cool at volume (strange that unless turned up so, many really good presets sound meek at low levels - but approaching 'piano volume' they may shine more).

Uploaded the FXP and some snips of demo to show where I was aiming (bass, mids and treble kind of as I remember as best as I can get just now - inc. the new resonance tools).

Shigeru Kawai - Play and Record

Some audio showing the growl and things I remember.

A
B
C
D

If it's of any interest to you or others wanting to improve it or make it more the way they like - please feel free to edit it and upload your FXPs. (that is if this turns out a nice starting point for you of course).

The mics are a config I enjoy but, maybe you could enjoy trying other mics.

Main info regarding the FXP is that is has a little sugar for recording purposes which I used in the exported audio - (amp, compressor, reverb) but for cleaner player perspective for real time playing, for sure just click those off if they feel too hot. Tuning is set to equal for normality's sake, but I found this edit works wonderfully with other tuning types I love to use.

Lastly, maybe worth mentioning, right channel vols in mics is pronounced a little for recording purposes, again adjust for balance (it's higher to keep melody and trebles vibrant, as the bass is pretty gargantuan - but for player perspective and depending on your IRL speaker setup, it might help to lower mic 2 a few dB to make them more level).

Hope it's either enjoyed there, or a reasonable place to dig in to bring out even more Shigeru from the good old K2

Cheers.

Ah, just went to Wikipedia to fill myself in a bit more about Kawai musical instruments and Yoshiki - interested a clear drum-kit was also a feature in the works (with associated difficulties) - but I really like the look of this - Kawai made a sweet custom piano for Yoshiki. Looks like a nice glossy mid size - pretty lovely.

@ED - thanks for posting that lovely info about the clear piano (nearly bought a clear bass guit in the past) - I really miss all your helpful.. I mean.. eeeeviil! goodness (hey, where'd my olives go to!) - cheers

can't tell much about the piano sound through my crappy laptop speakers.  however i really enjoyed your performance.

I'd forgotten Kawai made a clear piano. Interested that it seems people like its sound.

Most pianos I've heard IRL have been wood but I'll spend a little time checking out some more Yoshiki and CR-40 later. I vaguely remember playing a non-wood (acrylic??) piano somewhere in the 80s and I thought "This might not be the future of pianos" - in the time of ever cheaper dpianos.

Hadn't thought much of it though, but I do see how a CR-40 could make an interesting piano to model, in part for genuine curiosity (how would all the data look? etc.) and also in part because it might hold a similar curiosity for end users of Pianoteq I suppose. I tend to like rough or natural acoustic properties of acoustic instruments and shy from artificiality (unless really talking synths and other abstractions), and kind of predict the glass piano might not be my kind of fav piano sound. But, as they say: "but ya never know".

I was so much more interested in fortepiano until I met a Shigeru Kawai and found Pianoteq ~around the same time. Now, I love grand pianos in similar ways and maybe my whole musical horizon has become somewhat more enjoyable for it.

What piqued my curiosity is that Yoshiki noted having trouble with the clear drums (materials making it necessary to play harder to get tone, lot more tiring) but, a lot of people say they like the sound of the clear CR-40 piano (imagining marginally related pureness of tone issues as those drums - or is it the reverse? So much tone because no wood soaks it up), though I've never heard one knowingly. If replacing wood with some more finite pureness of string tone - what makes up that particular character? Is the harp greatly different, do strings really get some special pure spotlight and etc.

Anyways, all fun questions I'll go look for today thanks to you and ED. Cheers.