My pianos *DEBUNKED*

Of the seven Sofia pianos, I had been hoping the Steinway would be a win. It's just that I prefer Steinway over all other pianos. But the Sofia Steinway was the most disappointing of the bunch (save for the Estonia, which sounded terrible).

The Bosendorfer sounded okay, but I should have been suspicious of its lack of bass. A real Bosie is a bass blast, but the Sofia Bosie was weak there.

The Fazioli was a don't-care. I've never liked any Fazioli VI.

My hopes were on the Bechstein and especially the Bluthner. Too bad.

Can we have the mapping Sofia MZ vs. Pianoteq ? What is really the Fazioli or the Estonian ?

Jose EB5AGV I should confess the number of layers had me really intrigued since the beginning and, knowing a bit of @dore_m work , was something I could not find explanation for.

Same here my friend.... I had a lot of questions in my mind but just laid low. I was particularly wondering if European concert grands are a dime a dozen in Italy. I have real difficulty finding subjects nowadays after I ran thru my personal contacts.

I actually ran across fake huge kontakt pianos vis named after some constellations, each weighs around 20 gigs and contains 12398 samples. The guy sold them claimed the samples came from well-known brands like Steinway, Bechstein, Blüthner, Yamaha etc., including rare models. Users reported they all sounded the same way muffled , heavily EQed, feature and function absent. I had a sense that the samples were stolen from somewhere and to avoid legal issues, the guy must mask them, so they could be possibly sold.

Now I remember, one of them called Gemini.

@Sofia_MZ Oh please put your site back up. This was a work of art and brilliantly executed in every way. This should be preserved as part of Internet history. Can't you mark it as parody or something?

I'll even personally write Modartt and ask them to let you keep the sample libraries up or hire you. Not that I've got any sway with them, but I'll try.

The reviews are brilliant:
https://forum.pianoworld.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/3430267/re-my-free-piano-libraries-in-sfz-format.html#Post3430267
https://pianoclack.com/forum/d/1152-my-free-sfz-piano-libraries

And you got MacMacMac to grudgingly admit he can more than tolerate Pianoteq. That's quite a feat.

I was even starting to feel bad for dore_m... as I've been no help to his sampling quest. And your blasé comment on consistent tuning really had me concerned about my own piano for a bit.

Props to David B. You really do know your pianos.

navindra I was even starting to feel bad for dore_m... as I've been no help to his sampling quest.

I want it taken down. It's illegal and I'd feel the same if someone repackaged my source samples. I have given licenses to those who I allow to redistribute.

I find it funny strange that people are now saying the backstory is fishy when it's very similar to my backstory. In fact, I wonder if my backstory was purposely copied in part. I also have not shared that I always suspected that my Sfz template was used in part. Some of the envelopes and such were copied exactly (character by character). I normally don't mind this, but don't want it used to further a hoax.

dore_m I'm not a lawyer, but it's taken down already... or is the GitHub still up there?

Out of curiosity, how was the story similar to yours? I can see how this social experiment wouldn't go down well at all.

I read David B's original review a bit closer and actually there was some praise for Pianoteq's Fazioli tone there. 🙂

CyberGene Also, correct me if I'm wrong since I am myself a non-native English speaker (and excuse me for what is probably a stereotype of the typical Italian) but isn't her English way too perfect (and British?) for an Italian?

Sofia said she was a fan of British procedurals. Sounds like that part was true.

Given the success of her FAQ, maybe she should make another, answering the many questions asked here.

navindra I read David B's original review a bit closer and actually there was some praise for Pianoteq's Fazioli tone there.

I don't know how or what Sofia's "Fazioli samples" were derived from, but there was a warmth to the tone similar to my VSL Fazioli. As a base piano sound it seemed like it could have potential. I believe that's as far as my praise went. However, it took me about 3 minutes to realize it was not even in the same stratosphere as VSL. That's about 2 minutes longer than I can tolerate playing my actual Pianoteq models for. 😀

God Bless,
David

navindra Out of curiosity, how was the story similar to yours?

I guess I haven't been explicit about how I sample pianos in the open threads, but my technique and personal experience mirror Sofia's. I go to people's homes and have to be accommodating. I often have to deal with eccentricities of owners, or at least quirks of the recording environment. People don't normally understand what I mean by needing a silent recording environment. It's definitely a passion for me, and I put up with it all so I can have a copy of someone's instrument. So that part of the story resonated with me. I actually thought there was someone out there crazier than me.

The technique described was near what I would do if I had to start again. If I started again, I might consider automating with a robot. The Sfz templates are a simpler version of what I have done so I can drag and drop a new piano in with my workflow. So maybe I'm just projecting as not many people know what I do in such detail.

This was fun while it lasted.

I didn't guess that this was related to Pianoteq (nor did I listen to demos or try the libraries). When the first library appeared, I thought 'oh, cool - someone devoted to a hobby who wants to share their results for free'. When a bunch of additional pianos appeared so rapidly…well, it didn't pass the sniff test. I assumed it was someone repackaging existing libraries, but couldn't work out why anyone would go to the trouble if they weren't actually selling those libraries.

So long as it doesn't create any liability issues, I'd like to see the thread left as a monument to the absurd.

And if anybody would like to go down another absurd rabbit hole, this is a fun way to kill time…

I feel so sorry that I didn’t have time to test any of these libraries. Because I would have uncovered it’s Pianoteq immediately and would have become a legend already 😀 The fake synthetic timbre can be heard right away. I blame @David B for this since even if I had some thoughts of finding time to test any of the pianos, his first “review” totally made me think it would be a waste of time. How dare you! 🤣

I’m also wondering if maybe the hoax was at least partially targeted specifically at me through its Italian flair 😉 Because I’m one of the most outspoken critics of Pianoteq. But also a connoisseur of all the Italian things as I’ve mentioned so many times here. So, it would be a very clever lure to get me attracted to the hook.

I think there is more to this hoax than has already been admitted. The "16 year old kid" part is surely not true, and there are good questions unanswered as yet.

QuasiUnaFantasia I think there is more to this hoax than has already been admitted.

Do you think maybe there was some malicious software in the "samples" we downloaded? I deleted mine shortly after I tried them out because I knew I would have no use for them again. Was the website or downloading process shady?

God bless,
David

David B Do you think maybe there was some malicious software in the "samples" we downloaded? I deleted mine shortly after I tried them out because I knew I would have no use for them again. Was the website or downloading process shady?

Most likely not. Just wave files and some sfz's.

David B I don't think that; I just think the hoax isn't over yet (although it may shift venue and/or form).

Admit it, People!

You’ve been in love with Pianoteq all along, but your long-held beliefs prevented an admission; till Sofia showed you the way vis-a-vis the most elaborate experiment ever conducted upon a bunch of stubborn deniers!

My daddy used to say:

“little Pete, there is always something hidden behind denial, and sometimes it turns out that the most intense denial is an attempt at masking a carnal desire that so contradicts the person’s ingrained faith, that denying seems more palatable.”

Of course, I was a kid, and didn’t have a clue of what he was saying back then, but he had me write it down, and now, as I unearth this crumbled, old piece of paper, and recite it to thee, I realize how right my daddy was…..and whilst he didn’t love me much, he did teach me a few life lessons!

Pete14 “little Pete, there is always something hidden behind denial, and sometimes it turns out that the most intense denial is an attempt at masking a carnal desire that so contradicts the person’s ingrained faith, that denying seems more palatable.”

In the Christian experience carnal desires are good when indulged in the correct context. However, outside of the correct context they become sinful propensities. We learn how to overcome (with Divine power) the destructive characteristics of our sinful nature so that the body is slave to the mind and not the mind to the body. The same diligence must be applied to overcoming the corrupting influence of Pianoteq. 😎

God Bless,
David

navindra I'll even personally write Modartt and ask them to let you keep the sample libraries up or hire you.

Same thought crossed my mind yesterday (without the writing them part).

I haven't evaluated "Sofia"'s pianos for lack of time and because I'm reorganizing my piano setup at the moment so cannot play. But if "she" finally succeeded in making Pianoteq sound like… a proper piano -- a bunch of proper pianos even -- then surely Modartt should hire "her".

Cheers and happy career moves,

HZ