Day 3
Rather than spend time in seminars and demoes I decided instead to spend the time playing as many of the instruments as I could and speaking with the reps from their respective manufacturers. Before I get into any of that let me say that I got confirmation from the Midi association that the Midi 2.0 piano profile is now finalized and it's now up to the manufacturers/developers to integrate it into their products. As of this writing I believe the only instrument that supports officially is the Roland A88 Mk II in conjunction with Ivory III. I'm personally very excited for this standard to become ubiquitous for it's potential to lessen the differences between different makes/models of digital instruments.
Ok now on to the instruments themselves. It was very informative to have such a wide range of instruments to play in such quick succession. From basic digital all the way up to the finest concert grands, the experiences I collected with them confirmed my biases in some ways, but also controverted them in others. To speak in broad terms and, being someone who learned on acoustics, I tended to favor the larger grands almost every time as long as they were in good shape. Bare in mind that by this point in the convention so many instruments were begging to be voiced after being pounded on for 3 days in a row. It was like being back in the practice rooms in school but to the Nth degree: so many people playing around you, and none of them playing anything softer than mezzoforte.
But at times things would quiet down and I could hear myself finally and in those moments you could finally hear the subtleties that the instruments were capable of. I played smattering of excerpts from pieces like Kinderszenen, Schubert's G major sonata, and Bach's C minor and D major partitas. Nothing too flashy as I'm not skilled enough to play anything super virtuosic. Instead I tried to play pieces with contrasting characters and that allow for varied tone coloration. Anyway, let's get into into all of it, acoustic and digital. This won't be an objective ranking per say, but more to do with my feeling of connectedness to the instruments, with a lot of emphasis on how well the actions translated my intentions.
Yamaha CFX (2022) - What a huge dynamic range. An instrument that really gives back what you put into it. It can sound very sweet, but it can also be brilliant, with a bass which is absolutely thunderous when you want it to be. It has the signature Yamaha sound, but it's the absolute best version of it. Not harsh in the slightest, but rounded. The action is superb, it responds beautifully both to playing with arm weight and fingery staccato in equal measure. Key return is also excellent and conducive to quick repeated notes. I really admire that Yamaha have stuck to their guns and not tried to imitate either the American or European sounds.
Bechstein D282 - I'm personally a fan of the Bechstein sound. It's something like a Hamburg Steinway but with a more prominent fundamental pitch and more well balanced partials. It has a bell like clarity to the attack that let's you hear each individual note so clearly. What an instrument for baroque music, or for bringing out the inner voice of chords. The action was every bit the equal of the Yamaha. After I was finished I found the piano tech in charge of their pianos and praised his work to high heavens. An amazing friendly man who I got to nerd out with.
Bosendorfer 280VC - Oh Bosendorfer, of all piano makers you are the one whose sound I will never mistake for another manufacturer. It may not work for all repertoire, but man do I love playing Schubert on this. The timbre of the treble is just so unique here, I'm not exactly sure how to describe it. It's colorful, yet very focused at the same time. The initial attack is quick and settles into the sustain/decay portion of the "attack envelope" fairly quickly. Of all the instruments I played this one made me adjust my pedaling and finger legato the most. The dampers work so well that the sound can cut off too quickly, so i had to take extra care.
Shigeru Kawai SK-5 - Not a concert grand, but the tone of the instrument was unique in that it possessed both clarity and warmth -- a tough balance to strike. It possessed quite possibly one of my favorite actions at the whole show. It didn't feel worlds away from the concert grands in that regard. It was responsive, quick, and, like it's larger companions it felt substantial, not shallow. I could play deeply into the keys and be rewarded with gorgeous, round tone, or I could play with a light touch and the instrument would purr. Great repetition speed too.
Ok let's get into some hybrids and digitals now. Spent some more time with the Kawais and also offerings from Roland, Studiologic, and Casio.
Kawai GX-2 with Aures system - My favorite "hybrid." The action was maybe not quite on the same level as the Shigeru Kawai, but very close. The internal tone generator still sounded better to me than the one on the NV12. Obviously this is a full acoustic with silent system, so not exactly in the same price bracket.
Kawai NV12 - Spent more time assessing this instrument and alas my initial impressions did not change. The sound coming from the soundboard was indeed thin and lacking in sufficient oomph. The body didn't resonate all that much even at maximum volume. The headphone situation wasn't much better. But I personally did like the simulated change in the action with the sustain pedal depressed. It made me wish that the una corda pedal would have also shifted the entire keyboard lol. But overall I still came away feeling meh about it. Probably not for me.
Ok let's get into some digital actions. My biggest observation with these is that none of them gave quite the same feeling of "substance" as the grand action. In one way or another they all have their quirks. This isn't to say that they are not good. On the contrary I found some of them excellent at translating my intentions. They just need to be taken on their own terms, especially as some of them offer features not present in a conventional acoustic action. More on this below:
Studio Logic: Numa X Piano GTse and SL88 MKII GT - Both feature the Fatar TP400 Wood action. The difference being that the Numa model has escapement simulation as well as textured white and black keytops. On the other hand the SL88 features polyphonic aftertouch which I find intriguing for it's potential use in a clavichord VST to recreate the "Bebung" effect. Of all the digital hammer actions this and the Roland PHA 100 (Hybrid), more on that below, were my favorites. Between the Numa X and the SL88 action, I had a slight preference for the former as I personally enjoy the escapement simulation. Both were great at repetition speed and playing at the back of the keys was surprisingly easy given the pivot length. However, the new Numa X does and will not support midi 2.0. As I'm in the process of developing my own piano VST, I would likely go for the SL88 MK II as it's less than half the price.
Roland LX-9 (Hybrid Action/PHA 100). To me this was better than the PHA 50, it had perhaps the most substantial feel of all the digital actions. The deeper keydip didn't bother me as my Baldwin has a fairly heavy action, but only a long practice session would really be able to determine if this would be a problem for me. There is a lot I like about this instrument apart from the action. The form factor is great. The speakers are very good, the music desk sits at the correct height so I don't have to strain my neck. And it has a built in audio interface I could play a VST through. I'm intrigued.
Yamaha Grand Touch - Oddly fast. Probably good if you can get used to it and Yamaha did a great job of matching the tone generator to the behavior of the action. But something about it felt off. Perhaps too much static resistance? I'd need to play it more.
Yamaha Avant Grand - Non existent at the show.
Kawai VPC1, CA901/701 - I didn't favor these as much I would have thought. The ability to play at the back of the keys was great. But playing trills and repeated notes was better on the Roland and Studiologic offerings. The key dip felt a bit too shallow for me with these. Especially when comparing back to back with the above mentioned Kawai acoustics and hybrids.
Casio Privia PX-S7000 - A fun concept with a decent "hybrid" action. Great as long as you play near the front of the keys, but the short pivot lengths limit playing deep into the keys.
I may have some more thought to share but for now I will just say that the show was very illuminating. In my discussions I began to surmise that creating a true hybrid action comes with a smattering of challenges. Congratulations if you made it to the end of this doozy of a post. 🙂
