Native Instruments is continuing to launch new products despite recent and widely publicised insolvency proceedings, and has partnered with virtual …

Native Instruments is continuing to launch new products despite recent insolvency proceedings, and has partnered with Ocean Swift on a new soft synth, Oscillarys.

### Please share! * Share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Share on X (Opens in new window) X * Some things matter. Some things matter more. ## Nothing Wrong With A Day Job I’ve gone through periods when my only income was from music. However, throughout most of my adult life, I’ve had a non-music source that provided most of the money coming into my accounts. In addition to writing, composing, arranging, performing, and recording my own music, I’ve almost always had another music “day job”. Sometimes, these have been performing and directing music for a variety of organizations. Though typically, this work has been for a church. ## Service Music If you’ve been following my story for a while, it’s likely that you know I’m an ordained minister who only served as clergy for a brief time. After a few more years, I started to provide music for a variety of congregations. Because of my understanding of both theology and musicology, I have been able to serve this function well. Not long ago, I took one of these church music positions as a second day job. It had promise. But my spouse asked me why I seemed so miserable while trying to do this work. I realized that I needed to take a risk. This risk was to address my concerns head on without knowing the outcome. I had no idea how sharing my story would be heard. But I did. I asked to meet. We met. All of my concerns were heard with a gentleness and openness that I had not anticipated. ## To Work Another Day The result was that my position at this church became a source of joy for me. Instead of misery, these negotiations allowed me to shift. I wrote new songs, conducted choirs, sang solos, and did it all with a sense of integrity. Fortunately for me, joy is contagious. The minister, the music committee, the choirs, and the congregation have responded in kind. I think that’s pretty cool. I can’t promise bliss in the music programs I’m leading. But I can say that, for now, something good is happening. And that’s a good enough reason to carry on. ### Please share! * Share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Share on X (Opens in new window) X * ### Like this: Like Loading... ### _More for you_ * * * ### Discover more from Stan Stewart - @muz4now Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email. Type your email… Subscribe

Stan Stewart - @muz4now

Acon Digital today announced that Limit, their flagship transparent limiter plugin, will be available to download free of charge until March …

Ardour 9.0 is now available with numerous new features, quality-of-life improvements, and bugfixes.Major new features:• Pianoroll windows for MIDI …

Synsonic Instruments has made three of its formerly paid drum plugins completely free, and together they form a versatile toolkit for producers who …

Looking to build beats from scratch? Synsonic Instruments has made three of its formerly paid drum plugins completely free.

### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * I’m working on a new piano album. So, I’ve been thinking and listening a lot about piano sounds — aka sample libraries. ## Sample Library Losers and Winners Over the years, I’ve collected quite a few piano sample libraries. Previously, I compared four of them: Walker 1955 by e-instruments (Native Instruments Kontakt), Ivory by Synthogy, Ravenscroft 275 by VI Labs (UVI Falcon or Workstation), and The Hammersmith Pro by Soniccouture (NI Kontakt). Those all are in this current comparison as well. I’m amazed at how many different attempts there have been to capture the beauty, richness, and nuance of the piano. Each sample library comes at it from a slightly different vantage point leaving us to judge how well they did. ## Tech-head Stuff I used the same MIDI file for all of the sample libraries in this comparison. First, there is a 48-second A-minor bit to demonstrate the range of the instrument. It starts at the lowest A on the 88-key piano range and goes to the top C. This bit is played first with no sustain pedal and then with normal sustain pedaling. After that comes an improvisation in Db-major. Compare 49 piano sample libraries in this one blog post – #SampleLibraries Click To Tweet For each instrument, I chose a basic setting, but removed any effects: notably compression and reverb. I wanted to be able to hear the sample library on its own without being embellished. Even during mixdown, I did not use a compressor. Instead, I normalized the resulting audio files to -1dB. This makes it easier to compare the examples since one is not significantly louder or softer than another. Of the 38 grand pianos you can hear on this page, 22 of them run in Native Instruments’ Kontakt 5, 6, or 7. For simplicity, I ran all of these in version 7. ## From the Bottom to the Top Some contenders did not make the cut. We’ll start with those. I have used and appreciated some of the sample libraries from Kirk Hunter Studios. However, their pianos do not measure up. The one above is a Yamaha C7 from “Traveling Pianos”. There must have been some extreme EQ settings to get the strident sound you can hear especially in the improvisation. Kirk Hunter Studios: Traveling Pianos, C7 ## Different Virtual Instruments Next up is a piano sample library that goes far beyond the sound of the pianoforte. Sound Yeti did a decent job of sampling the instrument, but I would not use it on it’s own in a recording. Sound Yeti – Revelation Scoring Grand Where this VI (virtual instrument) succeeds is with its 4-layer engine (built in Kontakt from Native Instruments). Once you layer this piano (or another one) with their complementary synth and acoustic sounds, you can create some magical music. Sadly, I could not find any such redeeming factors with the next six contenders in our comparison. Well, the “Piano In 162” is a free download. Another noteworthy mention is that the Arturia pianos are _not_ sample libraries. Technically, they don’t belong here, but I wanted to compare this physical-modeling instrument side-by-side with the libraries. Impact Soundworks – Pearl Concert GrandXperimenta – PF2Arturia – Piano V3 – German GrandArturia – Piano V3 – Japanese GrandIvy Audio – Piano in 162 (free)Native Instruments – The Maverick ## Not Quite The next four of our listening choices are from EastWest (aka SoundsOnline). Note: I did re-record these after another astute listener on vi-control noted that these didn’t sound right. I had to switch from using the close and room mics to only the player mic to get a decent sound. EastWest Quantum Leap Pianos – Steinway DEastWest Quantum Leap Pianos – YamahaEastWest Quantum Leap Pianos – BosendorferEastWest Quantum Leap Pianos – Bechstein The next three are from the UVI KeySuite series. There are so many piano VIs better than these, so I cannot imagine using these in a recording either. UVI KeySuite – Austrian GrandUVI KeySuite – Model DUVI KeySuite – Japanese C7 ## Getting Better Before I licensed some of the top contenders in this list, I recorded with these next five sample libraries. They cover the basics, but these do not have the full nuance available in some of the better libraries. SampleTekk – White Grand MkIIArturia – Piano V3 – American GrandSampleTekk – Black Grand MkIIXperimenta – Due C7Xperimenta – Due C3 ## Sample Libraries – Almost There Like the Sound Yeti piano, ASCEND Modern Grand from Heavyocity is a gem. Besides a well-sampled (not quite ready for a solo, in my opinion) grand sound library, there are lots of tweaks and additions that will spark inspiration for many composers. I often turn to ASCEND when I want “more than a piano”. But for this comparison, here is the raw piano. Heavyocity – ASCEND Modern Grand Hammers + Waves from Skybox does a similar set of sparkles in their Modern Grand VI. See what you think of their un-sparkled grand piano sample library. Skybox – Hammers+Waves – MODERN GRAND ## Now We’re Talkin’ Next up are ten piano sample libraries you’d be proud to use and inspired when you play. See if you agree. Soniccouture – Hammersmith Free (yes, it’s free)VI Labs – Ravenscroft 275Auddict – Dorian Marko – “Concert”Synthogy – Ivory II – German DSynthogy – Ivory II – Yamaha C7XLN Audio – Addictive Keys – Studio GrandNative Instruments – Alicias KeysSimple Sam – Signature Series – Distant GrandNative Instruments – The GrandeurSynthogy – Ivory II – Bosendorfer ## Top 6 Piano Sample Libraries Here are my current top-six picks for grand piano VIs. Even if you disagree, I hope you’ll find these examples helpful in picking the one that’s right for you. Be sure to also check out the Web-Story (short) version of this post. Embertone – Walker 1955 DOrange Tree Samples – Evolution Rosewood GrandFracture Sounds – Spotlight PianoSimple Sam – Signature Series – Intimate GrandNative Instruments – NoireSoniccouture – The Hammersmith Pro ## Bonus Sample Libraries Here are 11 upright pianos. These are such a different sound from the grand pianos. Quite delightful in many contexts. Check these out (in no particular order). MuleTone – Upright PianoNative Instruments – Cuba Spotlight Collection – Cuban UprightNative Instruments – Kontakt factory library – Upright with OvertonesNative Instruments – The Gentlemane-instruments – Session Keys – Upright OpenSpitfire – Mrs Mills PianoKirk Hunter Studios – Traveling Pianos – C5Sonora Cinematic – Verticale – FELTSplash Sound – Old School Keys – Upright PopNative Instruments – Una CordaSkybox – Hammers+Waves – UX UPRIGHT ### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * ### Like this: Like Loading... ### _More for you_ * * * ### Discover more from Stan Stewart - @muz4now Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email. 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The Bob Moog Foundation has announced its latest fundraising raffle, featuring a Minimoog Voyager XL synthesizer, signed by electronic music pioneer …

### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * I don’t count myself as a banjo or guitar player. Yet they keep showing up on my tracks… ## Back Down the Road a Bit About a year ago, I started to release a series of four albums in the DreamState series: Dreams, Liminal Space, Lucid Dreaming, and Awakening. At that time (and still to this day), I was deeply focused on the inspiration from dreams. Hopefully, some of that shone through the tracks that I wrote. At the same time, I pushed myself to learn and use the music technology available to me. Some of that is pretty boring and geeky. But I will enjoy sharing these bits of banjo and guitar tech with you today. I think they’re really fun. Revisiting the #DreamState albums for music and technology fun Click To Tweet ## DreamState Quartet ### “DreamState: Awakening” releases to music streams everywhere ### For The Love Of DreamState ### DreamState – to accompany your dreaming ### Dreaming is not just what happens while you sleep ## Guitar Evolution As I’ve matured as a musician, I continue to focus more on the piano (and keyboard). I’m not really a guitarist though I used to play one for the portability. My shift away from guitar means I’m really appreciating the great virtual guitars available. On “Lucid Bossa Nova”, I featured a great sounding Evolution Steel Strings by Orange Tree Samples. Orange Tree always does an excellent job of sampling instruments. Plus, I’m accustomed to their interface. Check out the animation showing where the strings are being held down. Music technology offers creators new ways to include instruments in their music Click To Tweet ## It’s not all banjos and guitars Not all virtual instruments have flashy animation. Some just sound good. I’d say that’s the case with Tina Guo cello by CineSamples. This VI has been around for a while, but still holds up fairly well. I used this cello side-by-side with RealGuitar “Classic” (aka classical) from Music Lab on the track Morning’d Better Come. Music Lab put some nice touches in this VI including the animated guitar image. Cellos and banjos and guitars … oh my! Click To Tweet ## Banjos R Us I think the banjo sounds so cool. In addition to several songs that include real, live banjo played on them, I have just as many with virtual banjos. Plus, I’ve already done a comparison of three virtual banjos. Please read and hear it here. The sound of the banjo can create a story in the mind of the listener Click To Tweet ## From Banjo to Guitar Now, I’ll shift back from banjo to guitar. It’s possible that I may have saved the best for last. Ample Sound makes excellent banjo and guitar (and other) VIs. Above, you saw and heard their banjo. In “a day in the recording studio of an indie musician” I shared a video of their China Dongxiao (flute). Now for one of their incredible metal guitars. They named this one Hellrazer and for good reasons. I did not use any tricks to create the introduction to “Be You” using only this guitar. With nine strings, I had plenty to work with. Check it out. Virtual instrument makers are often very creative people Click To Tweet ## More Dreamy Stories Creative Insights ### Liminal and Lucid – dreamstate interplay Read More Creative Insights ### Exploring Each DreamState Deeply Music ### DreamState: Lucid Dreaming for your listening ears Music ### We All Have Our Own Dreams – beatcity 4th song release ### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * ### Like this: Like Loading... ### _More for you_ * * * ### Discover more from Stan Stewart - @muz4now Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email. Type your email… Subscribe

Stan Stewart - @muz4now

Stan Stewart - @muz4now

### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * To: Stu Bergen, interim CEO (and whoever may follow you) Deezer SA Paris, France My fans are concerned because they are seeing my tracks removed from their saves and playlists on Deezer. As you know only too well, this was not due to any action by me. Instead, you have seen fit to begin pulling music from your platform. Though you used to brag that it was not your place to be music critics, you have now taken on that role. I can only guess that you think your bottom line will be improved by removing tracks. It really doesn’t matter to you if they are AI-manufactured spew or art created by a flesh-and-blood musician. Some arbitrary statistics are what you will go by — as if that had anything to do with art and music. Was I sad to learn than you had pulled the entire “Jaydn Suite” album that was inspired by my spouse? You bet I was. How about “Piano Plus Suite”? I didn’t realize how many super-fans I had on Deezer until you pulled that. You might think I’m upset because I won’t get the pennies that might have been generated by fans playing those tracks. But that’s not it at all. What’s really upsetting is that you upset my friend when you removed those tracks. As an unsigned artist, every fan or follower is a friend of mine. They are a member of the community that has formed around a common interest. And each one of them is dear to me. When you upset them, you upset me. The Deezer _about_ page says “…connecting fans with artists…” It seems that, for now, you should change that to “disconnecting fans from artists”. So, if you’re worried about your bottom line, I don’t think this is the way to get good press. My hope is that every unsigned musician with a platform (blog, social media, letter to the editor, whatever) will also send you an open letter when they notice you’ve removed their tracks. Maybe then you’ll begin to see what you’ve actually done. I hope all of the fans who are upset by these removals will also reach out to Deezer. Sincerely, Stan Stewart pianist, composer, and singer-songwriter To Deezer: you’ve upset my friends and that upsets me. Click To Tweet ### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * ### Like this: Like Loading... ### _More for you_ * * * ### Discover more from Stan Stewart - @muz4now Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email. Type your email… Subscribe

Losing a DAW project to software upgrades or crashed hard drives is a rite of passage in music production. You back up your work, confident you’ve …

Make your music withstand technological errors and updates for decades to come by future-proofing your DAW project – check out the tutorial

### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * Enough is enough. ## Distributor Features Thanks to my distributor (DistroKid), I get a notification if my releases are removed from a streamer. Early notices sometimes turned out to be false alarms, but I still appreciate their intention. More recently, I’ve started to receive notices about Spotify removals. Unfortunately, I haven’t found an easy way to check this since they continue to show me all of my releases. However, as with Deezer previously, other musicians have been able to confirm a couple of the removals. This is because these musicians have playlists that used to feature one of my songs that has now been removed. (This was not the case with Apple Music. When my distributor misreported some removals, I was able to confirm on my own that those releases still were on those platforms.) ## Streamers Anti-features I find this unannounced and unexplained removal more than just disconcerting. It’s downright rude. But what else would I expect from a streamer who does everything in their power to avoid paying musicians? Some of the streamers (notably Deezer and Spotify) claim to be cracking down on AI. While I know that AI releases are a concern, I also suspect that this is yet another excuse to avoid royalties. ## My Response I’ll be starting with targeted removals from the offending streamers. I’ll start with the underperforming albums. Basically, any release that has less than 100 plays in the past year, I’ll remove. Don’t get me wrong about this: I’ll have to use the native “artist” tools/insights to check for the number of plays. And I don’t trust those numbers. However, I don’t have anything else to go on. If you are listening to my music on Spotify or Deezer and prefer not to change streamers, please let me know. Drop a comment here or reach out to me on your favorite social network. ### Please share! * Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon * Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn * Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads * Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky * Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email * More * * Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook * Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit * * Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr * Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest * * Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X * ### Like this: Like Loading... ### _More for you_ * * * ### Discover more from Stan Stewart - @muz4now Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email. Type your email… Subscribe

This started as a post on Threads but as usual I rambled on a bit so I've consolidated it all here: A couple of things happened over the last couple of days that got me thinking about AI and music in a slightly different way. Firstly, I dropped into my free Spotify account to check a couple of things and left it running for a bit. Track after track of AI music. Utterly predictable, utterly forgettable, mindless background noise. All relevant to my genre and preferences but as interesting as a plate of boiled white rice. Then yesterday I opened Tidal while I was at work and put on a new release playlist. Again, mostly in my genre or area of interest, no AI content that I could immediately recognise but, with a couple of honourable exceptions, equally uninspiring. The voices all sound similar. The guitar sounds are all generic. The rhythm never varies from its grid-aligned 4/4 tempo. The subject matter is always the same. Polished to a perfectly smooth grain of boiled white rice. And sure, on some of these tracks the chord progressions might have a bit more variety, and on an individual level the there might be a bit more variety in the song structure. But as a collective it was as bland as the AI stuff. Music by numbers. Written by a committee. Aimed at a playlist. Finished in a factory. Sold as a commodity. Before I go any further, I'm not one of these folks who thinks that good music stopped in the 70s or that there are no great artists and performers out there nowadays. There absolutely are across the whole range and scale of music spectrum. But we know them because of their humanity, their personality, their genuine attitude... And this is, for all of us, good news I think. It's good news because all of us have these things. We are all unique individuals with personality, attitude and humanity. We have our own experiences, tragedies and triumphs. We have our own stories to tell. Which means the solution to a diet of anodyne, factory fresh, noise-masquerading-as-music is simple, and available to everyone. You don't have to change platform or pay extra. Just find an indie / DIY act and put their music on. It might not be as polished, maybe not be as perfectly performed, it might not make you part of a social movement, but it will provide that honest human connection. Music, as @tommcraemusic has said, is an emotion transfer machine. But that can only work if it starts with emotion in the first place. Otherwise we're filling our bellies with the all nutritional content of a bowl of boiled white rice. Stuffed full and starving to death. The good music is out there. Honest, human, flawed, and overflowing with real emotion and experience. It's on your favourite platforms, just waiting to be found, just waiting for the story to be told. (You could start by searching for any of the musicians in my Threads following list). This turned into an essay, sorry about that but the TL:DR is that AI isn't a threat, not really. No more than the major labels have been for the last 20 years. The only threat is getting sucked in. Don't. Go be you. P.S.1 Someone commented on Threads that a lot of people think that a 'professional' production is one that is polished or perfect. But if you try this approach you'll often end up with something sterile and plasticised. A real pro takes all those rough edges and highlights just enough of them to let the magic come through. P.S.2 The corollary to this is about who your real audience is. It can be easy to think that if, like me, you make very middle-of-the-road music then AI might be stealing away your listeners / royalties. I posit that it isn't. Because much as we songwriters, musicians and composers would love that it wasn't so, most people just don't care that much about music. They really don't. Which means the folks who are happy with AI music chugging along in the background were never going to be your fans. They were never going to sign up to the mailing list of an unknown artist. They were never going to head out to a toilet-circuit venue on a rainy night to see you play. They were never the people you should be focusing on. Sure if you have some success they'll come along for the ride. Until the ride stops, and then they'll find the next thing. So don't worry about them. Not one bit.

This started as a post on Threads but as usual I rambled on a bit so I've consolidated it all here: A couple of things happened over the last couple …

Stan Stewart on the inspiration of winter, discontented yet hopeful with the present, and a few reflections on another music release.

Stan Stewart - @muz4now