Tape Piano Ableton Live Pack

100 Year Old Tape Piano
Ableton Live Pack

My 100 year-old upright piano multi-sampled to reel-to-reel tape and built into a versatile Ableton Live Instrument Rack.

16 Macro Controls and 10 Macro Variation Presets.

Life, character, energy, and soul!

Requires Ableton Live 11.1 Lite or Above

My 1913 Kranich & Bach upright piano is loaded with life and character. Over the past century it has developed its own unique sound and personality. The strings have lived through two world wars, the invention of television and rock and roll, as well as the moon landing. The worn hammers and mechanics are those of a piano that has been played by many. It has soul.

1913 Kranich & Bach upright piano I bought from the Salvation Army in the mid 2000’s. I paid more for the U-Haul truck to take it home!

Recently, my friend Eric, a piano technician, carefully worked on some of its issues while being careful to preserve its vintage sound. In the time I have owned it, it has never played or sounded better.

To celebrate its new life, I sampled every note 3 times to reel to reel tape on my Tascam 388 8-Track. Using the tape-kissed samples, I built an all new Ableton Live Instrument Rack complete with 16 Macro Controls and 10 Macro Preset Variations.

Tascam 388 8-Track Reel to Reel. The combination of vintage preamps and tape warmth give the piano samples something extra special!

The life and character of piano transfers to the Ableton Live Instrument, complete with occasional creaks and noises one would expect of a 100 year old instrument. Each time a note is played, one of the 3 samples is triggered randomly, making your performances sound lifelike and human.

The Macro Controls allow you to fine tune the sound, adjust frequencies, and add reverb, delay, chorus, and tremolo. You can even control how loud the mechanical damper noises are when you release each note, as well as how often you hear those noises.

Finely tune the sound of the piano, including the mechanical noises when you release a key. Instantly access diverse sounds with the 10 Macro Presets.

Sometimes sample-based instruments are so meticulously recorded, edited, and constructed that we lose the life and feel of the original instrument. Thanks to 100 years of life and the magic of reel-to-reel tape recordings, the 100-Year-Old Tape Piano rings with energy and life in every note.

Check out the free version of the 100 Year Old Piano, which was my 175 Free Ableton Live Pack.