Waves Grand Rhapsody Piano

Waves Grand Rhapsody Piano｜Fazioli F228 Legendary Sound Reimagined

Introducing Waves Grand Rhapsody Piano, a premium virtual instrument crafted for music producers and composers, bringing the extraordinary sound of the Italian Fazioli F228 concert grand piano into your Digital Audio Workstation (DAW). The Fazioli F228 is renowned for its unparalleled tonal consistency, rich and balanced touch, exceptional clarity, and powerful bass. Its body is crafted from the same Italian red spruce wood used in master luthier Antonio Stradivari's violins, making every handcrafted Fazioli piano a masterpiece of art and craftsmanship. Now, you can possess this legendary sound essence without spending hundreds of thousands of dollars and enduring a long wait.

The core sound source of Waves Grand Rhapsody Piano is a Fazioli F228 piano meticulously sampled at London's Metropolis Studios. The unique charm of this piano captivated even superstar Adele; the moving piano sound in her hit single 'Hello' comes precisely from the Fazioli we sampled. We didn't just sample the piano itself; we perfectly combined Metropolis Studios' excellent acoustic environment, multi-microphone recording techniques, and flexible reverb effects to ensure you get the most authentic, spatially rich professional studio sound. Whether for delicate classical pieces, epic film scores, or soulful pop accompaniments, this piano sound plugin delivers impeccable performance.

With Waves Grand Rhapsody Piano, you will experience unprecedented control flexibility. From freely mixing from a selection of 8 top-tier microphone models, to customizing EQ curves, adjusting velocity response, and even simulating pedal mechanics and string resonance, every detail is designed to provide the richest playing experience and the most nuanced tonal sculpting. This is more than just a plugin; it's a portal to world-class piano sound, helping elevate your creations to a new level.

Core Advantages & Applications

Breathtaking Sound
Simple piano sampling is not enough to capture its essence, as the piano's sound is inextricably linked to its acoustic space. Grand Rhapsody combines the excellent studio acoustics of London's Metropolis Studios, stereo multi-microphone recording techniques, and flexible built-in reverb effects to deliver an unparalleled grand piano experience, making your performance feel as if you are in a top-tier concert hall.

The Secret of Microphone Configuration
In piano recording, the choice and placement of microphones profoundly affect the final sound. The Fazioli piano sound source in this plugin was sampled using 8 top-tier ribbon, condenser, and dynamic microphone models, including the acclaimed Neumann U87, Neumann KM84, AKG C451, and Royer R121. All these microphone models are freely available within the plugin, giving you unprecedented control over the sound.

Flexibility of Multi-Microphone Mixing
Grand Rhapsody allows you to select and mix up to 3 stereo microphone pairs simultaneously from all 8 microphone models. By adjusting their levels, phases, and delays, you will get an immersive experience akin to being in a recording studio, personally positioning and mixing microphones to precisely sculpt your ideal piano sound.

Refined and Detailed Piano Tones
Fazioli pianos are known for their clear, bright, and transparent sound, but we also understand that some players prefer a warmer or deeper tone. The plugin's built-in 3-band EQ, with its frequency response optimized for piano sounds, allows you to precisely adjust the tonal characteristics of the Fazioli piano to your personal preference, easily achieving anything from bright and crisp to warm and mellow.

Place Your Piano in a Grand Space
Based on Waves' acclaimed H-Reverb engine, the built-in reverb effect offers 10 preset spaces, ranging from studios and concert halls to cathedrals. These diverse acoustic environments provide great flexibility, allowing you to perfectly integrate the piano sound into any magnificent acoustic space you imagine, adding depth and atmosphere to your compositions.

Ultimate Realism of Pedals and Keys
The mechanical components of a real piano produce unique sounds, and these subtle noises are crucial for creating realism. Grand Rhapsody precisely samples the mechanical sounds of keys lifting and the subtle movements of the sustain pedal. Furthermore, when the sustain pedal is used, the plugin can simulate Sympathetic String Resonance, greatly enhancing the realism of the performance.

Sculpt Every Detail of the Piano Sound
Grand Rhapsody offers a wealth of control options, allowing you to fundamentally shape the piano's sound. You can adjust Formant (Resonance Peak) to generate new types of piano sounds; use a Compressor (壓縮器) or Limiter (限制器) to tame dynamics for greater stability; adjust the Velocity Curve (力度曲線) to suit your soft or aggressive playing style; additionally, you can assign functions to the Soft Pedal (柔音踏板) and Sustain Pedal (延音踏板), giving you comprehensive control over your performance.

Technical Specifications (Tech Specs)

• Sound Source Core: Fazioli F228 Grand Piano Samples
• Recording Location: London Metropolis Studios
• Sampled Microphone Models: Neumann U87, Neumann KM84, AKG C451, Royer R121 (total of 8 top-tier microphone models)
• Microphone Mixing Channels: Up to 3 stereo microphone pairs, with independent adjustment of Level, Phase, Delay
• Built-in Effects: 3-Band EQ (piano optimized), 10 Reverb Spaces (H-Reverb engine), Compressor, Limiter
• Sound Shaping Parameters: Formant (Resonance Peak) Adjustment, Velocity Curve Adjustment
• Realism Simulation: Key Up Mechanical Noise, Sustain Pedal Mechanical Noise, Sympathetic String Resonance
• Pedal Support: Soft Pedal, Sustain Pedal
• Plugin Formats (Typical Waves Support): VST, VST3, AU, AAX Native (64-bit)
• Operating System Requirements (Typical Waves Support):
  • Windows: Windows 10 (64-bit) and higher
  • macOS: macOS 10.15.7 (Catalina) and higher (supports Intel and Apple Silicon processors)
• CPU Requirements (Typical Waves Support): Intel Core i5 / AMD Quad Core processor or higher
• Memory Requirements (Typical Waves Support): 8 GB RAM (16 GB or higher recommended)
• Hard Drive Space: Varies depending on sample library size (typically several GB, SSD recommended)
• Display Resolution: 1024x768 or higher