Bosendorfer Imperial (Why the extra notes, and what do they sound like). 290

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  • čas přidán 24. 05. 2018
  • If you like music, you might want to check out my second channel "Milan Recording Studios". Feel free to subscribe and hit the bell icon if you want to!
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    James talks about the extra notes, and why Bosendorfer started making the Imperial over 100 years ago. Several people have asked who the Italian composer was who asked that this piano be built, and his name was Ferruccio Busoni .
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Komentáře • 815

  • @artemcultura6191
    @artemcultura6191 Před 4 lety +396

    The progression of smiles as he goes lower and lower🙂☺️😊 🤗😁

  • @Z3NTR0music
    @Z3NTR0music Před 4 lety +512

    C zero definitely sounds like someone hitting a massive industrial wire

    • @jaredsquirrels5242
      @jaredsquirrels5242 Před 4 lety +26

      it sounds like a star wars blaster to me, which is pretty much how they got the sound in the first place

    • @quantum.9883
      @quantum.9883 Před 4 lety +11

      @@jaredsquirrels5242 not wrong at all czcams.com/video/fl0wIdGxfbQ/video.html

    • @ajjones5251
      @ajjones5251 Před 4 lety +3

      Noteblock extender

    • @yves2281
      @yves2281 Před 4 lety

      Bells to me.

    • @alexismandelias
      @alexismandelias Před 3 lety +5

      Because... That's exactly what he's doing...

  • @rheakinn3196
    @rheakinn3196 Před 4 lety +797

    My keyboard can do that
    *Uses -2 Octave on the digital panel*

    • @microsoftice6498
      @microsoftice6498 Před 4 lety +34

      Ha on my Roland RD 700 i can do -3 octaves

    • @neil7137
      @neil7137 Před 4 lety +33

      ...and -12 transpose

    • @Capybarrrraaaa
      @Capybarrrraaaa Před 4 lety +20

      @@neil7137 We're hitting levels of *really low grumble* that shouldn't be possible

    • @emmanuelmcneil9153
      @emmanuelmcneil9153 Před 4 lety +7

      You can get the same sound just transpose on a digital keyboard.and there it is.

    • @victorsantana5097
      @victorsantana5097 Před 4 lety

      @@emmanuelmcneil9153 True. I can probably get these lower notes by transposing on my Roland.

  • @adamaj74
    @adamaj74 Před 5 lety +60

    The extra low notes aren't really there to be played, even though they were requested by a composer for a transcription of Bach's organ works to piano and built starting in 1909. Mostly the extra keys are there because of the sympathetic string resonance that adds richness to all the notes you do play.

  • @matthewharhai4039
    @matthewharhai4039 Před 5 lety +576

    Ok, those extra low notes are insane!! As an organist, I can fully appreciate them.

    • @michaelmiller1215
      @michaelmiller1215 Před 5 lety +17

      Nikolai Harhai The piano equivalent of a Contra Bombarde?!

    • @RabbitConfirmed
      @RabbitConfirmed Před 5 lety +12

      wow.. I thought they seem kinda useless for 99.9999% of all pianists. Am I wrong?

    • @somerandomdragon558
      @somerandomdragon558 Před 5 lety +6

      Still missing the -1st octave. :c

    • @charlottewhyte9804
      @charlottewhyte9804 Před 5 lety

      true was oragan student myself

    • @KingdaToro
      @KingdaToro Před 5 lety +5

      Imagine having one of these hooked up to an organ. You'd have FOUR piano stop tabs, not just the usual 16' 8' and 4', but 32' as well!

  • @williamsutcliffe3505
    @williamsutcliffe3505 Před 4 lety +61

    The C-0 sounds like “The Bloop”, a mysterious unknown underwater sound picked up by NOAA in 1997. It was believed to be a giant animal but it actually turned out to be ice-calving.

    • @servantofaeie1569
      @servantofaeie1569 Před 4 lety +2

      then they heard the exact sound again... the bloop is alive

  • @billbremmerrpt4382
    @billbremmerrpt4382 Před 4 lety +23

    As a piano technician, I have always been fascinated with the Bösendorfer Imperial and its extra low notes. Thanks for explaining to the general public about them.

  • @jcfretts
    @jcfretts Před 6 lety +1147

    What has me puzzled is why a piano that expensive is in a room with 1970s wood paneling.

    • @ThePianoforever
      @ThePianoforever  Před 6 lety +223

      It was a nice sounding room, he might be starting a new trend.

    • @michaelmiller1215
      @michaelmiller1215 Před 5 lety +12

      jcfretts I thought the same thing !

    • @informatimago
      @informatimago Před 5 lety +283

      Obviously, once you've paid for the piano, there remains no money to pay for a decent house or studio isolation :-)

    • @SammyRenard
      @SammyRenard Před 5 lety +74

      because wood paneling is awesome

    • @davidwall7747
      @davidwall7747 Před 5 lety +17

      Hey - Don't knock it - if anyone has any spare panels I'm looking for some.

  • @pianoherzig3232
    @pianoherzig3232 Před 6 lety +191

    The main “advantage” you get out of these keys and strings is the fact that there is a lot more space that can be used for a larger soundboard, which adds this extra richness to the sound.

    • @viktorpianist
      @viktorpianist Před 6 lety +3

      Yes!

    • @chrislobdell8157
      @chrislobdell8157 Před 5 lety +2

      Yes there are check out the center movement of the Bartok Sonata The middle movement calls for a low f

    • @chrislobdell8157
      @chrislobdell8157 Před 5 lety +1

      It calls for an F and a D flat the sixth

    • @robertholtz
      @robertholtz Před 5 lety +2

      Thank you. You are precisely right. Larger soundboard, richer sound.

    • @slothlovechunk
      @slothlovechunk Před 4 lety

      The sound board? It's just the harmonics/resonance of the strings. Right?

  • @benbond3433
    @benbond3433 Před 3 lety +25

    When that chord is played at 2:42, it sounds like some blood-curdling, scary-as-hell moment in a horror movie.

  • @kevincoxhead7137
    @kevincoxhead7137 Před 5 lety +8

    Even when the extra notes aren't used, when the dampers are raised the extra strings add a warmth to the general sound of the piano. My partner and I are lucky enough to own one and having it in the house is really quite something.

  • @davidhughes4448
    @davidhughes4448 Před 5 lety +48

    Well done. Your historical explanation for the extra bass keys is plausible, however there is an acoustic reason for them if you are a piano builder. Typically the lowest string at the bottom of the bass bridge on the soundboard is A0, as you state. The bottom end of any piano's bass bridge is inherently stiff and inflexible, more so than, say, F1, and so is the corresponding area of the soundboard. We are accustomed to hearing the pitch and tone of A0 in the typical concert grand piano. By adding notes (strings) lower than A0 we have made A0 no longer the lowest note on the bridge, because the bridge is longer to carry the lower notes, and the soundboard surface area is increased here, too. That duty (the lowest note) is now relegated to C0 in the case of the Bosendorfer Imperial. By doing this the bass bridge is freed up to some extent at A0, making it, in theory, airier and more powerful. The notes below A0 may or may not be musically useful, but the lowest pitches we are accustomed to hearing are improved. In other words, we have kicked the detrimental acoustical can father down the road.

    • @benjaminaristotleboes3157
      @benjaminaristotleboes3157 Před 5 lety

      BEST ANSWER

    • @benjaminaristotleboes3157
      @benjaminaristotleboes3157 Před 5 lety +4

      It's all about harmonics.... You don't have to play the extra keys to get the sympathetic resonation....

    • @anthonyheller9711
      @anthonyheller9711 Před 2 lety

      I was gonna say that (less erudite and technically accurate). I studied piano and my teacher talked about his Steinway and the Bosendorfer with its added keys - and the richer bass they provide. He liked rich bass tones and used bass lines in is jazz performances.

  • @TheWaxworker
    @TheWaxworker Před 5 lety +129

    The extra notes sound like stock music footage from a horror movie.

    • @mzx4166
      @mzx4166 Před 4 lety +1

      Better than saying it sounds like a helicopter, like my daughter said, and from the very first vibrating note he hit which didn't even start from the extra notes. Sounded terrible to me.

    • @JonesNate
      @JonesNate Před 4 lety +1

      Reminds me of the thing in "Star Trek: The Motion Picture."

  • @louisd95714
    @louisd95714 Před 3 lety +30

    Bosendorfer Imperial to pipe organ: "I can play very low notes"
    Pipe organ to Bosendorfer Imperial: "Hold my beer"

    • @unosuyoutube7866
      @unosuyoutube7866 Před 3 lety +2

      10 string guitar with octaver and drop tuning: how nice!!!

  • @GMatt193
    @GMatt193 Před 4 lety +19

    Did you know that there's a videogame soundtrack that has a piano duo for the final boss theme,and that one of the pianos has extended range? It is a very beautiful piece called ''Gwyn,lord of cinder"

  • @PhilJonesIII
    @PhilJonesIII Před 5 lety +114

    I'm waiting for Bach's Air on the Richter Scale.

  • @Cynthia_Cantrell
    @Cynthia_Cantrell Před 4 lety +10

    For anyone who is intrigued by Bosendorfer pianos, I highly recommend Tori Amos' "Boys for Pele" album. She also plays Boseys in her live concerts - the low end growls under her hands and it's fantastic. If these sounds were a color, I'd call them "Burnt Umber." Enjoy!

  • @tomosmaric7496
    @tomosmaric7496 Před 4 lety +22

    These extra notes sound like a synthesizer

  • @Az-jt2zp
    @Az-jt2zp Před 3 lety +10

    as he played lower and lower his smile got bigger and bigger

  • @stevepierce5108
    @stevepierce5108 Před 6 lety +153

    This is excellent James, I was lucky enough to play a Bosendorfer once, a wonderful experience!!!

    • @ThePianoforever
      @ThePianoforever  Před 6 lety +19

      The Bosendorfer line of pianos have a sound that is quite unique, and very special. A great Bosendorfer piano is something that deserves a great deal of respect.

    • @tomgiles1484
      @tomgiles1484 Před 6 lety +4

      Try playing a Fazioli.

    • @clairvoyage
      @clairvoyage Před 5 lety +1

      And quite warm. Really, really really warm lol.

    • @frazzledude
      @frazzledude Před 5 lety +1

      Watch some of James's other videos. There is a Fazioli f308 in the same room sitting next to this Bosendorfer 290 imperial. They are both awesome pianos.

    • @Bati_
      @Bati_ Před 5 lety

      ThePianoforever Can Yamaha U3 upright piano be an ultimate piano, I mean life span quality like those top notch pianos?

  • @royrosales81
    @royrosales81 Před 3 lety +4

    I'm convinced it is those bass strings that generate overtones, when the sustain pedal is used, even though they are never played, which in turn give additional support to all other struck strings above them, and that is the magic of the Bosendorfer. Of course the length of the soundboard is important too. They seem to have really found the right balance of piano size, lower string vibration, wood aging, layering, and dimensioning, and that's why it is my dream piano. No other piano has ever made my eyes water with its sound. Only Bosendorfer.

  • @allanfreilich9875
    @allanfreilich9875 Před 6 lety +40

    I think James hit it correctly when he mentioned the issue of the harmonics, not necessarily the notes themselves.

    • @parasiteunit
      @parasiteunit Před 5 lety

      Also, compression does weird things to audio - noticed this on some Aphex Twin tracks when converted to MP3, notably on the end of Windowlicker.

  • @Kreln1221
    @Kreln1221 Před 4 lety +3

    The timbre of the Bosendorfer's extra low notes are surprisingly clear and articulate.

  • @JanPBtest
    @JanPBtest Před 5 lety +11

    5:15 I would say _this_ is the most important thing about those extra notes. The even wouldn't need the keys to play them, they just could _be_ there, like the base strings on the chitarrone.

  • @donnagilligan2905
    @donnagilligan2905 Před 5 lety +5

    Thank you James. Indeed the Bosendorfer is the finest piano I've ever played and dream of doing a concert one day on it!!

  • @jonthebru
    @jonthebru Před 4 lety +14

    I really love seeing how James smiles and shows obvious passion and a love for what he is doing.

  • @weatherboi
    @weatherboi Před 5 lety +631

    If you don't C sharp, then you will B flat.

    • @rjlchristie
      @rjlchristie Před 5 lety +52

      Actually, if you don't find A sharp you will B flat.

    • @RWBHere
      @RWBHere Před 5 lety +19

      A Waltz in A Flat starts the neighbours complaining.
      What key do you have when an industrial elevator fails?
      (Scroll down.)
      A Flat Minor.
      Bye!

    • @miltonmoore5294
      @miltonmoore5294 Před 5 lety +2

      @@RWBHere I think the following works better: A waltz in A flat starts the neighbors in flat B complaining.
      (Can you explain the second joke? Sorry, I didn't get it.)

    • @sebastianzaczek
      @sebastianzaczek Před 5 lety +6

      But can you Change a B natural to a B flat?

    • @MrTruth111
      @MrTruth111 Před 5 lety +1

      Weatherboi that comment is A Major funny one!

  • @jimbrown9477
    @jimbrown9477 Před 5 lety +2

    THIS is the kind of IMPERIAL demo i always wanted to see!!!

  • @Dorian01ish
    @Dorian01ish Před 4 lety +2

    I've only seen ONE piano like this. It was in Carrollton, GA where a choral group that I was in were performing a Christmas special. That piano was MASSIVE! It was shiny black & the keys felt like GLASS . . . It was SO beautiful!!!

  • @sebastianzaczek
    @sebastianzaczek Před 5 lety +16

    I could Imagine using the lowest strings as "sympathetic resonators" by pressing them silently and securing them with the Sostenuto pedal. Then i can use the full range of the piano and still have the resonance effect

  • @PigCrafted23
    @PigCrafted23 Před 5 lety +4

    When you played that A zero ALONE, I was stunned. Incredible piano

  • @nocakewalk
    @nocakewalk Před 5 lety +5

    On my Nord Stage 2 digital piano the imperial sample is the default piano sound. It also has Steinway and Yamaha sample sounds, which makes for easy comparison. The Imperial has little competition from the others when it comes to fullness in the bass register to the extent where it sometimes becomes too intense, for certain music. It's quite an extraordinary instrument, thanks for the tour.

  • @billwesley
    @billwesley Před 6 lety +31

    Its amazing to me, really rather astounding, that so often the obvious is missed for the sake of theory.
    Its extremely clear that the low sound is not chaotic but not a pitch ether, those low notes produce obvious fast tempos, C0 is around 16HZ, a person can manually tap a table top at 8HZ and both sides of a container at 16 HZ, the same frequency as the piano string!
    Drummers bounce sticks to play at these speeds all the time, and much faster as well. Low fundamental frequencies below 16HZ continue to be heard as even slower tempos, we can hear waves down to less than 1HZ as tempos so long as the wave form has a sharp edge.
    The theory that we can't hear sound frequencies below about 16HZ is false, we can, but we hear these waves as a series of transients with a tempo rather than as a series of partials with a pitch, the piano strings prove this by acting exactly like transients in a fast tempo, its a fast beat,. very very steady.

    • @JordanKL1
      @JordanKL1 Před 5 lety +3

      The theory is that you can't hear a sine tone below 20hz. As in the lowest fundamental tone we can hear is about 20hz. Transients are made of much higher frequencies.

    • @titaniumslug
      @titaniumslug Před 5 lety

      We can detect that a low frequency vibration is occuring either through feeling it or by hearing higher frequency sounds that are also happening because of it. However that is not hearing it. For proof in the form of a thought experiment imagine that the piano is locked in a room with no windows and thick walls that can block out any frequency above 20hz and somehow alow frequencies below that to go through. You would not be able to tell whether the piano was being played. (of course such a wall would be impossible but a piano would never be loud enough in low frequencies to penetrate a wall that could stop everything else.) In fact the fundamental frequencies of those notes are probably so low in volume that effectively they are not there to be heard in the first place.

    • @justgame5508
      @justgame5508 Před 5 lety +1

      Transients are made up of many frequencies, if you perform a Fourier Transform on a the transient of a signal you get a spectrum of frequency’s with varying power centred around some fundamental frequency. A square wave for instance is made up of an infinite number of sine waves all at odd frequencies (2n - 1)f0

  • @thememorytraveler4978
    @thememorytraveler4978 Před 5 lety +3

    Interesting!! I hadn’t an idea there’s even one piano with more notes! Your presentation was informative with clear delivery and enthusiasm. I like your thought that the extra notes’ vibrations give our basic lower 88 a deeper and fuller sound. Thank you for posting this!

  • @peterharrison5833
    @peterharrison5833 Před 5 lety +4

    James--when I was stationed in Japan in the early 2000s, I had the good fortune to be able to play on three different Imperials while on tour with the USAF Band of the Pacific-Asia. The name of the group was "Pacific Showcase" and it was a big band playing classic big band jazz and some of the modern stuff. The opportunities I had to play were spread out over about a two-year time frame and were in three totally different towns. The Japanese were absolutely scrupulous about maintaining their concert halls and the pianos in them. I once asked a Japanese tuner how he tuned one of these. He told me that he would depress a triad of keys in the area of middle C on the piano and then strike one of the low notes briefly. If all three notes in the triad sounded sympathetically, then he knew he had tuned the string correctly. Thus, he would do it for every string on every key in the extended low range, starting with the low C. I watched him do it, and yes, this really worked. It was fascinating to watch.
    Additionally, I found the low range very useful in a jazz big band setting. There are many times in that type of ensemble when the piano is used as a doubling instrument for it's tone color---either in the very low bass or the high treble. A lot of orchestra composers do this. There's a "ping" or a "bight", if you will, to the high treble that adds a very nice color to the higher trumpet lines (or string or woodwind lines in the case of an orchestra), and a real nice cutting "boom" that the lower register of a normal piano adds to the bass, bass trombone, and/or bari sax (or basses, bassoons, tuba, etc., in an orchestra). Add the extra octave on the Bosendorfer, and BOOM!----you've got some really deep bottom end color indeed. We were playing the West Side Story arrangement from the Buddy Rich Orchestra book, and that extra bass range sounded great in the right spots. It was a blast to play! One other thing about those pianos. The instrument is so much bigger than even a good Steinway D (which is my preferred instrument in a concert setting) that I'd have to work out on it for about an hour just to get used to the difference in feel, resistance, and sheer size ergonomics of the 8-octave Bosendorfer. I was always a little wiped out after a show with one of those, but it was an experience not to be missed.
    Thanks for posting this video.
    Respectfully,
    PMH

  • @paddypatrick7282
    @paddypatrick7282 Před 5 lety +6

    Thank you so much for your videos. Your enthusiasm shines through in every one I’ve seen so far. Very enjoyable and informative!

  • @andthis1sforyou
    @andthis1sforyou Před 4 lety +1

    The fullness of that piano is apparent even through this video! Very cool.

  • @michaelandcarolblackburn103

    Hi James, those lower notes are certainly fit for use by Hollywood movies. Thanks for sharing such an interesting video.
    Regards,
    Carol

  • @miAimTIL
    @miAimTIL Před 5 lety +2

    As an organist as well as keyboard player and pianist I fully appreciate the extra bass notes. Great to see an Aussie company (we are Australians too) experimenting with extra bass and treble notes too. All adds to your own personal expressions through improvisation / composition.

  • @adir3025
    @adir3025 Před 4 lety +5

    takes to a different dimension with those extra keys. Game me goosebumps...2:07-2:33

  • @ivanwashington3186
    @ivanwashington3186 Před 5 lety +1

    AWESOME!!! I could discern each of the extra octave's notes. they each had their own "personality." what a truly grand instrument, it needs a word grander than grand to describe it.

    • @ThePianoforever
      @ThePianoforever  Před 5 lety +1

      I think it is really great when a piano builder dares to be different, but still builds one of the worlds best pianos.

  • @Cyntillation01
    @Cyntillation01 Před 5 lety +5

    Tori Amos plays Bosendorfer pianos in her concerts, although I don't know if any of them are the Imperial model. (I've seen her use both the concert grand and baby grand versions.) I've always loved the "growl" at the low end that comes out of these. I don't know if she actually uses those lower notes, or just loves the sounds that these beasts create.
    If you want to hear some good Bosendorfer music, all of her albums are great, but "Boys for Pele" has the best recordings and the widest variety of styles of music you'll find on any CD. Some parts sound like they could have been on "Sargent Pepper," while in another song she basically channels Led Zeppelin on a harpsichord. Throw in some bluesy New Orleans jazz and a soft 70's ballad and you START to get an idea of what there is to explore.
    Enjoy!

  • @keithhoston5026
    @keithhoston5026 Před 5 lety +1

    My 1st year at Chicago Conservatory, it was recommended for 'out of City' students to stay at the Downtown 'YMCA' Building, until one was well acquainted with the layout of the city; there was a Bosendorfer Imperial Piano in the reading lounge- incredible! Loved practicing on this magnificent instrument when the room was practically empty.

  • @HarlondN
    @HarlondN Před 5 lety +28

    This is fantastic my friend. I love it and thank for sharing the beautiful of this video. Here I come to support your channel. Regards from California.

  • @cretium805
    @cretium805 Před 4 lety +6

    4:21 This is how double basses tune too, I believe

  • @DontStopBrent
    @DontStopBrent Před 5 lety

    I love how excited you are over a topic that, to the general public, would be boring. Your enthusiasm is contagious.

  • @i.i.oblomov9345
    @i.i.oblomov9345 Před 5 lety +4

    Thanks, James. I especially liked your explanation at the end about how the extra strings may be boosting the regular bass strings thus making the overall bass sound richer and fuller. Though in no way do I have your expertise, I always wondered about that extra "something" I'd hear in the lower range in the B. Imperial versus a comparable Steinway. This, I think, said it perfectly.

  • @tagapiouplayz3737
    @tagapiouplayz3737 Před 4 lety +3

    I always wondered if there were pianos like this and there are. Sometimes when I play on an 88 key piano, I find myself running out of keys either end. It sound rediculous but it’s true, to know these exist really makes me wanna be able to play one someday

  • @persuadersonic
    @persuadersonic Před 5 lety +9

    The problem with the low notes is that basically the fundamental frequency is missing. So that is managed by our cochlea that is sensible to the difference of harmonics (spacing). For example A0=f1 is 27.5 Hz. Check with a spectrum analyser, you won't find it. But you'll find 2f1 (low in anyway), 3f1, 4f1 and so on. Now if you do 4f1-3f1 or 3f1-2f1 all will give f1=27.5 Hz that is the missing fundamental.

    • @rarebeeph1783
      @rarebeeph1783 Před 5 lety

      How would a physical instrument fail to sound the fundamental frequency?

    • @persuadersonic
      @persuadersonic Před 5 lety +2

      Project Overturn aka RareBeeph use a fft, even with a smartphone, and check yourself. This is also explained in "Physics of the piano" by Nicholas Giordano.

    • @RWBHere
      @RWBHere Před 5 lety +1

      The wavelength of sound becomes a problem at lower frequencies for any instrument with a sounding board. In an organ, a 64 foot rank, for example, is that in which the lower C requires an open pipe resonator length of 64 feet. (Closed pipes resonate at half the wavelength.) That's big. In domestic upright pianos, the sounding board cannot be made large enough to resonate efficiently at the fundamentals of the lower notes, and might be only 6 feet or so between the furthest extremities, so the predominant sounds heard from those strings which are equivalent to pipes bigger than about 6 feet in size will be the second and higher harmonics, so the octave is often the strongest sound, but in a really poor piano, the second octave might be dominant. The fundamentals are still there, because the strings are resonating at those frequencies, but they are comparatively weak. The bigger the piano, then generally speaking, the better the lower notes sound. That's why concert grands are so big.
      There are spectrogram samples online of various types of piano which illustrate the relative strengths of the lower notes of various types of pianos. In some of them, it becomes impossible to actually hear the fundamentals in the lower notes, because the harmonics are so much more powerful. The untrained ear and brain hear the most significant sounds, and can filter out the rest. That phenomenon is why mp3 and aac compression can be used without most people complaining. It's used in all CZcams videos, btw, so you'll never hear good instrumental sounds properly on here.
      Incidentally, efficient resonance of the sounding board, etc, in a piano can be a problem for the higher notes too. That's one of the reasons why a cheap piano can also sound weak and decay very quickly at the upper end of its gamma.

    • @scooterdon8365
      @scooterdon8365 Před 5 lety +1

      persuadersonic Well put
      Tuning and scale design are a compromise to best fit those harmonic stacks that cochlea and brain so keenly respond to patterns within
      But while imperfect, the finest pianos minimize the misfit between harmonics and make a truely large powerful and clean piano less a compromise and a joy to tune as the many intervals used to cross heck fit so readily
      And
      like other acoustics,
      The best are delicious to feel
      With the bass running up the hairs standing on the back of your neck in person

  • @PARAMONARIOS
    @PARAMONARIOS Před 4 lety +7

    Thunderous tone! Almost like with a tremolo or vibrato effect!
    I wonder what’s the octave ratio there? ~2.2?

  • @claudiogarcia8860
    @claudiogarcia8860 Před 2 lety +1

    I like those sounds when they are part of a cord above.

  • @Billblom
    @Billblom Před 5 lety +46

    Rachmaninoff would have used them. Yummy...

  • @arnesahlen2704
    @arnesahlen2704 Před 5 lety +1

    Your technique of playing each note "excited" the strings well without imparting harshness or heaviness. Good on you. The extras are black (or covered with a black flap) to avoid disorienting with low leaps. Damper- pedal use activates the sympathetic vibration with added strings fanned out across the overstrung frame.

  • @happydmitry
    @happydmitry Před 6 lety +71

    I am waiting for a review of extra high notes (c8#-b8)

    • @recklesswhisper
      @recklesswhisper Před 5 lety +24

      Only your dog is gonna hear the music! HaHa!
      ^..^~~

    • @patrickoconnor8166
      @patrickoconnor8166 Před 5 lety +2

      Aye, there's the rub.

    • @RWBHere
      @RWBHere Před 5 lety +4

      It will be interesting to know how they make the highest notes resonate for a useful period of time. The strings will be very short, and be deficient in momentum, unless they are very thin, and thus potentially fragile.

  • @frannybecker
    @frannybecker Před 5 lety +19

    Parabéns belíssimo canal ótimo vídeo super 🌹
    Saudações 🇧🇷 beijos com carinho 😘 Love 😍

  • @AbandonedMines11
    @AbandonedMines11 Před 5 lety +20

    Cool video! Nice demonstration and explanations.

  • @jamesfreud1
    @jamesfreud1 Před 5 lety +1

    I really want that piano. That has one of the best sounds ive ever heard in my opinion. The bass on that thing is simply amazing.

  • @Modeltnick
    @Modeltnick Před 5 lety +1

    I wish I had one tenth of your knowledge and talent concerning pianos and classical music! I remember years ago there were a series of recordings made using a Welte push up player on an Imperial Concert Grand. They used a room with a long slot in one of the walls. So the piano and the player were in two different rooms to eliminate the mechanical noise of the Welte player. The results were wonderful. Keep up the great work!

  • @AindriasHirt
    @AindriasHirt Před 4 lety +3

    Yes. The purpose of the lower strings is to give color to the upper strings, making the instrument sound deeper and warmer through sympathetic harmonic motion. You don't actually play those lower notes.

  • @honestinsky
    @honestinsky Před 5 lety +4

    Excellent video, thank you, much appreciated : )

  • @Feuergraf
    @Feuergraf Před 4 lety +2

    Funny fact: Just E0 is slightly above 20 Hz. One can't hear the notes below but the overtones and the noise

  • @virginiaorganbuilder
    @virginiaorganbuilder Před 5 lety +1

    I played one once, and I am glad you played the basses quietly- I found that they are most effective played that way. I am also an organist and organ builder, so 32' stops are very familiar to me!

    • @ThePianoforever
      @ThePianoforever  Před 5 lety +1

      I love pipe organs too, and hope to get invited to play some really nice ones. Thank you for your comment, and for coming by as well.

  • @stevenmayhew3944
    @stevenmayhew3944 Před 3 lety +1

    I call Octaves 0 and 8 the "yellow zones" because that is where we start losing our ability to discern the notes, and any octaves beyond that I call the "red zones" because the lower ones sound like rhythm, not tone, and the upper ones become more and more ultrasonic, but even before then, we cannot really discern which note they sound like.

  • @hipdadiddy
    @hipdadiddy Před 5 lety +1

    Don't know how you'd go about finding it, but read years ago in The New Yorker of someone who made an incredible transcription of the coronation scene from "Boris Godunov" that can only be played on an Imperial (the extra notes stand in for the ominous sound of ringing bells proclaiming the new tsar)

  • @RichInternationalAir
    @RichInternationalAir Před 5 lety +1

    James, this was a great demonstration! Liked and subscribed.

  • @Jenairaslebol27merde
    @Jenairaslebol27merde Před 5 lety +14

    james, thank you for this very interesting video focussing on the extra keys, as videos on this topic are quite rare on youtube!
    i would say that (apart from the resonance effect) the extra notes should not be played in a solistic way, but rather in octaves to add some massive low end rumble, just as you do when using a 32' stop on a pipe organ. it would be silly to play that stop alone.

  • @steevf
    @steevf Před 5 lety +2

    This was really cool! I had no idea such pianos existed.

  • @jimnorwood8748
    @jimnorwood8748 Před 5 lety +2

    I've enjoyed your piano quest, James.
    I've briefly played 2 of these in stores. Wow.
    What a technician said that makes sense to me is:
    Forget about playing the low notes in most music. Play as you do normally, and realize...
    The extra width of the plate serves to remove A,Bb and B0 from being the last strings at the extreme end of the scale.
    That insult is born by the extra and mostly unused notes.
    A~B0 are now moved interior and stresses become more like the other normal bass notes.
    You do get additional sympathetic string resonance from the extra low strings, a benefit I think.
    A greater benefit may be in the consistency of the fundamental and overtone series now produced by the "moved interior" A~B0 and a few notes north of those, too.
    I'll guess the tuning stability of A0~C1 is also improved by being moved away from the pinblock end.
    What of the treble?
    The same benefits might apply there.
    The last few treble notes are very plinky on many pianos, and I bet a few more notes to E8 would really benefit G7~C8.

  • @mattcruse495
    @mattcruse495 Před 5 lety +37

    Do a give away with that piano.

    • @AC5SH
      @AC5SH Před 5 lety +7

      Yeah, I'll be happy to take one, for free of course..... the thing must cost as much as a house. Right? Lol

  • @MrTruth111
    @MrTruth111 Před 5 lety

    Wow, bonus point for saying Bosendorfer the right way:)

  • @dsthorp
    @dsthorp Před 5 lety +1

    I love those low tones.

  • @shabbyroadscholar
    @shabbyroadscholar Před 6 lety +100

    The ear is not the only organ that "hears" music.

    • @iliatsiklauri3868
      @iliatsiklauri3868 Před 5 lety +5

      but? heart?

    • @Svit.S
      @Svit.S Před 5 lety +17

      @ilia
      you can feel the low frequencies, ever been to a concert?

    • @Tmanaz480
      @Tmanaz480 Před 5 lety +3

      Hehe...

    • @ternitamas
      @ternitamas Před 5 lety +12

      totally! deaf people also hear, in a different way, the vibrations

    • @erikziak1249
      @erikziak1249 Před 5 lety +11

      Sorry, but wrong. The ear "hears" nothing. It transforms pressure differences in air to electric signals. It is the brain that "hears". The "hearing" occurs in the brain. The ear just transforms sound coming in as acoustic pressure changes at certain frequencies to electrical impusles. You can feel low frequency vibrations with your whole body. That is correct. But still you need a brain to interpret those vibrations, espcially when part of music.

  • @allensheldon6610
    @allensheldon6610 Před 5 lety +1

    I read about the Bosendorfer in the mid 1980's and have a CD of Carol Rosenberger playing impressionist music on it. The stated reason for adding the extra notes was to improve the sound of the low A and a few of the notes above it. Some people complained that the lowest third to fifth of the bottom octave of most pianos sounds more like a "thud" than a tone. It was thought that being so close to the edge of the sound board, it lacked the ability to interact with it like the other notes above it. Extending the soundboard didn't seem to help. They thought that if they surround the low A string with all the other strings, hammers, dampers and other equipment, it would sound more consistent with the notes above it. I doubt that you can readily perceive that through computer speakers but I think the consensus was generally favorable among critics that it sounds better or at least more consistent.
    If you look at a spectrum analyzer of the lower notes of a piano, you will find that most of the sound energy is coming from the overtones above the fundamental frequency. The low A on a typical piano is tuned to about 27.5 Hz. If you filter out the overtones at 55 Hz, 82.5 Hz, 110 Hz, etc. you will be hard pressed to perceive 27.5 Hz from any piano. Neither the string or the sound board moves that much air.

  • @aldito7586
    @aldito7586 Před 3 lety

    That Bosendorfer sounds AMAZING !!!

  • @Daniel-hd7gq
    @Daniel-hd7gq Před 4 lety

    Exactly what I was searching for :D

  • @carolineandtigger
    @carolineandtigger Před 6 lety +4

    Very nice. Thank you for sharing?

  • @4000angels
    @4000angels Před 4 lety +1

    This is a great video. Thank you for uploading it. Very informative.

  • @pianoguyyy
    @pianoguyyy Před 4 lety

    Priceless for trailer music! Great work Bosendorfer!

  • @PurpleMusicProductions

    Omg I love it!!! That would awesome in jazz fusion. The tonality of the bass end made me just melt.

  • @Evangelionism
    @Evangelionism Před 5 lety

    It literally just sounds like thunder toward the end. Or more like "raw textures" than notes of sound, per se. Love it.

  • @joelweber3462
    @joelweber3462 Před 5 lety +1

    Nicely done.
    You might mention those extra keys are all colored black, so as not to disorient pianists.
    Acoustically, most piano's A0 string is at end of bass bridge - which is very close to the edge of case - where the soundboard has little flex available. This means the rigid area of the SB at A0 on most pianos does not allow good vibration (which affects tone). By adding extra notes below A0, it now sits farther away from the case, moved sequentially up the bridge, and in an area where the SB vibrates more freely. This is especially true of the Imperial. The added notes (strings, bridge length etc...) also mean the overall SB dimensions are larger to accommodate - which translates into tone.
    Finally, with the dampers off the strings (sustain pedal) all those super long bass strings add rich layers of sympathetic ringing.

    • @sarsbrooks5398
      @sarsbrooks5398 Před 5 lety

      ...OK - AND - #OVERSTOOD - JUST USE - WITH THE F CLEFF - WOULD TAKE UP THREE (3) GROUPS OF LINES - RANGING FROM THE LEFT OF MIDDLE C... - ETC... - I LIKE IT - I LIKE IT A LOT - EXCITED ACTUALLY - SO JUST LIKE IT'S COUNTER PART THE G CLEFF - WOULD HAVE A - #MIRRORED IMAGE - SO TO SPEAK...

  • @KelseyLeighAu
    @KelseyLeighAu Před 5 lety

    That sounds so galactic! Amazing. Like a singing bowl.

  • @CanelonVegano
    @CanelonVegano Před 5 lety

    With the harmony the extra notes sound epic!!

  • @Kapomafioso
    @Kapomafioso Před 5 lety

    Lol I love how increasingly amused and excited you got as you proceeded lower and lower :D

  • @friendlyskeptic5281
    @friendlyskeptic5281 Před 5 lety +17

    Béla Bartók composed his Piano Sonata on a Bösendorfer Imperial, and he used extra note in the 2nd movement. Nice video!

    • @sebastianzaczek
      @sebastianzaczek Před 5 lety +2

      Indeed! I was quite confused once i tried playing it the first time

  • @sammccadams8645
    @sammccadams8645 Před 3 lety +1

    chills

  • @RobertsPianos
    @RobertsPianos Před 5 lety +1

    Thanks for this video; some extra insight which was certainly new to me. I have just sold a 92 note Bosendorfer which I love very much. Marcus

    • @ThePianoforever
      @ThePianoforever  Před 5 lety +1

      Thanks for dropping by the channel, I'm really glad you enjoyed the video! I have watched yours for a long time, you make excellent content.

    • @frazzledude
      @frazzledude Před 5 lety

      Roberts Pianos The Bosendorfer piano you sold has 92 notes, so it would be either a model 225 or a 275. I am the owner of the 290 imperial grand in this video. The big Bosendorfer grand pianos are wonderful instruments.

  • @macman3175
    @macman3175 Před 5 lety +1

    Thanks what a brilliant young man

  • @valeriocadeddumezzanotte
    @valeriocadeddumezzanotte Před 5 lety +1

    So tuning the lower sounds requires perceptin of resonance in the higher ones. I.e. when Ab 0 resonates on Ab 1 the string is tuned?

  • @neddludd6076
    @neddludd6076 Před 4 lety +1

    Love the growl!

  • @dashobradors
    @dashobradors Před 4 lety

    Sounds so brutal 🖤 I love it!

  • @daviniasiles33
    @daviniasiles33 Před 2 lety

    These extra notes sound really scaring, they are great for a horror film soundtrack!

  • @juliahawkins9769
    @juliahawkins9769 Před 5 lety

    Terrific explanation. I like the “added resonance “ idea. I’ll keep watching. Thanks

  • @jeopardy60611
    @jeopardy60611 Před 3 lety

    I'm a keyboard player, and I find this so fascinating. I had no idea that there were pianos built with keys below the usual low "A."

  • @collinhunter9792
    @collinhunter9792 Před 5 lety

    thanks for that james . excellent job in explaining . thankyou

  • @kevinkelleher9323
    @kevinkelleher9323 Před 5 lety

    Wonderful. Smart, articulate, thoughtful young man. Thank you for that.

  • @judeelias3078
    @judeelias3078 Před 4 lety

    @ThePianoforever Hi James. Have you had a chance to try the C. Bechtein A 124 Style acoustic piano? If so, what are your thoughts?

  • @Greywolf3
    @Greywolf3 Před 6 lety

    Very interesting, thank you!

  • @voriskinlaw9775
    @voriskinlaw9775 Před 5 lety

    I Can Say A Few Yrs Back-I Finally Played One... Incredible Experience🎼🎵🎶🎹🎹!!!

  • @PowerrangerInWhite
    @PowerrangerInWhite Před 4 lety

    No this Video is to good and I wont accept it
    It is perfectly explained from a cool looking dude with good humor the perfect talking speed... I could go on for days and days