When lightweight and portability is as important as sound quality and flexibility, Nord Keyboards presents the Nord Piano 88.
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The Nord Piano is delivered with the Nord Piano DVD that contains the entire v5 of the Nord Piano Library. Currently (May, 2010) this DVD contains 56 sounds, with a total size of 1.8 gigabyte. |
At Nord we do things differently
The Nord Piano 88 is a professional stage piano with 88 keys, designed with the performing musician in mind without compromising quality or means of expression.
The Nord Piano comes loaded from the factory with 19 different piano and harpsichord sounds. The program memory is filled with 120 programs that showcase the possibilities you have with the selection of pianos and the Nord Piano effects.
Click here for a view of the Nord Sound Manager window with the Nord Piano factory setup. Additional sounds are available for free on the included DVD or in the V5 Piano Library area on this website.
Acoustic, electric, vintage or contemporary piano sounds - it's all here. And with unique features like String Resonance, totally replaceable sounds from the extensive Nord Piano Library and the dynamic Nord Piano Pedal, the Nord Piano delivers in every aspect.
Character is everything
It's about time to stop playing the same lifeless and generic piano sounds that sits in your instrument for ever and ever! Every acoustic and electric piano has its own personality and so do the sounds in the Nord Piano.
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Personal Choice
Not only can you effortlessly change the sounds and dial in the desired effect settings on the panel, the Nord Piano is the world's first stage piano that allows you to completely replace the piano sounds in the instrument.
When your needs, or your mood changes, just download another piano from the large selection of unique sounds in the Nord Piano Library.
Exchanging the piano sounds inside your Nord Piano is easy. Connect the piano to your computer using the built-in USB-interface and your choice of sound is simply a matter of preferred style.
Perhaps the acoustic Grand Lady would suit your taste this morning? Or maybe one of the smaller, more intimate acoustic upright pianos is a better choice? Why not fit a vintage Sparkletop electric piano too, and you'll be ready for the jazz gig later tonight.
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String Resonance
String Resonance is the acoustic phenomenon that occurs inside an acoustic piano or a grand piano when strings, or parts of strings, resonate at their fundamental or harmonic frequencies when other strings are played.
When this functionality is turned on using the Nord Piano's acoustic pianos, all notes you play will affect each other to reproduce the wonderful acoustics that occurs inside an acoustic grand or upright piano.
String Resonance is also very noticeable if you use the sustain pedal with the String Resonance feature enabled. The notes that you play will have a beautiful sound quality to them, when all the un-dampened strings resonate as you play sustained notes.
Another thing that the String Resonance produces is a crescendo effect. If you play the same key repeatedly with the same force, the sound will change over time. This is originally caused by the hammers hitting the vibrating string in various phases, and creates a nice, gentle fluctuation in volume and timbre in the Nord Piano.
For rock and pop music, when sometimes a more dry and direct sound is desired, simply turn off the String Resonance. Sometimes less is more
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Easy to access programs
There are 120 programs in the Nord Piano. These are accessed by 24 banks with 5 programs each, with convenient program buttons located right on the panel where you need them during your performance. You edit the programs by just changing the parameters on the panel, and all the changes you make can be stored in any program location by using the Store button.
There is also a Live Mode with 5 separate locations, where every setting you change are automatically stored. This is a great feature during rehearsals when you are getting the set list ready, or as a sketchpad for those great programs, that are still to come.
Every program can be given a name; you enter the name from the Nord Piano panel or by using the Nord Sound Manager. Along with the program name, the piano model used will also be displayed in the LCD. Parameter values and menu settings will be shown when applicable.
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Transpose and Kbd Touch
With the Transpose feature, you can set a transposition value between -6 and +6 semitones, directly from the panel. This setting will be saved in the programs if you want to make this an integrated part of your parameter selection. There is also global transpose setting in the system menu that can be combined with the panel transpose.
The Kbd Touch feature enables you to alter the response from the keyboard. There are four curves available. These make it progressively easier for you to reach the maximum velocity from the Nord Piano keyboard. This can make a huge difference when you want that special touch on an electric piano, or if you hit a bad patch of wrist fatigue during an intense show.
All of the acoustic pianos in the Nord Piano Library are stereo pianos. If you use a mono amplifier or sound system, sometimes it is preferable to playback the sounds in mono. This can be achieved by using the Mono feature that is directly accessed from the panel.
Nord Piano Pedal
The included Piano Pedal offers an unprecedented functionality, with the addition of a dynamic control of the mechanical noise during operation, and the ability for you as a player to use half-pedalling and ''release and catch'' techniques.
The right pedal is the sustain pedal. When the sustain pedal is operated on an acoustic grand or upright piano, many different sounds are produced by the mechanical components, several of the sounds can be reproduced by the Nord Piano.
When the dampers are lifted from the strings when the sustain pedal is pressed down, a beautiful sizzle can be heard. When you remove the foot from the pedal, the dampers are returned on to the strings, which creates a different, muted type of sound.
Since the pedal is dynamic, you can experiment with various forces in pressing, and also in releasing the pedal. If you just slip your foot of the sustain pedal, allowing the return spring to spring with full force, a noticeable sound will appear.
The ''floor sound'' is heard when the pedal reaches the bottom of its travel. You can expereince this in isolation if you press down the pedal completely, then lift it less than halfway back up and then press down again.
If you lift the pedal and immediately press it down again, a very rich sound will be heard. Another big sound is 'The Stomp', which requires you to start with your foot above the actual pedal, in order to be able to reach the high velocity that is required to get this sound.
The left pedal is the soft pedal, also known as the Una Corda. When you press this pedal, all the notes you play will be slightly lower in volume and also have a slightly more subdued tone quality.
The middle pedal is the Sostenuto. By using this pedal, you can sustain selected notes, while other notes remain unaffected. Only the notes that are held down when the pedal is operated will sustain. Other notes that you play while keeping the pedal down will sound as if no pedal was operated at all.
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Effects, EQ and Amps
The effects in the Nord Piano are just as detailed as the piano sounds themselves. The tremolo adds that perfect vibe, the pan sweeps across the stereo panorama, and the auto-wah brings out the funk in you, like never before.
Whenever you want a modulation effect there's a beautiful phaser, a screaming flanger and a lush chorus, all modeled from highly desirable vintage effects.
The Nord Piano Speaker models faithfully reproduces the overdrive response of different amplifier/cabinet combinations. Select the desired speaker model - Small, JC or Twin - and use the Drive knob to add powerful tube amplifier distortion to your piano sound.
MIDI over USB, Extended USB functionality
The Nord Piano is the first Nord unit to have its USB functionality extended to also include MIDI messages. This feature allows you to use the Nord Piano as a controller keyboard with a computer, using the USB interface to transmit and receive MIDI data.
Lightweight
Even though the Nord Piano is built to easily cope with a hard touring life, it is the most lightweight and portable professional stage piano on the market at only 18 kg (39.6 lbs).