The course
Cinematic Piano Course
A beautiful piano sound is just the beginning. Learn to write, arrange and finish emotional piano music for trailers, adverts and television.
View the course →1911 Bechstein Upright
A free upright piano from Andrew Ward (Pianobook), played in Decent Sampler.
This pack captures a C. Bechstein Model 9 upright built in 1911, which Andrew Ward has owned since childhood. Patrick Ytting sampled it for Pianobook in 2019, after the piano had been fully restored. The sound is soft without being muffled, and you can faintly hear the hammers and action. It has an old, homely character that suits memory scenes, period drama and quiet personal moments. The library is compact and light on the computer. It comes in Decent Sampler, Kontakt and SFZ versions. The Kontakt patch needs the full version of Kontakt, and the download needs a free Pianobook account.
Worth knowing: You need a free Pianobook account to download it. The Kontakt version needs full Kontakt and only runs in demo mode in the free Player, so use the Decent Sampler version.
Get 1911 Bechstein Upright from Andrew Ward (Pianobook) →More free upright pianos
- Writing for trailers, adverts and TV
- Arpeggio patterns that make plain chords cinematic
- Making MIDI piano sound played
- Light orchestration with strings
- A quick mix and master for each track