Hamburg Grand S274 is based on a robot-assisted deep multisampling of a 9’ Hamburg D-274 from 1958, a concert grand piano manufactured by Steinway & Sons of Germany. Each Hamburg D-274 is handcrafted and the entire process, from selecting the wood to voicing the strings, takes over a year. This dedication to quality has attracted the world’s greatest players throughout the years including Lang Lang, Emanuel Ax, Hélène Grimaud, Leif Ove Andsnes, and Sergei Rachmaninoff, the legendary Russian composer and pianist.
While Steinway’s New York models, like the Pianoverse NY Grand S274, were oriented toward a bell-like tone with huge projection to cut through a 100-piece orchestra and fill larger halls, the Hamburg Steinways were designed more as a substitute for the orchestra, as they were often being played in smaller halls with more ideal acoustics.
They offered expanded tonal variety with a gradual shift in timbre color from bass to treble, creating distinctions in tonal qualities across several octaves. The characteristic feature of this sound lies in the articulate round-tone voicing found in the tenor and mid-treble regions.
In recent years more standardized materials between New York and Germany have reduced these unique regional differences, making these mid-century models irreplaceable at any price.
Hamburg Grand S274 concert grand piano
Based on a 9′ Steinway & Sons Hamburg D-274
Captured using DPA and Coles microphones
Recorded at the Officine Meccaniche Studios in Milan
20 GB of sound content
25 instrument presets
