Vienna Symphonic Library’s free piano plugin brings a Bösendorfer Imperial concert grand to your DAW

Orchestral instrument specialist Vienna Symphonic Library has unveiled its latest free plugin, the Soft Imperial piano.

This is designed to bring the sound of the Bösendorfer Imperial concert grand to your DAW, and promises “clear and transparent tones” that can be used in all manner of styles.

The samples for the instrument were captured in Vienna’s second studio, the Silent Stage, which has what the company deems to be a “tight and controlled ambience”. You can tweak the sound in the supplied Vienna Synchron Player, which houses the library and comes with various presets. These include dry and big hall patches.

Vienna Symphonic Library Soft Imperial

(Image credit: Vienna Symphonic Library)

Like Vienna’s other free instruments, Big Bang Orchestra and Fujara Flute, the Soft Imperial can be activated via iLok or on your computer without the need for a physical key (see the video below for an explanation). You can download it now for PC and Mac from the Vienna Symphonic Library website, and it runs in VST/AU/AAX formats.

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Ben Rogerson
Deputy Editor

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it.