Synthogy has announced that Ivory II - Italian Grand is now shipping through its distributor ILIO and retail stores with a suggested retail price of $179. Upgrade paths are available to users of previous versions of Ivory products.

Ivory II Italian Grand is the second product in Synthogy's newest generation of virtual piano technology. The first, Ivory II-Grand Pianos, was released in September. Featuring the expanded sound set of the original 10 foot Concert Grand Piano, and fully integrated with the powerful new Ivory II piano DSP engine with Harmonic Resonance Modeling for true Sympathetic String Vibration, Ivory II-Italian Grand represents the leading edge of virtual piano technology.

The piano itself is one of the world's most sought after Concert instruments. Handcrafted in Italy, it is also one of the world's most expensive and exclusive Concert Grands, renowned for its expressive dynamics and full-bodied character. Its tone is remarkably versatile, equally at home in large-scale classical works, intimate jazz playing, as well as a full range of rock and pop styles. The beauty of this instrument is captured in great detail, with up to 18 velocity levels, additional soft pedal and release samples and pedal noise enhancements. Synthogy's decades of expertise in piano development, along with proprietary "timbre interpolation" technology combine to deliver the playability and expressiveness that Ivory is famous for.

Ivory II Italian Grand also comes to life in a whole new way thanks to the innovative features in the new Ivory II piano engine. Principal among them is Sympathetic String Resonance, a long sought after but elusive characteristic of real pianos that Synthogy approaches in a completely new and unique way. Realizing the true complexities and subtleties of sympathetic string excitation, Synthogy's Harmonic Resonance Modeling is a brand new technology that does not rely upon triggering additional samples, ordinary sine waves, or recordings in any way. Rather, notes struck that are harmonically related excite the actual complex overtones of the notes that are being held, in the same manner that un-damped strings ring in a real acoustic piano.

The full compliment of Ivory II's new features is also present, such as Half Pedaling, Lid Position, Pedal Noise, and Tuning Tables to provide even greater detail and control. Additionally, features like Timbre Shifting, Parametric EQ, and new Synth Layer controls offer powerful new sound sculpting capabilities for custom piano programming and sound design.

Ivory II Italian Grand Highlights:

• Over 28 Gigabytes of samples featuring a Premium 10 foot, Italian made Concert Grand.
• Up to 18 discrete velocity layers with Sample Interpolation Technology for ultra-smooth velocity and note transitions.
• Harmonic Resonance Modeling for the most realistic Sympathetic String Resonance possible.
• Half-pedaling.
• Synthogy's exclusive, powerful 32 bit Sample Playback and DSP engine, engineered specifically for recreating the acoustic piano.
• Sustain Resonance DSP for realistic Damper Pedal response.
• Digital FX including Real Ambience, Chorus and EQ.
• Customizable User controls for Timbre, Stereo Width and Perspective, Velocity Response, Mechanical Key Noise, Lid Position, Tuning Tables, and more.
• Timbre Shifting, Parametric EQ and new Synth Layer controls for powerful sound sculpting capabilities.
• All 88 keys individually sampled in up to 18 dynamic levels.
• Real Release samples, Soft Pedal samples, and Pedal Noise enhancements.
• Optional synth pad layer for modern/pop combinations.
• Dozens of user-adjustable presets, including all of Ivory I-Italian Grand's original presets.