Over a century ago, famous artists played on specialized instruments from Ampico designed to capture their work. Today, you can download those very same performances as MIDI files available for download! Your very own Disklavier can reproduce those century-old performances. What once were marks made by a nearly-extinct technology on chemical paper can now be … Read more
If you own a Yamaha Disklavier Mark I, II, II XG, or Mark III, you’ve probably noticed that official upgrade paths are limited. The DKC-900 upgrade doesn’t support these models, and the DKC-850 — once a lifeline — has now been discontinued for years. But now, PianoStream can offer your older Disklavier renewed life! PianoStream … Read more
I’ve been developing software to assist player piano and, in particular, Yamaha Disklavier owners with common problems. I independently develop all my software, and it’s currently in its early development phase. If you have any notes, please don’t hesitate to contact me and report bugs or request features. APS MIDI Title Editor APS MIDI Title … Read more
I use a wide variety of software tools when reading floppy disks and preparing ESEQ and MIDI for the Yamaha Disklavier. Below is my attempt to compile the most useful tools I use on a daily basis. If you have any input or want any further information, please don’t hesitate to contact me. WinImage A … Read more
I’ve made a brief list here of websites where you can find free or public domain MIDI files. I always recommend registering or donating if you find the services valuable. If you’re downloading numerous songs at once, I highly recommend DownThemAll, a browser extension that allows you to simultaneously download many files at once. In … Read more
A person recently contacted me attempting to copy their Yamaha Electone Performance Disks. These files are not visible on Windows: If you attempt to open the drive you’ll see “The disk in Drive A is not formatted.” This is typical of Yamaha’s proprietary ESEQ format, and does not necessarily mean there’s anything wrong with the … Read more
The Yamaha Disklavier is a sophisticated piece of technology, but typically, you’re limited to Yamaha’s song library. Many Yamaha songs include both a piano part for the Disklavier and an accompanying music track, though the Disklavier piano part might differ dramatically from the original piano part in the song. In many cases, the piano tracks … Read more
Yamaha sold Smart PianoSoft floppy disks for Yamaha Marks III and IV. This was a revolutionary technology: You could insert a floppy disk designed to play the actual acoustic piano alongside an audio CD. In other words, the piano would accompany your CD! Yamaha released many such albums, and because the piano is accompanying the … Read more
This post is intended to help you read from, write to, or replace Yamaha Disklavier floppy disks. Some of my customers choose to upgrade their older Disklavier’s floppy drive to a Nalbantov USB drive, and want to know how to copy songs from their old Disklavier floppy disks onto a USB. Some of them just … Read more