Get

Contents

… the Software

bitKlavier is available for:

  • OSX (standalone, VST/AU plugins)
  • Windows (standalone, VST plugin)
  • iOS (both iPhone and iPad)

See the release notes for this version, and also for earlier versions (installers for earlier versions are also available there).

To use bitKlavier on iOS (3.3), simply download bitKlavier onto your device from the app store.

Installers for OSX (3.4) and Windows (3.3)

Sometimes OSX will complain about the installer and bitKlavier being from an “unknown developer,” or “app is damaged and can’t be opened;” just press control-click and choose “open” to override that. If that doesn’t work, check out this page for more ways to deal with OSX (Catalina and Mojave, in particular) and “unknown developers.”

Also, sometimes Windows virus checkers will complain, and will have to be overridden.

On OSX the installer will install the following:

  • a folder called “bitKlavier” in your /Applications directory, with the following in it:
    — the bitKlavier application
    — a “samples” folder with the core piano samples for bitKlavier
    — a “galleries” folder; galleries saved here will automatically show up in bitKlavier
    — a “music” folder, containing PDFs of sheet music for bitKlavier
    — a “pianos” folder; for individual pianos
    — a “preparations” folder; for individual preparations
    — a “soundfonts” folder; soundfonts placed here will automatically show up in bitKlavier
    — a “doc” folder with the manual and some relevant papers
  • VST, VST3, and AU plugins in the /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins folder

On Windows the installer will install the following:

  • a folder called “bitKlavier” in your Documents directory, with the following in it:
    — the bitKlavier application
    — a “galleries” in your Documents folder; galleries saved here will automatically show up in bitKlavier
    — a “music” folder, containing PDFs of sheet music for bitKlavier
    — a “pianos” folder; for individual pianos
    — a “preparations” folder; for individual preparations
    — a “samples” folder with the core piano samples for bitKlavier
    — a “soundfonts” folder; soundfonts placed here will automatically show up in bitKlavier
    — a “doc” folder with the manual and some relevant papers
  • VST and VST3 in the C:\Program Files\Common Files

OSX NOTE: if bitKlavier crashes on launch, try trashing the ~/Library/Application Support/bitKlavier.settings file; sometimes settings from an earlier version of bitKlavier can cause problems with a newer version. Note the ~ in the pathname, so this is in your home directory /Users/YOU/Library/Application Support.

Windows NOTE: If you encounter an error when running bitKlavier on Windows that VCRUNTIME140_1.dll was not found, you may have outdated or corrupted Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables. Updating your system or downloading the latest redistributables here, should resolve the issue. 

bitKlavier is an open-source project, created in C++ using JUCE. Developers interested in joining the project can of course download the source from the GitHub site, and don’t hesitate to contact us.

… the Hardware

Keyboard
  • An inexpensive 3-octave midi controller like this one will work great for a lot of bitKlavier functions.
  • For many of the advanced pieces like the Nostalgic Synchronic etudes, a full 88 keys is necessary. M Audio digital pianos work nicely.
  • The ideal situation is a keyboard with fully weighted keys which simulate playing a piano. Here are options from Roland and Casio.
  • A USB cable to go out from the keyboard. Some keyboards come with one.

Note: if you want to try bitKlavier without a MIDI keyboard, you can use the on-screen keyboard, or you can use a virtual keyboard application (like MIDIKeys) that repurposes the computer keyboard, sending note information directly to bitKlavier.

For iOS
  • An Apple iPad or iPhone.
  • A “camera” adaptor from USB to lightning (iRig 3 octave keyboard already comes with lightning cable). Lightning is the input that all newer models have for charging. These adaptors can usually be found at Apple stores.
  • Headphones or computer speakers. NOTE: in the newer iPhones without headphone jacks, we haven’t yet found a solution for sending audio to headphones or speakers, although you will be able to listen through the device itself. New iPads still have headphone jacks.
  • Download the bitklavier app from the app store.
For PC/Windows and Mac OSX
  • Laptop or desktop computer
  • USB cable from piano keyboard to computer.
  • Speakers or headphones
Speakers

There are many variables here! bitKlavier can work in all sorts of situations, using cheap speakers, headphones, huge PA systems, studio monitors, guitar amplifiers, whatever; just keep in mind that the speakers are part of the instrument and will have a big impact on how it sounds and how well it works when playing with other instruments. One of our favorite systems for using in concert situations is a pair of Bose L1 compact speakers; the nice thing about these speakers is how natural they sound, and how well other musicians in the room can hear them when you play. However, they are not cheap! And don’t let availability of fancy expensive speakers get in your way. In fact, much of the fun with bitKlavier is found when just exploring it, improvising, playing some of the existing pieces, all by yourself, even through headphones.

… Sample Libraries

bitKlavier can open most SoundFont and SFZ sample libraries, and there are hundreds out there to try. Just download them and drop them in the bitKlavier/soundfonts directory.

We have also created some sample libraries for bitKlavier:

If you would like the full Yamaha set that bitKlavier uses, it is available here. This one has 16 velocity layers, whereas the built-in “heavy” set in bitKlavier uses 8 of those layers, to save memory and minimize load times (which is not an issue with the new “direct-from-disk” option in bitKlavier v3.0).