Overview of the commuted piano synthesis technique

The "commuted piano synthesis" algorithm is described, based on a simplified acoustic model of the piano. The model includes multiple coupled strings, a nonlinear hammer, and a linear enclosure model (including the soundboard) which can have arbitrarily large order. Simplifications are employed which greatly reduce computational complexity. Most of the simplifications are made possible by the commutation of linear, time-invariant systems. However, special care must be given to the piano hammer which is highly nonlinear and therefore does not commute with other components. In its present form, a complete, two-key piano can be synthesized in real time on a single 25 MHz Motorola DSP56001 signal processing chip.

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