Native Instruments Vertikal Samples Nils Frahm's 4.5 m Piano
Native Instruments Vertikal samples Nils Frahm's 4.5-metre upright for the free Kontakt Player, with Particles 2.0 generative tools. $149 at Plugin Boutique.
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Native Instruments has released Vertikal, a Kontakt instrument built around Nils Frahm's vertical piano: a handcrafted, one-of-a-kind upright that stands 4.5 metres (14.7 ft) tall and is described as one of the tallest pianos ever built. It was recorded in Frahm's studio in Berlin's Funkhaus and produced with Galaxy Instruments, the team behind Noire and The Giant. Vertikal is out now at $149, and it runs in the free Kontakt Player.
At a glance: two playable instruments (Pure and Felt), the new Particles 2.0 generative engine with Rhythm and Play modes, 150+ snapshots and 100+ Particles presets; free Kontakt Player or Kontakt 8.13.1 and higher; standalone, VST3, AU and AAX via Kontakt; 29 GB download. $149 at Plugin Boutique, the NI store and Thomann (€149). A deeply characterful soft piano for film, ambient and songwriting, not a bright all-purpose grand.
What is Native Instruments Vertikal?
Vertikal is a single piano, sampled in depth. The instrument itself was designed by a renowned piano builder and made by hand, and its scale is the point. The strings run to 3.9 metres (12.7 ft), far longer than in any ordinary upright, which gives the low end unusual weight and lets notes ring and resonate for a long time after you play them. NI is clear that this is "not about huge sound": the piano is at its best played softly, where those long strings bloom into a warm, sustained tone.
The recordings were made in Saal 3, one of the rooms in the historic Funkhaus complex in Berlin where Frahm has his studio. The piano sits on a balcony at the top of the room, so the samples carry the acoustic of Saal 3 as well as the instrument. The recording chain used vintage gear.
Vertikal was made in collaboration with Frahm and produced with Galaxy Instruments, the company founded by Uli Baronowsky. Galaxy has a long record with NI: it co-created Claire, Noire, Piano Colors, The Giant, Una Corda, The Definitive Piano Collection, Alicia's Electric Keys, Vocal Colors and Mysteria. If you know Noire, the earlier Frahm and Galaxy piano, Vertikal samples a different instrument and introduces Particles 2.0, the successor to Noire's generative engine.
Pure and Felt: the two voicings
Vertikal loads as two NKIs, each a different take on the same piano.
Vertikal Pure is the open, unmuffled sound. NI describes it as warm, clear and expressive, with a wide dynamic range, deep bass, natural resonance and a defined attack. This is the patch for melodic writing where you want each note to speak and the long sustain to fill out sparse arrangements.
Vertikal Felt is the softer voicing: a gentler felt attack, a slightly muted, mellow tone and a darker, more atmospheric character that feels closer and more intimate. The extended resonance of the long strings is still there underneath that soft surface. It suits underscore, late-night chord sketches and anything mixed quietly under a vocal.
Between the two NKIs you get more than 150 snapshots, so there are plenty of starting points before you open the engine.
Particles 2.0: generative layers around the piano
The headline feature for producers is Particles 2.0, the successor to the engine that shipped in Noire. Particles adds extra notes around what you play, and those notes shift by chance within ranges you set for pitch, timing, dynamics and stereo position. Hold a chord and it turns into a continuously changing cloud of notes, which is a quick way to build evolving beds and textures from a simple part.
Version 2.0 adds several things that make the engine more usable in a production:
- Rhythm Mode creates tempo-synced patterns that are reproducible, with an adjustable step count and per-step velocities. That matters because random clouds are hard to commit to a track; a repeatable, synced pattern can sit under a beat or a loop and play back the same way every time.
- Play Mode lets you play the Particles sound sources directly from the keyboard instead of only as an automatic layer, so the textures become an instrument in their own right.
- Four assignable effect slots with presets and individual parameters shape the Particles layer without reaching for extra plug-ins.
- Motion is a new modulation system: LFOs plus performance modulation from the mod wheel and polyphonic aftertouch, mappable across almost every part of the engine. On a controller with polyphonic aftertouch, pressing into individual keys can open up the texture note by note.
- Sound sources cover tonal, percussive and textural options, and each of the two sources now has its own Pan and Timbre controls, so you can spread and colour them independently.
More than 100 Particles presets are included. Used with restraint, the engine adds movement to a sustained piano part; pushed harder, it turns Vertikal into a generative ambient instrument.
Native Instruments Vertikal specifications
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Kontakt instrument: Upright Piano and Prepared Upright Piano |
| Source instrument | Nils Frahm's 4.5 m (14.7 ft) handcrafted upright, 3.9 m (12.7 ft) strings |
| Recorded | Saal 3, Funkhaus, Berlin, with vintage gear |
| Instruments | 2 NKIs: Vertikal Pure, Vertikal Felt |
| Presets | 150+ snapshots, 100+ Particles presets |
| Generative engine | Particles 2.0 with Rhythm Mode, Play Mode, four effect slots, Motion modulation |
| Player | Free Kontakt Player or Kontakt 8.13.1 and higher |
| Formats | Standalone, VST3, AU (macOS), AAX via Kontakt or Kontakt Player |
| Windows | Windows 10 or 11 |
| macOS | macOS 14 or later (macOS 13 dropped as of Kontakt 8.8) |
| CPU | Intel Core i5 or equivalent, or Apple Silicon |
| RAM | 4 GB (6 GB recommended) |
| Download | 29 GB |
| Activation | Native Access (internet to download and activate, then offline use) |
Vertikal vs Noire vs Keyscape vs Pianoteq 9 vs Addictive Keys
| NI Vertikal | NI Noire | Keyscape | Pianoteq 9 | Addictive Keys | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $149 at Plugin Boutique | $139 at Plugin Boutique | $399 | €139 to €399 (Stage, Standard, PRO) | $99 |
| What it is | One giant upright, two voicings, Particles 2.0 | Galaxy and NI piano with Nils Frahm, earlier Particles engine | Spectrasonics multi-sampled keyboard collection | Physically modelled piano platform | XLN sampled keyboard instruments |
| Approach | Sampled | Sampled | Sampled | Modelled (about 50 MB install) | Sampled |
| Generative layer | Yes, Particles 2.0 | Yes, original Particles | No | No | No |
| Pick it if | You want an intimate, resonant signature piano with evolving textures | You want the Frahm and Particles sound for $10 less | You want acoustic and electric keyboard depth in one library | You want a tiny install and deep piano editing | You want an affordable, mic-flexible keyboard browser |
Which to pick: Vertikal and Noire cover similar ground: both come from Galaxy and Frahm, both pair a characterful piano with a Particles layer. Noire is $10 cheaper. Vertikal brings a very different instrument, with that long-string resonance and a Felt voicing, plus the far more controllable Particles 2.0 with reproducible rhythms, Play Mode, effect slots and Motion modulation. If you already own Noire, buy Vertikal for the piano and the new engine, not as a replacement.
Keyscape and Pianoteq 9 answer a different question. Keyscape is a broad keyboard collection at more than twice the price, and Pianoteq is a modelled piano platform that installs in a fraction of the disk space with deep physical editing. Addictive Keys is the budget sampled option. None of them is a substitute for Vertikal's specific soft, atmospheric character, and Vertikal is not a substitute for a general-purpose bright grand.
Who Vertikal is for
Buy it if you write for film, games, ambient or neo-classical projects and want a piano with a strong identity rather than a neutral concert grand; if you like playing soft and letting notes ring; or if you want generative textures that can follow a tempo and repeat on cue. Producers who sketch on a poly aftertouch controller will get the most out of Motion. Because it runs in the free Kontakt Player, you do not need to buy Kontakt 8 ($299 at Plugin Boutique) to use it.
Skip it if you need a bright pop or rock grand that cuts through a dense mix: this piano is deliberately soft and intimate. Skip it if you want several pianos in one purchase, since Vertikal is one instrument with two voicings. Check your system too: it needs Kontakt 8.13.1 or a current Kontakt Player, which means macOS 14 or later on a Mac, and the download is 29 GB. If you already own Noire and mainly want the Frahm and Particles sound, you may not need both.
How much does Native Instruments Vertikal cost?
Vertikal is one edition at one price, with no launch discount.
- $149 at Plugin Boutique.
- $149 / €149 at the Native Instruments store.
- €149 at Thomann.
It installs and activates through Native Access and runs in the free Kontakt Player, so there is no further cost to start playing. Our Native Instruments Vertikal plugin page tracks the price. For the wider NI picture, our Komplete 26 Standard vs Ultimate guide covers the bundles.
FAQ
Do I need the full version of Kontakt for Vertikal?
No. Vertikal runs in the free Kontakt Player as well as Kontakt 8.13.1 and higher. Both load it as a standalone app or as a VST3, AU (macOS) or AAX plug-in.
Vertikal vs Noire: which should I buy?
Both are Galaxy Instruments pianos made with Nils Frahm and both have a Particles generative layer. Noire is $139 at Plugin Boutique, $10 less than Vertikal. Vertikal has a different instrument, a 4.5-metre upright with 3.9-metre strings, a Felt voicing and Particles 2.0 with Rhythm Mode, Play Mode, four effect slots and Motion modulation. Pick Vertikal for the new piano and the more controllable engine.
What are Vertikal's system requirements?
Windows 10 or 11, or macOS 14 or later; an Intel Core i5 or equivalent, or Apple Silicon; 4 GB RAM (6 GB recommended); and 29 GB for the download. You need an internet connection to download and activate it through Native Access, after which it works offline.
Is Vertikal good for pop and rock?
Not as a main piano. NI built it around soft playing and the long resonance of the strings, and the Felt voicing is darker still. It shines in ambient, film, neo-classical and intimate songwriting. For a bright grand that cuts through drums and guitars, look elsewhere.
What is Particles 2.0?
The generative engine inside Vertikal and the successor to the Noire engine. It adds notes that vary by chance in pitch, timing, dynamics and stereo position, with Rhythm Mode for reproducible tempo-synced patterns, Play Mode for playing its sources from the keyboard, four effect slots and Motion modulation via LFOs, mod wheel and polyphonic aftertouch.
Verdict
Vertikal is a specialist instrument made with care. The giant upright offers long, resonant bass, a warm sustain that rewards soft playing, and a Felt voicing that drops straight into ambient and film work. Particles 2.0 is a real step up from Noire's engine, mainly because Rhythm Mode makes the generative layer repeatable and tempo-locked, and Motion turns poly aftertouch into an expressive control. The limits are equally clear: one piano with two voicings, a deliberately gentle character, a 29 GB download, macOS 14 or later, and no launch discount, with Noire $10 cheaper for similar Frahm territory. If that soft, atmospheric sound is what your music needs, $149 is fair for an instrument with this much identity.
