YAMAHA BUILDS PIANOSOFT™ PLUSAUDIO SOFTWARE LIBRARY FOR NEW MARK III DISKLAVIER PIANOS

BUENA PARK, CA (April 23, 2002)—Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, has rolled out an extensive lineup of PianoSoft™ PlusAudio CD albums designed for use with the company's new Disklavier Mark III series pianos, which feature built-in speakers.

More than 45 titles are currently available, including selections from top artists Frank Sinatra, Bette Midler, Clint Black, George Benson, and Hall and Oates, as well as Christmas favorites, Broadway hits, Latin rhythms and classical standards.

Due to the vast storage capacity offered by the CD format, the new PianoSoft™ PlusAudio titles include actual vocals and instrumental audio recordings, along with the MIDI data used to play back live piano performances on the Disklavier.

Disklavier Mark III

According to Yamaha, most CD-based player piano software available today offers only 16 levels of expression for the MIDI playback process, making the piano sound flat and lifeless. With PianoSoft™ PlusAudio, Yamaha has succeeded at capturing the entire range of 127 levels of performance nuance, significantly enhancing listening enjoyment.

"Customers will hear the difference in the Mark III and PianoSoft PlusAudio combination the second they hit the Playback button," said piano marketing manager Paul Calvin. "The rich, full-bodied sound will literally stop customers in their tracks."

According to Calvin, Yamaha was also meticulous in the PianoSoft™ PlusAudio recording process, capturing stunning orchestra and vocal performances to complement the "live" piano music of the Disklavier Mark III. The sonic experience is further optimized through the simulated stereo effect Yamaha has built into the Mark III hardware.

In addition to the new CD titles, Yamaha continues to expand its library of traditional PianoSoft™ Plus floppy disk titles for new and previous model Disklavier pianos. Among the new titles in the library are hits from Elvis, Count Basie and Jim Brickman. A new DCD1 add-on CD module enables owners of earlier Disklavier pianos to play selections from both the PianoSoft Plus and PianoSoft PlusAudio software libraries which are available online at www.yamahamusicsoft.com.

For more information about PianoSoft™ Plus and PianoSoft™ PlusAudio software, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622-6600; visit www.yamaha.com or www.yamahamusicsoft.com on the Web; or telephone (714) 522-9011.