Most synthesizers and sound cards use sampling to synthesize the piano. Sampling requires a lot of memory and does not allow much flexibility, unlike methods such as wavetable synthesis. However, wavetable synthesis usually assumes that the original tone is harmonic, and the piano`s stretched partials make it difficult to model. It is shown how to simulate piano tones using group synthesis, a special case of wavetable synthesis. The synthesis model uses nearly contiguous groups selected by a genetic algorithm, and independent frequency deviations for each group to simulate partial stretching. The model reduces the amount of data by about 50% compared to additive synthesis, while preserving the perceptual identity of the sound. Listening test results indicate that the synthesized piano tones are perceptually similar to the originals.
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