Background

As an organ and computer lover, one of my wishes was to create such an instrument at home with my humble laptop. I chose the sf2 technology for it provides realistic instruments, is free and widespread. I began to put sounds together and edit various parameters, but the result did not meet my expectations. I voiced my virtual organ in an iterative way, each time with a better result, but too tediously. I understood then that existing tools would not allow me to go very far, the voicing of an organ being a meticulous work and requiring the editing of hundredth of parameters at the same time. This could be compared to a full orchestra.

The birth of Polyphone

A couple of years ago I chose to leave the bio-technologies to start a carrier in the IT. I made an internship and in my free time I developed Polyphone: first to fill my needs for editing, but also as an exercise. Initially in French, I translated it into English and then published it online so that everybody can enjoy it. Then other people helped me in testing, adding translations and improving the software.

The future

I am pretty proud of the evolution of Polyphone, but it is like the sf2 format is falling into disuse and now it needs to be promoted. I hope to gather all soundfont users and create a community around this free format. I have in mind several ideas such as promoting the use of compressed soundfonts (for soundtracks in mobile applications for instance) or improving the sf2 format to reach the sfz or proprietary formats capabilities. More than just a hobby, soundfonts could be seen as a viable and powerful open-source solution for advanced virtual instruments and for professional users.