EP4088275B1 - 2d user interface for a musical instrument to play combined chord and melody sequences - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a user interface for a musical instrument according to the subject matter of claim 1, a musical instrument according to the subject matter of claim 8, a method for generating combined chord and melody sequences according to the subject matter of claim 10, and a computer-readable storage medium according to the claim of claim 13.

Many people want to be able to play a musical instrument so that they can make music alone or with other people. However, learning a musical instrument requires a significant investment of time and energy. This applies to both learning melodic instruments and accompanying instruments. If a musician wants to play both melodies and chords in combination, he or she must resort to instruments such as a piano, which are difficult to learn, expensive to purchase, and require a significant amount of space.

If a musician wants to compose his own pieces of music or, more generally, play chord sequences with a tonally matching melody, knowledge of music theory is required, which further increases the learning and time expenditure.

The prior art has attempted to partially address the above difficulties by providing virtual musical instruments whose acquisition costs are lower than those of traditional instruments and which can be used on existing digital devices. Mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets have fast-reacting touchscreens, which provide a useful basis for designing virtual musical instruments. Accordingly, virtual instruments are known that can be installed on a mobile device and presented to a user enable the touchscreen to be used as an input device for playing a virtual instrument displayed on it. However, the virtual instruments known in the prior art are not suitable for satisfactorily solving all of the problems discussed above. In particular, there are no solutions that allow combined input of chord and melody sequences in a simple and intuitive way.

The DE 10 2008 028 328 B4 discloses a device for generating note signals on which chords can be played with a finger. If you move your finger horizontally on an operating device of the device, various inversions of a selected chord are played. If you move your finger vertically, you switch to a different chord. The creation of combined chord and melody sequences is not possible with the device.

The US 2014/0137721 A1 shows a virtual instrument on which chord progressions with different inversions can be played. You can choose between different configurations of the chosen chord as well as between different articulations of the sound. Playing combined chord and melody sequences is again not possible.

In the US 2003/0015087 A1 describes a keyboard with a continuous keyboard on which melodic sequences can be played with one finger. However, chords or chord progressions cannot be played without knowledge of music. From the US 2003/209130 A1 a musical instrument controller is known which is intended to enable a musically trained user to create chord accompaniments with simplified fingering. Intuitive input of melody sequences with matching chords is not guaranteed.

Against the above background, it is the object of the present invention to create a way to generate or play combined chord and melody sequences in the most intuitive and simple way possible. The aim is to make it possible, in particular, for a musically inexperienced user to play pleasant-sounding and harmonically meaningful chord and melody sequences without having any prior knowledge of music theory or harmony having to learn to play an instrument. In particular, the present invention is intended to create a possibility for implementing a musical instrument for playing combined chord and melody sequences, which is characterized by a high level of user-friendliness and ease of operation.

The above object is achieved by a user station according to claim 1, a musical instrument according to claim 8, a method for generating combined chord and melody sequences according to claim 10 and a computer-readable storage medium according to claim 13.

In particular, the task is solved by a user interface for a musical instrument, in particular an electronic or virtual musical instrument, for playing combined chord and melody sequences, having a key matrix with a plurality of operable zones that are arranged in columns and rows, each row of actuatable zones form a region, with each region being assigned a base chord, which is preferably a ladder's own chord of a scale, preferably a diatonic scale, with each zone being assigned a melody tone, which is preferably a melody tone of the scale, the user station being designed to do so is to generate, upon actuation of a zone in a region, a tone generation command corresponding to the actuated zone and region, the tone generation command comprising at least a base chord note command having a pitch contained in the base chord associated with the actuated region and a melody note command , whose pitch corresponds to the melody tone of the activated zone.

A core idea of the invention is to assign both a basic chord and a melody tone to each of the actuatable zones, so that by actuating a zone a note command can be generated that includes both chord and melody tones. This means that combined chord and melody sequences can be generated in a completely intuitive and simple way by (sequentially) actuating zones, without the user having to have any knowledge or learned skills as with conventional instruments as to how chord and melody tones are generated or which ones Tones must be played on the instrument for this. Since all zones in a region have the same chord is assigned, when zones in the same region are pressed consecutively (i.e. when playing on the key matrix within the same row), the basic chord remains fixed and only the melody tone changes. A chord change only occurs when a playing movement on the key matrix leaves a played region. This makes it possible for the user to easily and intuitively determine the times of chord changes on the one hand and the times of melody changes on the other hand when playing a melody. Because creating combined chord and melody sequences only requires the sequential operation of zones, combined chord and melody sequences can be played with just one finger. This makes the user station extremely easy to operate.

Each note command involves specifying a pitch that corresponds to the note to be played. If reference is made to the pitch of a note command, which can be specified by specifying the corresponding note, the terms “note” and “note command” are used synonymously in the context of the present invention.

Preferably, the basic chords assigned to the regions are the ladder's own chords of a scale or tone scale. This can ensure that the basic chords assigned to the regions have a strong harmonic relationship to one another, so that chord changes sound harmonious. It is particularly preferred that the scale that serves as the tone material for the basic chords is a diatonic scale. The basic chords are the diatonic scale's own chords. A major scale or a (natural) minor scale is preferably used as the diatonic scale. However, the invention is not limited to diatonic scales or the major and minor scales mentioned as basic tone material. For example, a chromatic scale, a whole tone scale, a pentatonic, octatonic or other scale or tone scale can also be used to provide a desired tonality.

The tone generation commands generated when a zone is operated are not limited to any specific format. They can be designed as control commands for sound generation in a separate sound generator, or for be configured for immediate sound generation. For example, the sound generation commands can be configured in the form of MIDI commands that can be output to a corresponding MIDI sound generator to generate an audio signal. These MIDI commands can be predefined and stored on a storage medium for faster access. Likewise, the tone generation commands may be configured to trigger playback of predefined audio waveforms stored in a storage medium and having corresponding pitches corresponding to the basic chord notes and melody notes associated with the zone. Furthermore, it is conceivable that the sound generation commands trigger a sound synthesis in a corresponding sound generator or synthesizer. The only decisive factor is that the tone generation commands are suitable for causing the direct or indirect generation of a tone or audio signal that has the pitches assigned to the actuated zone, so that the actuation of a zone of the user interface results in the generation of a tone signal with a chord assigned to the zone - and melody tones can be triggered.

The generation of the tone generation commands is also not subject to any particular limitation. For example, it is conceivable that the zones are in communicative connection with a computing unit such as a microcontroller or similar. When a zone is actuated, the user interface generates an actuation signal associated with the actuated zone. The computing unit receives the actuation signal and generates the tone generation command according to the invention based on the assignment of basic chords and melody tones to the actuated zone, for example stored in a suitable memory. The computing unit can be designed as part of the user interface or can be provided separately from it and can be designed to receive actuation signals. Likewise, the generation of the tone generation commands can be software-based if the user interface is designed as a software or computer-implemented user interface.

If MIDI commands are used as sound generation commands, the user interface can be designed as a component of a MIDI controller, which is also considered a musical instrument in the context of the present invention. In this case, the tone generation commands can be output to a MIDI interface, via which a correspondingly configured tone generator can be connected to the MIDI controller can be connected to generate or output corresponding audio signals based on the tone generation commands.

The assignment of the basic chords and melody tones to the zones and regions can be fixed or can be adjusted by appropriate user input while using the user interface.

The arrangement of the zones in rows and columns of the key matrix can correspond to an orthogonal grid in which the zones are arranged next to and one above the other. However, it is also possible for the zones to be arranged partially overlapping, especially within a region. The design of the key matrix is also not limited to a strictly orthogonal arrangement in which the rows are perpendicular to the columns. The zones of neighboring regions can also be arranged offset from one another.

The columns and rows of the key matrix can be arranged so that the columns run vertically and the rows run horizontally. Alternatively, it is also possible to design the key matrix in such a way that the columns run horizontally and the rows run vertically.

According to a possible embodiment of the invention, the basic chords that are assigned to adjacent regions are at a tonal distance of one fifth from one another. This embodiment is particularly preferred if a diatonic scale, in particular a major scale or a (natural) minor scale, is used as the base tone material. In this case, the basic chords of neighboring regions have a particularly strong harmonic relationship, so that a change from one region to an adjacent region results in a particularly catchy and pleasant-sounding chord change without the user having to have appropriate knowledge of harmony.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the basic chords that are assigned to adjacent regions have a tonal distance of one third from one another. For this embodiment too, it is particularly preferred if the sound material for the basic chords and the melody tones is a diatonic scale, in particular a major scale or a (natural) minor scale is used. This results in a configuration of the key matrix in which adjacent regions are alternately assigned major and minor chords with a strong tonal and harmonic connection. This means that when changing from one region to an adjacent region, sonically logical and appealing chord changes can be created without the user having to rely on knowledge of harmony.

It is further preferred that the zones in each region are assigned melodic tones in ascending pitch. Preferably, the melodic tones associated with successive zones in each region form a scale, preferably a diatonic scale, more preferably a major scale or a (harmonic) minor scale. It is particularly preferred if the melody tones form the same scale that underlies the basic chords. This embodiment enables intuitively accessible generation of melodies within each region, as ascending or descending tonal movement can be realized by moving in the corresponding direction within the region. If the melody tones are also chosen from the same scale that also serves as the tonal material for the basic chords, the melody tones are harmoniously coordinated with the basic chords, so that particularly sonically appealing chord and melody sequences can be created without any prior musical knowledge.

More preferably, the same melody tone is assigned to the zones in each column of the key matrix. In this embodiment, when moving along a column of the key matrix, the melody tone remains stable and only the basic chord changes. This allows the melody tone to act as a harmonic bridge connecting the two basic chords. In this way, particularly catchy and at the same time aesthetic and emotionally expressive chord changes can be created in a simple and intuitive way.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the pitch of the at least one basic chord note command is selected for each zone such that it is below or above the pitch of the melody note command. If the base chord note command includes multiple notes, it is preferred that the pitch of all base chord notes be below or above the pitch of the melody tone.

In principle, melody tones can be arranged at any position in terms of their pitch within the set of notes of the tone generation command. Setting the pitches of the base chord notes to be below the pitch of the melody tone improves the audibility of the melody tone. In some cases it may be desirable to use tones of the base chord as upper voices to the melody tone. In this case, the pitches of the base chord notes are set to be above the pitch of the melody note. It is possible for the pitches of all basic chord notes to be above the pitch of the melody note. It is also possible to select the pitches of the base chord notes so that only some of the base chord notes, in particular only one base chord note, lie above the pitch of the melody tone. In this case, the base chord note whose pitch is above the melody tone acts as an upper voice to the melody tone, which can be sonically preferred.

To further emphasize the sound of the melody tones, the basic chord note command can be assigned a different timbre and/or volume than the melody tone note command. If the tone generation commands are implemented as MIDI commands, this can be done, for example, by assigning a different MIDI channel and/or a different velocity value to the basic chord note command than to the melody tone note command.

It is further preferred that for each zone the pitch of the at least one basic chord note command is selected such that the tonal distance between the melody note command and the nearest basic chord note command is greater than a minor second, or alternatively greater than a major second. is. On the one hand, this improves the perceptibility of the melody tone and also avoids the formation of sound combinations of basic chord tones and melody tones that can be perceived as dissonant.

According to a preferred development, the tone generation command for each zone includes a bass note command that corresponds to one of the tones of the base chord, preferably the root of the base chord, and has a pitch that is lower than the pitch of the remaining note commands. It is further preferred that the bass note command is assigned a different timbre and/or volume than the other note commands. Furthermore, it is preferred that the bass note command is selected so that its pitch does not leave a specified pitch range. In a further preferred development, the pitch of the bass note note command is not changed when zones within the same region are actuated successively. Providing the bass tone note command can improve the sound of the combined chord and melody sequences produced by successive zone operations.

The object of the invention is further solved by a musical instrument, having a user interface according to the above description, and a sound generator which is designed to generate an audio signal for output via an audio output interface based on the sound generation commands.

The features described in the context of the user interface according to the invention are also applicable to the musical instrument according to the invention, and the advantages and effects achieved thereby also apply to the musical instrument. The musical instrument according to the invention enables musically inexperienced users to play combined chord and melody sequences in a simple and intuitive manner, without having any musical knowledge or having to learn skills on an instrument. The user can create a combination of chord tones and a melody tone with just one finger. By activating zones one after the other, combined chord and melody sequences can be created with just one finger. As a result, the musical instrument according to the invention with the user interface according to the invention provides a possibility for playing combined chord and melody sequences, which is characterized by a high level of user-friendliness and ease of operation.

The tone generator is not subject to any special restrictions and only needs to be adapted to the format of the tone generation commands. If the sound generation commands are configured as MIDI commands, the sound generator can be designed, for example, as a computer-implemented software instrument or as a MIDI sound module. Are the sound generation commands to trigger the playback of predefined audio waveforms stored in a storage medium, or to generate sounds using sound synthesis trained, the sound generator can be implemented in a computing unit, for example a microcomputer, of the musical instrument.

The key matrix of the user interface can be designed in the form of a keyboard made up of mechanically actuated keys on the musical instrument. In a preferred embodiment, the musical instrument has a touch-sensitive touchscreen on which the key matrix can be displayed and the zones can be actuated by touching corresponding display areas of the touchscreen. This enables a particularly easy transition between adjacent zones when playing the musical instrument.

• Bereitstellen einer Benutzerschnittstelle gemäß der obenstehenden Beschreibung;
• Empfangen einer Nutzereingabe bei Betätigung einer Zone der Tastenmatrix;
• Erzeugen eines Tonerzeugungs-Befehls entsprechend der betätigten Zone.

The object of the invention is further achieved by a method for generating combined chord and melody sequences, which is carried out using a user interface according to the above description, and preferably using a musical instrument of the type described above. The procedure has the following steps:

• Providing a user interface as described above;
• Receiving user input upon actuation of a zone of the key matrix;
• Generate a tone generation command corresponding to the activated zone.

The features and advantages that are disclosed in the description of the user interface according to the invention and the musical instrument according to the invention can also be transferred to the method according to the invention. Providing the user interface can be done by providing an appropriate arrangement of haptic, mechanical keys, or by displaying the key matrix on a touch-sensitive touchscreen. To create combined chord and melody sequences, the last two steps of the above procedure are repeated. By assigning basic chords and melody tones to the zones according to the user interface description above, a user can sound in a simple and intuitive manner Generate appealing chord and melody sequences by pressing different zones of the key matrix one after the other with just one finger.

• Laden vorgespeicherter Audiosamples von einem Speichermedium oder Synthese eines Audiosignals entsprechend des erzeugten Tonerzeugungsbefehls;
• Ausgabe der Audiosamples oder des Audiosignals über eine Audioausgabe-Schnittstelle.

The method preferably further comprises the following steps:

• loading pre-stored audio samples from a storage medium or synthesizing an audio signal according to the generated tone generation command;
• Output the audio samples or the audio signal via an audio output interface.

It is further preferred that the method is designed as a computer-implemented method, wherein providing the user interface includes displaying the key matrix on a touchscreen. This makes it possible to carry out the process on mobile digital devices such as smartphones or tablets, which are immediately available to many users.

The invention further provides a computer-readable storage medium which contains instructions that cause at least one processor to execute a computer-implemented method according to the description above when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor. This means that the user interface described above and the method for generating combined chord and melody sequences described above can be implemented as a virtual instrument that can be installed and executed on a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet.

It should also be noted at this point that the features and advantages described above in relation to the user interface according to the invention, the musical instrument according to the invention and the method according to the invention can also be transferred to the computer-implemented method according to the invention and the computer-readable storage medium according to the invention.

Fig. 1

eine schematische Darstellung einer Tastenmatrix einer Benutzerschnittstelle gemäß einem Ausführungsbeispiel der vorliegenden Erfindung;

Fig. 2

einen Ausschnitt der Tastenmatrix aus Fig. 1 mit Notenbefehlen, die bei Betätigung der gezeigten Zonen erzeugbar sind;

Fig. 3

eine Region der Tastenmatrix gemäß einem weiteren Ausführungsbeispiel der vorliegenden Erfindung;

Fig. 4

ein Ablaufdiagramm für ein Verfahren zur Erzeugung kombinierter Akkord- und Melodiefolgen gemäß einem Ausführungsbeispiel der vorliegenden Erfindung.

The invention is also described below with regard to further features and advantages using exemplary embodiments, which are explained in more detail with reference to the figures. Show here:

Fig. 1

a schematic representation of a button matrix of a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2

a section of the key matrix Fig. 1 with note commands that can be generated when the zones shown are operated;

Fig. 3

a region of the key matrix according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 4

a flowchart for a method for generating combined chord and melody sequences according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 1 shows a schematic representation of a key matrix 1 for a user interface of a musical instrument according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The key matrix 1 can be implemented in the form of mechanical keys or displayed on a touch-sensitive touchscreen. The key matrix 1 has a plurality of operable zones 11 ₁ , 12 ₁ , ...; 11 ₂ , 12 ₂ , ...; 11 _n , 12 _n on which in the in Fig. 1 shown embodiment are arranged in an orthogonal grid in columns and rows.

Each zone 11 ₁ , 12 ₁ , ...; 11 ₂ , 12 ₂ , ...; 11 _n , 12 _n is assigned a base chord and a melody tone. When a zone 11 ₁ , 12 ₁ , ...; 11 ₂ , 12 ₂ , ...; 11 _n , 12 _n , a tone generation command is generated that includes at least a base chord note command with a pitch that is contained in the associated base chord and a melody note command with a pitch that corresponds to the associated melody tone. This means that combined chord and melody sequences can be generated by the successive actuation of individual zones, for example with a finger.

Fig. 1 shows an assignment of basic chords and melody tones to the zones 11 ₁ , 12 ₁ , ...; 11 ₂ , 12 ₂ , ...; 11 _n , 12 _n according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Each row of zones forms a region 10 ₁ , 10 ₂ , ..., 10 _n , each of which is assigned a basic chord. The assignment of the melody tones is chosen such that all zones within a column (indicated by dashed lines) of the key matrix 1 are assigned the same melody tone. The basic chords assigned to the regions 10 ₁ , 10 ₂ , ..., 10 _n are in Fig. 1 each indicated on the left in the regions 10 ₁ , 10 ₂ , ..., 10 _n . The melody tones assigned to the columns are indicated at the bottom of key matrix 1. For example, region 10 ₄ is assigned the basic chord C (C major), region 10 ₃ is assigned the basic chord Em (E minor), and region 10 ₁ is assigned the basic chord B ⁰ (B diminished). The melody tone c is assigned to the zones 11 ₁ , 11 ₂ , ..., 11 _n in the first column. The tones of the C major scale are assigned as melody tones to the zones in the following columns in ascending order.

This in Fig. 1 The exemplary embodiment shown is therefore configured in such a way that all basic chords are ladder-specific chords of the diatonic scale C major. The tonal distance between the basic chords of adjacent regions is a third. All melody tones are also chords of the diatonic scale C major. The same melody tone is assigned to zones within the same column, so that adjacent zones of adjacent regions are assigned the same melody tone. Consecutive zones within each region are assigned (from left to right) successive melodic tones of the diatonic scale of C major in ascending order.

For easier orientation on the key matrix 1, the zones are visually designed differently. The zones that are assigned a melody tone that is also contained in the assigned basic chord are shown brightly. Zones that are assigned a melody tone that is not included in the basic chord are shown dark. It is also conceivable that in each region the zone to which the fundamental tone of the basic chord assigned to the region is assigned as the melody tone has a further distinguishable visual design. The visual design to distinguish the zones is not based on the in Fig. 1 distinction shown is limited. For easier orientation on the key matrix 1, the zones can also be designed to be visually distinguishable by having different sizes, colors or shapes, or by being marked with symbols.

Fig. 2 shows as a section of the key matrix 1 Fig. 1 the regions 10 ₃ and 10 ₄ . The melody tones assigned to each zone are indicated on the zones for the sake of clarity. Adjacent to each zone are shown notes that may be included in a tone production command upon actuation of the respective zones. Notes included in the base chord note command are rendered dark. Notes included in the melody note command are played brightly.

As can be seen, the basic chord note commands of all zones in region 10 correspond to ₃ notes of the assigned basic chord E minor, i.e. the notes e, g and b. The basic chord note commands of all zones in the 10 ₄ region correspond to notes of the assigned basic chord C major, i.e. c, e and g.

Furthermore, according to in Fig. 2 In the exemplary embodiment shown, the pitch of the melody note command is set for each zone in such a way that it is above the pitch of all basic chord note commands. The tonal distance between the melody tone and the nearest basic chord note is always greater than a major second in order to avoid note combinations within the respective tone generation commands that could be perceived as dissonant. Alternatively, the minimum distance between the melody note and the nearest basic chord note can be chosen to be greater than a minor second.

In order not to create too strong a tonal separation between the melody tone and the tones of the base chord, the base chord notes are according to the in Fig. 2 The exemplary embodiment shown is also chosen so that the tonal distance between the melody tone and the nearest basic chord note is smaller than a fifth.

In the in Fig. 2 In the exemplary embodiment shown, the tone generation commands each include two basic chord note commands. As indicated for the last zones at the left end of the regions 10 ₃ , 10 ₄ with notes shown in dashed lines, more than two basic chord note commands can also be provided for a fuller sound. Furthermore, in the in Fig. 2 In the exemplary embodiment shown, the basic chord notes are layered so that they are as close together as possible. However, it is also possible to choose the basic chord notes at larger tonal intervals and to spread them over several octaves distribute, or assign basic chord notes multiple times in different octaves. It is also possible to assign basic chord note commands to the zones with a pitch that is above the pitch of the melody tone.

With the in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 In the illustrated exemplary embodiment of the user interface, in particular with the assignment of the basic chords in third steps and the column-by-column assignment of melody tones in ascending order, it is particularly easy for a user, even without any musical knowledge, to intuitively use the simplest conceivable movements within the key matrix 1 to create particularly appealing sounds. to create combined chord and melody sequences.

If the user successively presses adjacent zones within the same region, for example by placing his finger on the in Fig. 1 When the user interface shown is moved horizontally along a region, the basic chord remains unchanged and only the melodic character of the sound produced by the tone generation commands is changed. The user is thus able to play a melody over a fixed basic chord.

However, if the user moves his finger on the in Fig. 1 In the user interface shown in the vertical direction along a column, the melody tone remains stable and the basic chord is changed. The melody tone acts as a harmonic bridge that connects successive basic chords. By layering the base chords of successive regions into thirds, moving along a column creates chord changes that are particularly expressive due to the successive changes between major and minor base chords. Due to the layering of thirds of the basic chords, the basic chords of neighboring regions also have a high level of tonal agreement, so that the harmonic changes that occur when moving from one region to the neighboring region sound particularly fluid and melodically comprehensible. Combined chord and melody sequences can therefore be played with just one finger by activating several zones, for example adjacent zones, one after the other. This makes the user interface very user-friendly and allows you to play combined chord and melody sequences without any special musical knowledge.

Furthermore, it is with the in Fig. 1 Using the user interface configuration shown, it is possible to convert pure major and minor basic chords into their corresponding tension chords and vice versa. By moving the finger within a region in a horizontal direction, the combination of the assigned basic chord notes and melody tones creates sound sequences that alternately correspond to a relaxed, pure and a tense modulation of the assigned basic chord. For example, the tone generation commands generated upon successive actuation of the zones 11 ₄ , 12 ₄ , 13 ₄ , 14 ₄ in the region 10 ₄ harmonically correspond to the chords C, C ₄ , C, C ₆ .

The targeted change between tense and relaxed sounds when generating combined chord and melody sequences is further enhanced by the in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 The visual design of the zones shown is supported and facilitated. Due to the visual design, the user without theoretical knowledge of music is intuitively able to distinguish between tense-sounding and relaxed-sounding chord and melody tone combinations: the relaxed-sounding tone combinations are created by activating the brightly displayed zones, to which a tone is assigned as the melody tone is also included in the assigned basic chord. The darkened zones have an assignment of basic chord note commands and melody note commands that have a tense sound character. The user interface thus allows you to easily switch between tense and relaxed combinations of chord and melody tones, without requiring any corresponding knowledge of music theory.

As already mentioned above, the present invention is not limited to the melody tones assigned to the zones coming from the same tonal material as the basic chords assigned to the regions. Fig. 3 shows a schematic representation of a region 10 _n according to a further exemplary embodiment of the present invention, in which the melodic tones assigned to the zones in the region 10 _n form a chromatic scale, while the base chord assigned to the region is a scale-specific chord of the diatonic scale C major.

As in Fig. 3 shown, the zones in the region 10 _n are arranged partially overlapping. Zones assigned a melody tone contained in the base chord assigned to region 10 _n (in the in Fig. 3 example shown in C major), are shown brightly and arranged in a bottom row in the region 10 _n . Zones that are assigned a melody tone that is not contained in the base chord assigned to the region, but in the diatonic scale associated with the base chord, are shown dark and offset upwards compared to the light zones. The region 10 _n also contains zones to which a melody tone is assigned that is not included in the diatonic scale associated with the basic chord. These zones 14' _n , 15' _n , 16' _n are arranged offset upwards relative to the dark zones.

The arrangement and visual representation of the zones is chosen so that zones are arranged according to increasing tonal tension between the base chord and melody tone, so that the increase and reduction of tonal tension when generating combined chord and melody sequences can be implemented intuitively for the user.

Fig. 4 schematically represents a flowchart of a method for generating combined chord and melody sequences according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The in Fig. 4 The method presented may be carried out on a computing unit such as a microcomputer included in a digital musical instrument having the user interface described above, or may be carried out as a computer-implemented method when the user interface is integrated into a virtual musical instrument included on a digital user device such as a smartphone or a tablet is installed and running there.

In step 200, a zone of the user interface is actuated. The user interface generates an input signal that contains information about which zone and region of the key matrix was pressed. Optionally, the input signal includes further information such as the velocity when operating the zone, information about the user interface executed gestures in the case of implementation on a touchscreen and the like.

Based on the input signal received in step 200, a tone generation command is generated in step 210. The tone generation command can be generated, for example, by loading pre-stored tone generation commands that are assigned to the actuated zone. Alternatively, the tone generation command may be calculated in real time based on the information contained in the input signal.

In order to ensure optimal tonal voice guidance, which can be ensured by a corresponding advantageous selection of the pitches of the basic chord note commands and the melody note command, the tone generation commands generated in step 210 can be stored in a memory 240. When calculating a tone generation signal, the previously generated tone generation commands may be retrieved from memory 240. Thus, the generation of a tone generation command can occur not only based on the input made in step 200 via the user interface, but also depending on previously generated tone generation commands.

To generate sound generation commands, further information or control signals can also be taken into account, which are in Fig. 4 are shown schematically with the reference number 250. This information or control signals include, for example, voice guidance rules for determining the pitches of basic chord and melody note commands, definitions of pitch ranges within which basic chord, bass or melody notes must lie, specifications regarding minimum and maximum tonal distances between basic chords. Notes and melody tones, information about timbres, volumes and/or possibly MIDI channels of bass, basic chord and melody note commands and the like.

Based on the sound generation command generated in this way, an audio signal corresponding to the sound generation command is generated in a further step 220. This can be done, for example, by loading one or more pre-saved audio samples from a storage medium, or that audio signals with pitches corresponding to the tone generation command are calculated or synthesized in real time.

In a subsequent step 230, the audio signal generated in step 220 is output via an audio output interface. The audio output interface can be a wired, wireless or other communication interface, such as a jack socket, a Bluetooth connection or a data network connection such as an Internet connection, via which the audio signal is forwarded to a sound generating device. Likewise, the audio output interface can be formed by a loudspeaker or headphones, via which the audio signal is reproduced directly.

Claims (13)

1. User interface for a musical instrument, in particular an electronic or virtual musical instrument, for playing combined chord and melody sequences, comprising:

   a key matrix (1) having a plurality of actuatable zones (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) arranged in columns and rows, wherein each row of actuatable zones (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) forms a region (10₁, 10₂, ...),

   wherein each region (10₁, 10₂, ...) is assigned a base chord, which is preferably a scale-specific chord of a scale, preferably a diatonic scale,

   wherein each zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) is assigned a melody tone, which is preferably a melody tone of the scale,

   wherein the user interface is designed to generate a tone generation command corresponding to the actuated zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) and region (10₁, 10₂, ...) when a zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) in a region (10₁, 10₂, ...) is actuated,

   wherein the tone generation command comprises at least a base chord note command having a pitch included in the base chord assigned to the actuated region (10₁, 10₂, ...) and a melody note command having a pitch corresponding to the melody tone of the actuated zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...).
2. User interface according to claim 1, wherein the base chords assigned to mutually adjacent regions (10₁, 10₂, ...) have a tonal distance of a third to each other.
3. User interface according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the zones (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) in each region (10₁, 10₂, ...) are assigned melody tones in ascending pitch, wherein preferably the melody tones assigned to successive zones (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) in each region (10₁, 10₂, ...) form a scale, preferably a diatonic scale.
4. User interface according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the same melody tone is assigned to the zones (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) in each column of the key matrix (1).
5. User interface according to one of the preceding claims, wherein for each zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) the pitch of the at least one base chord note command is selected such that it is below or above the pitch of the melody note command.
6. User interface according to one of the preceding claims, wherein for each zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) the pitch of the at least one base chord note command is selected such that the tonal distance between the melody note command and the nearest base chord note command is greater than a minor second.
7. User interface according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the tone generation command for each zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) comprises a bass note command corresponding to one of the tones of the base chord, preferably the root of the base chord, and having a pitch lower than the pitch of the remaining note commands.
8. Musical instrument, comprising a user interface according to one of the preceding claims, and a tone generator adapted to generate an audio signal based on the tone generation commands for output via an audio output interface.
9. Musical instrument according to claim 8, comprising a touch screen on which the key matrix (1) can be displayed and the zones (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) can be actuated by touch.
10. Method for generating combined chord and melody sequences by using a user interface according to one of claims 1 to 7, preferably by using a musical instrument according to one of claims 8 to 9, comprising the following steps of:

    • providing a user interface according to one of claims 1 to 7;

    • receiving a user input upon actuation of a zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...) of the key matrix (1);

    • generating a tone generation command corresponding to the actuated zone (11₁, 12₁, ...; 11₂, 12₂, ...; 11_n, 12_n, ...).
11. Method according to claim 10, further comprising the following steps of:

    • loading pre-stored audio samples from a storage medium or synthesizing an audio signal corresponding to the generated tone generation command;

    • outputting the audio samples or the audio signal via an audio output interface.
12. Method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the method is designed as a computer-implemented method and the providing of the user interface comprises the display of the key matrix (1) on a touch screen.
13. Computer-readable storage medium containing instructions that cause at least one processor to execute a computer-implemented method according to claim 12 when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor.

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