JPH03206494A - Keyboard type electronic musical instrument provided with chord play assisting function - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable even a beginner to play the musical instrument at a high level by adding a time piece dial type chord display part, a musical sound specifying means for moving the positions of respective hands, an operation element for setting a chord mode, a key assigner for chord play which assigns one or plural keys in a specific key area for the chord play, etc., as a chord play assisting function. CONSTITUTION:This electronic musical instrument is provided with a timepiece dial type musical sound symbol part, a chord display part 23 with three kinds of musical sound indication piece, a musical sound specifying means which specifies a musical sound, a chord storage means, the operation element for chord mode setting which sets the chord mode, and the key assigner 25 for chord play which assigns one or plural keys in the specific key area for the chord play. Then while the chord mode is set by operating the operation element for chord mode setting, a musical sound waveform specified with the three kinds of musical sound indication piece of the musical sound symbol part is generated and outputted when a key in the key area for the chord play assigned by the key assigner 25 for chord play is pressed. Consequently, even the beginner can easily make a chord accompaniment only by pressing one key in the key area assigned for the chord play.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] This invention relates to the improvement of a keyboard-type electronic musical instrument, and in particular, it improves the electronic musical instrument by configuring it so that even beginners can easily perform chord accompaniment. This paper relates to a keyboard-type electronic musical instrument equipped with a chord performance support function, which makes it more familiar to beginners, and which promotes its widespread use and its effectiveness in music education. Specifically, it is placed in a position that is easy for the performer to see, such as on the control panel, in a format similar to that of a clock that they are used to seeing on a daily basis, that is, an analog clock that consists of a dial, minute hand, hour hand, and second hand.
By displaying the contents of the set chord and assigning a certain key range, such as the low range of the keyboard, to the chord, you can play the accompaniment of the chord by simply pressing one key within the range. , by adding a chord performance support function that allows even beginners to easily enjoy advanced performance and naturally memorize the three types of musical tones that make up the chord and their pronunciation without realizing it. This paper concerns keyboard-type electronic musical instruments that are suitable for improving learning effects and popularizing electronic musical instruments. The Moxibustion Keyboard Electronic Musical Instrument is equipped with a keyboard, musical tone memory, and a panel with controls and displays for setting tone, volume, etc., and is equipped with a musical tone formation function using digital calculations. FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the main structure of a conventional keyboard-type electronic musical instrument.

In the drawing, 1 is a keyboard, 2 is a panel operation section, 3 is a panel display section, 4 is a CPU, 5 is a timer, and 6 is a program /
Memory for data storage, 7 is memory for data/work, 8
is a musical tone forming circuit, 9 is a D/A converter, lO is an amplifier, 1
1 indicates the audio device, and 12 indicates the system bus. The keyboard 1 includes a plurality of scale keys, which are operated during performance.

The panel operation section 2 is provided with operators such as a tone selection switch, a volume adjustment switch, a tempo adjustment switch, and the like. The panel display section 3 consists of display means such as LEDs, and displays the tone and volume set by the operators on the panel operation section 2, the operating status of the keyboard 1, etc. The CPU 4 has a function of controlling the entire system of this keyboard type electronic musical instrument.

The timer 5 also has a timing function necessary to control the entire system of this keyboard-type electronic musical instrument. The program/data storage memory 6 stores programs for controlling musical tone generation sequences, various programs for controlling the system of electronic musical instruments, and various information such as musical waveform data and key assignment tables (key assigners). It is configured with stored ROM. The data/work memory 7 stores information such as tone and volume set by the operators on the panel operation section 2, data such as key signals (key numbers) of keys pressed on the keyboard 1, and information on the current system. This is a data/work RAM that stores information necessary for control. The musical tone forming circuit 8 includes a program/data storage memory 6 and a data/work memory 7.
A tone generator (TONE GENE) that has the function of shaping musical tones based on various information provided by
RATOR). For example, when any one key on the keyboard 1 is pressed, the information is sent to the musical tone shaping circuit 8, the D/A (digital/analog) converter 9, the amplifier 10, and the audio device 11. A corresponding musical tone is generated. Conventional keyboard-type electronic musical instruments, that is, electronic musical instruments equipped with a keyboard, musical tone memory, and a panel with controls and display marks for setting timbre, volume, etc., and which have a musical tone forming function using digital calculations, are The configuration is as shown in Figure 5.

However, it is not necessarily an easy instrument for beginners to play, so it cannot be said that it is an instrument that can be easily enjoyed by people with inexperienced playing skills, which is one of the problems that has prevented its widespread use.

The keyboard-type electronic musical instrument of this invention equipped with a chord performance support function solves the problem that beginners find it difficult to feel familiar with electronic musical instruments, which is one of the factors that hinders their widespread use. The purpose of the present invention is to provide an electronic musical instrument capable of playing chords.

Specifically, the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument of the present invention adds a chord performance support function to the functions of the electronic musical instrument shown in FIG. Without realizing it, each chord is structured 3
The purpose of the present invention is to provide an electronic musical instrument that allows users to memorize different types of musical tones, promotes the effectiveness of music education, and contributes to the spread of musical instruments. Firstly, the present invention provides a keyboard type that is equipped with a keyboard, a musical tone memory, and a panel having controls and indicators for setting timbre, volume, etc., and has a musical tone forming function using digital calculations. In the electronic musical instrument, musical tone symbol parts such as letters and symbols representing one octave of musical tones are placed at each position on the circumference divided into 12 equal parts on the panel, and a rotatable musical tone symbol part is placed at the center point of the circumference. a chord display section having three types of musical tone indicating pieces such as a long hand, a short hand, and a second hand; a musical tone specifying means for specifying a musical tone by rotating each of the three types of musical tone indicating pieces of the chord display section; chord storage means that captures and holds information on musical tones designated by the designation means as a chord; a chord mode setting operator provided on the panel for setting a chord mode; and a chord performance key assigner that assigns one or more keys in a specific key range for chord performance, and the chord performance key assigner is configured to set the chord mode by operating the chord mode setting operator. When a key within the key range for chord performance assigned by is pressed, musical sound waveforms specified by the three types of musical tone instruction pieces of the musical tone symbol section are generated and output.

Second, in the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument described above, a chord brightness/dark designation operator is provided on the panel and specifies the tone quality such as brightness for the generated chord, and a combination of musical tones set in advance for each chord. a chord reference table that stores information on the chord reference table; display means such as LEDs disposed in proximity to musical tone symbol sections such as letters and symbols indicating musical tones of one octave in the chord display section; and display control means for controlling the lighting state of the display means such as the LED, and when the chord brightness, etc. is specified by the chord brightness designation operator in a state where the chord mode is set, the second When a musical tone is subsequently specified using a musical tone indicator piece, only the display means such as an LED provided at the position of the musical tone that can be specified is turned on. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, embodiments of the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument having a chord performance support function according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

As already mentioned, the solid-panel electronic musical instrument of this invention has the following features:
It utilizes the functions of a conventional electronic musical instrument and is configured to add a chord performance support function; other than this point, it is basically the same structure as a conventional electronic musical instrument. Therefore, we will explain the newly added chord performance support function. FIG. 2 is a front view showing an embodiment of a chord display section and a setting operation section of an electronic musical instrument equipped with a chord performance support function according to the present invention. In the drawing, ■ is the long hand, ■R is a switch for rotating the long hand ■ in the right direction, and ■L is a switch for rotating the long hand ■ in the left direction. ■ is the hour hand, ■R is a switch for rotating the hour hand ■ in the clockwise direction, ■L is a switch for rotating the hour hand ■ in the left direction,
■ is the second hand, ■R is the switch for clockwise rotation of the second hand, ■
L is a switch for rotating the second hand ■ in the left direction. ■ indicates an operator for setting a chord mode, ■ indicates an operator for execution, ■ - ■ indicates an operator for specifying chord brightness, and LED indicates a display means.

As shown in the upper part of this Figure 2, a set chord is displayed on the operating panel or other location where the performer can easily see, in a format similar to that of an analog watch, consisting of a dial, a long hand, a short hand (■), and a second hand (■). A chord display section is provided to display the content.

In other words, at each position on the circumference divided into 12 equal parts,
A musical tone symbol section is provided, which includes letters and symbols that indicate one octave of musical tones. Furthermore, a total of 12 display means LEDs are arranged close to each musical tone symbol section, similar to the scale of a clock.

These long hand ■, hour hand ■, and second hand ■ are three types of musical tone indicating pieces, and the musical tone indicated by the tip of each hand is selected.

Therefore, in the case of this Figure 2, the code of C (C,
E, G) are now set.

In addition, each of these hands ■ to ■ rotates to the right or left each time the rotation switch ■R, ■L, ■R, ■L, ■R, ■L shown below is operated l times. It will be done. For example, when changing to another chord, first operate the chord mode setting operator ■ to set the chord mode.

In this example, each needle is given a priority;
The order is the long hand ■, the short hand ■, and the second hand ■.

Then, operate the rotation switches ■R and ■L, and the long hand ■
If you move to the position of the desired musical tone and then operate the execution operator ■, the musical tone at the current position of the minute hand ■ will be specified. If no change is required, operate the execution operator ■ immediately.

Next, operate the rotation switches ■R and ■L to move the hour hand ■ to the position of the desired musical tone, and then operate the execution control ■ to specify the musical tone at the current position of the hour hand ■. ．． Finally, operate the rotation switches ■R and ■L, and the second hand ■
is moved to the position of the desired musical tone, and then the execution operator (■) is operated, the musical tone at the current position of the second hand (■) is designated, and the operation for specifying the three types of musical tones is completed.

However, especially for beginners, such chord setting operations are not necessarily easy.

Therefore, in the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument of the present invention, in order to facilitate this chord setting, operators for specifying chord brightness and darkness are provided.
A display means LED is provided. In this embodiment as well, the operation of moving each hand is basically the same as in the previous embodiment, but for example, when you want to set a "bright chord," select "
Select the operator assigned to "Bright Chord". After that, operate the rotation switches ■R and ■L to move the long hand ■ to the position of the desired musical tone, and then press the execution control ■
When you operate , only the display means LED added to the musical tone position where the hour hand ■ can be specified will light up. That is, from the position where the display means LED is lit,
Just select any musical tone. In this state, when the execution operator (■) is operated, only the display means LED added to the musical tone position where the second hand (■) can be specified is lit up.
Therefore, even beginners can easily set "bright chords." Operator for specifying chord brightness like this
~■ are assigned in advance to each "dark chord" and other chord groups, and the operation when setting the chord is the same in any case.When this chord brightness/dark designation controller is on, The position where the rotation switch will stop next is indicated by the display means L.
Since it is limited to the position where the ED is lit, it is possible to pass through intermediate positions with one switch operation and quickly move, so a rotation switch that only rotates clockwise is attached to each hand. Correspondingly, only one may be provided.

When the desired chord is set by the above operation (the chord mode setting controller ■ is turned on), the chord performance key assigner will set one or more keys in a certain range, such as the low range of the keyboard. The keys are assigned to a chord, so if one of the keys is pressed, the set chord will be played.

The chords that are currently set have a format similar to that of analog clocks that we are used to seeing on a daily basis, and not only can you easily determine the three tones that make up the chord, but you can also learn by actually playing them. Because you can memorize the pronunciation naturally, it is an extremely effective learning tool for beginners.
A board-shaped electronic musical instrument is obtained. Note that FIG. 2 shows a case where the chord display section and the setting operation section are close to each other. Although it is more convenient for operation to place them close together, it is not necessarily necessary to place them close together as shown in Figure 2. The following FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing an embodiment of the main structure of a keyboard-type electronic musical instrument equipped with a chord performance support function according to the present invention. In the drawing, 21 is a keyboard, 2
Reference numeral 2 denotes a chord operation section, 23 a chord display section, 24 a musical waveform memory, 25 a chord performance key assigner, 26 a chord memory, 27 a chord reference table, and 28 a display control section.

As already mentioned, the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument equipped with the chord performance support function of the present invention is configured to add the chord performance support function by utilizing the functions of the electronic musical instrument shown in FIG. I am. In order to facilitate understanding, FIG. 1 mainly depicts the main parts added to the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument of the present invention based on the functional block diagram shown in FIG. 5 above.

That is, the chord operation section 22 is provided in the panel operation section 2, the chord display section 23 and display control section 28 are provided in the panel display section 3, the musical waveform memory 24 is provided in the program/data storage memory 6, and the chord performance key assigner 25 is provided. The chord memory 26, chord reference table 27, etc. are stored in the data/work memory 7.
Each is added.

The functions of each part are outlined below.

The keyboard 21 is the same as the keyboard 1 in FIG.

As shown in the lower part of FIG. 2, the chord operation section 22 includes rotation switches ■R, ■L, ■R,
It consists of ■L, ■R, ■L, chord mode setting operator ■, execution operator ■, chord brightness/dark specification operator ■～■, etc., and the rotary switch R～■L corresponds to the musical tone. A musical tone specifying means for specifying, a chord mode setting operator■ and an execution operator■
is a chord mode setting operator that sets the chord mode. The chord brightness/darkness designation operators ■ to ■ are chord brightness/darkness designation operators that specify the tone quality, such as brightness or darkness, of the chords to be generated, and each has the function of performing the processing necessary for chord performance. As shown in the upper part of FIG. 2, the chord display section 23 has three kinds of musical tone indicating pieces consisting of a long hand ■, a short hand ■, and a second hand ■, and a musical tone symbol section such as letters and symbols indicating one octave of musical tones. In addition, display means such as LEDs are arranged close to each of the musical tone symbol sections, and have the function of displaying the state of the chord when setting the chord or playing it.
The musical sound waveform memory 24 is a memory in which musical sound waveform information is stored, and is added to an ordinary keyboard-type electronic musical instrument that has a musical sound forming function using digital calculations. The chord performance key assigner 25 has a function of assigning l or a plurality of keys in a specific key range, such as the low range of the keyboard 21, for chord performance. The chord memory 26 is a chord storage means that captures and holds information on the musical tone specified by the musical tone specifying means as a chord.

The chord reference table 27 is a table in which information on combinations of musical tones set in advance for each chord is stored. The display control unit 28 refers to the chord reference table. L.E.
It has a function to control the lighting state of display means such as D. The chord performance support function of the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 has the configuration described above. Next, the operation of the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument equipped with a chord performance support function according to the present invention having the structure shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 5 will be explained in detail with reference to flowcharts. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the main processing flow when setting a chord in an electronic musical instrument equipped with a chord performance support function according to the present invention. In the drawings, 81 to S23 indicate steps.

When the chord mode setting operator ■ shown in Fig. 2 is pressed, the flow shown in Fig. 3 starts, and step S is started.
1, by operating the chord brightness/darkness designation operators ■～■, etc.
Determine whether a specific mode such as bright/dark is set.

If it is determined in this step S1 that a specific mode has been set, the process advances to the next step S2, and the minute hand ■ is operated. This operation is repeated until it is determined in the next step S3 that the execution operator ■ is turned on. If it is determined in step S3 that the execution operator ■ is input, the process advances to step S4. In step S4, information on the musical tone corresponding to the current position of the long hand ■ is stored in the chord memory 2.
6.

In the next step S5, refer to the chord reference table 27,
For the first note stored in the chord memory 26, a specifiable musical tone is determined, and the process proceeds to step S6, where the display control unit 2
8 and lights up the display means LED at the corresponding position. As a result of the above processing of steps 82 to S6, the musical tone at the position specified by the long hand . determined as the first note of the chord,
Next, you will be able to operate the hour hand ■. The operation in this case is also
This is similar to the long hand ■, and through the processing from step 87 to Sll, the musical note at the position specified by the short hand ■ is determined as the second note of the chord.

Thereafter, similarly, through the processes of steps 812 to 814, the musical note at the position specified by the second hand ■ is determined as the third note of the chord, and the chord setting process ends. In addition, if it is not the specific mode in the determination of whether or not it is the specific mode in the previous step SL, the process advances to step 815;
Perform operations on the long hand ■. This operation is also repeatedly executed until it is determined in the next step 816 that the execution control ■ is turned on, and in step S16,
When the execution operator ■ is input, the process advances to step 817, and information on the musical tone corresponding to the current position of the minute hand ■ is stored in the chord memory 26. Thereafter, in the same manner, the musical tone at the position specified by the hour hand ■ is determined as the second tone of the chord by the processing of steps 818 to S20, and the musical tone at the position specified by the second hand ■ is determined to be the second tone of the chord by the processing of steps 821 to S23. The musical tone is determined as the third note of the chord, and the flow of FIG. 3 ends. Then, in the chord memory 26, information on musical tones corresponding to each needle ■ to ■ shown in the upper part of FIG. 2 is stored as one chord. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the main process flow of key processing in the electronic musical instrument equipped with the chord performance support function of the present invention. In the drawings, 831 to S40 indicate steps. First, in step S31, when a key event occurs, in the next step 832, it is determined whether the chord mode is set. This judgment is made depending on whether or not the chord mode setting operator (2) is on.

If chord mode is set, step S33
Proceed to and determine whether the pressed key is in the key range assigned for playing chords. If the chord mode is not set in the chord mode determination at step S32, and if the key range is not set for chord performance in step S33, the process advances to step 834 and the musical sound waveform is determined. The musical tone information corresponding to the pressed key is read from the memory 24. In step S35, a musical sound waveform is calculated, and step S35 is performed.
In step S36, the generated musical tone is output, and the process returns to step S31.
Return to , and repeat the same process. On the other hand, if the chord mode has been set in step S32 and the pressed key is in the chord playing range in step 833, the process advances to step S37.

In step S37, chord information is read from the chord memory 26, and in the next step 838, information on musical tones constituting the chord is read from the musical waveform memory 24.

In step 839, each musical sound waveform is calculated and combined to generate a chord, and in step S40, the generated chord is output, and the process returns to step S31, and the same process is repeated thereafter.

The previously set chord is played by the processing described above in connection with FIG. 4.

The keyboard-type electronic musical instrument equipped with the chord performance support function of this invention has a format similar to that of the clocks we are accustomed to seeing in everyday life, that is, analog clocks consisting of a dial, minute hand, hour hand, and second hand. Since the content of the set chord is displayed, even beginners can easily play chord accompaniment by simply pressing one key within the key range assigned for chord performance.
Moreover, not only can the three types of musical tones that make up the chord be easily determined by the states of the long hand, short hand, and second hand, but also
By actually playing the instrument, you can naturally memorize its pronunciation, making it possible for beginners to not only obtain an extremely effective keyboard-type electronic musical instrument for learning, but also expand the scope of its use by diversifying performances. It can also contribute to its spread.

Furthermore, the structure necessary for this purpose is added to the conventional keyboard-type electronic musical instrument as a chord performance support function, such as a chord display section similar to a clock, a musical tone specifying means for moving the position of each hand, and a chord mode. All you need to do is add a controller to set the chord, a chord performance key assigner that assigns one or more keys in a specific key range to chord performance, etc., and many of these can be used with existing ones or can be used with software. Since it can be executed by manual processing, it is relatively simple and has many excellent effects, such as being advantageous in terms of cost.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing an embodiment of the main structure of a keyboard-type electronic musical instrument equipped with a chord performance support function according to the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a front view showing an embodiment of the chord display section and setting operation section of an electronic musical instrument according to the present invention. 4 is a flowchart showing the main processing flow of key processing in an electronic musical instrument equipped with a chord performance support function according to the present invention. FIG. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing an example. In the drawing, 21 is a keyboard, 22 is a chord operation section, and 23 is a keyboard.
24 is a chord display section, 24 is a musical waveform memory, 25 is a chord performance key assigner, 26 is a chord memory, 27 is a chord reference table, and 28 is a display control section.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A keyboard-type electronic musical instrument comprising a keyboard, a musical tone memory, and a panel having controls and indicators for setting timbre, volume, etc., and having a musical tone forming function by digital calculation, comprising: At each position on the circumference divided into 12 equal parts on the panel, a musical tone symbol part such as letters and symbols indicating one octave of musical tones, and a rotatable long hand and short hand placed at the center point of the circumference, A chord display section having three types of musical tone indicating pieces such as a second hand, a musical tone specifying means for specifying a musical tone by rotating each of the three types of musical tone indicating pieces of the chord display section, and the musical tone specifying means. A chord storage means that captures and holds information on a designated musical tone as a chord, a chord mode setting operator provided on the panel and that sets a chord mode, and a specific key such as a low range of the keyboard. a chord performance key assigner that assigns one or more keys in the range for chord performance; A keyboard characterized in that when a key within a key range for playing a chord assigned by the keyboard is pressed, a musical sound waveform specified by three types of musical tone instruction pieces of the musical tone symbol section is generated and output. type electronic musical instrument. 2. In the keyboard-type electronic musical instrument according to claim 1, there is provided a chord brightness/dark designation operator provided on the panel to designate sound quality such as brightness or darkness for the chord to be generated; a chord reference table that stores information on combinations of musical tones; display means such as LEDs disposed in close proximity to musical tone symbol sections such as letters and symbols indicating one octave of musical tones of the chord display section; and the chord reference table. display control means for controlling the lighting state of the display means such as the LED with reference to the above, and in a state where the chord mode is set, the brightness and darkness of the chord, etc. are specified by the chord brightness and darkness specifying operator. A keyboard-type electronic musical instrument characterized in that, when a musical tone is designated by a second or subsequent musical tone indication piece, only a display means such as an LED provided at a position of a musical tone that can be specified is lit.