US3051032A - Single manual double countermelody electrical musical instrument - Google Patents

Description

J. M. HANERT 305103z SINGLE MANUAL DOUBLE COUNTERMELODY ELECTRICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT Aug. 28, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 18, 1959 J. M. HANERT Aug. 28, 1962 SINGLE MANUAL DOUBLE COUNTERMELODY ELECTRICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT 3 SheetsSheet 2 Filed March 18, 1959 Aug. 28, J. M HANERT SINGLE MANUAL DOUBLE COUNTERMELODY ELECTRICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT Filed March 18, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 The scores below show the actual keys which are played by the musician with his two hands on the single manual together with his left foot on the pedalboard.

Tempo di Valse 205 RIGHT HAND LEFT

HAND f l PEDAL The scores below show the tones and two independent countermelodies which maybe sounded by the single manual and pedal instrument when the musician plays the above musical example.

SUPER OCTAVE l MELODY .5010 Dlv.)

UNISON MELODY iSnlo and nemmv.)

ZIO SUB- OCTAVD MELODY iSoln Div) CONTRA BASS MELODY (Solo Div.)

1st COUNTER MELODY ilreb. DNA

RHYTHM ACC. CHORDS AccommDivJ COUNTER MELODY (Accump. Div.)

ZIS

BASS L (Pedal DIV.)

Uite

3,951,032 Patented Aug; 28," 1 962 ware Filed Mar. 18, 1959, Ser. No. 8%,257 11 Claims. (Cl. 84-419) The present invention relates to a single manual and bass pedal organ type of musical instrument. With this novel instrument, a single musician has the ability to play an independent countermelody with each of his hands as well as playing rhythmic accompaniment chords, a bass pedal tone, and a main melody part which may be tonally emphasized by virtue of increased volume or difference in tone quality.

In the past, organists playing on multimanual organs have sought to introduce the effect of double countermelody by moving a lead weight from one to another of the keys of one manual in order to free one-of their hands for playing a melody or countermelody on another manual. This playing technique of moving a Weight is, of course, very cumbersome and finds application only to musical passages which move very slowly; Another technique which is sometimes open to players having large and supple hands is to stretch their right hand to an extent suflicient to span across the keys of two manuals so that the thumb plays on one manual while the fingers play on another manual. With the hand in this awkward position, it is, of course, only possible to play music of a slow and highly restricted character.

With the single manual instrument to be described, double countermelody music may readily be played at rapid tempos with the hands in their normal playing positions. In its preferred form, its double countermelody performance capability far exceeds that obtainable by an organist playing on a conventional multimanual organ or an accordionist playing on a piano accordion in which one of the manuals takes the form of a group of chord buttons.

Furthermore, the novel single manual instrument to be described not only presents the musician with the new double countermelody artistic advantages referred to above, but it also makes it possible more effectively to play in a freely improvised style in which the player is adding to or filling-in the harmony by pressing many playing keys which are octavely related and thus duplicate or fill-in the basic harmony chord elements. For example, if an organist is playing a C major chord har' mony, he will frequently desire a full chorded harmony and use the fingers of his two hands to fill-in with many C, E, and G keys. However, if his two hands are play: ing on two manuals of a multimanual organ, the improvising player who is filling-in will discover that he has no way of knowing whether or not his two hands are partially duplicating each other-that is, playing the same pitched keys on the two' manuals-and thus failing to achieve a maximum of fill-in sonority.

The two manuals permit the hands to readily overlap each other, and the player has no means of mentally ascertaining if partial duplication occurs. In the single manual instrument of my invention, this important basic fill-in problem characteristic to multimanual organs is completely obviated because the players hands are naturally separated; that is, the hands cannot overlap each other to play identical keys without physically touching each other, which contact, of course, would result in a strong mental stimulus to separate them. Thus, when both hands are played on a single manual, there is no problem of duplicated keys and a maximum fill-in sonority is readily had without the necessity that the 2 player concentrate on the particular keys that are pressed. For this reason, this single manual organ is very much easier to play in a freely improvised style than multimanual organs, despite the fact that the player retains the desirable tonal differentiations which are characteristic of music which is played simultaneously on several manuals.

Additionally, the single manual organ to be described, while capable of achieving and often surpassing the varied tonal effects of multimanual organs, is very much less expensive because of the cost saving of the other manual or manuals of keys, electrical switch structures, and associated mechanical structures.

It is thus the principal object of the present invention to provide a novel single manual musical instrument upon which two countermelodies and rhythm chorded accom-' paniment may be played with either or both hands along with the simultaneous production of a tonally distinctive melody and a bass pedal accompaniment.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a single manual instrument capable of producing the varied and contrasting tonal effects of multimanual organs, but in which the disadvantages of duplicated keys, when playing in a freely improvised filled-in style, are overcome through having the hands always play on the same manual.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel musical instrument of the organ type, which has a capability beyond that of ordinary organs principally in that a single musician playing upon a single manual and pedalboard has a range of double countermelody beyond that which can be accomplished by a single person playing upon any other known musical instrument.

. A further object is to provide a novel single manual organ type-instrument for accomplishing the foregoing objects in playing a wide variety of types of musical compositions, including double countermelody arrangements, without requiring the use of advanced techniques of limited utility, such as thumbing across the manuals or the use of key weights.

A further object is to provide a novel single manual double countermelody and bass musical instrument having the above mentioned capabilities and which is well adapted for playing compositions and arrangements of a type which heretofore have not been possible with any musical instrument excepting by the employment of more than one musician playing simultaneously.

Another object is to provide a novel type of single manual electrical musical instrument in which melodic and countermelodic tones may be played with the right hand, accompanied by a second countermelody and chorded rhythmsplayed by the left hand, and in which there is no danger of the melody tonal emphasis accidentally shifting from the right to the left hand when the right hand is played in a detached fashion. Another object is to accomplish all of the above men tioned objects in a musical instrument of low cost' and minimum complexity, and which requires a minimum of virtuosity on the part of the player, considering the vast range of musical expression made available.

Another object is to provide a spring returned vibrato control which may be operated by the player during the course of playing without interfering with his simultaneous playing of the manual keys, bass pedals, or operation of the expression control. i 7

Another object is to provide a standard pedalboard for the playing of bass notes in which the actual pitch range sounded lies intermediate a pitch range corresponding to the pedals and a range an octave higher. I

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description of a preferred embodi- 3 ment of my invention which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, in which similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views,

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical musical instrument embodying the features of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the electrical circuitry and the mechanical controls for the actuation thereof; and

FIGS. 3a and 3b illustrate a portion of a musical score with certain notations thereon, comparing the keys played with the musical response of the instrument under typical circumstances.

In FIG. 1 a musical instrument is shown which may be considered as a typical embodiment of the present invention. In this figure the case of the instrument i indicated by the numeral 10. This case provides a housing for the electrical and mechanical elements, and is equipped with a single keyboard indicated generally by the numeral 12 in the customary position and with a one octave pedal keyboard 14 just above the floor and toward the left hand side of the instrument. Above the keyboard 12 are a group of control tablets l5 and knobs l6, and above these is a music rack 18. Below the keyboard a portion of the front panel is covered with a grille cloth 20 which hides a bafiieboard and one or more speakers indicated as 21 in FIG. 2. Expression is controlled by a swinging lever 22 positioned and spring loaded so that it may rest against the right hand side of the right knee of the player. Swinging the lower end of the lever to the right increases volume. Near the floor at about the same level as the keys of the pedal keyboard 14 is a control pedal 24 arranged so as to be easily accessible to the right foot of the player when his leg is in the proper position to' actuate the Swell Control 22.

In FIG. 2, circuit connections are shown generally by full lines, while mechanical or control connections are indicated by broken lines. In this figure the keyboard arrangement is shown in greater detail, and inspection will indicate that the span of the keyboard is somewhat more than four octaves, the lowest note being A at 110 c.p.s., while the highest note is C at 2093 c.p.s. For convenience, all frequencies have been rounded to the nearest whole number, and are therefore approximate only as will be appreciated. This single keyboard is divided so as to provide an Accompaniment Division 30 extending from A at 110 c.p.s. to Fit inclusive at 370 c.p.s. The keys of this Accompaniment Division will normally be played by the left hand although they are accessible to the right hand since there is no break in the keyboard. The Treble Division 32 normally played by the right hand, extends from G 392 c.p.s. to C at 2093 c.p.s. As will appear presently, the tonal quality of the notes played upon the Accompaniment Division and upon the Treble Division are independently variable with respect to each other so that they may be the same or dilferent.

In addition to the Accompaniment Division and the Treble Division, the upper portion of the keyboard also can play notes of an entirely different character in a Solo Division 34 of the instrument when this division is connected, as will be explained presently. Normally, the S010 range extends downwardly from the top so as to include Bb above the lowest G key playable in the Treble Division 32. When desired, the response of the S010 Division can be extended downwardly so as to include the lowest G key in the Treble Division. This extension, indicated as 36, is controllable in a well known manner by a stop tab which may suitably be labeled SoloExtension to G. Optionally, the operation of still another tab, labeled Solo Extension to B, acts to extend the S010 Division downwardly so as to include the B key below the lowest Bb included in the S010 Normal Division. This extension is indicated at 38.

So as to draw the attention of the person playing the instrument to the section of the keyboard which may be used optionally to actuate the Solo Division, I prefer that the normally white keys 4t from B to A inclusive, which lie within the range between the low limit of the Solo Normal Division and the low limit of the Solo Division with B extension, be easily distinguishable from the other keys by being of a different color such as light gray, for instance.

The keys of the Accompaniment Division 39 control a polyphonic accompaniment division oscillator section 42 that incorporates a group of any suitable type oscillators. For this purpose I prefer to use the circuit arrangement described in the patent to Laurens Hammond No. 2,790,- 906 in which one oscillator may be optionally tuned for obtaining two or, in some instances, three adjacent semitones. In any event, the accompaniment division oscillators, since they are of the polyphonic type, can sound several musical tones simultaneously, depending upon the number and grouping of the keys played simultaneously by the left hand in the Accompaniment Division 3d.

The output of the accompaniment division oscillator section 42 is taken at a low power level by way of a line 44 to an Accompaniment Melody Lead control circuit 50 to be explained more fully presently, and thence by line 45 to the amplifiers and Swell Control in the output section at as. The power output of this section feeds the previously referred to speaker Zll.

Although it is not shown in the circuit diagram of FIG. 2, since such usage is common, it is anticipated that the output of the accompaniment division oscillators 42 may have any of several tonal characteristics as desired. For instance, I prefer that these oscillators provide a flutes type tone, a strings type tone, and a reeds type tone. These different tonal responses obtainable from the accompaniment division oscillators are selectively available in the well known fashion by means of appropriately labeled tablets which form a portion of the group at 15 in FIG. 1.

The keys in the Treble Division 32 are connected to control a treble division oscillator section 4-? which may be considered as being substantially identical to that at 42 excepting that the oscillators operate at higher frequencies. As with the accompaniment division oscillators, the treble division oscillators may be arranged to give several different characteristic sounds which may, for instance, be of the same type as those provided by the accompaniment division oscillators. Thus, control tablets may be provided for giving a Treble Flutes tone, at Treble Strings tone, and a Treble Reeds tone. With this flexible arrangement, the Accompaniment Division and the Treble Division can be set up to respond with the same characteristic type of tones so that the one division constitutes a continuation of the other, or, if desired, these two divisions may sound differently so as to contrast with each other.

The output from the treble division oscillator section 48 is connected by line 52 to the previously mentioned Accompaniment Melody Lead control circuit 50, and thence to the amplifiers and swell control through the common lead 45.

A vibrato oscillator is provided at 54 and feeds a low frequency vibrato signal through a line 56 to a treble and accompaniment vibrato control circuit 58, which in turn is connected to the oscillators in both the Accompaniment Division and the Treble Division at 42 and 48, respectively. The vibrato system used may be any of several well known arrangements, but I prefer that it be of the type described in my Patent No. 2,580,424. By the operation of appropriate controls in the treble and accompaniment vibrato control section 58, the vibrato in the Treble Division and in the Accompaniment Division may be turned on or off, or increased or decreased, as desired. The connections are such that the full vibrato effect in the Accompaniment and Treble Divisions may also be provided by depressing the previously mentioned pedal 24 as will be described in greater detail presently.

The pedal keys 14, when pressed, actuate a pedal division oscillator and envelope control section 60 which may be of any suitable type, such as that described in patent No. 2,480,132 for instance. I prefer, however, that the octave played by these keys be split so that the tones are neither as low nor as high as would be true if this octave were in the conventional position. This prevents the Pedal Division tones from becoming muddy and unclear as is likely to happen at very low frequencies, particularly in relatively small rooms as are typical of residences, while also insuring an adequate bass response for the instrument.

This is accomplished by starting with C at the low end at a frequency of 65 c.p.s., followed in order (considering the natural keys only) by D-73 c.p.s. and E-82 c.p.s. ,F, however, instead of being at 88 c.p.s., as would be expected, is shifted downwardly to the next lower octave so that it sounds at 44 c.p.s. The following keys are in order from this point so that G is at 49 c.p.s., A at 55 c.p.s., and B at 62 c.p.s. The lowest note, therefore, is F at a frequency of 4-4 c.p.s.

The output of the pedal division oscillator and envelope control 60 is taken through a Pedal Balancer 62., which serves to regulate the relative volume of the pedal division with respect to the other divisions, and thence to the amplifier and swell control section at 46.

The instrument, as sofar described, enables the musician to play polyphonically with both hands with the same or different tone coloration in the Treble and Accompaniment Divisions, while supplying an accompaniment bass from the Pedal Division.

Additionally, the instrument includes a melody or solo oscillator 64 limited to the playing of one note at a time and connected so that the oscillator is normally tuned and keyed by the highest key depressed at any one time in the normal group of keys which includes the lowest Bb key in the Treble Division and all keys upwardly thereof. This solo oscillator may be of the type described and illustrated in my Patent N 0. 2,672,068. The frequency of this oscillator, however, is not the expected frequency for the particular key depressed, but rather is one octave higher than the tone from the treble division oscillator which sounds under the control of this particular key. Its range, therefore, is from Bb 932 c.p.s. to C 4186 c.p.s.

The output from the solo oscillator 64 is taken through a tab actuated switch 66 labeled for instance Solo Super Octave. From the switch 66 the signal passes into a line 68 connected to the input of a group of solo formant circuits 70. By means of suitable resonant circuits and filters at 70, switched into and across the signal line by means of appropriately labeled tab switches in a well known manner, the characteristic sound of the Solo tones may be given a very wide variety of frequency response individuality.

From the solo formants '76, the signal passes to a solo envelope control section 72 wherein attack and decay circuits which may be of a well known type and which are under the control of suitable tab switches, are available to give percussive and other sustained envelope control effects as desired by the musician.

From the envelope control section 72, the solo signal is taken by a lead 74 through a Solo Balancer control '7 6 and thence to the Accompaniment Melody Lead control by way of line 75.

The solo oscillator 64 also has a second signal output 78 feeding into a first solo frequency divider stage 80 which may be of the type forming a portion of the subject matter of my Patent No. 2,672,068. In this circuit the frequency is divided by two so as to give an output from B11 466 c.p.s. to C 2693 c.p.s., which is octavely related to the output of the solo oscillator 64. The output of the first solo frequency divider 80 is taken through a tween Bl; 233 c.p.s. and C 1047 c.p.s.

6 tab actuated switch 82 labeled Solo Unison (itstones are in unison with the Treble Division) to the common signal lead 68 connected to the input of the solo formant circuits '70.

The signal from the first solo frequency divider 80 is also fed to a second solo frequency divider section 84 which divides the frequency by two so that its range is be- The output from this second stage frequency divider '84 passes through a tab controlled switch 86, labeled Solo Suboctave, to the common signal line 68.

A third solo frequency divider stage 88 also receives the output from the second frequency divider 84 and divides the frequency by two so that the range of its output is between Bb 117 c.p.s. and C 523 c.p.s. Its signal output is taken through a tab switch 90, appropriately labeled Solo Contra-Bass, to the common lead 68.

Although the Solo Division as described above is based upon the use of an entirely separate oscillator section 64, it is also possible to select the output from the particular oscillator in the Treble Division which is providing a tone in response to the highest key being played in the Treble Division as the source of the oscillatory signal for the Solo Division. This basic tone can be frequency divided and modified as required for use in the Solo Division. An arrangement of this type forms the subject matter of my copending United States patent application Serial No. 563,048, filed February 2, 1956, now Patent No. 2,922,- 329 for Electric Musical Instrument With Multiple Utilization of Tone Signal Sources. In general, the use of a separate oscillator for the Solo Division has musical advantages and is to be preferred but the other arrangement I paniment Divisions.

can be provided at lower cost.

When most music, including music in the singing keys, is played upon the instrument as so far described, the respouse as previously mentioned includes a right hand polyphonic treble, a left hand polyphonic accompaniment, and a pedal bass, in addition to these, the S010 Division will, whenever it is turned on by closing one or more of the tab switches 66, 82, 86, and automatically sound one or more of the four tones which are octavely related to the Treble Division tone which is sounded by the highest key playcd within the range covered by the Solo Normal Division. By limiting the lower end of the solo Normal Division response to the Bb key, the very disconcerting possibility is eliminated of the solo response jumping down to the highest key played by the left hand when the right hand is detached. This is true, it will be noted, even though the left hand plays up to and including the low A key in the Treble Division.

With certain types of instrumental music it is desirable to be able to play the right hand melody throughout the entire treble. A tab switch, labeled Solo Extension to G, is therefore arranged to connect the A, Ab and G keys at the lower end of the Treble Division into the solo circuit such that they also tune and key the Solo Division oscillator. These three extra tones are, therefore, sounded in the S010 Division when one of these keys is the highest of any group simultaneously played. This will not inhibit the left hand, since in music of this type it is not necessary for the left hand to play above F t above middle C.

Some church music, when played as written, requires the right hand occasionally to play downwardly as far as B below middle C. Organ music of this type is con ventionally played upon an instrument very rich in harmonic content. This is provided for in this instrument by depressing the Flutes, Strings, and Reeds tabs in both the Treble and Accompaniment Divisions. All of the keys, therefore, play as one continuous keyboard without distinction as between the Treble and Accom- Since in music of this type the playing is more toward the bass end of the instrument, a tab switch labeled Solo Extension to B is provided which, when depressed, acts to connect the keys from 3,0 '2 B below middle C to A just below the Solo Normal Division so that this extra octave of keys tune and key the solo division oscillator.

With the instrument as thus conditioned, the Solo Division responds throughout a range of over three octaves of keys. This solo response with up to four octavely related tones for each key plus the Treble and Accompaniment Divisions augmented by the Pedal Bass, is ideal for leading congregational singing. It will be appreciated that this is so, particularly since the solo parts stand out and the rich harmonic content of the instruments response prevents the instrumental music from becoming lost in the singing. This is a very valuable attribute of an instrument used for this purpose, since the individuals in a congregation cannot be expected to be accomplished singers, and experience has shown that they quickly get lost if they cannot hear the main melody clearly.

As with the Accompaniment and Treble Divisions, the solo division oscillator 64 is connected to have its frequency varied about its nominal pitch by a lead $1 from the vibrato oscillator-54 through a solo vibrato control circuit 333 to a line 85 connected in turn to the solo division oscillator 64. The solo vibrato control 85 is arranged to be actuated by control tabs which make it convenient to regulate the amount of vibrato effect as well as to turn it on or off. The solo vibrato control 83 is also connected to be actuated by the foot pedal 24 in the same manner as the treble and accompaniment vibrato control 58.

The purpose of the Vibrato Control Pedal 24 is to enable the musician to abruptly change the characteristic sound of the instrument. This he does simply by depressing the pedal 24, which is available to the right foot, whenever it is desired to have the full vibrato efiect of the instrument on the Accompaniment, the Treble and the S010 Divisions. Thus, the vibrato control tabs can be set to give a partial Vibrato efiect on some or all of the divisions, or none at all if desired, when the pedal 24 is up, the full vibrato effect when this pedal is depressed.

inasmuch as the Vibrato Control Pedal 24 is located beneath and slightly to the right of the Swell Control 22, and since its range of movement needs only to be sutficient to actuate a switch, it will be appreciated that whether the right foot is resting upon this pedal or upon the floor near it, will not afi'ect proper actuatio not the Swell Control 22 by the right leg.

Although just what tonal and other control effects are provided in the instrument is largely a matter of choice, the various controls shown in FIG. 1 are as indicated below. Since the manner of accomplishing all of these effects in a musical instrument of this general character is either well known or is explained above, it is not believed to be necessary to provide details as to just how the manual controls are connected into the electrical circuit. The primary purpose of the following discussion is simply to complete the disclosure of a representative musical instrument incorporating the features of the invention.

In addition to the keyboard 12, the pedalboard 14, the swell control 22 and the vibrato control pedal 24 previously discussed, there are several groupings of tab switches and rotary controls indicated generally at and 16. These are as follows, beginning at the left.

Control knob 1% actuates a combined on-oif switch and overall volume control potentiometer, and is labeled On-OlT-Maximum Volume.

An Accompaniment Melody Lead potentiometer N2 is next and operates when an Accompaniment Melody Lead tablet is depressed to raise and regulate the volume level of the Accompaniment Divisions. The overall volume level remains about the same, but the accompaniment melody is accentuated to the degree desired.

The Solo Volume potentiometer is next at 104, and acts to regulate the solo balancer 76.

The next three control tablets are in order Accompaniment Flutes Tit e, Accompaniment Strings 10S, and Accompaniment Reeds iii). Each of these, when de pressed, gives its characteristic tone in the Accompaniment Division. When all are up, the Accompaniment Division remains silent.

The tablet at 112 is labeled Muted Tone and when depressed mutes the instrument by removing some of the high frequency portion of the mixed signal.

The next tablet 114 is labeled Accompaniment Melody Lead. When depressed it reduces the volume level of the Treble and Solo divisions and raises the volume level of the Accompaniment division approximately an equal amount, the degree of change being under the control of the knob 192, When used, the notes played in the accompaniment division are emphasized.

The next three tablets control the tonal characteristics of the Treble Division. They are Treble Flutes lid, Treble Strings H8, and Treble Reeds 129. At least one of these must be depressed or the Treble Division will remain silent.

The Solo Extension to B control tablet is indicated at 122 and the Solo Extension to G at 124.

The next four tablets control formant circuits at 70 and are labeled Solo Deep Tone 1%, Solo Full Tone 1328, Solo Brilliant 13d and Solo Resonator 132. When depressed, the Solo Full Tone gives the tone of the Solo Division without substantial influence by the formant circuits. The Solo Deep Tone and Solo Brilliant respectively accentuate the low frequencies and the high frequencies. Actuation of the Solo Resonator tablet introduces a resonant circuit so as to accentuate certain intermediate frequencies. One or more of these tablets must be depressed or the Solo Division remains silent.

The next two tablets control the solo envelope control circuits at 72. They are Solo Fast Attack and Long Percussion Time 134, and Solo Percussion 136. The Solo Percussion tablet when depressed gives percussive etTects to the Solo Division. Depressing the Solo Fast Attack and Long Percussion Time tablet when the Solo Percussion tablet is up acts to increase the rate of attack of the solo notes. When both this tablet and the Solo Percussion tablet are depressed, the effect is to increase the decay rate of the Solo Percussion. This decay rate is adjustable as will appear presently.

Next is the Accompaniment and Treble Vibrato tablet 138 which gives a vibrato effect to the tones from the Treble and Accompaniment Divisions.

The next tablets are labeled Solo Small Vibrato 140 and Solo Wide Vibrato 142. When depressed, Solo Small Vibrato gives a small vibrato excursion to the tones from the Solo Division. Solo Wide Vibrato gives a wider frequency excursion, while both together give a still more pronounced solo vibrato.

Tablet 144 is labeled Solo Woodwinds. When depressed, it gives a Woodwinds type of tone to the Solo Division which otherwise is of the strings type.

The next four tablets control the Solo Division octavely related output switches at 9th, 86, S2, and 66. These tablets are labeled Solo Contra Bass 14:), Solo Suboctave 148, Solo Unison 150, and Solo Superoctave 152. At least one of these tablets must be actuated or the S010 Division will remain silent.

The three potentiometers at the right hand end are labeled in order Pedal Volume 154, Pedal Sustain 156, and Solo Percussion Time 153. Of these, the Pedal Volume actuates the balancing control at 62, the Pedal Sustain regulates the rate of decay of the pedal note after a pedal is released and until the next pedal is depressed as is explained in the previously referred to Patent No. 2,480,132. Solo Percussion Time regulates the rate of decay of a percussive solo note when the previously referred to tablet labelled Solo Percussion is depressed and Solo Fast Attack and Long Percussion Time is not depressed.

FIGS. 3a and 3!) illustrate the double countermelody performance capabilities of the invention as contrasted with the capabilities of a conventional type of multimanual organ. FIG. 3a is an exemplary music score which shows the actual notes which are to be read and played by the musician. The right hand notes are shown on the upper staff 200, the left hand notes on the middle staff 201, and the pedal notes on the lower staff 202. From the notes on these three staffs the following five parts may be discerned:

(1) A chief melody in the form of the higher notes 203 contained on the staff 200. These notes are shown with upwardly extending stems.

(2) A first countermelody for the right hand in the form'of the lower notes 204 which are shown with downwardly extending stems.

(3) Rhythm accompaniments chords for the left hand which are shown as the higher chord note groups 205 on staff 201. Their stems extend upward.

(4) A second countermelody for the left hand which is also shown on staff 201 as a line of lower notes 206 which have their stems extending in a downward direction.

(5) A bass pedal part 207 written on the staff 202.

From the above one can see that an organist could readily play the notes shown on these three staffs on a conventional two manual and pedal organ in which the two hands might play upon the two manuals. The first countermelody notes 204, and second countermelody notes 206, however, would not stand apart as independent voices because the chief melody note 203 which lies above the first countermelody 204 would tend to mask the first countermelody. Furthermore, there would be no tonal or pitch difierentiations between the main melody 203 and first countermelody 204.

Referring to FIG. 3b, it will be noted that the four measures of music herein contained duplicate the four measures of music shown in FIG. 3a. However, the various scores shown in FIG. 3b illustrate the unusual manner in which the two independent countermelodies are achieved in their relation to the main melody, rhythm accompaniment, and bass pedal parts. In FIG. 3b the main melody notes 203 of FIG. 3a are shown as four independent stafis 208, 209, 210, and 211. These are the notes which may be selectively sounded either singly or in groups by the Solo Division. As shown, the notes on line 208 are of Super-octave pitch relative to notes 203. The notes 209 for the Unison melody are of the same pitch as the notes 203.. The notes for the Sub-octave melody 210 are one octave lower than the notes 203. The notes for the Contra-bass melody 211' are two octaves lower than the notes 203. Thus, it is seen that the melody may be played in any desired pitch range when played on the keys as indicated by the melody line notes 203.

The first countermelody line 204 is shown as line 212 in FIG. 3b which is controlled by the tonal resources of the Treble Division. This line of notes may have a tone quality which differs from all the other voices of the instrument and thus becomes a distinctive first countermelody. The rhythm accompaniment chords 205 are shown separately on FIG. 3b as a line 213, and these chords may be played with the varied tonal resources contained in the Accompaniment Division of the instrument. These rhythm chords may be of a quality different from the main melody as well as from the first countermelody. The second countermelody notes 206 are shown separately on a line 21 5 in PEG. 311. These second countermelody notes are controlled by the tonal resources of the Accompaniment Division and therefore may be tonally differentiated from the main melody and first countermelody parts. Thus, it is readily apparent that a musician playing on the single manual instrument of this invention has a performance capability of sounding a main melody in a desired tone quality in any one of four pitch ranges together with a first and second countermelodies of separate and dis tinctive tone qualities. Rhythm chcords may also be played with the left hand.

The bass notes 207 of FIG. 3a are shown as a separate staff and line of notes 215 in FIG. 3b.

Reference is made especially to notes 216, 217, 218, 219, and 220. It is seen that these one-eighth notes are of short duration and that the right hand is completely lifted from the single manual instrument after a short period of time. It is also to be noted that the smond countermelody note 221 as Well as rhythm accompaniment chords 222 and 223 are sounded while the notes 216 to 220 inclusive are released. The main melody highest note selecting Solo Division is effective only on the upper portion of the keyboard and therefore there is no danger that these melody notes will undesirably transfer themselves down to the playing of the second countermelody and rhythm accompaniment chords. This is because these latter elements lie below the upper range of the single manual instrument. However, for special purposes, the eflective range of the Solo Division may be extended to include the B note immediately below middle C (261 c.p.s.).

From the above it is seen that the five parts which are independently controllable by the various tablets of the single manual instrument described herein enable the musician to easily render a musical composition with a double countermelody performance which is clearly discernible to the listener through the fact that both countermelodies are tonally distinct from each other as well as from the main melody part. This highly orchestral rendition may be easily obtained by a single player with the single manual instrument described herein. The number of orchestral eifects and instrumentations are extremely numerous and provide for great tonal clarity and interest. For example, a first countermelody may be of a flute-like character, a second countermelody of a stringlike character, and the chief melody may sound in the Sole Division either with a sustained or percussive quality which may lie below or above either of the countermelodies.

The musician who is accustomed to playing on conventional multimanual organs finds that when first p1aying upon the single manual double countermelody instrument of this invention that he seems to sense the presence of an additional instrumentalist which makes it possible for him to play with a double countermelody performance. It is also to be noted that the countermelodies may be of any desired relative loudness both with respect to themselves and also with respect to the main melody which is generated within the Solo Division.

From the above description of a preferred embodiment of my invention as incorporated in a representative musical instrument, it will be apparent that considerable variation may be made in the resources available in the instrument, this being very largely a matter of cost, choice and judgment, and that well known circuitry may be used throughout, since the invention is not primarily concerned with the novelty of particular circuits, but rather with the novel musical instrument as a whole which enables a single musician to obtain a far greater range of musical expression than has heretofore been possible.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the Untied States is:

1. In an electrical musical instrument upon which polyphonic chords and a solo melody may be simultaneously produced, a single continuous keyboard having. upper and lower portions, a polyphonic tone generating system operated by the lower portion of said keyboard only, a separate polyphonic tone generating system operated by the upper portion of said keyboard only, circuit means providing several different tonal responses for each of the polyphonic sections, means for selecting any of several different tonal responses to be sounded independently by the two polyphonic sections, and means providing an automatic highest key selecting monophonic tone system operated by the upper portion only of said keyboard.

2. The combination called for in claim 1, in which manual means is provided for selecting one of a plurality of ranges of keys to be playable upon the automatic highest key selecting monophonic tone system.

3. The combination called for in claim 1, in which manual means is provided for shifting the frequency of response of the monophonic tone system relative to the polyphonic tone generating system.

4. in an electrical musical instrument upon which polyphonic cords and a solo melody may be simultaneously produced, a single continuous keyboard having upper and lower portions, a polyphonic tone generating system operated by the lower portion of said keyboard only, a separate polyphonic tone generating system operated by the remaining portion of said keyboard only, circuit means providing several different tonal responses for each of the polyphonic sections, means for selecting any of several difierent tonal responses to be sounded independently by the two polyphonic sections, means providing an automatic highest key selecting monophonic tone system operated by the upper portion only of said keyboard and playable from the high end of said keyboard continuously downwardly to a predetermined cutoff point only, and means for selecting which of three different keys constitutes the cutoff point.

5. T he combination called for in claim 4, in which at least one of said three different keys lies above the D above middle C and another of said three different keys lies below middle C.

6. In an electrical musical instrument upon which polyphonic cords and a solo melody may be simultaneously produced, a single continuous keyboard having upper and lower portions, an accompaniment polyphonic tone generating system operated by the lower portion of said keyboard only and having its highest key in the octave which is between middle C and C thereabove, a separate treble polyphonic tone generating system operated by the upper portion of said keyboard only and having its lowest key contiguous to said highest key, circuit means providing several different tonal responses for each of the polyphonic sections, means for selecting any of several different tonal responses to be sounded independently by the two polyphonic sections, a monophonic highest key selecting tone generating system operated by the upper portion only of said keyboard and playable from the high end of said keyboard continuously downwardly to a predetermined cutoif point only, and means for selecting which of three different keys constitutes the cutoff point.

7. The combination called for in claim 6, in which one of said three different keys is above the lowest key operating said treble polyphonic system, another of said three difierent keys is the same as the lowest key operating said treble polyphonic system, and the third of said three different keys is below middle C.

8. In an electrical musical instrument upon which polyphonic chords and a solo melody may be simultaneously produced, a single continuous keyboard having upper and lower portions, a polyphonic tone generating system operated by the lower portion of said keyboard only, a separate polyphonic tone generating system operated by the upper portion of said keyboard only, circuit means providing several different tonal responses for each of the polyphonic sections, means for selecting any of several different tonal responses to be sounded independently by the two polyphonic sections, means providing an automatic highest key selecting monophonic tone system operated by the upper portion only of said keyboard and playable from the high end of said keyboard continuously downwardly to a predetermined cutofi point only, optionally operable preselecting means for extending said cutoff point downwardly a predetermined amount from the first said cutoff point, and other optionally operable preselecting means for extending the cutoff point downwardly an additional predetermined amount below the last said cutofi point.

9. In an electrical musical instrument comprising at least one set of electrical tone signal generators providing the notes of at least three octaves of the tempered musical scale, a single manual comprising a number of keys for playing the notes of all of the generators in the set, said manual being divided into a treble section and an accompaniment section, an output system, means effective upon depression of a number of keys of the accompaniment section to transmit the signals from the generators to the output system, means operated by depression of a number of keys in the treble section to cause transmission from the generators to the output system, additional means controlled by the depression of the highest of a plurality of keys simultaneously depressed in the treble section to cause transmission to the output system of a signal of a pitch octavely related to such highest key depressed, means for independently controlling the quality of the tones transmitted under the control of the keys of the accompaniment section, separate means for independently controlling the quality of the tones transmitted under the control of the keys of the treble section, and additional means for independently controlling the quality, relative loudness, and octave relation of the tones transmitted to the output system by said additional means under the control of the highest of a plurality of simultaneously depressed keys in the treble section.

10. In an electrical musical instrument upon which polyphonic chords and a solo melody may be simultaneously produced, a single continuous keyboard having upper and lower portions, 21 polyphonic tone generating system operated by all of the keys of said keyboard, and an automatic highest key selecting monophonic tone system operated by the upper portion only of the keys of said keyboard, said monophonic system optionally sounding in any of a plurality of selected octave relations including unison to the note played by the same key and originating from said polyphonic tone generating system, and manual means for making the last said selection.

11. In an electrical musical instrument upon which polyphonic chords and a solo melody may be simultaneously produced, a single continuous keyboard having upper and lower portions, an accompaniment polyphonic tone generating system comprising a plurality of oscillators operated by the keys of the lower portion of said keyboard only, a separate treble polyphonic tone generating system comprising a separate set of a plurality of oscillators operated by the keys of the upper portion of said keyboard only, separate sets of voicing controls for independently voicing the separate polyphonic sections, an automatic highest key selecting monophonic tone generating system comprising a single oscillator tunable toa multiplicity of frequencies operated by the keys of the upper portion only of said keyboard and playable from the high end of said keyboard continuously downwardly to a predetermined cutoff point only, and means for preselecting which of two or more keys of said keyboard constitutes the predetermined cutofi point.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,048,610 Kook July 21, 1936 2,365,566 Langer Dec. 19, 1944 2,555,040 Jordan May 29, 1951 2,645,968 Hanert July 21, 1953 2,933,004 Hanert Apr. 19, 1960

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