US3610804A - Combination of selector switch and expression control of electronic musical instrument - Google Patents

Combination of selector switch and expression control of electronic musical instrument Download PDF

Info

Publication number
US3610804A
US3610804A US864496A US3610804DA US3610804A US 3610804 A US3610804 A US 3610804A US 864496 A US864496 A US 864496A US 3610804D A US3610804D A US 3610804DA US 3610804 A US3610804 A US 3610804A
Authority
US
United States
Prior art keywords
expression
tone
musical instrument
electronic musical
selector switches
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
US864496A
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Toshiro Matsuura
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Nippon Gakki Co Ltd
Original Assignee
Nippon Gakki Co Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Nippon Gakki Co Ltd filed Critical Nippon Gakki Co Ltd
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of US3610804A publication Critical patent/US3610804A/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

Links

Images

Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G10—MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; ACOUSTICS
    • G10H—ELECTROPHONIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; INSTRUMENTS IN WHICH THE TONES ARE GENERATED BY ELECTROMECHANICAL MEANS OR ELECTRONIC GENERATORS, OR IN WHICH THE TONES ARE SYNTHESISED FROM A DATA STORE
    • G10H1/00—Details of electrophonic musical instruments
    • G10H1/18—Selecting circuits

Definitions

  • the instrument also includes several expression controls which are MUSICAL INSTRUMENT separately operated by the leg portion of a player, and several 3 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs. selector switches connected between the outputs of the respective music playing sections and the expression controls.
  • U.S. Cl 84/l.l7 Each music playing section has an associated output which is 84/1.24 connected to an associated predetermined one of the selector Int. Cl. G01h 3/06 switches.
  • Each selector switch is capable of connecting its as- Field of Search 84/ 1.17, sociated music playing section output to any one of the ex- 1.24, 1.26, 1.13, 1.27 pression controls.
  • the present invention relates to an electronic musical instrument and more particularly to an expression control arrangement thereof.
  • FIG. 1 An electronic musical instrument heretofore put to practical use has generally been constructed as shown in FIG. 1.
  • an upper keyboard 2 comprising a plurality of juxtaposed keys and a lower keyboard 3 consisting of a similar key array.
  • the keys of the upper-keyboard 2 are operated mainly by the right hand to give forth a melody tones while those of the lower keyboard 3 are operated mainly by the left hand to produce accompanying tones.
  • a pedal keyboard 4 At the front bottom of the cabinet 1 there is projectingly disposed a pedal keyboard 4, the keys of which are chiefly used in sounding contrabasslike tones.
  • percussion buttons 5 whose operation gives forth some kinds of percussion sounds, such as of maracas, claves, symbals and drums.
  • a percussion sound circuit interlockingly operated by the lower keys or pedal keys so as to produce further percusion sounds.
  • the volume of musical tones obtained by -''selective operation of a plurality of music playing sections consisting of the upper keyboard section, the lower keyboard section, the pedal keyboard section and the percussion sound playing sections, is varied by a single expression pedal 6 operable in common to said respective section.
  • the .expression control arrangement of the prior art electronic musical instrument generally has such a circuit pattern as schematically illustrated in FIG. 2.
  • the tone generators 8 provide tone signals for musical-scale tone playing sections i.e., the upper keyboard section, the lower keyboard section and the pedal keyboard section, while the upper keyboard section includes an upper keyboard 2, switching circuits 9, tone coloring filters l2 and tone volume controls 15, the lower keyboard section includes a lower keyboard 3, switching circuits l0, tone coloring filters 13 and tone volume controls 16, and the pedal keyboard section includes a pedal keyboard 4, switching circuits 1 1, tone coloring filters l4, and tone volume controls 17.
  • the tone signals from the tone generator 8' are supplied to the switching circuits 9, l0 and l l which are respectively associated with and operated by the upper keyboard 2, the lower keyboard 3 and the petal keyboard 4.
  • Tone signals having predetermined pitches which are selectively derived from the switching circuits 9, l0 and 11 pass through the tone coloring filters l2, l3 and 14 and the tone volume controls 15, 16 and 17, consisting of, for example, indicated variable resistors, to be converted to tone'signals having a desired tone color, and thereafter suitably amplified by amplifiers 18, 19 and 20 (provided if required).
  • tone coloring filters 23 and tone volume controls are provided in two percussion sound playing sections, one of which includes percussion sound generators 2], tone coloring filters 23 and tone volume controls and being under dependent control by the keyboard operation, and the other includes percussion buttons 5, percussion sound generators 22, tone coloring filters 24 and tone volume controls 26 and being under independent control by the button operation.
  • the tone signals selectively issued from a plurality (five in this 20 of playing sections pass through the amplifiers l8, 19, 20 and 27 and are supplied to a-single common expression control 28 for controlling the volume of tones interlockingly with the depression of the expression pedal 6. After proper adjustment of the volume, in said circuit 28, the aforementioned signals pass through an amplifier 29 to be reproduced from a loudspeaker 30.
  • tone signals selectively issued from a plurality of playing sections are jointly supplied to the single common expression control 28, so that the depression of the expression pedal 6 causes the volume of all musicalscale tones and percussion sounds to be controlled in the same way.
  • tones produced from the melody and accompaniment sections by selective operation of the upper and lower keyboards are desired to be furnished with different expression effects.
  • melody section tones are desired to have an expression effect in the crescendo form, whereas those from the accompaniment section are desired to have such effect in the decrescendo form, or vice versa.
  • FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the prior art electronic musical instrument schematically illustrating its arrangement
  • FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of said instrument
  • FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an electronic musical instrument according to the present invention schematically illustrating its arrangement
  • FIG. 4 is a schematic circuit diagram of an electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention.
  • FIGS. 3 and 4 an electronic musical instrument having a novel combination of selector switches and expression controls according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which the music playing sections including legend numerals 2,73, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, l2, l3, 14, 15, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26 and amplifiers 18, 19, and 27 are of the same arrangement as shown in FIG. 2.
  • the music playing sections including legend numerals 2,73, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, l2, l3, 14, 15, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26 and amplifiers 18, 19, and 27 are of the same arrangement as shown in FIG. 2.
  • FIG. 4 there are connected to the output terminals of the amplifiers 18, 19, 20 and 27 following the respective music playing sections, movable contacts 31a,32a,3 3a and 34a of the selector switches 31, 32, 33 and 34 respectively.
  • the first stationary contacts 3lb,32b,3b and 34b of the selector switches 31 to 34 to the input tenninals of a first expression control 36 for controlling the tone volume interlockingly with the depression of an expression pedal
  • the selector switches 31 to 34 are operated by means of tablets 42, for example, as shown in FIG. 3 disposed on the right side of the lower keyboard.
  • Tone signals obtained through the first and second expression controls 36 and 39 from the plurality of music playing sections may be reproduced from a single common loudspeaker 41 through an amplifier 40 provided as shown.
  • loudspeaker may be separately provided for each of the expression controls 36 and 39 or for each music playing section.
  • selector switches and the expression controls of the present invention wherein there is provided, as described above, selector switches for the output of each of the music playing sections and there are selectively connected to both ends of each selector switch separate expression controls, enables the volume of tone signals from the respective music playing sections to be controlled singly or in a suitable combination by selectively operating the selector switches because there are provided two independent expression control systems.
  • tone signals from the percussion section can be controlled in volume separately from melody section, accompaniment section and contrabass section.
  • selector switches 31 and 32 out of the group 31 to 34 are connected in opposite relationship to the first and second expression controls 36 and 39 respectively, it is possible to exhibit various musical performance effects, for example, of imparting an expression effect only to tone signals derived from either the melody section by selective operation of the upper keyboard or the accompaniment section by selective operation of the lower keyboard or furnishing different expression effects, Le, a crescendo effect to the melody section tone signals and a decrescendo effect to the accompaniment section tone signals,
  • the tone signal control device of the present invention offers a great advantage in providing a novel electronic musical instrument having a power of expression, namely, capability of displaying various new musical performance effects resembling those derived from the playing of natural musical instruments which have been impossible with the prior art electronic musical instruments.
  • An electronic musical instrument which comprises a plurality of music playing sections including musical-scale tone playing sections and percussion sound playing sections; a plurality of expression controls which are separately operated by the leg portion of a player a plurality of selector switches connected between the outputs of the respective music playing sections and said expression controls; each music playing section having an associated output which is connected to an associated predetermined one of said selector switches; and each selector switch being capable of connecting its associated music playing section output to any one of said plurality of expression controls.
  • each of said p1urality of selector switches includes a movable contact, a first stationary contact, and a second stationary contact; all of said first stationary contacts of said selector switches being electrically connected to a first of said plurality of expression controls; all of said second stationary contacts of said selector switches being electrically connected to a second of said plurality of expression controls; each selector switch has its associated music playing section output electrically connected to its movable contact; there is provided a plurality of tablets for controlling the movement of said movable contacts of said selector switches, there is provided a foot pedal device for controlling said first of said plurality of expression controls; and there is provided a knee lever device for controlling said plurality of expression controls.

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Acoustics & Sound (AREA)
  • Multimedia (AREA)
  • Electrophonic Musical Instruments (AREA)
US864496A 1968-10-09 1969-10-07 Combination of selector switch and expression control of electronic musical instrument Expired - Lifetime US3610804A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP43073114A JPS4824534B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1968-10-09 1968-10-09

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US3610804A true US3610804A (en) 1971-10-05

Family

ID=13508904

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US864496A Expired - Lifetime US3610804A (en) 1968-10-09 1969-10-07 Combination of selector switch and expression control of electronic musical instrument

Country Status (2)

Country Link
US (1) US3610804A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
JP (1) JPS4824534B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)

Cited By (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3717715A (en) * 1970-10-23 1973-02-20 Philips Corp Electronic musical instrument provided with variable coupling of the keyboards
US3723633A (en) * 1971-06-16 1973-03-27 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Bass tone producing device for an electronic musical instrument
US3749807A (en) * 1971-04-14 1973-07-31 T Adachi Orchestral effect producing system for an electronic musical instrument
US3818115A (en) * 1971-07-08 1974-06-18 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Multi-channel stereophonic sound reproducing system for electronic musical instruments
US3886834A (en) * 1973-05-11 1975-06-03 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Electronic musical instrument capable of modulation controlling a second keyboard section tone signal in accordance with a first keyboard section tone signal
US4227049A (en) * 1978-11-27 1980-10-07 Thomson Ian W Audio system for isolating sounds from individual components of drum set-up for selectively mixing
US4244261A (en) * 1976-12-17 1981-01-13 Nippon Gakki Seizo Kabushiki Kaisha Electronic keyboard musical instrument
GB2227873A (en) * 1988-12-31 1990-08-08 Samsung Electronics Co Ltd Duet sound generation in an electronic musical instrument

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPH02136699U (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) * 1989-04-20 1990-11-14

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2710556A (en) * 1953-02-13 1955-06-14 Central Commercial Ind Inc Expression control
US3217081A (en) * 1962-02-08 1965-11-09 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Sound volume controller for electronic musical instruments
US3255296A (en) * 1961-03-02 1966-06-07 Richard H Peterson Player controlled dynamic variation of pitch and/or timbre
US3322874A (en) * 1962-03-27 1967-05-30 Baldwin Co D H Pipe organ simulation circuits
US3499094A (en) * 1966-04-19 1970-03-03 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Manual or knee operable effect selector system in electronic musical instrument
US3505462A (en) * 1965-03-12 1970-04-07 Baldwin Co D H Electrical organ

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2710556A (en) * 1953-02-13 1955-06-14 Central Commercial Ind Inc Expression control
US3255296A (en) * 1961-03-02 1966-06-07 Richard H Peterson Player controlled dynamic variation of pitch and/or timbre
US3217081A (en) * 1962-02-08 1965-11-09 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Sound volume controller for electronic musical instruments
US3322874A (en) * 1962-03-27 1967-05-30 Baldwin Co D H Pipe organ simulation circuits
US3505462A (en) * 1965-03-12 1970-04-07 Baldwin Co D H Electrical organ
US3499094A (en) * 1966-04-19 1970-03-03 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Manual or knee operable effect selector system in electronic musical instrument

Cited By (9)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3717715A (en) * 1970-10-23 1973-02-20 Philips Corp Electronic musical instrument provided with variable coupling of the keyboards
US3749807A (en) * 1971-04-14 1973-07-31 T Adachi Orchestral effect producing system for an electronic musical instrument
US3723633A (en) * 1971-06-16 1973-03-27 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Bass tone producing device for an electronic musical instrument
US3818115A (en) * 1971-07-08 1974-06-18 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Multi-channel stereophonic sound reproducing system for electronic musical instruments
US3886834A (en) * 1973-05-11 1975-06-03 Nippon Musical Instruments Mfg Electronic musical instrument capable of modulation controlling a second keyboard section tone signal in accordance with a first keyboard section tone signal
US4244261A (en) * 1976-12-17 1981-01-13 Nippon Gakki Seizo Kabushiki Kaisha Electronic keyboard musical instrument
US4227049A (en) * 1978-11-27 1980-10-07 Thomson Ian W Audio system for isolating sounds from individual components of drum set-up for selectively mixing
GB2227873A (en) * 1988-12-31 1990-08-08 Samsung Electronics Co Ltd Duet sound generation in an electronic musical instrument
GB2227873B (en) * 1988-12-31 1993-08-25 Samsung Electronics Co Ltd Duet-sound generation in an electronic musical instrument

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
JPS4824534B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1973-07-21

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US3546355A (en) Automatic tone generating system for an electronic organ
US4336734A (en) Digital high speed guitar synthesizer
US5398585A (en) Fingerboard for musical instrument
US3708602A (en) An electronic organ with automatic chord and bass systems
US3938419A (en) Electronic musical instrument
US3023659A (en) Transposition apparatus for electrical musical instrument
US3217079A (en) Electronic guitar
US3610804A (en) Combination of selector switch and expression control of electronic musical instrument
US3725560A (en) Chord playing organ
US3943811A (en) Keyboard type musical instrument
US2045172A (en) Musical instrument
US3305620A (en) Organ chord switching mechanism
US3359358A (en) Chord organ switching circuit for selectively playing either chords or single notes by depressing one key
US3433881A (en) Pedal board for musical instrument
US3247310A (en) Musical instrument
US2933004A (en) Combined piano and electrical monophonic instrument
US3482028A (en) Guitar type keying system for other instruments
US3681508A (en) Electronic organ
US3619469A (en) Electronic musical instrument with key and pedal-operated volume controls
US3553336A (en) Accenter touch bar for electronic musical instrument
US3922943A (en) Electronic musical instrument provided with a voltage-controlled monophonic playing section operated by a manual or pedal tone-playing section
US3040612A (en) Electrical musical instrument
US3954039A (en) Chord selection system for a musical instrument
US3470306A (en) Bass register keying system
US3833750A (en) Reed accordion with programmable electronic organ sound