This invention relates to a hybrid musical instrument and, more particularly, to a hybrid musical instrument between an acoustic musical instrument and an electric musical instrument.
The hybrid keyboard musical instrument selectively generates acoustic piano tones and electronic tones, and is known as xe2x80x9csilent pianoxe2x80x9d. The silent piano is fabricated on the basis of an acoustic piano. A hammer stopper, key sensors, a controller and a sound system are installed in the acoustic piano. The hammer stopper laterally extends between the rest positions of hammers and the music strings, and the controller changes the hammer stopper between a free position and a blocking position. The hammer stopper is located in the trajectories of the hammer shanks in the blocking position, and the hammers rebound on the hammer stopper before striking the music strings. For this reason, the music strings do not vibrate. This means that any acoustic piano tone is not generated. On the other hand, the hammer stopper is out of the trajectories of the hammer shanks in the free position, and permits the hammers to strike the music strings.
While a pianist is playing, a tune on the keyboard, the hammers are selectively driven for rotation, and strike the associated music strings. The music strings vibrate for generating the acoustic piano tones. The key sensors periodically report the current key positions to the controller, and the controller determines the note number assigned to each of the depressed/released keys, and calculates the key velocity. The controller stores the note number, the key velocity and the lapse of time between the key motions in music data codes, and produces the audio signal from the series of music data codes. For this reason, the electronic tones are generated along the tune. The performance through the acoustic piano tones and the performance through the electronic tones are hereinbelow referred to as xe2x80x9cacoustic sound modexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9celectric sound modexe2x80x9d, respectively.
The instructions are given through a manipulating panel to the controller. One of the switches on the manipulating panel is assigned to the instruction to change the hammer stopper from the free position to the blocking position and vice versa. A set of switches on the manipulating panel is assigned to selection of a timbre imparted to the electronic tones.
Another hybrid keyboard musical instrument also generates the electronic tones or the acoustic tones depending upon the instructions given through the manipulating panel. The hybrid keyboard musical instrument permits a pianist and the sound system to perform an ensemble. When a user instructs an ensemble to the controller, the controller changes the hammer stopper to the free position, and vacates the trajectories of the hammer shanks.
While the user is playing a tune on the keyboard, the music strings are sequentially struck with the associated hammers for generating the acoustic piano tones in a part of a music score, and the controller supplies the audio signal to the sound system for generating the electronic tones in another part of the music score. The performance through both acoustic and electronic tones is hereinbelow referred to as xe2x80x9censemble modexe2x80x9d.
The user is assumed to establish one of the three modes of operation, i.e., the acoustic sound mode, the electric sound mode, and the ensemble mode in the prior art hybrid keyboard musical instrument before the performance. The user changes the hammer stopper to the appropriate position, and gives parameters to the controller. The controller gets ready for the selected mode of operation before the initiation of fingering on the keyboard. The user can concentrate his attention on the fingering during the performance.
A user may want to change the mode operation in the middle of a performance. The manipulation of switches on the panel is required for the change of the mode. The user diverts the attention from the fingering on the keyboard, and manipulates the switches on the manipulating panel appropriately. The user can not concentrate the attention on the fingering, and feels the change of mode difficult.
It is therefore an important object of the present invention to provide a hybrid musical instrument, which allows a user to change the mode of operation easily.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a musical instrument comprising plural sound generating sources each independently activated for producing tones from pieces of music data information and deactivated for keeping itself silent, each of the combinations of the activated sound generating sources establishing one of different kinds of status in the musical instrument, a data source producing the pieces of music data information available for producing tones through each of the plural sound generating sources, a data storage having plural storage areas, a registrar producing, pieces of status information representative of the different kinds of status, respectively, and connected to the data storage for storing the pieces of status information in the plural storage areas, respectively, and a recalling means having plural manipulators respectively representative of the pieces of status information stored in the data storage and establishing each of the different kinds of status in the musical instrument when associated one of the plural manipulators is manipulated.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds