Electronic musical instrument, method of controlling the electronic musical instrument, and storage medium thereof

• US 10,431,193 B2
• Filed: 09/13/2018
• Issued: 10/01/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: Setoguchi, Masaru
• Primary Examiner(s): Warren, David S
• Application Number:
  US16/130,392
• Publication Number:
  US 20190096372A1
• Time in Patent Office: 383 Days
• Field of Search: 84622
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0016 Means for indicating which keys, frets or strings are to be actuated, e.g. using lights or leds
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0033 Recording/reproducing or transmission of music for electrophonic musical instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/06 Circuits for establishing the harmonic content of tones , or other arrangements for changing the tone colour
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/091 for performance evaluation, i.e. judging, grading or scoring the musical qualities or faithfulness of a performance, e.g. with respect to pitch, tempo or other timings of a reference performance
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/031 Blinking or flashing indicator lights

Abstract

According to the present invention, there is provided an electronic musical instrument that allows a player to learn a certain range covering a key of correct pitch and to feel as if he or she were playing the music.

The instrument includes a controller to perform a pitches determination process of, based upon first timing and first pitch included in music data, determining pitches within a fixed range from the first pitch, which is allowed to be designated in accordance with the first timing, a display process of displaying an identifier to identify the pitches determined, and an automatic playing process of advancing automatic playing of the music data by producing sound corresponding to the first pitch from a sound producing unit when one of the pitches identified by the identifier displayed by the display process is designated.

Claims

1. An electronic musical instrument comprising:

a plurality of keys that are operable to designate pitches of sound to be output by the electronic musical instrument; and

a processor that is configured to perform an automatic playing process including;

determining one of the plurality of keys to be a first key, based on pitch information indicating a first pitch of a first timing included in music data, wherein the first key is expected to be designated by a user within a first period according to the first timing;

determining one of the plurality of keys to be a second key based on pitch information indicating a second pitch of a second timing after the first timing included in the music data, wherein the second key is expected to be designated by the user within a second period according to the second timing;

determining at least one of the plurality of keys other than the first key to be at least one third key that is assigned a sound of a different pitch from the first pitch, wherein the at least one third key is determined based on a position or pitch relationship of said at least one of the plurality of keys with the first key;

displaying an identifier for identifying the at least one third key before the first timing in accordance with progressing of the music data; and

in response to an operation by the user designating the first key or the at least one third key, controlling the electronic musical instrument to output a sound of the first pitch, and progressing the music data from the first timing to a timing before the second timing;

wherein the processor does not progress the music data from the first timing to the timing before the second timing, when the user designates a key other than the first key or the at least one third key within the first period.

2. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein the at least one third key is positioned within a predetermined positional range with respect to a position of the first key.

3. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein the at least one third key falls within predetermined pitch range with respect to viewed from the first pitch associated with the first key.

4. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein:

the processor is configured to perform a determination process of determining whether a result of playing of the user reaches a certain reference; and

a quantity of the at least one third key, which is determined in relation to the first key after it is determined in the determination process that the result of playing of the user reaches the certain reference, is smaller than the quantity of the at least one third key, which is determined in relation to the first key before it is determined in the determination process that the result of playing of the user reaches the certain reference.

5. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein:

the processor is configured to perform a determination process of determining whether a result of playing of the user reaches a certain reference; and

as it is determined that the result of playing of the user reaches the certain reference, a quantity of the at least one third key decreases gradually.

6. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein:

the processor is configured to perform a scoring process of scoring playing of the user and a determination process of determining whether a result of playing of the user reaches a certain reference; and

a quantity of the at least one third key, which is determined in relation to the first key after it is determined in the determination process that the result of playing of the user reaches the certain reference, is smaller than the quantity of the at least one third key, which is determined in relation to the first key before it is determined in the determination process that the result of playing of the user reaches the certain reference.

7. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein:

the processor is configured to perform a white-key/black-key determination process of determining which of a white key and a black key the first key to be designated by the user is;

the at least one third key is set to include white keys only when it is determined in the white-key/black-key determination process that the first key is the white key; and

the at least one third key is set to include black keys only when it is determined in the white-key/black-key determination process that the first key is the black key.

8. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to perform a display mode changing process of changing a display mode of the identifier to be displayed before and after a lapse of the first timing.

9. The electronic musical instrument of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to perform a display mode changing process of changing a display mode of the identifier to be displayed from timing that is earlier than the first timing toward the first timing.

10. A method of causing a computer of an electronic musical instrument, which includes plurality of keys that are operable to designate pitches of sound to be output by the electronic musical instrument, to perform a process comprising:

determining one of the plurality of keys to be a first key, based on pitch information indicating a first pitch of a first timing included in music data, wherein the first key is expected to be designated by a user within a first period according to the first timing;

determining one of the plurality of keys to be a second key, based on pitch information indicating a second pitch of a second timing after the first timing included in the music data, wherein the second key is expected to be designated by the user within a second period according to the second timing;

determining at least one of the plurality of keys other than the first key to be at least one third key that is assigned a sound of a different pitch from the first pitch, wherein the at least one third key is determined based on a position or pitch relationship of said at least one of the plurality of keys with the first key;

displaying an identifier for identifying the at least one third key before the first timing in accordance with progressing of the music data; and

in response to an operation by the user designating the first key or the at least one third key, controlling the electronic musical instrument to output a sound of the first pitch, and progressing the music data from the first timing to a timing before the second timing;

wherein the processor does not progress the music data from the first timing to the timing before the second timing, when the user designates a key other than the first key or the at least one third key within the first period.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium which stores a program that is executable by a computer of an electronic musical instrument, which includes a plurality of keys that are operable to designate pitches of sound to be output by the electronic musical instrument, the program being executable by the computer to control the electronic musical instrument to perform a process comprising:

determining one of the plurality of keys to be a first key, based on pitch information indicating a first pitch of a first timing included in music data, wherein the first key is expected to be designated by a user within a first period according to the first timing;

determining one of the plurality of keys to be a second key, based on pitch information indicating a second pitch of a second timing after the first timing included in the music data, wherein the second key is expected to be designated by the user within a second period according to the second timing;

determining at least one of the plurality of keys other than the first key to be at least one third key that is assigned a sound of a different pitch from the first pitch, wherein the at least one third key is determined based on a position or pitch relationship of said at least one of the plurality of keys with the first key, the program comprising;

displaying an identifier for identifying the at least one third key before the first timing in accordance with progressing of the music data; and

;

in response to an operation by the user designating the first key or the at least one third key, controlling the electronic musical instrument to output a sound of the first pitch, and progressing the music data from the first timing to a timing before the second timing;

wherein the processor does not progress the music data from the first timing to the timing before the second timing, when the user designates a key other than the first key or the at least one third key within the first period.