Tone generating apparatus, tone generating method, and program for implementing the method

• US 20030066412A1
• Filed: 10/04/2002
• Published: 04/10/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Inventors: Kobayashi, Eiko, Masuda, Katsuhiko, Nishitani, Yoshiki, Miyazawa, Kenichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,005,570 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 84/609
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0066 using a MIDI interface
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0083 using wireless transmission, e.g. radio, light, infrared
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/321 Garment sensors, i.e. musical control means with trigger surfaces or joint angle sensors, worn as a garment by the player, e.g. bracelet, intelligent clothing
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/395 Acceleration sensing or accelerometer use, e.g. 3D movement computation by integration of accelerometer data, angle sensing with respect to the vertical, i.e. gravity sensing
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/401 3D sensing, i.e. three-dimensional (x, y, z) position or movement sensing
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/265 Spint maracas, i.e. mimicking shells or gourds filled with seeds or dried beans, fitted with a handle, e.g. maracas, rumba shakers, shac-shacs
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/275 Spint drum
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/345 Spint castanets, i.e. mimicking a joined pair of concave shells held in the hand to produce clicks for rhythmic accents or a ripping or rattling sound consisting of a rapid series of clicks, e.g. castanets, chácaras, krakebs, qraqib, garagab
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/271 Serial transmission according to any one of RS-232 standards for serial binary single-ended data and control signals between a DTE and a DCE
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/315 Firewire, i.e. transmission according to IEEE1394

Abstract

There is provided a tone generating apparatus and method that enables recording and reproduction of performance made by a performer without requiring any complicated operations. Musical tones generated from a musical instrument are detected, and tone data is stored in a storage device, and the tone data stored in the storage device is reproduced and at least one tone corresponding to the tone data is egenrated when no next musical tone is detected within a predetermined period of time after a musical tone is detected.

Claims

1. A tone generating apparatus comprising:

a detecting device that detects musical tones generated from a musical instrument;

a storage device that stores tone data; and

a tone generating device that reproduces the tone data stored in said storage device and generates at least one tone corresponding to the tone data when no next musical tone is detected by said detecting device within a predetermined period of time after a musical tone is detected by said detecting device.

2. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a writing device that generates tone data from the musical tones detected by said detecting device and sequentially stores the generated tone data in said storage device, and

wherein said tone generating device sequentially reproduces the tone data stored in said storage device to generate a phrase corresponding to the tone data when no next musical tone is detected by said detecting device within a predetermined period of time after a musical tone is detected by said detecting device.

3. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said writing device generates tone data for generating electronic tones by modifying at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of volume, tone color, and pitch of the musical tones detected by said detecting device, and sequentially stores the generated tone data in said storage device;

and

wherein said tone generating device reproduces the tone data stored in said storage device to generate a phrase composed of at least one electronic tone with the at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of volume, tone color, and pitch of the musical tones detected by said detecting device being modified, when no next musical tone is detected by said detecting device within the predetermined period of time after a musical tone is detected by said detecting device.

4. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when a musical tone is detected by said detecting device while the phrase corresponding to the tone data is being generated, said tone generating device stops generating the phrase.

5. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein while the phrase corresponding to the tone data is being generated by said tone generating device, said detecting device stops detection of the musical tones.

6. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the musical instrument is a natural musical instrument.

8. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said detecting device detects singing voices, said storage device stores singing voice data, and said tone generating device reproduces the singing voice data stored in said storage device and generates at least one tone corresponding to the singing voice data when no next singing voice is detected by said detecting device within a predetermined period of time after a singing voice is detected by said detecting device.

9. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined period of time can be set to a desired value by a user.

10. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one tone corresponding to the tone data is at least one echo tone.

11. A tone generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one tone corresponding to the tone data is at least one effect tone.

7. A tone generating apparatus comprising:

an acquiring device that acquires an operating condition of an operating member that is operated by a user to generate a musical tone;

a detecting device that refers to the operating condition of the operating member acquired by said acquiring device to determine whether the operating member lies in such an operating condition as to generate a musical tone;

a storage device that stores tone data; and

a tone generating device that, after said detecting device detects an operating condition in which the operating member generates a musical tone, reproduces the tone data stored in said storage device to generate a tone corresponding to the tone data when said detecting device does not detect an operation condition in which the operating member generates a next musical tone, within a predetermined period of time after the detection of said detecting device.

12. A tone generating method comprising the steps of:

detecting musical tones generated from a musical instrument;

storing tone data in a storage device; and

reproducing the tone data stored in the storage device and generating at least one tone corresponding to the tone data when no next musical tone is detected within a predetermined period of time after a musical tone is detected.

13. A tone generating method comprising the steps of:

acquiring an operating condition of an operating member that is operated by a user to generate a musical tone;

referring to the operating condition of the acquired operating member to determine whether the operating member lies in such an operating condition as to generate a musical tone;

storing tone data in a storage device; and

reproducing, after an operating condition is detected in which the operating member generates a musical tone, the tone data stored in the storage device to generate a tone corresponding to the tone data when an operation condition is not detected in which the operating member generates a next musical tone, within a predetermined period of time after the detection of the operating condition.

14. A computer-readable tone generating program comprising:

a detecting module for detecting musical tones;

a storage module for storing tone data in a storage device; and

a tone generating module for reproducing the tone data stored in the storage device and generates at least one tone corresponding to the tone data when no next musical tone is detected by said detecting module within a predetermined period of time after a musical tone is detected by said detecting module.

15. A computer-readable tone generating program comprising:

an acquiring module for acquiring an operating condition of an operating member that is operated by a user to generate a musical tone;

a detecting module for refering to the operating condition of the operating member acquired by said acquiring module to determine whether the operating member lies in such an operating condition as to generate a musical tone;

a storage module for storing tone data in a storage device; and

a tone generating module for, after said detecting module detects an operating condition in which the operating member generates a musical tone, reproducing the tone data stored in the storage device to generate a tone corresponding to the tone data when said detecting module does not detect an operation condition in which the operating member generates a next musical tone, within a predetermined period of time after the detection of said detecting module.