Electronic musical instrument with automatic chord performance device

• US 4,282,788 A
• Filed: 11/27/1979
• Issued: 08/11/1981
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/1978
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Takeda, Toshio, Nakada, Akira, Yamaga, Eiichi, Imamura, Akio, Iio, Junji
• Primary Examiner(s): Truhe, J. V.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Isen, Forester W.
• Application Number:
  US06/097,717
• Time in Patent Office: 623 Days
• Field of Search: 84/1.03, 84/DIG. 12, 84/DIG. 22, 84/1.24, 84/1.26
• US Class Current: 84/635
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/38 Chord
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/40 Rhythm
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/231 Wah-wah spectral modulation, i.e. tone color spectral glide obtained by sweeping the peak of a bandpass filter up or down in frequency, e.g. according to the position of a pedal, by automatic modulation or by voice formant detection; control devices therefor, e.g. wah pedals for electric guitars
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/361 Selection among a set of pre-established rhythm patterns
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 84/12 Side; rhythm and percussion devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 84/22 Chord organs

Abstract

An electronic musical instrument with an automatic chord performance device is of a type in which chord tones of plural series of different tone colors in different rhythm patterns are produced. This instrument employs a memory for storing a plurality of patterns per one rhythm and for plural rhythms in order to simultaneously obtain the chord tones of plural series per one rhythm. The patterns are read from the memory as tone generation timing signals. These tone generation timing signals control the amplitudes of the envelopes of the chord tone signals. The chord tone signals thus controlled in amplitude are generated after being controlled in the tone color in each of the series.

Claims

1. An electronic musical instrument with an automatic chord performance device comprising:

a pattern generator including a memory for storing a plurality of automatic chord performance tone generating patterns, said plural patterns being read out concurrently as plural chord tone generation timing signals from said memory;

chord tone signal producing means for producing a complete set of chord tone signals having tone pitch relation constituting a chord to be played; and

a plurality of envelope control circuits each separately, concurrently imparting an amplitude envelope to said complete set of chord tone signals in response to a respective one of said plural chord tone generation timing signals, so as to produce duplicates of said complete set of chord tone signals each with a respective different amplitude envelope pattern for the same one rhythm, and

a common sound system for reproducing all of said duplicated sets of chord tone signals.

2. An electronic musical instrument as defined in claim 1 wherein the memory of said pattern generator further stores an accent signal at tone generation timing to be accented in each of said patterns.

3. An electronic musical instrument as defined in claim 1 which further comprises:

a rhythm selecting means, and wherein said memory stores the patterns for plural rhythms, a rhythm to be utilized being selected by said rhythm selecting means and wherein;

said envelope control circuits consist of a plurality of charging and discharging circuits each composed of a capacitor and resistors, a charge voltage of said charging and discharging circuit being varied in response to the selected rhythm.

4. An electronic musical instrument as defined in claim 3 wherein said charge voltage of said charging and discharging circuit is varied in response to means generating an accent signal.

5. An electronic musical instrument as defined in claim 3 wherein said charging and discharging circuit changes time constant for charging or discharging in accordance with the selected rhythm.

6. An electronic musical instrument as defined in claim 1 further comprising:

a filter circuit, connected at an input of said sound system, for controlling in a time varying manner the tone color of at least one of said amplitude envelope imparted, duplicated sets of chord tone signals in response to patterns generated by said pattern generator.

7. An electronic musical instrument as defined in claim 6 which further comprises an integration circuit for integrating the chord tone generation timing signals, said filter circuit changing frequency characteristics thereof in response to a signal from the integration circuit.

8. An electronic musical instrument with an automatic chord performance device comprising:

a pattern generator including a memory for storing plural sets of automatic chord performance tone generating patterns for plural selectable rhythms, each set being for each respective rhythm, at least one set including a plurality of different automatic chord performance tone generating patterns, said at least one set of said different patterns being read out from said memory as chord tone generation timing signals for one selected rhythm,

chord tone signal producing means for producing chord tone signals of a tone pitch relation constituting a chord to be played, and

an envelope control circuit for controlling the amplitude envelope of said chord tone signals in said different patterns concurrently in response to the respective ones of said read out set of chord tone generation timing signals.

9. An electronic musical instrument as defined in claim 8 which further comprises:

a filter circuit for controlling tone colors of said chord tone signals so that the chord tone signals of at least one of said different patterns has a different tone color from said chord tone signals of another of said different patterns.

10. In an electronic musical instrument having an automatic chord performance capability, the improvement comprising:

a rhythmic pattern generator producing, for each of certain selectable rhythms, plural concurrent tone generation timing signals,

tone generator means for producing musical tone waveform signals corresponding to the tones of a selected chord,

a common sound system having plural inputs,

a first waveshape imparting means, connected between said tone generator means and one of said sound system inputs, for imparting to all of the tone waveform signals for said chord a first envelope waveshape having characteristics controlled by one of said plural timing signals,

additional waveshape imparting means, each connected between said tone generator means and a respective other one of said plural sound system inputs, each for respectively imparting to all of the tone waveform signals for said chord respective envelope waveshapes each having characteristics respectively controlled by other ones of said plural timing signals,

whereby said common sound system reproduces concurrently duplicated chords each having a respective imparted envelope waveshape of different characteristics and each with timings respectively established by said plural concurrent tone generating timing signals.

11. An electronic musical instrument according to claim 10 wherein:

said tone generator means comprises plural tone generators each generating a single tone, wherein;

said first and additional waveshape imparting means each comprises a like envelope generator circuit commonly connected to the output connections of all of said tone generators, and

a set of output lines respectively associated with ones of said sound system plural inputs, one of said waveshape imparting means being associated with each of said output lines, so that the outputs of all tone generators are coupled to each output line under control of a respective one of said waveshape imparting means.

12. An electronic musical instrument according to claim 10 further comprising:

a separate tone color filter connected at each input to said common sound system so as to impart a respective tone color to the envelope imparted chord supplied to that sound system input.

13. An electronic musical instrument according to claim 10 further comprising:

"wow pattern" control means, associated with the particular filter of one of said sound system inputs, for modifying the characteristics of said particular filter only during a portion of chord tone production.

14. In an electronic musical instrument with an automatic chord performance device, the improvement comprising:

tone generator means for generating a set of musical tone waveform signals constituting a chord,

plural envelope control means each for imparting a common envelope shape to a set of musical tone waveform signals, said chord constituting a set of musical tone waveform signals from said tone generator means being supplied in parallel to each of said plural envelope control means for separate envelope shaping thereby, and

pattern generator means for concurrently supplying plural different tone generation timing signals associated with a single, selectable rhythm, each of said plural timing signals being separately supplied to a respective one of said envelope control means to control the envelope shape imparted thereby, whereby there are produced plural sets of said chord constituting musical tone waveform signals each set having a separately imparted envelope shape associated with a respective one of said tone generation timing signals.

15. An electronic musical instrument according to claim 14 further comprising:

a common sound system having a plurality of inputs,

a tone color filter associated with each of said system inputs,

each of said plural sets of envelope shape imparted, chord constituting musical tone waveshape signals from the respective envelope control means being supplied to a respective input of said sound system via a respective one of said filters.

16. An electronic musical instrument according to claim 15 and having an "attack wow" effect, comprising:

means for producing a "wow" control signal only at the beginning of generation of said chord constituting set of musical tone waveform signals, and

means for modifying the characteristics of at least one of said filters in response to occurrence of said "wow" control signal.