Interactive game providing instruction in musical notation and in learning an instrument

• US 7,174,510 B2
• Filed: 10/18/2002
• Issued: 02/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Allegro Multimedia, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Allegro Multimedia, Inc.
• Inventors: Salter, Hal Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Huynh; Ba
• Application Number:
  US10/273,353
• Publication Number:
  US 20030151628A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,572 Days
• Field of Search: 715/716, 715/717, 715/719, 715/727, 715/728, 715/773, 715/956, 715/957, 715/970, 715705-711, 715/772, 434/393, 434/379, 434/362, 434/430, 434/128, 434/81, 434/118, 434218-233, 84470-477
• US Class Current: 715/709
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 15/00 Teaching music metronomes G04F5/02
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 15/023 Electrically operated
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 15/04 with sound emitters
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/06 with both visual and audible presentation of the material to be studied

Abstract

A musical keyboard is connected to a computer. The computer implements a graphical user interface for teaching users to play the musical instrument. A computer readable music file, such as a MIDI file, is used to drive the creation of game objects that travel from a point of origination along a path toward a key of a virtual keyboard. In one form, when a user presses a key of the musical keyboard within a certain time window of arrival of the game object at the corresponding key of the virtual keyboard, the user is awarded with an audio presentation, a visual presentation and/or with game points. In a more structured learning mode, the game can be played with selectable, progressively more difficult challenges that the user masters on the road to proficiency.

Claims

1. A method of instructing a user to read musical notation through interaction with a graphical user interface and an input keyboard, comprising the steps of:

generating the graphical user interface, having a first position, including a virtual keyboard positioned substantially at a top portion of the graphical user interface, the virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys corresponding to at least one octave and displayed in an orientation corresponding to the manner in which the keys are to be normally played with each key having a back portion substantially at a top of the graphical user interface and an opposed lower front portion, each key of the virtual keyboard having a corresponding key on the input keyboard;

incorporating a music file into the graphical user interface, wherein the music file contains data corresponding to an arrangement of at least a first and a second musical note in sequence, having a rhythmic pattern;

directing a first game object, representing the first musical note in the arrangement, upward, in a first substantially straight trajectory, toward the opposed lower front portion of a first key on the virtual keyboard, corresponding to the first musical note, such that the first game object will experience a first collision with the virtual keyboard in alignment with the first key;

directing a second game object, representing the second musical note in the arrangement, upward, in a second substantially straight trajectory, toward the opposed lower front portion of a second key on the virtual keyboard, corresponding to the second musical note, such that the second game object will experience a second collision with the virtual keyboard in alignment with the second key, according to the rhythmic pattern of the arrangement;

awarding a value to the user based upon the user striking the corresponding key on the input keyboard within a set time tolerance hit window;

rotating the graphical user interface to a second position, approximately ninety (90) degrees counterclockwise, once a predetermined threshold of user performance has been met, such that the virtual keyboard is positioned substantially on a left side of the graphical user interface, and the first and second game objects move along the first and second substantially straight trajectories toward the virtual keyboard; and

introducing a series of visible staff lines defining spaces, where the lines and spaces correspond to the straight trajectories along which the game objects travel toward the virtual keyboard, such that the game objects travel along either the lines or the spaces, until colliding with the virtual keyboard in alignment with the corresponding key.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of morphing the game objects into classical musical notation.

3. A method of instructing a user to read musical notation through interaction with a graphical user interface and an input keyboard, comprising the steps of:

a) generating the graphical user interface, having a first position, including a virtual keyboard positioned substantially at a top portion of the interface, having a plurality of keys, each key having a corresponding key on the input keyboard;

b) incorporating a music file into the graphical user interface, wherein the music file contains data corresponding to an arrangement of a plurality of musical notes in sequence, having a rhythmic pattern, each note being represented by a game object;

c) directing the game objects upward, in substantially straight trajectories, toward keys on the virtual keyboard corresponding to the musical notes;

d) colliding the game objects with the corresponding keys according to the rhythmic pattern of the arrangement;

e) awarding a value to the user based upon the user striking the corresponding key on the input keyboard approximately simultaneously with the collisions; and

f) rotating the interface to a second position, approximately ninety (90) degrees counterclockwise, once a predetermined threshold of user performance has been met, such that the virtual keyboard is positioned substantially on a left side of the interface, and the game objects continue to move along the substantially straight trajectories toward the virtual keyboard.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising the step of introducing a series of visible staff lines defining spaces, where the lines and spaces correspond to the straight trajectories along which the game objects travel toward the virtual keyboard, such that the game objects travel along either the lines or the spaces, until colliding with the virtual keyboard at the corresponding key.

5. Apparatus for facilitating learning to play a musical keyboard comprising:

a computing element linked to the musical keyboard;

a display linked to the computing element and viewable by a user of said musical keyboard; and

software for execution on said computing element linking a virtual keyboard displayed at a top portion of said display when the software is executed by the computing element with actions by the user of said musical keyboard, the virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys corresponding to at least one octave and displayed in an orientation corresponding to the manner in which the keys are to be normally played with each key having a back portion substantially at a top of the display and an opposed lower front portion, the software directing the carrying out of;

loading a music file, the music file containing data corresponding to an arrangement of musical notes of a musical piece,

progressing a plurality of game objects, representing the musical notes and being other than musical notation, from a lower end portion of the display upward, in a substantially straight trajectory, toward the opposed lower front portions of respective keys on the virtual keyboard, such that the plurality of game objects will experience a collision with the virtual keyboard in alignment with the respective keys which correspond to keys of the musical keyboard that are to be engaged by the user in order to play the musical piece on the musical keyboard, and

rotating, at a predetermined user performance threshold, trajectories of the game objects from vertical where the game objects progress from the lower end portion of the display upward, toward the opposed lower front portions of the respective keys of the virtual keyboard that is displayed at the top portion of the display to horizontal where the game objects progress from a right end portion of the display leftward, toward the opposed lower front portions of the respective keys of the virtual keyboard that is displayed in an orientation corresponding to being moved counter-clockwise from the top portion of the display to substantially a left end portion of the display, wherein

during a portion of the time that the music file is loaded, the plurality of game objects and the plurality of keys of each octave of the virtual keyboard are displayed color-coded with each other in a one-to-one correspondence.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the software further directs the carrying out of:

morphing of the plurality of game objects into musical notation.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein, during another, later portion of the time that the music file is loaded, the musical notation and the plurality of keys of the virtual keyboard are displayed in black and white.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein, prior to the other, later portion of time, where the musical notation and the plurality of keys of the virtual keyboard are displayed in black and white, there is a transition period in which some musical notation and some of the plurality of keys of each octave of the virtual keyboard are displayed color-coded with each other in a one-to-one correspondence while the remainder of the musical notation and the remainder of the plurality of keys of each octave of the virtual keyboard are displayed in black and white.

9. A method using a computer in providing musical instruction comprising the steps of:

linking a musical keyboard and a display to the computer;

generating a virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys corresponding to at least one octave and displayed substantially at a top portion of the display in an orientation corresponding to the manner in which the keys are to be normally played with each key having a back portion substantially at a top of the display and an opposed lower front portion;

loading a music file, the music file containing data corresponding to an arrangement of musical notes of a musical piece stored in a computer readable format;

progressing a plurality of game objects, representing the musical notes and being other than musical notation, from a lower end portion of the display upward, in a substantially straight trajectory, toward the opposed lower front portions of respective keys on the virtual keyboard, such that the plurality of game objects will experience a collision with the virtual keyboard in alignment with the respective keys which correspond to keys of the musical keyboard that are to be engaged by the user in order to play the musical piece on the musical keyboard; and

rotating, at a predetermined user performance threshold, trajectories of the game objects from vertical where the game objects progress from the lower end portion of the display upward, toward the lower portions of the respective keys of the virtual keyboard that is displayed at the top portion of the display to horizontal where the game objects progress from a right end portion of the display leftward, toward the lower portions of the respective keys of the virtual keyboard that is displayed in an orientation corresponding to being moved counter-clockwise from the top portion of the display to a left end portion of the display, wherein

during a portion of the time that the music file is loaded, the plurality of game objects and the plurality of keys of each octave of the virtual keyboard are displayed color-coded with each other in a one-to-one correspondence.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

morphing of the plurality of game objects into musical notation.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein during another, later portion of the time that the music file is loaded, the musical notation and the plurality of keys of the virtual keyboard are displayed in black and white.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein prior to the other, later portion of time, where the musical notation and the plurality of keys of the virtual keyboard are displayed in black and white, some musical notation and some of the plurality of keys of each octave of the virtual keyboard are displayed color-coded with each other in a one-to-one correspondence while the remainder of the musical notation and the remainder of the plurality of keys of each octave of the virtual keyboard are displayed in black and white.

13. A system to for facilitating learning to read musical notation on a standard staff, comprising:

a musical keyboard;

a computing element functionally linked to the musical keyboard;

a display, functionally linked to the computing element, viewable by a user of the musical keyboard;

a virtual keyboard displayed substantially at a top portion of the display, the virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys and displayed in an orientation corresponding to the manner in which the keys are to be normally played with each key having a back portion substantially at a top of the display and an opposed lower front portion; and

computer instructions, accessible by the computing element, configured to instruct the computing element to;

load a music file, the music file including data corresponding to an arrangement of musical notes, and

progress a plurality of game objects upward on the display toward the opposed lower front portions of respective keys on the virtual keyboard, and

rotate, at a predetermined user performance threshold, the progression of the plurality of game objects and the virtual keyboard from a first orientation wherein the plurality of game objects are progressed upward toward the opposed lower front portions of respective keys on the virtual keyboard displayed at the top of the display to a second orientation wherein the plurality of game objects are progressed leftward toward the opposed lower front portions of the virtual keyboard displayed at a left end of the display.

14. A method of using a computer for facilitating learning to read musical notation on a standard staff, comprising the steps of:

displaying a graphical user interface, having a first position, wherein there is displayed a virtual keyboard positioned substantially at a top portion of the graphical user interface, the virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys corresponding to at least one octave of a musical keyboard with each key having a back portion substantially at a top of the graphical user interface and an opposed lower front portion;

progressing a plurality of game objects, representing an arrangement of musical notes, upward toward respective keys on the virtual keyboard such that the plurality of game objects will experience a collision with the virtual keyboard in alignment with the respective keys on the virtual keyboard; and

rotating, at a predetermined user performance threshold, the graphical user interface counter-clockwise to a second position such that the virtual keyboard is positioned substantially on a left side of the interface and the plurality of game objects move leftward toward the virtual keyboard.