Instrument performance learning apparatus using pitch and amplitude graph display

• US 7,323,631 B2
• Filed: 07/15/2005
• Issued: 01/29/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Inventors: Masuda, Hideyuki, Yana, Mari, Miyaki, Tsuyoshi, Miyazawa, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Donels; Jeffrey
• Application Number:
  US11/183,014
• Publication Number:
  US 20060011046A1
• Time in Patent Office: 928 Days
• Field of Search: 846/16, 846/54, 434/307.A
• US Class Current: 84/616
• 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 2210/066 for pitch analysis as part of wider processing for musical purposes, e.g. transcription, musical performance evaluation; Pitch recognition, e.g. in polyphonic sounds; Estimation or use of missing fundamental
• 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 2220/005 Non-interactive screen display of musical or status data
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 3/125 Extracting or recognising the pitch or fundamental frequency of the picked up signal

Abstract

In an instrument performance learning apparatus, a storage section stores model performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of a model performance. An input section inputs real performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of a real performance. A pitch graph display control section detects each pitch of each individual performance sound from the stored model performance waveform data and from the inputted real performance waveform data, and displays a pitch graph representing transitions of the detected pitches. An amplitude envelope graph display control section detects each amplitude level of each individual performance sound from the model performance waveform data and from the real performance waveform data, and displays an amplitude envelope graph representing transitions of the detected amplitude levels, such that the amplitude envelope graph has a time axis common to that of the pitch graph while the amplitude envelope graph is located in an area of the display device which does not overlap with another area of the display device where the pitch graph is located.

Claims

1. An instrument performance learning apparatus having a display device for displaying a progression of a real performance to enable visual comparison of the real performance with a model performance, the instrument performance learning apparatus comprising:

a storage section that stores model performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of the model performance;

an input section that inputs real performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of the real performance;

a first graph display control section that detects each pitch of each individual performance sound from the stored model performance waveform data and each pitch of each individual performance sound from the inputted real performance waveform data, and that displays a first graph presenting transitions of the pitches detected from both of the real performance waveform data and the model performance waveform data on the display device; and

a second graph display control section that detects each characteristic value representing a characteristic of each individual performance sound of the model performance from the model performance waveform data and each characteristic value representing a characteristic of each individual performance sound of the real performance from the real performance waveform data, and that displays a second graph representing transitions of the characteristic values detected from both of the model performance waveform data and the real performance waveform data on the display device, such that the second graph has a time axis common to that of the first graph while the second graph is located in an area of the display device which does not overlap with another area of the display device where the first graph is located.

2. An instrument performance learning apparatus having a display device for displaying a progression of a real performance to enable visual comparison of the real performance with a model performance, the instrument performance learning apparatus comprising:

a storage section that stores model performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of the model performance;

an input section that inputs real performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of the real performance;

a pitch graph display control section that detects each pitch of each individual performance sound of the model performance from the stored model performance waveform data and each pitch of each individual performance sound of the real performance from the inputted real performance waveform data, and that displays a pitch graph representing transitions of the pitches detected from both of the model performance waveform data and the real performance waveform data on the display device; and

an amplitude envelope graph display control section that detects each amplitude level of each individual performance sound of the model performance from the model performance waveform data and each amplitude level of each individual performance sound of the real performance from the real performance waveform data, and that displays an amplitude envelope graph representing transitions of the amplitude levels detected from both of the model performance waveform data and the real performance waveform data, such that the amplitude envelope graph has a time axis common to that of the pitch graph while the amplitude envelope graph is located in an area of the display device which does not overlap with another area of the display device where the pitch graph is located.

3. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the pitch graph display control section detects pitches of all or a part of the individual performance sounds of the model performance from the stored model performance waveform data prior to the inputting of the real performance waveform data from the input section, and previously displays a pitch graph representing the transitions of the detected pitches on the display device, while the pitch graph display control section sequentially detects the pitches of the individual performance sounds of the real performance from the inputted real performance waveform data upon start of the inputting of the real performance waveform data from the input section, and the pitch graph display control section displays another pitch graph representing the transitions of the detected pitches of the individual performance sounds of the real performance on the display device in such a way that said another pitch graph of the real performance is superimposed on said pitch graph of the model performance previously displayed on the display device.

4. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the pitch graph display control section inhibits a pitch detected from a certain portion of the real performance waveform data from being displayed on the display device if the certain portion of the real performance waveform data inputted from the input section meets a predetermined condition.

5. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined condition is such that the amplitude level detected from the certain portion of the input real performance waveform data is lower than a predetermined value.

6. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined condition is such that no pitch is detected from the certain portion of the inputted real performance waveform data.

7. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined condition is such that the pitch detected from the certain portion of the inputted real performance waveform data is out of a frequency range associated with a sound name given to the certain portion.

8. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the amplitude envelope graph display control section detects the amplitude levels of all or a part of the individual performance sounds of the model performance from the model performance waveform data prior to the inputting of the real performance waveform data from the input section, and previously displays an amplitude envelope graph representing the transitions of the detected amplitude levels of the model performance on the display device, while the amplitude envelope graph display control section sequentially detects the amplitude levels of the individual performance sounds of the real performance from the inputted real performance waveform data upon start of the inputting of the real performance waveform data from the input section, and the amplitude envelope graph display control section displays another amplitude envelope graph representing the transitions of the detected amplitude levels of the real performance on the display device in such a way that said another amplitude envelope graph of the real performance is superimposed on the previously displayed amplitude envelope graph of the model performance.

9. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a performance portion identifying section that identifies a portion of the model performance waveform data corresponding to a portion of the real performance waveform data currently inputted from the input section, wherein the pitch graph display control section detects a pitch from a portion of the real performance waveform data every time a portion of the real performance waveform data is inputted from the input section, the pitch graph display control section also detects a pitch from the corresponding portion of the model performance waveform data identified by the performance portion identifying section, and the pitch graph display control section plots the pitches detected from both of the real performance waveform data and the model performance waveform data in coordinate positions of a given display area of the display device, thereby drawing the pitch graph representing the transitions of the pitches detected from both of the real performance waveform data and the model performance waveform data in the given display area.

10. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the pitch graph display control section inhibits a pitch detected from a certain portion of the real performance waveform data from being plotted in the coordinate position of the given display area if the certain portion of the real performance waveform data inputted from the input section meets a predetermined condition.

11. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined condition is such that the amplitude level detected from the certain portion of the input real performance waveform data is lower than a predetermined value.

12. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined condition is such that no pitch is detected from the certain portion of the inputted real performance waveform data.

13. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined condition is such that the pitch detected from the certain portion of the inputted real performance waveform data is out of a frequency range associated with a sound name given to the certain portion.

14. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a performance portion identifying section that identifies a portion of the model performance waveform data corresponding to a portion of the real performance waveform data currently inputted from the input section, wherein the amplitude envelope graph display control section detects an amplitude level from a portion of the real performance waveform data every time a portion of the real performance waveform data is inputted from the input section, the amplitude envelope graph display control section also detects an amplitude level from the corresponding portion of the model performance waveform data identified by the performance portion identifying section, and the amplitude envelope graph display control section plots the amplitude levels detected from both of the real performance waveform data and the model performance waveform data in coordinate positions of a given display area of the display device, thereby drawing the amplitude envelope graph representing the transitions of the amplitude levels detected from both of the real performance waveform data and the model performance waveform data in the given display area.

15. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the display device displays a piano roll image in the display device for presenting the pitch graph, the piano roll image being composed of a plurality of images of keys vertically arranged as a pitch scale.

16. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising a parameter storage section that stores parameters defining different display modes of the pitch graph for different types of instruments, a type input section that inputs a type of an instrument to be used in the real performance, and a display mode control section that reads out the parameter associated with the type inputted from the type input section from the parameter storage section and that changes a correspondence between individual keys of the piano roll image and levels of the pitch indicated by the keys according to the parameter read out from the parameter storage section.

17. The instrument performance learning apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a parameter storage section that stores parameters defining different pitch detecting characteristics for different types of instruments, a type input section that inputs the type of the instrument used in the real performance, and a detection characteristic control section that reads out the parameter associated with the type which is inputted by the type input section, from the parameter storage section, and that changes the pitch detecting characteristic of the pitch graph display control section according to the parameter read out from the parameter storage section.

18. A machine readable medium for use in a computer which has a display device, a storage device for storing model performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of a model performance, and an input device for inputting real performance waveform data representing a time series of individual performance sounds of a real performance, the medium containing a program executable by the computer for carrying out an instrument performance learning method comprising:

a pitch graph display control step of detecting pitches of the individual performance sounds from the model performance waveform data and the real performance waveform data, and displaying a pitch graph representing transitions of the pitches detected from both of the model performance waveform data and the real performance waveform data on the display device; and

an amplitude envelope graph display control step of detecting amplitude levels of the individual performance sounds from the model performance waveform data and the real performance waveform data, and displaying an amplitude envelope graph representing transitions of the amplitude levels detected from both of the model performance waveform data and the real performance waveform data, such that the amplitude envelope graph has a time axis common to that of the pitch graph while the amplitude envelope graph is located in an area of the display device which does not overlap with another area of the display device where the pitch graph is located.