JP2004117613A - Electronic musical instrument - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To change the border of a plurality of divided registers and the timbre of a musical sound signal in a divided register without any hindrance to a musical performance. <P>SOLUTION: This electronic musical instrument has a keyboard 11 comprising a plurality of keys and a sound source circuit 51 which can generate musical sound signals of timbres independent by divided registers obtained by dividing a specified register. The generation of a musical sound signal corresponding to a musical performance on the keyboard 11 is controlled by a computer such as a CPU 61. Chord name data are stored in an external storage device 65 as a musical piece is in progresses and the border of the plurality of divided registers is changed based upon the progress of the musical piece according to the progress of the musical piece. One divided register is assigned to a key played on the keyboard 11 to control the generation of a musical sound signal corresponding to the played key. Further, the timbre of the musical sound signal generated corresponding to each divided register is automatically changed with the timbre data according to the progress of the musical piece. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electronic musical instrument capable of generating a musical tone signal of a tone independently set for each of a plurality of divided sound ranges, a computer program applied to the electronic musical instrument, and a data storage device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, a plurality of performance operators, each of which is operated by a player to instruct generation of a tone signal of a different pitch within a predetermined range, and a tone signal of a pitch designated according to the operation of the plurality of performance operators And a tone signal generating means for generating a tone signal of a tone which is independently set for each divided sound range obtained by dividing a predetermined sound range into a plurality of sound ranges. In these electronic musical instruments, the boundaries of a plurality of divided sound ranges and the timbre of a tone signal generated for each divided sound range are appropriately set by operating switches provided on an operation panel (Patent Document 1). 1).
[0003]
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-234747
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the above-described conventional technique, when changing the boundaries of a plurality of divided ranges while the music is in progress, the player must change the boundaries of the plurality of divided ranges in parallel with the performance of the electronic musical instrument by the performance operator. Must. This was difficult for ordinary players and was virtually impossible. Also, it is difficult to change the tone color of each divided range during a performance.
[0005]
Summary of the Invention
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in order to address the above-described problems, and has as its object to change the boundaries of a plurality of divided musical ranges during music progression without hindering the performance of an electronic musical instrument. Is to provide. Another object of the present invention is to provide an electronic musical instrument capable of easily changing the timbre of each divided range while a music piece is in progress.
[0006]
In order to achieve the above object, a feature of the present invention is that a plurality of performance operators, which are operated by a player to instruct generation of tone signals of different pitches within a predetermined range, respectively, and operation of the plurality of performance operators A tone signal generating means capable of generating a tone signal of a pitch designated in accordance with the above-mentioned pitch, and generating tone signals of timbres independently set for each of divided sound ranges obtained by dividing a predetermined sound range into a plurality of sound ranges. A gamut division data storage means for storing gamut division data for changing a boundary of the divide range according to the progress of the music, and a gamut division data stored in the gamut division data storage means are automatically read out according to the progress of the music. Generating a tone signal by tone signal generating means by assigning an operated performance operator of the plurality of performance operators to any of the plurality of divided ranges using the read range division data. In that a range control means for controlling.
[0007]
In the present invention configured as described above, the range division data stored in the range division data storage unit is automatically read by the range control unit as the music progresses, and the read range division data is used by using the read range division data. The generated performance operator is assigned to one of a plurality of divided sound ranges, and the generation of a tone signal by the tone signal generating means is controlled. Therefore, the performer simply operates the performance operator in accordance with the progress of the music, and a tone signal corresponding to the operated performance operator is generated in a tone color that is independently set for each divided range. As a result, according to the present invention, even if the plurality of divided ranges are changed according to the progress of the music, the musical tone signals corresponding to the plurality of divided ranges changing as the music progresses are generated without hindering the performance. Can be.
[0008]
Another feature of the present invention is that, in addition to the above-mentioned invention, a timbre data storage means for storing timbre data representing timbres of tone signals generated in a plurality of divided tone ranges in accordance with the progress of music, and timbre data storage. Tone data control means for reading the tone data stored in the means in accordance with the progress of the music, and controlling the tone of the tone signal generated from the tone signal generating means for each divided range according to the read tone data. That is.
[0009]
According to this, the timbre control means also automatically reads the timbre data stored in the timbre data storage means and representing the timbres of the tone signals generated in the plurality of divided tone ranges in accordance with the progress of the music. The timbre of the tone signal generated for each tone range is controlled. Therefore, the player can change the timbre of the tone signal according to the progress of the music only by operating the performance operator in accordance with the progress of the music. As a result, in addition to the above-described invention, the generated tone signal can be varied, and a better tone signal can be generated.
[0010]
Still another feature of the present invention is that the range divided data stored in the range divided data storage means is composed of chord information representing a chord, and the range determining means determines the range to which the operated performance operator belongs. It is configured to be determined based on chord information. In this case, the range determining means has a range dividing table in which boundary data representing respective boundaries of the plurality of divided ranges are stored in association with chord types. The range to which the operator belongs may be determined according to the chord information sequentially read.
[0011]
According to this, the boundaries of the plurality of divided sound ranges can be automatically changed according to the progress of the chord. The chord accompaniment varies the range of use depending on the type of chord, so while avoiding the range of use of the chord accompaniment, it is possible to effectively expand the performance area of other parts such as melodies, basses, etc. You can enjoy.
[0012]
Furthermore, the features of the present invention are also applied to the electronic musical instrument, and also reside in a computer program for an electronic musical instrument and a data storage device for an electronic musical instrument for realizing the various functions described above.
[0013]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing an entire electronic musical instrument according to the present invention.
[0014]
This electronic musical instrument includes a keyboard 11, a panel operator group 21, and a display 31. The keyboard 11 is composed of a plurality of keys constituting a performance operator of the present invention, and the plurality of keys respectively designate generation of musical tones having pitches that change by semitones within a predetermined range (for example, C1 to C7). I do. The pressed / released keys of a plurality of keys are detected by a detection circuit 12 connected to the bus 40 and including a plurality of key switches respectively corresponding to the plurality of keys. The panel operator group 21 includes a plurality of panel operators provided on the operation panel and instructing various operations of the electronic musical instrument. The operation of the panel operator group 21 is detected by a detection circuit 22 that is connected to the bus 40 and includes a plurality of panel operator switches corresponding to the panel operator group 21. The display 31 is composed of a CRT display, a liquid crystal display, or the like, and displays various information in characters or numbers. The display of the display 31 is controlled by a display control circuit 32 connected to the bus 40.
[0015]
The electronic musical instrument also includes a sound source circuit 51 connected to the bus 40. The tone generator circuit 51 includes a plurality of tone generator channels, and each tone generator channel can simultaneously form and output a plurality of tone signals in an independently set control mode (for example, independently set tone colors). I have. In the case of the present embodiment, the plurality of sound source channels include at least a low-range channel (for example, a chord root channel), a mid-range channel (for example, a chord channel) and a high-range channel (for example, a melody channel). Sound channel). Each sound source channel forms and outputs a tone signal based on performance information (key code, key-on signal, key-off signal, tone color control information, etc.) supplied via the bus 40. The sound source circuit 51 is connected to a sound system 52 including a D / A converter, an amplifier, a speaker, and the like. The system 52 emits a tone corresponding to a tone signal from the tone source circuit 51.
[0016]
The bus 40 is also connected with a CPU 61, a ROM 62, a RAM 63, a timer 64, and an external storage device 65. The CPU 61, the ROM 62, the RAM 63, and the timer 64 constitute a microcomputer main body, and execute various programs to control various operations of the electronic musical instrument.
[0017]
The external storage device 65 is capable of reading and writing programs and data from and to a recording medium such as a hard disk HD pre-installed, a removable disk FD, a compact disk CD, and the like. Drive device. The external storage device 65 stores various programs and various data. In particular, in the present embodiment, a program corresponding to the functional block diagram of FIG. 2 representing functions realized by the computer program in the electronic musical instrument is stored, and a plurality of music data, key range division data, and pitch conversion are stored. Data is also stored. The pitch conversion data will be described later in detail when describing the operation. Some of the various programs and various data are also stored in the ROM 62.
[0018]
As shown in FIG. 3, song data is prepared corresponding to a plurality of songs, and each song data includes a header, a chord track, timbre tracks 1 to 3, a melody track, an accompaniment track, and the like. The header includes a song title, data indicating a format, and the like. The chord track constitutes a range divided data storage means of the present invention, and includes a plurality of chord name data (chord information) representing chord names (for example, C major, D minor, etc.) as event data, and each chord name. It is composed of a plurality of timing data indicating the timings 1 and 2 on the music progression of the data. Each timing data may be data representing an elapsed time from the beginning of the music or data representing a relative time between chord name data.
[0019]
The timbre tracks 1 to 3 correspond to the timbre data storage means of the present invention, and are used to set the timbres of the low tone channel, the middle tone channel, and the high tone channel by the key range division of the tone generator 51, respectively. . Each timbre track includes a plurality of timbre data as event data indicating timbres 1 and 2 that change according to the progress of music of each channel, and a plurality of timing data indicating timings 1 and 2 of each timbre data in music progression. Consists of Each timing data may be data representing the elapsed time from the beginning of the music or data representing the relative time between the tone data. The melody track and the accompaniment track store performance data relating to melodies and accompaniments in a normal automatic performance, but these are not directly related to the present invention, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.
[0020]
The key range division data constitutes a part of the sound range determination means of the present invention, and is attached to the above-described program in the form of a key range division table. As shown in FIG. 4, the key range divided data includes a plurality of chord names (C major, C minor, etc.) and the highest tone name belonging to the low range corresponding to each chord name (for example, C2, C3). ) And the name of the lowest note belonging to the high range (for example, C4, C4, etc.), and represents the boundaries of the low range, the middle range, and the high range in correspondence with the chord names. Then, the pitch name sandwiched between the pitch name on the left side of the drawing and the pitch name on the right side of the drawing belongs to the midrange. However, when there is no note name on the right side of the figure, it means that there is no treble range. If the left and right note names are the same, it means that there is no midrange.
[0021]
Further, a communication interface circuit 71 is also connected to the bus 40. The communication interface circuit 71 is connected to another device 72 such as another electronic musical instrument, a personal computer, an automatic performance device (sequencer), and allows transmission and reception of various programs and various data to and from the device 72. The communication interface circuit 71 is connected to a server computer 74 via a communication network 73, and allows the server computer 74 to transmit and receive various programs and various data.
[0022]
Next, the operation of the embodiment configured as described above will be described. First, the player activates necessary programs stored in the external storage device 65 and the ROM 61. With this activation, the program is transferred and stored in the RAM 63. If this program is not stored in the external storage device 65 and the ROM 61, the program may be provided from another device 72 or a server computer 74 via the communication interface circuit 71 and / or the communication network 73. It is possible.
[0023]
Next, the player operates the panel operator group 21 while looking at the display screen displayed on the display 31 by executing a program (not shown), and the music data of the plurality of music data stored in the external storage device 65 is read. One piece of music data to be played is selected from among them. By this selection, the selected music data is stored in the RAM 63. Also, music data can be obtained from another device 72 or a server computer 74 via the communication interface circuit 71 and / or the communication network 73.
[0024]
Next, an operation of the electronic musical instrument when a player plays a song corresponding to the selected song data on the keyboard 11 while reproducing the selected song data will be described. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the electronic musical instrument realized by the program, but also simultaneously illustrates each process of the program. When the performer operates the panel operator group 21 to instruct the reproduction start of the music data, the reading unit S10 sequentially reads the music data transferred to the RAM 63 in accordance with the progress of the music (elapse of time). . In this reading, based on the timing data contained in the chord track, the timbre tracks 1 to 3, the melody track and the accompaniment track, only the event data corresponding to the progress timing of the music is read out of the event data of each track. You.
[0025]
The information type discriminating unit S11 discriminates which track data the read event data belongs to, and according to the discrimination result, the key area division status holding unit S12, the tone color setting unit S13, the chord information It is supplied to either the holding unit S14 or the sound control unit S15. That is, if the chord name data in the chord track is read, the chord name data is supplied to the key range division status holding unit S12 as key range division information (range division information), and is also stored in the chord information storage unit S14. Supplied. When the timbre data in the timbre tracks 1 to 3 are read, the timbre data is supplied to the timbre setting unit S13. When the performance data of the melody track and the accompaniment track are read, the performance data is supplied to the tone generation control unit S15.
[0026]
The key area division status holding unit S12 refers to the key area division table 63a including the key area division data transferred and stored in the RAM 63 at the time of starting the program, and according to the supplied chord name data (key area division information). Then, pitch name data representing pitches that define the respective ranges of the low range, the middle range, and the high range are determined, and the determined pitch name data is stored for each range. As described above, there is a case where any one of the low range, the middle range, and the high range does not substantially exist.
[0027]
The timbre setting unit S13 assigns the supplied timbre data to the low tone channel, the middle tone channel, and the high tone channel of the tone generator circuit 51 in association with the tone tracks 1 to 3, respectively, and converts the tone represented by the tone data. The tone color control information to be obtained is stored for each channel. The chord information holding unit S14 stores the supplied chord name data. Each of the data stored in the key range division status holding unit S12, the tone color setting unit S13, and the chord information holding unit S14 is read when new event data is read out by the reading unit S10 in accordance with the progress of the music. Be updated.
[0028]
Next, in this situation, when a new key is pressed on the keyboard 11 to generate a tone signal, the input unit S21 inputs note name data representing the newly pressed key, and It is supplied to the area determination unit S22. The key range discrimination unit S22 compares the supplied note name data with the note name data that is stored and held in the key range division status holding unit S12 and indicates the range of each range, and presses the key on the keyboard 11. It is determined whether the key belongs to any of the low range, the middle range, and the high range. The timbre determining unit S23 obtains tone control information for each tone range stored in the tone setting unit S13 according to the tone range determined by the key range determining unit S22, and represents a newly pressed key. In addition to the note name data and the channel information indicating any one of the low, middle, and high ranges to which the key belongs, the tone color control information for the same channel is supplied to the pronunciation pitch determination unit S24.
[0029]
Based on the chord name data stored in the chord information holding unit S14, the pronunciation pitch determination unit S24 converts the pitch name data representing the newly pressed key pitch from the pronunciation tone color determination unit S23 into the current chord. The pitch is automatically converted to a suitable pitch (for example, a chord component sound), and the converted note name data is supplied to the tone generation control unit S15 together with the channel information and tone color control information. Note that the pitch conversion by the tone pitch determination unit S24 is omitted, and note name data representing a key newly pressed on the keyboard 11 is directly supplied to the tone control unit S15 together with the channel information and tone color control information. May be performed.
[0030]
The pitch conversion rule for defining this conversion rule is stored in a pitch conversion table 63 b provided in the RAM 63. The pitch conversion data is attached to the program as described above, and is written in the pitch conversion table 63b when the program is transferred to the RAM 63. This conversion rule is different for each range, for example. For example, in the low range, the pitch is converted to a pitch close to the chord root, and in the middle range, the pitch approaches the pitch which is related to the chord root by 5 degrees. The pitch is converted to a high pitch, and in the high pitch range, the pitch is converted to a pitch closer to any of the constituent sounds of the chord. Moreover, this conversion rule is such that if a part to be played is different for each range, the pitch is converted in accordance with the part to be played. Further, the timbre of each tone range may be changed in conjunction with the pitch conversion.
[0031]
The tone control unit S15 supplies the tone name data, channel information, and tone color control information, which have been converted from the pitch or not, supplied from the pitch generation unit S24, to the tone generator 51 to generate a tone signal. Control. The sound source circuit 51 is a sound source channel specified by the channel information among the low range channel, the middle range channel, and the high range channel, and has a pitch corresponding to the tone name data and generates a tone specified by the tone control information. The tone signal is formed and output. Then, a tone corresponding to the tone signal is emitted through the sound system 52. When the performance data of the melody track and the accompaniment track are supplied from the information type discriminating unit S11 as described above, the performance data is supplied to the tone generator circuit 51 as necessary. Then, the tone generator 51 reproduces the performance data of the melody track and the accompaniment track as necessary.
[0032]
As described above, in the above embodiment, the chord name data stored in the chord track as gamut division information (key range division information) is automatically read out as the music progresses, and the read chord name is read out. Using the data, a key played on the keyboard 11 is assigned to one of a plurality of divided ranges (divided key ranges), and generation of a tone signal corresponding to the played key is controlled. Therefore, the performer merely plays the keyboard 11 in accordance with the progress of the music, and a tone signal corresponding to the played key is generated in a tone independently set for each divided range. As a result, according to the above-described embodiment, even if a plurality of divided ranges (divided key ranges) are changed in accordance with the progress of the music, the plurality of divided ranges that change in accordance with the progress of the music are supported without hindering the performance. A tone signal can be generated.
[0033]
Further, in the above embodiment, the tone color of the tone signal is changed and controlled for each divided range (divided key range) according to the tone color data read from the tone color tracks 1 to 3 as the music progresses. This allows the player to automatically change the tone color of the tone signal for each divided range (divided key range) in accordance with the progress of the music, simply by playing the keyboard 11 in accordance with the progress of the music. The signal can be varied, and a better tone signal can be generated.
[0034]
In the above embodiment, the chord name data is stored in the chord track, and the range to which the key played on the keyboard 11 belongs is determined using the key range division data stored in the key range division table 63a. The determination is made in accordance with the chord name data sequentially read. As a result, the boundaries of a plurality of divided ranges (divided key ranges) are automatically changed in accordance with the progression of chords. Can be effectively expanded, and a rich performance can be enjoyed.
[0035]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, in implementing this invention, it is not limited to the said Embodiment, A various deformation | transformation is possible unless it deviates from the objective of this invention.
[0036]
For example, in the above embodiment, chord name data representing a chord is used as the range division information (key range division information). Any information is available if available. In this case, note name data (note number) indicating the division of the sound range (key range) is stored as sound range division information (key range division information) in the external storage device 65 or another storage medium, and the same sound name data is stored. It is preferable that the readout is performed in accordance with the progress of the music and the divided range (divided key range) is designated in accordance with the progress of the music.
[0037]
Further, in the above embodiment, the tone data for controlling the tone for each of the low tone range, the middle tone range, and the high tone range of the sound source circuit 51 are divided and stored in three tone color tracks 1 to 3. However, any method can be adopted as long as the timbre can be set independently according to the progress of the music for each sound source channel corresponding to a plurality of sound ranges. For example, sound data for discriminating sound source channels may be added to sound color data for setting sound colors, and sound color data for a plurality of sound source channels may be mixed and stored in one sound color track. In addition, even if a tone track is not specially provided, tone data to which data for distinguishing the sound source channel is added is mixed and stored in performance data such as a chord track, a melody track, and an accompaniment track. You may do so.
[0038]
If it is not necessary to enjoy the automatic tone color changing function, storage and reading of tone color data according to the music may be omitted. In this case, the player operates the panel operator group 21 during the performance to set the tone colors of the sound source channels in the low, middle, and high ranges.
[0039]
In the above embodiment, the number of divided sound ranges (the number of key regions) is set to three. However, the present invention is applicable to the number of divided sound regions (the number of divided key regions) of two or four or more. Things. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the keyboard 11 composed of a plurality of keys is employed as the performance control group. However, the performance control group can be used to instruct generation of a tone signal having a pitch in a predetermined range. Any control group may be used. For example, a plurality of operators such as a square and a circle may be arranged in a matrix.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing an entire electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the electronic musical instrument of FIG. 1 realized by a computer program.
FIG. 3 is a format diagram of music data.
FIG. 4 is a format diagram of key area divided data.
[Explanation of symbols]
11 keyboard, 21 panel operator group, 31 display unit, 51 sound source circuit, 61 CPU, 62 ROM, 63 RAM, 65 external storage device, 71 communication interface circuit.

Claims (5)

A plurality of performance operators each operated by a player to instruct generation of tone signals of different pitches within a predetermined range,
A tone signal of a designated pitch is generated in accordance with an operation of the plurality of performance operators, and a tone signal of a tone independently set for each of a plurality of divided ranges of the predetermined range can be generated. Musical tone signal generating means,
Range-divided data storage means for storing range-divided data for changing boundaries of the plurality of divided ranges in accordance with the progress of music,
The gamut division data stored in the gamut division data storage means is read out in accordance with the progress of the music, and the read-out gamut division data is used to divide the operated one of the plurality of performance operators into the plurality of divisions. An electronic musical instrument comprising: a tone range control unit that controls generation of a tone signal by the tone signal generation unit by assigning the tone signal to one of the tone ranges. The electronic musical instrument according to claim 1, further comprising:
Timbre data storage means for storing timbre data each representing a timbre of a tone signal generated in the plurality of divided ranges as the music progresses;
The timbre data stored in the timbre data storage means is automatically read out according to the progress of the music, and the timbre of the tone signal generated from the tone signal generation means in accordance with the read timbre data is divided for each of the divided tone ranges. An electronic musical instrument, comprising: tone control means for controlling. In the electronic musical instrument according to claim 1 or 2,
The range division data stored in the range division data storage means is composed of chord information representing a chord,
An electronic musical instrument wherein the range determining means determines a range to which the operated performance operator belongs based on the chord information. A plurality of performance operators each operated by a player to instruct generation of tone signals of different pitches within a predetermined range,
A tone signal of a designated pitch is generated in accordance with an operation of the plurality of performance operators, and a tone signal of a tone independently set for each of a plurality of divided ranges of the predetermined range can be generated. Applied to electronic musical instruments equipped with
Automatically reading out the divided range data stored in the storage means and changing the boundaries of the plurality of divided ranges according to the progress of the music according to the progress of the music,
In accordance with the read-out range division data, the operated performance operator among the plurality of performance operators is assigned to any of the plurality of divided ranges, and the generation of the tone signal by the tone signal generating means is controlled. A computer program for an electronic musical instrument, characterized in that: A plurality of performance operators each operated by a player to instruct generation of tone signals of different pitches within a predetermined range,
A tone signal of a designated pitch is generated in accordance with an operation of the plurality of performance operators, and a tone signal of a tone independently set for each of a plurality of divided ranges of the predetermined range can be generated. Applied to electronic musical instruments equipped with
A data storage device for an electronic musical instrument, characterized by storing gamut division data for changing boundaries of the plurality of divided gamuts in accordance with the progress of music.

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