Electronic musical instrument, method, and program

Abstract

To assist performance by a user.SOLUTION: An electronic musical instrument comprises a performance operator and at least one processor. At least one processor sequentially reads musical sound information of music data including a plurality of pieces of musical sound information each associated with sound production timing, overwrites and stores first musical sound information in a first area of a memory in response to the reading in a case where the read musical sound information includes the first musical sound information belonging to a first musical instrument group, instructs sound production of first musical sound corresponding to the first musical sound information according to the first musical sound information stored in the first area at timing when the performance operator is operated every time the performance operator is operated, and does not instruct the sound production of the first musical sound corresponding to the first musical sound information stored in the first area in a case where the performance operator is not operated.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The disclosure herein relates to electronic musical instruments, methods and programs. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art There are known electronic musical instruments that have an automatic performance function that automatically progresses a song regardless of the presence or absence of a performance operation by a user (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2007-72387 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The electronic musical instrument described in Patent Document 1 automatically plays musical tones of a performance part while automatically progressing an accompaniment, if the user does not perform a performance operation within a predetermined time from the timing when the performance operator should be operated. However, some users do not want the musical tones of the performance part to be automatically played. The electronic musical instrument described in Patent Document 1 has room for improvement, for example, in terms of providing a performance experience suitable for such users.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electronic musical instrument, a method, and a program suitable for assisting a user in playing the musical instrument. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a performance operator and at least one processor, which sequentially reads musical tone information of song data including a plurality of musical tone information each associated with a sounding timing, and when the read musical tone information includes first musical tone information belonging to a first musical instrument group, overwrites and stores the first musical tone information in a first area of ​​a memory in response to the reading, and instructs sounding of a first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information according to the first musical tone information stored in the first area at the operation timing each time the performance operator is operated, and does not instruct sounding of the first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information stored in the first area when the performance operator is not operated. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there are provided an electronic musical instrument, a method, and a program suitable for assisting a user in playing the musical instrument. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the external appearance of an electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 3] 2 is a diagram showing a timbre DB (Data Base) provided in the electronic musical instrument according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 4] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing example screens displayed on a display unit provided in the electronic musical instrument according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] 1 is a diagram for explaining an overview of an electronic musical instrument, a method, and a program according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart of a process executed by a processor provided in the electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] 7 is a subroutine showing the playback process in step S105 of FIG. 6. [Figure 8]7 is a subroutine showing padding processing in step S105 of FIG. 6. [Figure 9] 9A to 9C are diagrams illustrating an example of the playback process shown in FIG. 7 and the pad process shown in FIG. 8. [Figure 10] 11A to 11C are diagrams illustrating an example of a reproducing process and a pad process according to the first modified example of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the external appearance of an electronic musical instrument according to a second modified example of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] An electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention, and a method and a program executed in the electronic musical instrument, which is an example of a computer, will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0010] Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the external appearance of an electronic musical instrument 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the electronic musical instrument 1. The electronic musical instrument 1 is, for example, an electronic drum. The electronic musical instrument 1 may also be another type of electronic musical instrument, such as an electronic keyboard instrument, an electronic percussion instrument, an electronic wind instrument, or an electronic string instrument.

[0011] The hardware configuration of the electronic musical instrument 1 includes a processor 10, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 11, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, a flash memory 13, a display unit 14, an operation pad 15, operation buttons 16, a sound source LSI (Large Scale Integration) 17, a D / A converter 18, an amplifier 19, and a speaker 20. The various components of the electronic musical instrument 1 are connected via a bus 21.

[0012] The processor 10 reads out the programs and data stored in the ROM 12. The processor 10 exercises overall control over the electronic musical instrument 1 by using the RAM 11 as a work area.

[0013] Processor 10 is, for example, a single processor or a multi-processor, and includes at least one processor. When multiple processors are included, processor 10 may be packaged as a single device, or may be configured as multiple devices that are physically separated within electronic musical instrument 1. Processor 10 may be called, for example, a control unit, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an MPU (Micro Processor Unit), or an MCU (Micro Controller Unit).

[0014] The RAM 11 temporarily holds data and programs. For example, the RAM 11 holds various data such as various programs and waveform data read from the ROM 12. As described later, a part of the memory area of ​​the RAM 11 (an example of a first area of ​​the memory) is reserved as a buffer 11A.

[0015] The ROM 12 stores a control program 12A and a tone color DB 12B. The processor 10 executes the control program 12A to perform various processes according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the tone color DB (Data Base) 12B.

[0017] The instrument class shown in Fig. 3 is an instrument group to which at least one instrument belongs. In the example of Fig. 3, the instruments that make up the drums are divided into types, and each divided type is defined as an instrument class. Specifically, each type of "bass", "snare", "tom", "cymbal", and "other" is defined as an instrument class.

[0018] The bass instrument class includes, for example, acoustic bass drum, bass drum, etc. The snare instrument class includes, for example, acoustic snare, electric snare, etc. The tom instrument class includes, for example, low floor tom, high floor tom, etc. The cymbal instrument class includes, for example, Chinese cymbal, ride bell, etc. Other instrument classes include, for example, tambourine, open triangle, etc.

[0019] The instrument classes shown in Fig. 3 are merely an example. For example, there is a degree of freedom as to which instruments are included in which instrument classes. Also, instead of or in addition to the instrument classes shown in Fig. 3, there may be instrument classes corresponding to instruments other than drums, such as guitars and pianos. In other words, there is a degree of freedom as to how the instrument classes are defined, and various design modifications are possible.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 3, the timbre DB 12B stores musical instruments (in other words, timbres) belonging to each instrument class in association with note numbers.

[0021] For example, when you hit the low floor tom on an acoustic drum (a non-electronic drum), it produces a note of the scale F2. In order to reproduce the tone of the low floor tom on an acoustic drum (a non-electronic drum), the tone DB12B stores the low floor tom in association with the note number 41, which indicates the scale F2.

[0022] The flash memory 13 stores a plurality of pieces of music data 13A. Although the plurality of pieces of music data 13A are data for different songs, they are denoted by the same reference numeral 13A for the sake of convenience.

[0023] The music data 13A is created in, for example, SMF (Standard MIDI File) format. The music data 13A includes a plurality of events. In each event, delta time, command type, command data, etc. are described.

[0024] That is, the song data 13A includes a plurality of events (an example of musical tone information) each associated with a sound generation timing.

[0025] The command type is information such as note on, note off, control change, pitch bend change, etc. In the MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) standard, it is called a status byte.

[0026] Command data is setting information for the command indicated by the command type. Command data includes information such as note number and velocity. In the MIDI standard, this is called a data byte.

[0027] The processor 10 sequentially reads the events in the music data 13A and progresses the music according to the delta time described in each event.

[0028] The display unit 14 includes, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and an LCD controller. When the LCD controller drives the LCD according to a control signal from the processor 10, a screen corresponding to the control signal is displayed on the LCD. The LCD may be configured as a touch panel display. The LCD may be replaced with an organic EL (Electro Luminescence), an LED (Light Emitting Diode), or the like.

[0029] Fig. 4 shows an example of a screen displayed on the display unit 14. In the example of Fig. 4, an instrument class selection screen is displayed. On the instrument class selection screen, a plurality of instrument classes are displayed so that each of them can be selected.

[0030] When the user touches an instrument class displayed on the screen, the radio button for the touched instrument class is checked. In the example of Figure 4, the cymbal has been touched and its radio button is checked.

[0031] For the sake of convenience, hereinafter, an instrument class selected by the user (in other words, an instrument class whose radio button is checked) will be referred to as a "selected instrument class." An instrument class not selected by the user (in other words, an instrument class whose radio button is not checked) will be referred to as a "non-selected instrument class."

[0032] The operation pad 15 is an example of a performance operator. When the user strikes the operation pad 15, the electronic musical instrument 1 produces musical tones of an instrument belonging to the selected instrument class.

[0033] The operation pad 15 is provided with an element for measuring the speed (velocity) of a user's tapping on the operation pad 15. For example, a plurality of contact switches are provided for the operation pad 15. The velocity is measured based on the difference in time that each contact switch is conductive when the operation pad 15 is tapped. The velocity can be said to be a value indicating the strength of the operation, and can also be said to be a value indicating the loudness (volume) of a musical sound.

[0034] The processor 10 monitors the outputs of the above elements and detects the velocity with which the operation pad 15 is struck.

[0035] The operation buttons 16 include a plurality of buttons 16a to 16d. The song selection button 16a is an operator that allows the user to select a song. The instrument selection button 16b is an operator that allows the user to select an instrument class. The play button 16c is an operator that allows the user to instruct the start of playback of a song. The stop button 16d is an operator that allows the user to instruct the stop of playback of a song.

[0036] For the sake of simplicity, only some of the controls are shown in Fig. 3. The electronic musical instrument 1 also includes other controls such as a power button, a volume switch, and the like.

[0037] In another embodiment, the electronic musical instrument 1 may be replaced by a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a PC (Personal Computer), a game controller, or the like. For example, a smartphone or a tablet terminal can operate as the electronic musical instrument 1 by downloading an application for executing various processes according to an embodiment of the present invention from an app store and installing it. In this case, for example, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) in which various parts shown in FIG. 1 are laid out is displayed on the screen. A user can play the musical sound of an instrument of a selected instrument class by tapping an operation pad 15 on the GUI, or can stop a song being played by touching a stop button 16d on the GUI.

[0038] For example, waveform data is stored in ROM 12. The waveform data is loaded into RAM 11 at the start-up process of electronic musical instrument 1 so that musical tones are quickly generated in response to a tapping operation. When processor 10 detects a tapping operation on operation pad 15, processor 10 instructs sound source LSI 17 to read out the corresponding waveform data from among the waveform data loaded into RAM 11.

[0039] The tone generator LSI 17 generates musical tones based on the waveform data read from the RAM 11 under the instruction of the processor 10. The tone generator LSI 17 has multiple generator sections and can simultaneously generate musical tones equal to the number of the generator sections at maximum. Note that in this embodiment, the processor 10 and the tone generator LSI 17 are configured as separate processors, but in another embodiment, the processor 10 and the tone generator LSI 17 may be configured as a single processor.

[0040] The digital musical sound data generated by the sound source LSI 17 is converted into an analog signal by a D / A converter 18 , and then amplified by an amplifier 19 and output to a speaker 20 .

[0041] 5 is a diagram for explaining an overview of an electronic musical instrument, a method, and a program according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the example of Fig. 5, the cymbal is a selected instrument class, and the rest are non-selected instrument classes.

[0042] The electronic musical instrument 1 sequentially reads each event contained in the SMF (that is, the music data 13A).

[0043] When the timing specified by the SMF arrives for an instrument belonging to a non-selected instrument class to be sounded, the electronic musical instrument 1 immediately instructs the sound source LSI 17 to sound the musical tone specified by the event, causing the sound source LSI 17 to perform sound generation processing. In other words, the electronic musical instrument 1 automatically plays the musical tone of the instrument belonging to the non-selected instrument class at the timing and volume specified by the SMF.

[0044] On the other hand, when the timing specified by the SMF for an instrument belonging to the selected instrument class arrives, the electronic musical instrument 1 does not immediately instruct the sound source LSI 17 to produce a sound, but stores the note number described in the event in the buffer 11A. The buffer 11A is always overwritten with the latest note number described in the event corresponding to the selected instrument class as the song progresses.

[0045] When the user strikes the operation pad 15, the electronic musical instrument 1 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate the musical tone of the note number stored in the buffer 11A at that time. The volume of the generated musical tone is determined not by the velocity described in the event but by the speed (velocity) of the user's strike on the operation pad 15. In other words, the electronic musical instrument 1 plays the musical tone of an instrument belonging to the selected instrument class at the timing and volume of the user's operation.

[0046] In this way, the electronic musical instrument 1 produces musical tones of instruments belonging to a non-selected instrument class at timings and volumes in accordance with the song data 13A, while producing musical tones of instruments belonging to a selected instrument class in accordance with the timing and strength of the user's operation.

[0047] The user can play the instrument he / she wants to play (the instrument belonging to the selected instrument class) at any timing and volume while listening to the musical tones of other instruments (the instruments belonging to the non-selected instrument class) by automatically progressing the song. Even if the user is not good at playing instruments, he / she can experience playing the part he / she wants by taking the initiative in the operation.

[0048] From another perspective, the user can play only a part (such as a cymbal) that he or she selects, rather than playing all the parts (all the drum parts in this embodiment). By independently performing a part of the performance with simple operations, the user can feel as if they were performing a complex performance.

[0049] As the song progresses (specifically, each time the timing comes for the musical tone of the instrument belonging to the selected instrument class to be sounded), the note numbers (in other words, the timbre of the instrument belonging to the selected instrument class) in the buffer 11A are automatically replaced. Therefore, the user can play the song with the timbre of the appropriate instrument to be sounded at that time by simply tapping one operation pad 15.

[0050] Fig. 6 is a flow chart showing the processing executed by the processor 10 in one embodiment of the present invention. For example, when the power supply of the electronic musical instrument 1 is turned on, execution of the processing shown in Fig. 6 begins.

[0051] 6, the processor 10 performs an initialization process (step S101). In the initialization process, each component is initialized. In addition, variables such as the buffer 11A are initialized.

[0052] The processor 10 waits for an operation to select an instrument class (step S102).

[0053] Specifically, the processor 10 displays an instrument class selection screen (see FIG. 4) for selecting an instrument class on the display unit 14. This screen allows the user to select one of a plurality of instrument classes (bass, snare, tom, cymbal, etc.) using radio buttons.

[0054] For example, when the user touches an instrument class displayed on the screen, the radio button for the touched instrument class is checked. Or, each time the user presses the instrument selection button 16b, the instrument class whose radio button is checked changes in sequence.

[0055] When the user presses the play button 16c (step S102: YES), the processor 10 determines the instrument class that is checked at the time the play button 16c is pressed as the instrument class that the user will perform a performance operation on (i.e., the “selected instrument class”) (step S103).

[0056] The processor 10 also monitors the operation of other controls. For example, when the song selection button 16a is operated, the processor 10 determines the song to be played back in response to the operation.

[0057] After determining the selected instrument class, the processor 10 waits for an operation on the play button 16c (step S104). When the user presses the play button 16c (step S104: YES), the processor 10 executes a play process and a pad process (step S105).

[0058] Processor 10 repeatedly executes the playback process and pad process (step S105) until the end of the music playback is detected (step S106: YES). For example, when the music data 13A progresses to an event in which an EOT (End of Track) command is described, processor 10 detects the end of the music playback and ends the process shown in FIG.

[0059] FIG. 7 shows a subroutine of the playback process in step S105 of FIG.

[0060] Processor 10 performs music progression processing (step S201).

[0061] Specifically, the processor 10 sequentially reads the events of the music data 13A, and progresses the music according to the delta time described in the events.

[0062] The processor 10 determines whether the next event is an event corresponding to the selected instrument class (step S202).

[0063] If the next event is an event corresponding to a non-selected instrument class (step S202: NO), the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate a musical tone designated by the event at a timing according to the music data 13A, and causes the sound generation process (step S203). Note that if the next event is an event such as a program change or control change, the processor 10 also instructs the sound source LSI 17 to process the event at a timing according to the music data 13A.

[0064] If the next event corresponds to the selected instrumental class (step S202: YES), processor 10 stores the note number described in the event in buffer 11A at a timing according to music piece data 13A (step S204).

[0065] Processor 10 repeatedly executes the playback process of FIG. 7 until the end of playback of the song is detected (step S106 in FIG. 6: YES).

[0066] Fig. 8 is a subroutine showing the pad process in step S105 in Fig. 6. The pad process shown in Fig. 8 is executed in parallel with the playback process shown in Fig. 7.

[0067] The processor 10 determines whether or not the operation pad 15 has been operated (tapped) (step S301).

[0068] When the operation pad 15 is tapped (step S301: YES), the processor 10 determines whether or not a note number is stored in the buffer 11A (step S302).

[0069] If the note number is stored in the buffer 11A (step S302: YES), the processor 10 determines whether the sound source LSI 17 is currently generating a musical tone with the same note number (step S303).

[0070] If the sound source LSI 17 is not currently generating a musical tone with the same note number (step S303: NO), the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate the musical tone with the note number stored in the buffer 11A at the timing when the user strikes the operation pad 15 and at a volume corresponding to the striking speed (velocity) (step S305).

[0071] As a result, the sound source LSI 17 generates the musical tone of the note number stored in the buffer 11A at the timing when the user strikes the operation pad 15 and at a volume according to the striking speed (velocity).

[0072] The musical sound generated at this time is muted, for example, in accordance with a note-off event issued at a timing corresponding to the user's striking speed (velocity) of the operation pad 15. This musical sound may be muted not by the note-off event but by a timing corresponding to the user's striking speed (velocity) of the operation pad 15.

[0073] If the sound source LSI 17 is currently producing a musical tone with the same note number (step S303: YES), the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to mute the musical tone being produced (e.g., note off) (step S304), and also instructs the sound source LSI 17 to produce the musical tone with the note number stored in the buffer 11A at the timing when the user strikes the operation pad 15 and at a volume corresponding to the striking speed (velocity) (step S305).

[0074] As a result, the sound source LSI 17 instantly mutes the musical tone being generated and having the same note number as that stored in the buffer 11A, while generating the musical tone of this note number at the timing when the user strikes the operation pad 15 and at a volume corresponding to the striking speed (velocity).

[0075] If the operation pad 15 is not struck (step S301: NO) or if no note number is stored in the buffer 11A (step S302: NO), the processor 10 ends the pad process of Fig. 8 without instructing the sound source LSI 17 to generate a musical tone. Until the end of the playback of the music is detected (step S106: YES in Fig. 6), the processor 10 repeatedly executes the pad process of Fig. 8.

[0076] That is, during a period in which the user is not tapping the operation pad 15, even if the music progresses and musical tones of an instrument in a non-selected instrument class are produced, musical tones of an instrument in a selected instrument class are not produced.

[0077] In this way, the processor 10 judges for each event in the music data 13A whether it is an event corresponding to the selected instrument class. When the processor 10 reaches the processing timing of an event that should be sounded in the current progression time, if the event corresponds to a non-selected instrument class, it immediately instructs the sound source LSI 17 to process the sound. On the other hand, if the event corresponds to the selected instrument class, the processor 10 stores the note number in the buffer 11A, and when the user strikes the operation pad 15, it instructs the sound source LSI 17 to process the sound of the note number stored in the buffer 11A at the time of the strike.

[0078] In addition, processor 10 sequentially reads events (an example of musical sound information) of song data 13A, which includes multiple musical sound information each associated with a sound generation timing, and if the read event includes a note number (an example of first musical sound information, which is a note number corresponding to the tone of each instrument belonging to the instrument class) of an instrument belonging to a selected instrument class (an example of a first instrument group), processor 10 overwrites and stores the note number in buffer 11A (an example of a first area of ​​memory) in response to the reading.

[0079] Each time the operation pad 15 (an example of a performance operator) is operated, the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate a first musical tone corresponding to the note number (an example of first musical tone information) stored in the buffer 11A (an example of a first area) at the time of operation. If the operation pad 15 is not operated, the processor 10 does not instruct the sound source LSI 17 to generate a first musical tone corresponding to the note number stored in the buffer 11A.

[0080] Processor 10 sequentially reads events (an example of musical tone information) of song data 13A including a plurality of musical tone information each having a corresponding sounding timing, and when the read event includes a note number (an example of second musical tone information) of an instrument belonging to a non-selected instrument class (an example of a second instrument group different from the first instrument group), processor 10 instructs sound source LSI 17 to sound a second musical tone corresponding to this note number at a sounding timing according to the event including this note number, without storing this note number in buffer 11A (an example of a first area of ​​memory).

[0081] FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining an example of the playback process shown in FIG. 7 and the pad process shown in FIG. 8. In the example of FIG. 9, tom is the selected instrument class. In FIG. 9, the numbers shown in the blocks indicate note numbers. "41" is the note number corresponding to the tone of the low floor tom, which belongs to the tom instrument class. "47" is the note number corresponding to the tone of the low mid tom, which belongs to the tom instrument class.

[0082] 9, the progression time Ta is the timing at which the low floor tom tone is generated. Since the low floor tom belongs to the selected instrument class, the processor 10 does not immediately instruct the sound source LSI 17 to generate the low floor tom tone at the progression time Ta, but stores the note number (41) described in the event in the buffer 11A.

[0083] 9, the user strikes the operation pad 15 with a velocity V11 at time T11. At time T11, the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate the note number (41) stored in the buffer 11A.

[0084] That is, the low floor tom tone is generated not at a timing (progression time Ta) according to the song data 13A but at the timing of the user's operation (progression time T11). This tone is generated at a volume according to the strength of the user's operation (velocity V11) rather than at a volume according to the song data 13A.

[0085] In this way, the user can play the instrument he or she wants to play (the instrument belonging to the selected instrument class) at any timing and volume while listening to the musical tones of other instruments (the instruments belonging to the non-selected instrument class) by automatically progressing the song. Even if the user is not good at playing instruments, he or she can experience playing the part he or she wants by taking the initiative in the operation.

[0086] 9, the user strikes the operation pad 15 with a velocity V12 at the time of progression T12. At the time of progression T12, the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to mute the musical tone of the note number (41) being generated, and also instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate the note number (41) stored in the buffer 11A.

[0087] In other words, when the operation pad 15 (an example of a performance operator) is operated while a first musical tone is being sounded, if the note number (an example of first musical tone information) stored in the buffer 11A (an example of a first area of ​​memory) at the time of the operation is the same as the note number being sounded, the processor 10 mutes the first musical tone being sounded and instructs the sound source LSI 17 to sound a new first musical tone of the same note number.

[0088] By muting and simultaneously sounding the musical tones of the same note number, it is possible to obtain a sound that sounds like a legato performance, which means that an actual drum performance can be faithfully reproduced.

[0089] In the song data 13A, the low floor tom tone is generated only once between the progression time Ta and the progression time Tb. However, in this embodiment, the user can generate the low floor tom tone belonging to the selected instrument class multiple times between the progression time Ta and the progression time Tb by repeatedly hitting the operation pad 15.

[0090] In this way, the user can freely determine not only the timing and volume of the sounds to be produced, but also the number of sounds to be produced when performing a performance part (an instrument belonging to a selected instrument class).

[0091] In Fig. 9, the progression time Tb is the timing at which the low-mid tom tone is generated. Since the low-mid tom belongs to the selected instrument class, the processor 10 does not immediately instruct the sound source LSI 17 to generate the low-mid tom tone at the progression time Tb, but instead overwrites and stores the note number (47) described in the event in the buffer 11A. The note number (41) stored in the buffer 11A is erased by the overwrite.

[0092] 9, the user strikes the operation pad 15 with a velocity V13 at time T13. At time T13, the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate the note number (47) stored in the buffer 11A.

[0093] That is, the low-mid tom tone is generated not at the timing (progression time Tb) according to the song data 13A but at the timing of the user's operation (progression time T13). This tone is generated at a volume according to the strength of the user's operation (velocity V13) rather than at a volume according to the song data 13A.

[0094] Note that the note number (41) of the tone being generated at time T13 is different from the note number (47) stored in the buffer 11A at time T13. Therefore, the processor 10 does not instruct the sound source LSI 17 to mute the tone of the note number (41) being generated at time T13. Therefore, the tone of note number (47) starts to be generated while the tone of note number (41) continues to be generated. This faithfully reproduces an actual drum performance in which multiple tones (here, the low floor tom and low mid tom tones) are generated simultaneously.

[0095] As the song progresses, the note numbers in the buffer 11A (in other words, the tones of the instruments belonging to the selected instrument class) are automatically replaced. Therefore, the user can play the song with the appropriate tones of the instruments that should be sounded at that time by simply tapping one operation pad 15.

[0096] In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications can be made in the implementation stage without departing from the gist of the invention. In addition, the functions executed in the above-mentioned embodiment may be implemented in appropriate combinations as much as possible. The above-mentioned embodiment includes various steps, and various inventions can be extracted by appropriate combinations of the multiple components disclosed. For example, if an effect can be obtained even if some components are deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment, the configuration from which the components are deleted can be extracted as an invention.

[0097] In the above embodiment, the musical tone is a single tone. However, in an actual drum performance, multiple musical tones are often played simultaneously, for example, a hi-hat and a crash cymbal are played at the same time. Therefore, the musical tone may be a chord.

[0098] Fig. 10 is a diagram for explaining an example of playback processing and pad processing according to Modification 1. In the example of Fig. 10, tom is also the selected instrument class. In Fig. 10, the numbers "41", "43", "47", "48", and "50" in the blocks are note numbers corresponding to the tones of low floor tom, high floor tom, low mid tom, high mid tom, and high tom, respectively, which belong to the tom instrument class.

[0099] Buffer 11A is an array capable of storing note numbers (i.e., multiple note numbers) corresponding to chords. In Fig. 10, [41, 43, 47] indicates a note number sequence corresponding to three tones (low floor tom, high floor tom, low mid tom). [47, 48, 50] indicates a note number sequence corresponding to another three tones (low mid tom, high mid tom, high tom).

[0100] In the first modification, a plurality of musical tones that are within a predetermined time span (for example, a time span equivalent to a 128th note that can be regarded as being simultaneously generated) are regarded as being simultaneously generated. When there are a plurality of musical tones that can be regarded as being simultaneously generated, the processor 10 stores note number strings corresponding to these musical tones in the buffer 11A.

[0101] 10, the progression time Tc is the timing of the generation of multiple musical tones (note numbers 41, 43, and 47) that are considered to be generated simultaneously. Since the instruments corresponding to these musical tones belong to the selected instrument class, the processor 10 does not immediately instruct the sound source LSI 17 to generate the multiple musical tones at the progression time Tc, but stores the corresponding note numbers (41, 43, and 47) in the buffer 11A.

[0102] 10, the user strikes the operation pad 15 with a velocity V31 at a time T31, which is almost the same as the time Tc. At the time T31, the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate the musical tones of note numbers (41, 43, 47) stored in the buffer 11A (i.e., three musical tones).

[0103] 10, the user strikes the operation pad 15 with velocities V32 and V33 at the time points of progression T32 and T33, respectively. At the time points of progression T32 and T33, the processor 10 instructs the sound source LSI 17 to mute the musical tones of note numbers (41, 43, 47) being generated, and also instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate the musical tones of note numbers (41, 43, 47) stored in the buffer 11A, and generates them.

[0104] 10, the progression time Td is the timing of sounding multiple musical tones (note numbers 47, 48, and 50) that are considered to be sounded simultaneously. Since the instruments corresponding to these musical tones belong to the selected instrument class, the processor 10 does not immediately instruct the sound source LSI 17 to sound the multiple musical tones at the progression time Td, but overwrites and stores the corresponding note numbers (47, 48, and 50) in the buffer 11A.

[0105] In the example of Fig. 10, the user strikes the operation pad 15 with a velocity V34 at the time of progression T34. At the time of progression T34, the musical tones of note numbers (41, 43, 47) are being generated, and note numbers (47, 48, 50) are stored in the buffer 11A. That is, among note numbers (41, 43, 47), note number (47) is stored in the buffer 11A at the time of progression T34.

[0106] To faithfully reproduce the drum performance, the processor 10 mutes only the musical tones of the same note number, as in the above embodiment. Specifically, at the time of progression T34, the processor 10 erases only the musical tones (note numbers 41, 43, and 47) that are being generated and have the same note number as the note number stored in the buffer 11A (i.e., note number (47)), and instructs the sound source LSI 17 to generate three new musical tones (note numbers 47, 48, and 50) including the erased note number (47).

[0107] 11 is a diagram showing the external appearance of an electronic musical instrument 1 according to Modification 2. In Modification 2, the electronic musical instrument 1 includes a plurality of operation pads 15a to 15e. The operation pads 15a to 15e are associated with respective instrument classes (examples of instrument groups) such as bass, snare, tom, cymbal, and others. For example, when a user strikes the operation pad 15a, the electronic musical instrument 1 produces musical tones of an instrument belonging to the bass instrument class.

[0108] In the second modification, one or more instrument classes can be selected as the selected instrument classes.

[0109] As an example, the processor 10 determines two instrument classes, bass and snare, as selected instrument classes in response to user operations. In this case, the processor 10 causes the sound source LSI 17 to generate sounds of musical instruments belonging to non-selected instrument classes (tom, cymbal, etc.) at timings and volumes according to the song data 13A, while causing the sound source LSI 17 to generate sounds of musical instruments belonging to the selected instrument class (bass, snare) according to the timing and strength of the user's operation on the operation pad 15a or 15b.

[0110] In the second modification, the processor 10 sets only the operation pad (an example of a performance operator) corresponding to the instrument class (an example of a first instrument group) selected by the user operation to be able to accept the user operation. In other words, the processor 10 sets the operation pad corresponding to the non-selected instrument class to be unable to accept the user operation.

[0111] In variant example 2, the operation pad corresponding to the selected instrument class is made operable, and the operation pad corresponding to the non-selected instrument class is made inoperable, thereby ensuring ease of performance while allowing the user to feel as if they are performing a more complex piece of music. [Explanation of symbols]

[0112] 1: Electronic instruments 10: Processor 11: RAM 11A: Buffer 12: ROM 12A: Control program 12B:Tone DB 13: Flash memory 13A: Song data 14: Display section 15: Operation pad 16: Operation buttons 16a: Song selection button 16b: Instrument selection button 16c: Play button 16d: Stop button 17: Sound source LSI 18: D / A converter 19: Amplifier 20: Speaker 21: Bus

Claims

1. A performance operator; At least one processor; The at least one processor Sequentially reading in the musical tone information of the song data including a plurality of pieces of musical tone information each having a corresponding sounding timing; when the read musical tone information includes first musical tone information belonging to a first musical instrument group, overwriting and storing the first musical tone information in a first area of ​​a memory in response to reading; each time the performance operator is operated, instructing to generate a first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information in accordance with the first musical tone information stored in the first area at the timing of the operation; when the performance operator is not operated, no instruction is given to generate the first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information stored in the first area; Electronic musical instrument.

2. The at least one processor when the read musical tone information includes second musical tone information belonging to a second musical instrument group different from the first musical instrument group, the second musical tone information is not stored in the first area, and a command is given to generate a second musical tone corresponding to the second musical tone information at a generation timing according to the musical tone information including the second musical tone information.

2. The electronic musical instrument according to claim 1.

3. the first musical tone information is a note number corresponding to a tone color of each musical instrument, A plurality of the note numbers belong to the first musical instrument group.

2. The electronic musical instrument according to claim 1.

4. The at least one processor when the performance operator is operated during the sounding of the first musical tone, if the first musical tone information stored in the first area at the time of the operation is the same as the first musical tone information of the first musical tone being sounded, the first musical tone being sounded is muted, and a command is given to sound a new first musical tone of the same first musical tone information; 2. The electronic musical instrument according to claim 1.

5. the first musical tone is a chord including a plurality of musical tones, The at least one processor When the performance operator is operated during the generation of the chord, the performance operator erases, among the musical tones included in the chord being generated, the musical tones whose first musical tone information is the same as the first musical tone information stored in the first area at the time of the operation, and instructs the generation of a new chord including the erased musical tones.

2. The electronic musical instrument according to claim 1.

6. A plurality of the performance operators are provided, the plurality of performance operators each corresponding to a different one of the musical instrument groups; The at least one processor only the performance operators corresponding to the first musical instrument group selected by a user operation are set to be able to accept user operations; 2. The electronic musical instrument according to claim 1.

7. Sequentially reading in the musical tone information of the song data including a plurality of pieces of musical tone information each having a corresponding sounding timing; when the read musical tone information includes first musical tone information belonging to a first musical instrument group, overwriting and storing the first musical tone information in a first area of ​​a memory in response to reading; each time a performance operator is operated, instructing to generate a first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information in accordance with the first musical tone information stored in the first area at the timing of the operation; causing the computer to execute a process of not instructing the sound generation of the first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information stored in the first area when the performance operator is not operated; method.

8. Sequentially reading in the musical tone information of the song data including a plurality of pieces of musical tone information each having a corresponding sounding timing; when the read musical tone information includes first musical tone information belonging to a first musical instrument group, overwriting and storing the first musical tone information in a first area of ​​a memory in response to reading; each time a performance operator is operated, instructing to generate a first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information in accordance with the first musical tone information stored in the first area at the timing of the operation; causing the computer to execute a process of not instructing the sound generation of the first musical tone corresponding to the first musical tone information stored in the first area when the performance operator is not operated; program.

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