Abstract: A hand-held percussion musical instrument includes a swinging tone-generating plate, which is hinged and moved when being played. The tone plate is sounded by impact with the body of the instrument, which includes a resonator and impact member located at the point of contact with the tone plate. The tone plate swings on a hinge, which is a flexible elastomeric joint that secures the tone plate to the resonator. A pleated, accordion-type elastomeric member is affixed between the end of the tone plate and body of the instrument to control the lateral movement of the tone plate and limit its backswing.

Abstract: A vibrator for vibrating an electronic musical instrument in accordance to the generated tone being produced. In this manner, a player of the electrical musical instrument will have the sensation of playing a conventional musical instrument due to the feedback of vibrational energy into the input device of the electronic musical instrument.

Abstract: An electronic wind instrument has a blowing feeling adder. The adder comprises an air chamber having an entrance and an exit, an entrance pipe for introducing breath the entrance pipe being coupled to the entrance of the air chamber, an exit pipe for discharging the breath the exit pipe being connected to the exit of the air chamber, and a valve interposed between entrance and exit portions of the air chamber and having elasticity. The valve is deformed according to a breath pressure at the entrance portion to change an opening area of the entrance. Whereby the electronic wind instrument can simulate blowing feeling of a natural wind instrument.

Abstract: The acoustic apparatus for generating a musical tone preferably adopts a speaker system utilizing a resonator constituted by a cavity and an acoustic mass for causing the cavity to acoustically communicate with an external region or a speaker system utilizing a back-loaded horn so that frequency characteristic is improved. In a musical instrument, including a resonator, like a guitar, all or part of a body is partitioned as the cavity, and acoustic mass such as a resonance port is disposed in the cavity as needed to set a desired resonance frequency. In a musical instrument having side plates or leg portions, the resonance port or the back-loaded horn is housed in the side plates or the leg portions.

Abstract: For detecting a difference in rendition, a bar incorporated in an electronic percussion system includes a supporting block having a surface portion, a top member having a first surface portion and a second surface portion located at the reverse side of the first surface portion, and a force sensitive unit intervening between the surface portion of the supporting block and the second surface portion of the top member and converting a force acting on the first surface portion into an electric signal, wherein the first surface portion is formed with a rugged surface which causes a striker to intermittently strike the first surface portion when the striker moves along the first surface portion.

Abstract: A sound producing instrument is shown having a plurality of vibrating strings supported over an elongated aluminum sounding board. The strings are solid wires of brass, bronze or steel that are tensioned to produce a range of vibrations within the audible sound range. The strings may be manipulated along their lengths in various ways to control the mode of vibration of each of the respective strings. An electronic means such as a crystal or magnetic microphone is provided adjacent to the sounding board to pick up the vibrations resulting from activating the vibratory motion of the strings, and amplifying means are used to reproduce the sounds developed by the instrument. In one embodiment, the microphone may be caused to move during the pickup by a remote controller, so as to provide different sound effects. A special cylinder is provided for creating special sound effects when used to agitate the strings.

Abstract: A mouth-piece for electronic musical instruments includes at least one flexible valve flap exposed in the air passage formed therein each of which carries a pressure responsive element generative of electric signals in accordance with the extend of flexion of the valve flap when blown by the player.

Abstract: An electromagnetic pickup device for use in a tone generator of an electronic piano includes a plurality of vibratory reeds and pole pieces of pickups which are so shaped that each reed and pole piece are opposed to each other in a range from the neutral position of the reed to a position within its maximum vibrating amplitude at one side. In output signals of the pickups, the balance of fundamental and odd- and even-numbered harmonics is improved to generate a tone which is close to that of a normal string piano.

Abstract: An electrical musical instrument is provided with a tone generator comprising a plurality of vibratory tone bars each supported with its both ends free. The tone bars are struck by key-actuated hammers and the vibration of each tone bar is picked up by a mechanical-electrical transducer associated with the tone bar. With such tone generator, the tone produced by the musical instrument of this invention is very much improved, especially in that the tone is rich in a solid and percussive constituent.

Abstract: .Iadd.In a method and apparatus for controlling musical sounds there is provided a housing with an inner cavity and a mouthpiece forming an air channel and a loudspeaker cone for vibrating the air in the inner cavity for introducing sound energy into the oral cavity of a player via the mouthpiece. The sound energy is acoustically monitored by a microphone which produces an output control signal that is used to control the pitch of an electric sound generator in relation to the size of the oral cavity. .Iaddend. Means forming an air channel is connected between the output of .[.a.]. .Iadd.the .Iaddend.loudspeaker and the input of .[.a.]. .Iadd.the .Iaddend.microphone. The output of the microphone is amplified by means of an amplifier, the output of the amplifier being fed to the speaker, an acoustical feedback path thus being formed between the speaker and the microphone.