Yamaha Corporation

Yasuhiko Okamura

Kenichiro Saito

Gary Gregson

Yasushi Kurakake

Akira Yamauchi

Manabu Kawada

Yoshiko Fukushima

In an automatic play apparatus for electronic music system, it is often desired to expand its function in universal and easy way. In this invention, at steps , the sequencer module records music performance data provided from an external device or it reproduces them. Sometimes it does both at the same time. In a series of processing at steps , the queue processing and are introduced. In each queue processing, a part of the music performance data is memorized temporarily in Temporary Memory Area and , and the pointer, as an argument, corresponding to the memorized part of the music performance data is transferred to various plug-in programs which work as function expansion modules. The plug-in programs are thus enabled to read out the music performance data and write them, respectively from and in Temporary Memory Area and

Automatic play apparatus and function expansion device

A method is designed for displaying a visual image of a music system that is constructed to play at least one performance part with a particular timbre and that is applied with an acoustic effect, an accompaniment style and the like. The method is carried out by the steps of analyzing data associated to the music system to discriminate the acoustic effect, the accompaniment style and the like applied to the music system and to discriminate the particular timbre allotted to the performance part of the music system, providing a picture of a scenery setting in matching with the discriminated acoustic effect, the accompaniment style and the like such that the picture of the scenery setting visualizes a situation and environment in which the music system should be played with the acoustic effect, the accompaniment style and the like, providing an icon in correspondence to the discriminated particular timbre such that the icon symbolizes playing of the performance part with the allotted timbre, and arranging the icon of the performance part in the picture of the scenery setting to thereby synthesize the visual image of the music system.

Method of visualizing music system by combination of scenery picture and

Plural electronic musical instruments are connected to a bidirectional communication network, and a controller is provided for each of the musical instruments for performing control such that tone control information possessed by the musical instruments can be shared between the musical instruments. A data base may further be connected to the communication network so that tone control information possessed by the data base can also be utilized in each of the musical instruments. If any of the musical instruments does not possess certain tone control information, the musical instrument is allowed to utilize the tone control information by receiving the information from another electronic musical instrument, via the communication network, which possesses the information. Further, each of the musical instruments may make an inquiry to the other musical instrument about what tone control information is possessed by the other musical instrument and, in response to the reply from the other musical instrument, display those pieces of the tone control information possessed by the other musical instrument which are utilizable in the musical instrument, so that a selection can be made from among the tone control information possessed by the other musical instrument in accordance with the displayed information.

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Hamamatsu, Japan

Yasuhiko Okamura