Automatic rhythm apparatus with tone level dependent timbres

Abstract

Tones of percussion instruments produce different timbres, i.e. different tone waveshapes, depending on the strength of percussion. An automatic rhythm apparatus includes a rhythm tone generating unit which stores the tone waveshape produced from a hard percussion and also that from a soft percussion performed on a same percussion instrument. A rhythm pattern is constructed by rhythmically aligned tone command signals, for various percussion instruments, designating timings and volumes of tones to be produced. At each tone production, these two kinds of waveshapes are read out by mixing them appropriately. That is, when a loud tone is to be reproduced, its waveshape is read out from the waveshape memory for loud tones, while a soft tone is read out likewise from the waveshape memory for soft tones, and a tone of an intermediate volume therebetween is reproduced by reading out the loud tone and the soft tone at a mixing ratio complying to the desired degree of volume. Percussion tones from a same percussion instrument are thus read out throughout the loud-to-soft range in successive variations in compliance to the actual percussions played on the instrument. Accordingly, the reproduced percussion sound varies not only in tone volume but also in tone color, and thus a rhythm performance rich in natural feeling is realized.