Keyboard assembly for electronic musical instruments capable of receiving key touch inputs and generating musical tones that reflect a player's power of expression

Abstract

A keyboard assembly for an electronic musical instrument is provided, which is capable of having touch inputs to a key from a finger of a player reflected in his power of expression with higher fidelity even when the single key is successively depressed to repeatedly generate the same tone. A plurality of mass members are each disposed to be pivotally driven in response to depression of the corresponding key. A support device pivotally supports the keys and the mass members. A plurality of musical tone instruction devices provided respectively for the keys each instruct generation and damping of a musical tone in response to depression of a corresponding key, and are each comprised of a first sensor and a second sensor for generating a key event during a stroke of the corresponding key in response to depression thereof or in response to pivotal movement of the corresponding mass member responsive to the depression of the key. The first sensor is activated in a first half of the key stroke to determine timing for damping of the musical tone, and the second sensor in a second half of the key stroke to determine timing for generation of the musical tone and further determine timing for determining a key velocity depending on a position of the key during the stroke relative to the support device.