1.
Yamaha
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It is one of the constituents of Nikkei 225 and is the worlds largest piano manufacturing company. Yamaha was established in 1887 as a piano and reed organ manufacturer by Torakusu Yamaha as Nippon Gakki Company, Limited in Hamamatsu, the companys origins as a musical instrument manufacturer are still reflected today in the groups logo—a trio of interlocking tuning forks. The YA-1, of which 125 were built in the first year of production, was named in honour of the founder and it was a 125cc, single cylinder, two-stroke, street bike patterned after the German DKW RT125. In 1955, the success of the YA-1 resulted in the founding of Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd, in 1989, Yamaha shipped the worlds first CD recorder. Yamaha purchased Sequential Circuits in 1988 and it bought a majority stake of competitor Korg in 1987, which was bought out by Korg in 1993. In the late 1990s, Yamaha released a series a portable battery operated keyboards under the PSS, in 2002, Yamaha closed down its archery product business that was started in 1959. Six archers in five different Olympic Games won gold medals using their products and it acquired German audio software manufacturers Steinberg in January 2005, from Pinnacle Systems. K. Ltd, the UK piano sales & manufacturing arm was unaffected, on December 20,2007, Yamaha made an agreement with the Austrian Bank BAWAG P. S. K. Group BAWAG to purchase all the shares of Bösendorfer, intended to place in early 2008. Yamaha intends to continue manufacturing at the Bösendorfer facilities in Austria, the acquisition of Bösendorfer was announced after the NAMM Show in Los Angeles, on January 28,2008. As of February 1,2008, Bösendorfer Klavierfabrik GmbH operates as a subsidiary of Yamaha Corp, Yamaha Corporation is also widely known for their music teaching programme that began in the 1950s. Yamaha electronic have proven to be successful, popular, and respected products, for example, the Yamaha YPG-625 was given the award Keyboard of the Year and Product of the Year in 2007 from The Music and Sound Retailer magazine. Other noteworthy Yamaha electronics include the SHS-10 Keytar, a keytar which offered MIDI output features normally found on much more expensive keyboards. Other companies in the Yamaha group include, Bösendorfer Klavierfabrik GmbH, Vienna, Yamaha Motor Company Yamaha Fine Technologies Co. Ltd. Yamaha Golf Cart Company Yamaha Livingtec Corporation Yamaha Metanix Corporation Yamaha Music Communications Co. Ltd, Yamaha Pro Audio Kandō is a Japanese word used by Yamaha to describe their corporate mission. Kandō in translation describes the sensation of profound excitement and gratification derived from experiencing supreme quality, some reasonable English synonyms are emotionally touching or emotionally moving. The Yamaha Music Foundation is an established in 1966 by the authority of the Japanese Ministry of Education for the purpose of promoting music education. It continued a program of music classes begun by Yamaha Corporation in 1954, Yamaha expanded into many diverse businesses and product groups
2.
MIDI
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A single MIDI link can carry up to sixteen channels of information, each of which can be routed to a separate device. These messages are sent via a MIDI cable to other devices where they control sound generation, a simple example of a MIDI setup is the use of a MIDI controller such as an electronic musical keyboard to trigger sounds created by a sound module. This MIDI data can also be recorded into a hardware or software device called a sequencer, advantages of MIDI include compactness, ease of modification and manipulation and a wide choice of electronic instruments and synthesizer or digitally-sampled sounds. MIDI technology was standardized in 1983 by a panel of industry representatives. In June 1981, Roland founder Ikutaro Kakehashi proposed the idea of standardization to Oberheim Electronics founder Tom Oberheim, in October 1981, Kakehashi, Oberheim and Smith discussed the idea with representatives from Yamaha, Korg and Kawai. Smith proposed this standard at the Audio Engineering Society show in November 1981, MIDIs development was announced to the public by Robert Moog, in the October 1982 edition of Keyboard magazine. By the time of the January 1983 Winter NAMM Show, Smith was able to demonstrate a MIDI connection between his Prophet 600 analog synthesizer and a Roland JP-6, the MIDI Specification was published in August 1983. The MIDI standard was unveiled by Ikutaro Kakehashi and Dave Smith, MIDIs appeal was originally limited to professional musicians and record producers who wanted to use electronic instruments in the production of popular music. The standard allowed different instruments to speak with other and with computers. This interoperability allowed one device to be controlled from another, which reduced the amount of hardware musicians needed to own, MIDIs introduction coincided with the dawn of the personal computer era and the introductions of samplers and digital synthesizers. The creative possibilities brought about by MIDI technology have been credited as having helped to revive the industry in the 1980s. MIDI introduced many capabilities which transformed the way musicians work, MIDI sequencing made it possible for a user with no notation skills to build complex arrangements. A musical act with as few as one or two members, each operating multiple MIDI-enabled devices, could deliver a performance which sounds similar to that of a larger group of musicians. By performing preproduction in an environment, an artist can reduce recording costs by arriving at a recording studio with a song that is already partially completed and worked out. Educational technology enabled by MIDI has transformed music education and those new to the subject of MIDI might confuse it with digital audio. MIDI symbolically represents a note, whereas digital audio represents the sound produced by the note, MIDI was invented so that musical instruments could communicate with each other and so that one instrument can control another. Analog synthesizers that have no digital component and were built prior to MIDIs development can be retrofit with kits that convert MIDI messages into analog control voltages. When a note is played on a MIDI instrument, it generates a signal that can be used to trigger a note on another instrument
3.
Casio
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Casio Computer Co. Ltd. is a multinational consumer electronics and commercial electronics manufacturing company headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Its products include calculators, mobile phones, digital cameras, electronic musical instruments and it was founded in 1946, and in 1957 released the worlds first entirely electric compact calculator. Casio was a digital camera innovator, and during the 1980s and 1990s. Casio was established in April 1946 by Tadao Kashio, an engineer specializing in fabrication technology. Kashios first major product was the pipe, a finger ring that would hold a cigarette. Japan was impoverished immediately following World War II, so cigarettes were valuable, after seeing the electric calculators at the first Business Show in Ginza, Tokyo in 1949, Kashio and his younger brothers used their profits from the yubiwa pipe to develop their own calculators. Most of the calculators at that time worked using gears and could be operated by using a crank or using a motor. Toshio possessed some knowledge of electronics, and set out to make a calculator using solenoids, the desk-sized calculator was finished in 1954 and was Japans first electro-mechanical calculator. Another distinguishing innovation was the use of a display window instead of the three display windows used in other calculators. In 1957 Casio released the Model 14-A, sold for 485,000 yen, the worlds first all-electric compact calculator,1957 also marked the establishment of Casio Computer Co. Ltd. In the 1980s, its budget electronic instruments and its line of home electronic musical keyboard instruments became popular. The company also became known for the wide variety and innovation of its wristwatches. It was one of the earliest manufacturers of quartz watches, both digital and analog and it also began selling calculator watches during this time. In the 1970s and 80s, Casio was known for its electronic calculators, today, Casio is most commonly known for making durable and reliable digital watches. The G-Shock range of shock resistant watches is popular, with the 1983 G-Shock DW-5600C being highly sought-after by collectors, Casio made a variety of digital watches with in-built games in the 1980s and 90s, which were highly popular at the time. Casio also makes products for local markets, including a Prayer Compass watch designed to help Muslims pray on time, note, This is a list of selected calculators. Figures in parentheses imply approximate year of introduction, note, This is a list of selected models. Wiki collection of works on Casio
4.
Electronic musical instrument
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An electronic musical instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound using electronics. Such an instrument sounds by outputting an electrical signal that ultimately drives a loudspeaker. An electronic instrument might include a user interface for controlling its sound, often by adjusting the pitch, frequency, all electronic musical instruments can be viewed as a subset of audio signal processing applications. Simple electronic musical instruments are called sound effects, the border between sound effects and actual musical instruments is often hazy. Electronic musical instruments are now used in most styles of music. Development of new musical instruments, controllers, and synthesizers continues to be a highly active. In the 18th-century, musicians and composers adapted a number of instruments to exploit the novelty of electricity. The former instrument consisted of an instrument of over 700 strings. The latter was an instrument with plectra activated electrically. However, neither instrument used electricity as a sound-source, the first electric synthesizer was invented in 1876 by Elisha Gray. The Musical Telegraph used steel reeds oscillated by electromagnets and transmitted over a telephone line, Gray also built a simple loudspeaker device into later models, which consisted of a diaphragm vibrating in a magnetic field. A significant invention, which later had an effect on electronic music, was the audion in 1906. This was the first thermionic valve, or vacuum tube and which led to the generation and amplification of signals, radio broadcasting. Other early synthesizers included the Telharmonium, the Theremin, Jörg Magers Spharophon and Partiturophone, Taubmanns similar Electronde, Maurice Martenots ondes Martenot, only two models of this latter were built and the only surviving example is currently stored at the Lomonosov University in Moscow. It has been used in many Russian movies—like Solaris—to produce unusual, Hugh Le Caine, John Hanert, Raymond Scott, composer Percy Grainger, and others built a variety of automated electronic-music controllers during the late 1940s and 1950s. In 1959 Daphne Oram produced a method of synthesis, her Oramics technique, driven by drawings on a 35 mm film strip. In 1897 Thaddeus Cahill patented an instrument called the Telharmonium, using tonewheels to generate musical sounds as electrical signals by additive synthesis, it was capable of producing any combination of notes and overtones, at any dynamic level. This technology was used to design the Hammond organ
5.
Keyboard instrument
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A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument played using a keyboard. The most common of these are the piano, organ, and various keyboards, including synthesizers. Other keyboard instruments include celestas, which are struck idiophones operated by a keyboard, and carillons, today, the term keyboard often refers to keyboard-style synthesizers. Another important use of the keyboard is in historical musicology. Particularly in the 18th century, the harpsichord, the clavichord, and the piano were in competition. Hence in a phrase like Mozart excelled as a player the word keyboard is usefully noncommittal. The earliest known keyboard instrument was the Ancient Greek hydraulis, a type of pipe organ, the keys were likely balanced and could be played with a light touch, as is clear from the reference in a Latin poem by Claudian, who says magna levi detrudens murmura tactu. Intent, that is “let him thunder forth as he presses out mighty roarings with a light touch”, from its invention until the fourteenth century, the organ remained the only keyboard instrument. Often, the organ did not feature a keyboard at all, almost every keyboard until the fifteenth century had seven naturals to each octave. The clavichord and the harpsichord appeared during the 14th century—the clavichord probably being earlier, the harpsichord and clavichord were both common until widespread adoption of the piano in the 18th century, after which their popularity decreased. The piano was revolutionary, because a pianist could vary the volume of the sound by varying the vigor with which each key was struck. The pianos full name is gravicèmbalo con piano e forte meaning harpsichord with soft and loud but can be shortened to piano-forte, which means soft-loud in Italian. In its current form, the piano is a product of the late 19th century, in fact, the modern piano is significantly different from even the 19th-century pianos used by Liszt, Chopin, and Brahms. See Piano history and musical performance, keyboard instruments were further developed in the early twentieth century. Early electromechanical instruments, such as the Ondes Martenot, appeared early in the century and this was a very important contribution to the keyboards history. Much effort has gone into creating an instrument that sounds like the piano but lacks its size, the electric piano and electronic piano were early efforts that, while useful instruments in their own right, did not convincingly reproduce the timbre of the piano. Electric and electronic organs were developed during the same period, more recent electronic keyboard designs strive to emulate the sound of specific make and model pianos using digital samples and computer models. Concerns celebrated keyboard players and the various instruments used over the centuries
6.
Synthesizer
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A synthesizer is an electronic musical instrument that generates electric signals that are converted to sound through instrument amplifiers and loudspeakers or headphones. Synthesizers may either imitate instruments like piano, Hammond organ, flute, vocals, natural sounds like ocean waves, etc. or generate new electronic timbres. Synthesizers without built-in controllers are called sound modules, and are controlled via USB, MIDI or CV/gate using a controller device. Synthesizers use various methods to generate electronic signals, synthesizers were first used in pop music in the 1960s. In the 1970s, synths were used in disco, especially in the late 1970s, in the 1980s, the invention of the relatively inexpensive, mass market Yamaha DX7 synth made synthesizers widely available. 1980s pop and dance music often made use of synthesizers. In the 2010s, synthesizers are used in genres of pop, rock. Contemporary classical music composers from the 20th and 21st century write compositions for synthesizer, the beginnings of the synthesizer are difficult to trace, as it is difficult to draw a distinction between synthesizers and some early electric or electronic musical instruments. One of the earliest electric musical instruments, the telegraph, was invented in 1876 by American electrical engineer Elisha Gray. He accidentally discovered the sound generation from a self-vibrating electromechanical circuit and this musical telegraph used steel reeds with oscillations created by electromagnets transmitted over a telegraph line. Gray also built a simple loudspeaker device into later models, consisting of a diaphragm in a magnetic field. This instrument was a remote electromechanical musical instrument that used telegraphy, though it lacked an arbitrary sound-synthesis function, some have erroneously called it the first synthesizer. In 1897, Thaddeus Cahill invented the Teleharmonium, which used dynamos, and was capable of additive synthesis like the Hammond organ, however, Cahills business was unsuccessful for various reasons, and similar but more compact instruments were subsequently developed, such as electronic and tonewheel organs. In 1906, American engineer, Lee De Forest ushered in the electronics age and he invented the first amplifying vacuum tube, called the Audion tube. This led to new entertainment technologies, including radio and sound films, ondes Martenot and Trautonium were continuously developed for several decades, finally developing qualities similar to later synthesizers. In the 1920s, Arseny Avraamov developed various systems of graphic sonic art, in 1938, USSR engineer Yevgeny Murzin designed a compositional tool called ANS, one of the earliest real-time additive synthesizers using optoelectronics. The earliest polyphonic synthesizers were developed in Germany and the United States, during the three years that Hammond manufactured this model,1,069 units were shipped, but production was discontinued at the start of World War II. Both instruments were the forerunners of the electronic organs and polyphonic synthesizers
7.
Digital piano
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It is intended to provide an accurate simulation of an acoustic piano. Some digital pianos are designed to look like an acoustic piano. Digital pianos use either an electronic synthesized emulation of the sound or a sampled piano sound. Digital pianos typically have weighted or semi-weighted keyboards, which attempt to recreate the feel of an acoustic piano, while digital pianos may sometimes fall short of a real piano in feel and sound, they nevertheless have other advantages over acoustic pianos. Digital pianos cost much less than a piano and most models are much smaller and lighter in weight than an acoustic piano. As well, digital pianos do not need to be tuned, since digital pianos produce their sound electronically, the volume can be made louder or softer using a volume control. Digital pianos can be connected to an amplifier or PA system to produce a sound loud enough for a large venue. At the same time, most digital pianos can be played using headphones, some digital pianos can also emulate other sounds besides the piano, the most common ones being pipe organ, electric piano, Hammond organ and harpsichord. Digital pianos are used in school and amateur performances to replace traditional instruments. The following is a list of features that typify the digital piano, Sound level/volume knobs, typically low maintenance, unlike acoustic pianos. Some digital pianos may also have a set of General MIDI implementation. Typically feature weighted keys to mimic the feel of a traditional piano, in addition, most digital pianos often incorporate a simulated key weight mechanism in which the lower notes feel heavier than the higher notes, vaguely replicating the feel of an actual piano. In most implementations, a digital piano produces a variety of piano timbres, some digital pianos incorporate other basic synthesizer sounds such as string ensemble, for example, and offer settings to combine them with piano. In general, the produced by a digital piano are based on sampling. The samples stored in digital pianos are usually of very precision recording and made using high-quality pianos, expensive microphones, ROM may include multiple samples for the same keystroke, attempting to reproduce diversity observed on the real piano, but the number of these recorded alternatives is limited. Sample-based digital pianos do have limitations on the faithfulness with which they reproduce the sound of an acoustic piano and these limitations apply to most acoustic instruments and their sampled counterparts, the difference often being described as visceral. On an acoustic piano, the sustain pedal lifts the dampers for all strings, Digital pianos all have a similar pedal switch to hold notes in suspension, but only high-end models can reproduce the sympathetic resonance effect. Also, because piano sound samples are taken for only a number of intensity levels
8.
Stage piano
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A stage piano is an electronic musical instrument designed for use in live performance on a stage, piano bar or a studio, as well as for music recording in popular music. While stage pianos share some of the features as digital pianos designed for home use and synthesizers. Stage pianos usually provide a number of sounds, with these sounds being of higher quality, unlike regular digital pianos. This enables a performer to remove all the parts and makes it easier to transport the instrument to gigs. Stage pianos usually have a selection of sounds than digital electronic keyboards. Also, instead of scrolling through the on-screen menus used on synthesizers, stage pianos are usually controlled with simple knobs, Stage pianos differ from inexpensive home digital keyboards in a number of ways. Home digital keyboards provide several hundred sounds, ranging from imitation electric piano, however, the imitation sounds are created by relatively simple synthesis methods, rather than by sampling or complex Digital Signal Processing-modelling, as in the case of a high-end stage piano. This means that the quality of presets are not suitable for a professional performance. Stage pianos often have a heavier, more robust body, which is able to withstand the stress of heavy touring. Unlike digital pianos designed for use, they do not have a fixed stand or fixed sustain pedals. Instead, they are designed to be used with a portable stand and portable. This makes stage pianos easier to transport on tours, while small, low-powered amplified speakers may be appropriate for in-home use, they cannot provide sufficient power for on-stage monitoring in rock and jazz performance settings. While most onboard powered speakers produce between 6 and 40 watts per speaker, a professional keyboard amplifier will produce over 300 watts. Nevertheless, some pianos, such as the Yamaha P-250 or Casio Privia. Instead of using tines or strings, stage pianos reproduce sound electronically by the use of sampled or digitally modelled sounds. They usually have MIDI interfaces to permit them to be used as master keyboards, most digital stage pianos have weighted keys or semi-weighted keys. The difference is how much force it will take you to push on the keys, fully weighted keys are designed to replicate the weight and playing action of acoustic piano hammer-action keys - they give a more piano-like feel and better touch control. This type of keys are more expensive than semi-weighted keys and make the instrument heavier to lift, semi-weighted keys save weight, which is an important consideration for a mobile stage piano that will be taken on tour
9.
Electric organ
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An electronic organ is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally, it was designed to imitate the sound of pipe organs, theatre organs, band sounds, or orchestral sounds. In a fashion not totally unlike that of organs, reed organs generated sound by forcing air over a set of reeds by means of a bellows. While reed organs had limited tonal quality, they were small, inexpensive, self-powered, the reed organ was thus able to bring an organlike sound to venues that were incapable of housing or affording pipe organs. This concept was to play an important role in the development of the electric organ, pipe organ In the 1930s, several manufacturers developed electronic organs designed to imitate the function and sound of pipe organs. At the time, some thought that emulation of the pipe organ was the most promising route to take in the development of an electronic organ. Various types of organs have been brought to market over the years. Electricity arrived on the scene in the first decades of the 20th century. Electrically powered reed organs appeared during the first decades of electricity, cahills techniques were later used by Laurens Hammond in his organ design, and the 200-ton Telharmonium served as the worlds first demonstration of electrically produced music on a grand scale. Meanwhile, some experimentation with producing sound by electric impulses was taking place. Built in Belleville, Ontario, the Robb Wave Organ predates its much more successful competitor Hammond by patent and manufacture, the first widespread success in this field was a product of the Hammond Corporation in 1934. The Hammond organ quickly became the successor of the reed organ, from the start, electronic organs operated on a radically different principle from all previous organs. The organ was electrically powered, replacing the reed organs twin bellows pedals with a swell pedal more like that of a pipe organ. Instead of having to pump at a constant rate, as had been the case with the reed organ, from the beginning, the electronic organ had a second manual, also rare among reed organs. The most revolutionary difference in the Hammond, however, was its number of tonewheel settings. By using the drawbars, the organist could combine a variety of tones and harmonics in varying proportions. In all, the Hammond was capable of producing more than 250 million tones, the classic Hammond sound benefitted from the use of free-standing loudspeakers called tone cabinets that produced a higher-quality sound than small built-in speakers. The sound was further enhanced by rotating speaker units, usually manufactured by Leslie
10.
Digital audio workstation
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Regardless of configuration, modern DAWs have a central interface that allows the user to alter and mix multiple recordings and tracks into a final produced piece. DAWs are used for the production and recording of music, radio, television, podcasts, multimedia, early attempts at digital audio workstations in the 1970s and 1980s faced limitations such as the high price of storage, and the vastly slower processing and disk speeds of the time. In 1978, Soundstream built what could be considered the first digital audio workstation using some of the most current computer hardware of the time. Interface cards that plugged into the PDP-11s Unibus slots provided analog and digital input and output for interfacing to Soundstreams digital recorders. The DAP software could perform edits to the recorded on the systems hard disks. By the late 1980s, a number of consumer level computers such as the Apple Macintosh, Atari ST, soon, people began to use them for simple two-track audio editing and CD mastering. This combination of software and hardware was one of the earliest examples of a DAW. Many major recording studios finally went digital after Digidesign introduced its Pro Tools software, modeled after the traditional method, at this time, most DAWs were Apple Mac based. Around 1992, the first Windows based DAWs started to emerge from such as IQS Innovative Quality Software, Soundscape Digital Technology, SADiE, Echo Digital Audio. All the systems at this point used dedicated hardware for their audio processing, in 1993, German company Steinberg released Cubase Audio on Atari Falcon 030. This version brought DSP built-in effects with 8-track audio recording & playback using only native hardware, the first Windows based software-only product, introduced in 1993, was Samplitude Studio. In 1996, Steinberg introduced Cubase VST, which could record, Cubase not only modelled a tape-like interface for recording and editing, but also modelled the entire mixing desk and effects rack common in analog studios. This revolutionised the DAW world, both in features and price tag, and was imitated by most other contemporary DAW systems. An integrated DAW consists of a console, control surface, audio converter. Integrated DAWs were more popular before commonly available personal computers became powerful enough to run DAW software, as computer power and speed increased and price decreased, the popularity of costly integrated systems with console automation dropped. Systems such as the Orban Audicy became standard equipment at radio. This could be as simple as a mouse or as sophisticated as a piano-style MIDI controller keyboard or automated fader board for mixing track volumes, the computer acts as a host for the sound card/audio interface, while the software provides the interface and functionality for audio editing. The software controls all related components and provides a user interface to allow for recording, editing
11.
Audio power amplifier
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This includes both amplifiers used in home audio systems and musical instrument amplifiers like guitar amplifiers. It is the electronic stage in a typical audio playback chain before the signal is sent to the loudspeakers. The inputs can also be any number of sources like record players, CD players, digital audio players. Most audio power amplifiers require these low-level inputs, which are line level, the audio amplifier was invented in 1909 by Lee De Forest when he invented the triode vacuum tube. The triode was a three terminal device with a grid that can modulate the flow of electrons from the filament to the plate. The triode vacuum amplifier was used to make the first AM radio, early audio power amplifiers were based on vacuum tubes and some of these achieved notably high audio quality. Audio power amplifiers based on transistors became practical with the availability of inexpensive transistors in the late 1960s. Since the 1970s, most modern audio amplifiers are based on solid state devices, transistor-based amplifiers are lighter in weight, more reliable and require less maintenance than tube amplifiers. In the 2010s, there are still audio enthusiasts, musicians, audio engineers and music producers who prefer tube-based amplifiers, key design parameters for audio power amplifiers are frequency response, gain, noise, and distortion. These are interdependent, increasing gain often leads to increases in noise. While negative feedback reduces the gain, it also reduces distortion. Most audio amplifiers are linear amplifiers operating in class AB, until the 1970s, most amplifiers were tube amplifiers which used vacuum tubes. During the 1970s, tube amps were increasingly replaced with transistor-based amplifiers, which were lighter in weight, more reliable, one alternative to a separate preamp is to simply use passive volume and switching controls, sometimes integrated into a power amplifier to form an integrated amplifier. The final stage of amplification, after preamplifiers, is the output stage, for this reason, the design choices made around the output device or devices, such as the Class of operation of the output devices is often taken as the description of the whole power amplifier. For example, a Class B amplifier will probably have just the power output devices operating cut off for half of each cycle, while the other devices operate in Class A. In a transformerless output stage, the devices are essentially in series with the supply and output load. For some years following the introduction of solid state amplifiers, their perceived sound did not have the excellent audio quality of the best valve amplifiers and this led audiophiles to believe that tube sound or valve sound had an intrinsic quality due to the vacuum tube technology itself. In 1970, Matti Otala published a paper on the origin of a previously unobserved form of distortion, transient intermodulation distortion, TIM distortion was found to occur during very rapid increases in amplifier output voltage
12.
Loudspeaker
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A loudspeaker is an electroacoustic transducer, which converts an electrical audio signal into a corresponding sound. The most widely used type of speaker in the 2010s is the speaker, invented in 1925 by Edward W. Kellogg. The dynamic speaker operates on the basic principle as a dynamic microphone. Besides this most common method, there are several technologies that can be used to convert an electrical signal into sound. The sound source must be amplified or strengthened with a power amplifier before the signal is sent to the speaker. Speakers are typically housed in an enclosure or speaker cabinet which is often a rectangular or square box made of wood or sometimes plastic. The enclosures materials and design play an important role in the quality of the sound, where high fidelity reproduction of sound is required, multiple loudspeaker transducers are often mounted in the same enclosure, each reproducing a part of the audible frequency range. In this case the individual speakers are referred to as drivers, drivers made for reproducing high audio frequencies are called tweeters, those for middle frequencies are called mid-range drivers, and those for low frequencies are called woofers. Smaller loudspeakers are found in such as radios, televisions, portable audio players, computers. Larger loudspeaker systems are used for music, sound reinforcement in theatres and concerts, the term loudspeaker may refer to individual transducers or to complete speaker systems consisting of an enclosure including one or more drivers. To adequately reproduce a range of frequencies with even coverage, most loudspeaker systems employ more than one driver. Individual drivers are used to different frequency ranges. The drivers are named subwoofers, woofers, mid-range speakers, tweeters, the terms for different speaker drivers differ, depending on the application. In two-way systems there is no mid-range driver, so the task of reproducing the mid-range sounds falls upon the woofer and tweeter, home stereos use the designation tweeter for the high frequency driver, while professional concert systems may designate them as HF or highs. When multiple drivers are used in a system, a network, called a crossover. Loudspeaker driver of the type pictured are termed dynamic to distinguish them from earlier drivers, or speakers using piezoelectric or electrostatic systems, or any of several other sorts. Johann Philipp Reis installed an electric loudspeaker in his telephone in 1861, it was capable of reproducing clear tones, alexander Graham Bell patented his first electric loudspeaker as part of his telephone in 1876, which was followed in 1877 by an improved version from Ernst Siemens. In 1898, Horace Short patented a design for a loudspeaker driven by compressed air, he sold the rights to Charles Parsons
13.
Piano
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The piano is an acoustic, stringed musical instrument invented around the year 1700, in which the strings are struck by hammers. It is played using a keyboard, which is a row of keys that the performer presses down or strikes with the fingers and thumbs of both hands to cause the hammers to strike the strings. The word piano is a form of pianoforte, the Italian term for the early 1700s versions of the instrument. The first fortepianos in the 1700s had a sound and smaller dynamic range. An acoustic piano usually has a wooden case surrounding the soundboard and metal strings. Pressing one or more keys on the keyboard causes a padded hammer to strike the strings. The hammer rebounds from the strings, and the continue to vibrate at their resonant frequency. These vibrations are transmitted through a bridge to a soundboard that amplifies by more efficiently coupling the acoustic energy to the air, when the key is released, a damper stops the strings vibration, ending the sound. Notes can be sustained, even when the keys are released by the fingers and thumbs and this means that the piano can play 88 different pitches, going from the deepest bass range to the highest treble. The black keys are for the accidentals, which are needed to play in all twelve keys, more rarely, some pianos have additional keys. Most notes have three strings, except for the bass that graduates from one to two, the strings are sounded when keys are pressed or struck, and silenced by dampers when the hands are lifted from the keyboard. There are two types of piano, the grand piano and the upright piano. The grand piano is used for Classical solos, chamber music and art song and it is used in jazz. The upright piano, which is compact, is the most popular type, as they are a better size for use in private homes for domestic music-making. During the nineteenth century, music publishers produced many works in arrangements for piano, so that music lovers could play. The piano is widely employed in classical, jazz, traditional and popular music for solo and ensemble performances, accompaniment, with technological advances, amplified electric pianos, electronic pianos, and digital pianos have also been developed. The electric piano became an instrument in the 1960s and 1970s genres of jazz fusion, funk music. The piano was founded on earlier technological innovations in keyboard instruments, pipe organs have been used since Antiquity, and as such, the development of pipe organs enabled instrument builders to learn about creating keyboard mechanisms for sounding pitches
14.
Electric piano
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An electric piano is an electric musical instrument which produces sounds when a performer presses the keys of the piano-style musical keyboard. Unlike a synthesizer, the piano is not an electronic instrument. Instead, it is an electro-mechanical instrument, some early electric pianos used lengths of wire to produce the tone, like a traditional piano. Smaller electric pianos used short slivers of steel to produce the tone, the earliest electric pianos were invented in the late 1920s, the 1929 Neo-Bechstein electric grand piano was among the first. Probably the earliest stringless model was Lloyd Loars Vivi-Tone Clavier, a few other noteworthy producers of electric pianos include Baldwin Piano and Organ Company and the Wurlitzer Company. Early electric piano recordings include Duke Ellingtons in 1955 and Sun Ras India as well as tracks from the 1956 sessions included on his second album Super Sonic Jazz. Another factor driving their development and acceptance was the electrification of popular music. Musicians adopted a number of types of electric pianos for rock. This encouraged their manufacturers to modify them for use and then develop models primarily intended for stage use. However, some performers still perform and record with vintage electric pianos, in 2009, Fender Rhodes produced a new line of electro-mechanical pianos, known as the Rhodes Mark 7 followed by an offering from Vintage Vibe. The Neo-Bechstein electric piano was built in 1929, the Vierlang-Forster electric piano was introduced in 1937. The RCA Storytone electric piano was built in 1939 in a joint venture between Story & Clark and RCA, the case was designed by John Vassos, the American industrial designer. It debuted at the 1939 Worlds Fair, the piano has normal strings and hammer action but no soundboard. The sound is amplified through electromagnetic pickups, circuitry and a speaker system, many types were initially designed as a less-expensive alternative to an acoustic piano for home or school use. Some electric pianos were designed with multiple keyboards for use in school or college piano labs, electric piano is a heterogeneous category encompassing several different instruments which vary in their sound-producing mechanisms and consequent timbral characters. Yamaha, Baldwin, Helpinstill and Kawais electric pianos are actual grand or upright pianos with strings, the Helpinstill models have a traditional soundboard, the others have none, and are more akin to a solid-body electric guitar. On Yamaha, Baldwin and Kawais pianos, the vibration of the strings is converted to a signal by piezoelectric pickups under the bridge. Helpinstills instruments use a set of electromagnetic pickups attached to the instruments frame, all these instruments have a tonal character similar to that of an acoustic piano
15.
Hammond organ
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The Hammond organ is an electric organ, invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Various models have been produced, most of use sliding drawbars to create a variety of sounds. Around two million Hammond organs have been manufactured, the organ is commonly used with, and associated with, the Leslie speaker. The organ was originally marketed and sold by the Hammond Organ Company to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the pipe organ. It quickly became popular with jazz musicians in organ trios. Organ trios were hired by jazz club owners, who found that organ trios were a cheaper alternative to hiring a big band. The Hammond Organ Company struggled financially during the 1970s as they abandoned tonewheel organs and these instruments were not as popular with musicians as the tonewheels had been, and the company went out of business in 1985. The Hammond name was purchased by the Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation and this culminated in the production of the New B-3 in 2002, which provided an accurate recreation of the original B-3 organ using modern digital technology. Hammond-Suzuki continues to manufacture a variety of organs for both players and churches. Other companies, such as Korg, Roland and Clavia, have achieved success in providing emulations of the original tonewheel organs. The sound of a tonewheel Hammond can also be emulated using software such as Native Instruments B4. A number of distinctive Hammond organ features are not usually found on other keyboards like the piano or synthesizer, Some are similar to a pipe organ, but others are unique to the instrument. Most Hammond organs have two 61-note keyboards called manuals, as with pipe organ keyboards, the two manuals are arrayed on two levels close to each other. There is no difference in volume regardless of how heavily or lightly the key is pressed, the keys on each manual have a lightweight action, which allows players to perform rapid passages more easily than on a piano. In contrast to piano and pipe organ keys, Hammond keys have a flat-front profile, Early Hammond console models had sharp edges, but starting with the B-2 these were rounded, as they were cheaper to manufacture. The M series of spinets also had waterfall keys, but later models had diving board style keys which resembled those found on a church organ. Modern Hammond-Suzuki models use waterfall keys, Hammond console organs come with a wooden pedalboard played with the feet, for bass notes. Most console Hammond pedalboards have 25 notes, with the note a low C
16.
Pipe organ
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The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through organ pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre. Most organs have multiple ranks of pipes of differing timbre, pitch, a pipe organ has one or more keyboards played by the hands, and a pedalboard played by the feet, each keyboard has its own group of stops. The keyboard, pedalboard, and stops are housed in the organs console, the smallest portable pipe organs may have only one or two dozen pipes and one manual, the largest may have over 20,000 pipes and seven manuals. A list of some of the most notable and largest pipe organs in the world can be viewed at List of pipe organs. The origins of the organ can be traced back to the water organ in Ancient Greece, in the 3rd century BC. By the 6th or 7th century AD, bellows were used to supply organs with wind, beginning in the 12th century, the organ began to evolve into a complex instrument capable of producing different timbres. A pipe organ with great leaden pipes was sent to the West by the Byzantine emperor Constantine V as a gift to Pepin the Short, King of the Franks, in 757. Pepins son Charlemagne requested a similar organ for his chapel in Aachen in 812, by the 17th century, most of the sounds available on the modern classical organ had been developed. From that time, the organ was the most complex man-made device - a distinction it retained until it was displaced by the telephone exchange in the late 19th century. Pipe organs are installed in churches, synagogues, concert halls, schools and they are used in the performance of classical music, sacred music, secular music, and popular music. The beginning of the 21st century has seen a resurgence in installations in concert halls, the organ boasts a substantial repertoire, which spans over 500 years. The organ is one of the oldest instruments used in European classical music that has commonly been credited as having derived from Greece. Its earliest predecessors were built in Ancient Greece in the 3rd century BC. The word organ is derived from the Greek όργανον, a term for an instrument or a tool, via the Latin organum. The Greek engineer Ctesibius of Alexandria is credited with inventing the organ in the 3rd century BC and he devised an instrument called the hydraulis, which delivered a wind supply maintained through water pressure to a set of pipes. The hydraulis was played in the arenas of the Roman Empire, the 9th century Persian geographer Ibn Khurradadhbih, in his lexicographical discussion of instruments, cited the urghun as one of the typical instruments of the Eastern Roman Empire. It was often used in the Hippodrome in the capital of Constantinople
17.
Violin
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The violin is a wooden string instrument in the violin family. It is the smallest and highest-pitched instrument in the family in regular use, smaller violin-type instruments are known, including the violino piccolo and the kit violin, but these are virtually unused in the 2010s. The violin typically has four strings tuned in fifths, and is most commonly played by drawing a bow across its strings. Violins are important instruments in a variety of musical genres. They are most prominent in the Western classical tradition and in varieties of folk music. They are also used in genres of folk including country music and bluegrass music. Electric violins are used in forms of rock music, further. The violin is sometimes called a fiddle, particularly in Irish traditional music and bluegrass. The violin was first known in 16th-century Italy, with further modifications occurring in the 18th and 19th centuries. In Europe it served as the basis for stringed instruments used in classical music, the viola. According to their reputation, the quality of their sound has defied attempts to explain or equal it, many of these trade instruments were formerly sold by Sears, Roebuck and Co. and other mass merchandisers. A person who makes or repairs violins is called a luthier or violinmaker, the parts of a violin are usually made from different types of wood and on the use of a pickup and an amplifier and speaker). Violins can be strung with gut, Perlon or other synthetic, the earliest stringed instruments were mostly plucked. Similar and variant types were probably disseminated along East-West trading routes from Asia into the Middle East, the first makers of violins probably borrowed from various developments of the Byzantine lira. These included the rebec, the Arabic rebab, the vielle, the earliest pictures of violins, albeit with three strings, are seen in northern Italy around 1530, at around the same time as the words violino and vyollon are seen in Italian and French documents. One of the earliest explicit descriptions of the instrument, including its tuning, is from the Epitome musical by Jambe de Fer, by this time, the violin had already begun to spread throughout Europe. The violin proved very popular, both among street musicians and the nobility, the French king Charles IX ordered Andrea Amati to construct 24 violins for him in 1560, one of these noble instruments, the Charles IX, is the oldest surviving violin. The Messiah or Le Messie made by Antonio Stradivari in 1716 remains pristine and it is now located in the Ashmolean Museum of Oxford
18.
China
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China, officially the Peoples Republic of China, is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the worlds most populous country, with a population of over 1.381 billion. The state is governed by the Communist Party of China and its capital is Beijing, the countrys major urban areas include Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Hong Kong. China is a power and a major regional power within Asia. Chinas landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from forest steppes, the Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third and sixth longest in the world, respectively, Chinas coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 kilometers long and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China emerged as one of the worlds earliest civilizations in the basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. For millennia, Chinas political system was based on hereditary monarchies known as dynasties, in 1912, the Republic of China replaced the last dynasty and ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949, when it was defeated by the communist Peoples Liberation Army in the Chinese Civil War. The Communist Party established the Peoples Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949, both the ROC and PRC continue to claim to be the legitimate government of all China, though the latter has more recognition in the world and controls more territory. China had the largest economy in the world for much of the last two years, during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline. Since the introduction of reforms in 1978, China has become one of the worlds fastest-growing major economies. As of 2016, it is the worlds second-largest economy by nominal GDP, China is also the worlds largest exporter and second-largest importer of goods. China is a nuclear weapons state and has the worlds largest standing army. The PRC is a member of the United Nations, as it replaced the ROC as a permanent member of the U. N. Security Council in 1971. China is also a member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the WTO, APEC, BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the BCIM, the English name China is first attested in Richard Edens 1555 translation of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa. The demonym, that is, the name for the people, Portuguese China is thought to derive from Persian Chīn, and perhaps ultimately from Sanskrit Cīna. Cīna was first used in early Hindu scripture, including the Mahābhārata, there are, however, other suggestions for the derivation of China. The official name of the state is the Peoples Republic of China. The shorter form is China Zhōngguó, from zhōng and guó and it was then applied to the area around Luoyi during the Eastern Zhou and then to Chinas Central Plain before being used as an occasional synonym for the state under the Qing
19.
Japan
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Japan is a sovereign island nation in Eastern Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies off the eastern coast of the Asia Mainland and stretches from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea, the kanji that make up Japans name mean sun origin. 日 can be read as ni and means sun while 本 can be read as hon, or pon, Japan is often referred to by the famous epithet Land of the Rising Sun in reference to its Japanese name. Japan is an archipelago consisting of about 6,852 islands. The four largest are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku, the country is divided into 47 prefectures in eight regions. Hokkaido being the northernmost prefecture and Okinawa being the southernmost one, the population of 127 million is the worlds tenth largest. Japanese people make up 98. 5% of Japans total population, approximately 9.1 million people live in the city of Tokyo, the capital of Japan. Archaeological research indicates that Japan was inhabited as early as the Upper Paleolithic period, the first written mention of Japan is in Chinese history texts from the 1st century AD. Influence from other regions, mainly China, followed by periods of isolation, from the 12th century until 1868, Japan was ruled by successive feudal military shoguns who ruled in the name of the Emperor. Japan entered into a period of isolation in the early 17th century. The Second Sino-Japanese War of 1937 expanded into part of World War II in 1941, which came to an end in 1945 following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan is a member of the UN, the OECD, the G7, the G8, the country has the worlds third-largest economy by nominal GDP and the worlds fourth-largest economy by purchasing power parity. It is also the worlds fourth-largest exporter and fourth-largest importer, although Japan has officially renounced its right to declare war, it maintains a modern military with the worlds eighth-largest military budget, used for self-defense and peacekeeping roles. Japan is a country with a very high standard of living. Its population enjoys the highest life expectancy and the third lowest infant mortality rate in the world, in ancient China, Japan was called Wo 倭. It was mentioned in the third century Chinese historical text Records of the Three Kingdoms in the section for the Wei kingdom, Wa became disliked because it has the connotation of the character 矮, meaning dwarf. The 倭 kanji has been replaced with the homophone Wa, meaning harmony, the Japanese word for Japan is 日本, which is pronounced Nippon or Nihon and literally means the origin of the sun. The earliest record of the name Nihon appears in the Chinese historical records of the Tang dynasty, at the start of the seventh century, a delegation from Japan introduced their country as Nihon
20.
India
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India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and it is bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast. It shares land borders with Pakistan to the west, China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the northeast, in the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Indias Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a border with Thailand. The Indian subcontinent was home to the urban Indus Valley Civilisation of the 3rd millennium BCE, in the following millennium, the oldest scriptures associated with Hinduism began to be composed. Social stratification, based on caste, emerged in the first millennium BCE, early political consolidations took place under the Maurya and Gupta empires, the later peninsular Middle Kingdoms influenced cultures as far as southeast Asia. In the medieval era, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived, much of the north fell to the Delhi sultanate, the south was united under the Vijayanagara Empire. The economy expanded in the 17th century in the Mughal empire, in the mid-18th century, the subcontinent came under British East India Company rule, and in the mid-19th under British crown rule. A nationalist movement emerged in the late 19th century, which later, under Mahatma Gandhi, was noted for nonviolent resistance, in 2015, the Indian economy was the worlds seventh largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power parity. Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the major economies and is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, corruption, malnutrition, a nuclear weapons state and regional power, it has the third largest standing army in the world and ranks sixth in military expenditure among nations. India is a constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system. It is a pluralistic, multilingual and multi-ethnic society and is home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu, the latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu, which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River. The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi, which translates as The people of the Indus, the geographical term Bharat, which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in its variations. Scholars believe it to be named after the Vedic tribe of Bharatas in the second millennium B. C. E and it is also traditionally associated with the rule of the legendary emperor Bharata. Gaṇarājya is the Sanskrit/Hindi term for republic dating back to the ancient times, hindustan is a Persian name for India dating back to the 3rd century B. C. E. It was introduced into India by the Mughals and widely used since then and its meaning varied, referring to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan or India in its entirety
21.
Southeast Asia
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Southeast Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies near the intersection of geological plates, with seismic and volcanic activity. Southeast Asia consists of two regions, Mainland Southeast Asia, also known historically as Indochina, comprising Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar. Maritime Southeast Asia, comprising Indonesia, East Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, East Timor, Brunei, Cocos Islands, definitions of Southeast Asia vary, but most definitions include the area represented by the countries listed below. All of the states are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the area, together with part of South Asia, was widely known as the East Indies or simply the Indies until the 20th century. Sovereignty issues exist over some territories in the South China Sea, Papua New Guinea has stated that it might join ASEAN, and is currently an observer. Southeast Asia is geographically divided into two subregions, namely Mainland Southeast Asia and Maritime Southeast Asia, Mainland Southeast Asia includes, Maritime Southeast Asia includes, The Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India are geographically considered part of Southeast Asia. Eastern Bangladesh and the Seven Sister States of India are culturally part of Southeast Asia, the eastern half of Indonesia and East Timor are considered to be biogeographically part of Oceania. Homo sapiens reached the region by around 45,000 years ago, homo floresiensis also lived in the area up until 12,000 years ago, when they became extinct. Austronesian people, who form the majority of the population in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, East Timor. Solheim and others have shown evidence for a Nusantao maritime trading network ranging from Vietnam to the rest of the archipelago as early as 5000 BC to 1 AD. The peoples of Southeast Asia, especially those of Austronesian descent, have been seafarers for thousands of years and their vessels, such as the vinta, were ocean-worthy. Magellans voyage records how much more manoeuvrable their vessels were, as compared to the European ships, Passage through the Indian Ocean aided the colonisation of Madagascar by the Austronesian people, as well as commerce between West Asia and Southeast Asia. Gold from Sumatra is thought to have reached as far west as Rome and this was later replaced by Hinduism. Theravada Buddhism soon followed in 525, in the 15th century, Islamic influences began to enter. This forced the last Hindu court in Indonesia to retreat to Bali, in Mainland Southeast Asia, Burma, Cambodia and Thailand retained the Theravada form of Buddhism, brought to them from Sri Lanka. This type of Buddhism was fused with the Hindu-influenced Khmer culture, very little is known about Southeast Asian religious beliefs and practices before the advent of Indian merchants and religious influences from the 2nd century BCE onwards. Prior to the 13th century CE, Hinduism and Buddhism were the religions in Southeast Asia
22.
Indonesia
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Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a unitary sovereign state and transcontinental country located mainly in Southeast Asia with some territories in Oceania. Situated between the Indian and Pacific oceans, it is the worlds largest island country, with more than seventeen thousand islands. At 1,904,569 square kilometres, Indonesia is the worlds 14th-largest country in terms of area and worlds 7th-largest country in terms of combined sea. It has an population of over 260 million people and is the worlds fourth most populous country. The worlds most populous island, Java, contains more than half of the countrys population, Indonesias republican form of government includes an elected legislature and president. Indonesia has 34 provinces, of which five have Special Administrative status and its capital and countrys most populous city is Jakarta, which is also the most populous city in Southeast Asia and the second in Asia. The country shares land borders with Papua New Guinea, East Timor, other neighbouring countries include Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, Australia, Palau, and the Indian territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Despite its large population and densely populated regions, Indonesia has vast areas of wilderness that support the second highest level of biodiversity. The country has abundant natural resources like oil and natural gas, tin, copper, agriculture mainly produces rice, palm oil, tea, coffee, cacao, medicinal plants, spices and rubber. Indonesias major trading partners are Japan, United States, China, the Indonesian archipelago has been an important region for trade since at least the 7th century, when Srivijaya and then later Majapahit traded with China and India. Local rulers gradually absorbed foreign cultural, religious and political models from the early centuries CE, Indonesian history has been influenced by foreign powers drawn to its natural resources. Indonesia consists of hundreds of native ethnic and linguistic groups. The largest – and politically dominant – ethnic group are the Javanese, a shared identity has developed, defined by a national language, ethnic diversity, religious pluralism within a Muslim-majority population, and a history of colonialism and rebellion against it. Indonesias national motto, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, articulates the diversity that shapes the country, Indonesias economy is the worlds 16th largest by nominal GDP and the 8th largest by GDP at PPP, the largest in Southeast Asia, and is considered an emerging market and newly industrialised country. Indonesia has been a member of the United Nations since 1950, Indonesia is a member of the G20 major economies and World Trade Organization. The name Indonesia derives from the Greek name of the Indós, the name dates to the 18th century, far predating the formation of independent Indonesia. In 1850, George Windsor Earl, an English ethnologist, proposed the terms Indunesians—and, his preference, in the same publication, one of his students, James Richardson Logan, used Indonesia as a synonym for Indian Archipelago. However, Dutch academics writing in East Indies publications were reluctant to use Indonesia, they preferred Malay Archipelago, the Netherlands East Indies, popularly Indië, the East, and Insulinde
23.
Vietnam
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Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. With an estimated 92.7 million inhabitants as of 2016, it is the worlds 14th-most-populous country, and its capital city has been Hanoi since the reunification of North and South Vietnam in 1976, with Ho Chi Minh City as a historical city as well. The northern part of Vietnam was part of Imperial China for over a millennium, an independent Vietnamese state was formed in 939, following a Vietnamese victory in the Battle of Bạch Đằng River. Following a Japanese occupation in the 1940s, the Vietnamese fought French rule in the First Indochina War, thereafter, Vietnam was divided politically into two rival states, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam. Conflict between the two sides intensified in what is known as the Vietnam War, the war ended with a North Vietnamese victory in 1975. Vietnam was then unified under a communist government but remained impoverished, in 1986, the government initiated a series of economic and political reforms which began Vietnams path towards integration into the world economy. By 2000, it had established relations with all nations. Since 2000, Vietnams economic growth rate has been among the highest in the world and its successful economic reforms resulted in its joining the World Trade Organization in 2007. It is also a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, Vietnam remains one of the worlds four remaining one-party socialist states officially espousing communism. The name Việt Nam is a variation of Nam Việt, a name that can be traced back to the Triệu Dynasty of the 2nd century BC. The word Việt originated as a form of Bách Việt. The form Vietnam is first recorded in the 16th-century oracular poem Sấm Trạng Trình, the name has also been found on 12 steles carved in the 16th and 17th centuries, including one at Bao Lam Pagoda in Haiphong that dates to 1558. Then, as recorded, rewarded Yuenan/Vietnam as their nations name, to also show that they are below the region of Baiyue/Bach Viet. Between 1804 and 1813, the name was used officially by Emperor Gia Long and it was revived in the early 20th century by Phan Bội Châus History of the Loss of Vietnam, and later by the Vietnamese Nationalist Party. The country was usually called Annam until 1945, when both the government in Huế and the Viet Minh government in Hanoi adopted Việt Nam. Archaeological excavations have revealed the existence of humans in what is now Vietnam as early as the Paleolithic age, Homo erectus fossils dating to around 500,000 BC have been found in caves in Lạng Sơn and Nghệ An provinces in northern Vietnam. The oldest Homo sapiens fossils from mainland Southeast Asia are of Middle Pleistocene provenance, teeth attributed to Homo sapiens from the Late Pleistocene have also been found at Dong Can, and from the Early Holocene at Mai Da Dieu, Lang Gao and Lang Cuom. The Hồng Bàng dynasty of the Hùng kings is considered the first Vietnamese state, in 257 BC, the last Hùng king was defeated by Thục Phán, who consolidated the Lạc Việt and Âu Việt tribes to form the Âu Lạc, proclaiming himself An Dương Vương
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Thailand
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Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand, formerly known as Siam, is a country at the centre of the Indochinese peninsula in Southeast Asia. With a total area of approximately 513,000 km2, Thailand is the worlds 51st-largest country and it is the 20th-most-populous country in the world, with around 66 million people. The capital and largest city is Bangkok, Thailand is a constitutional monarchy and has switched between parliamentary democracy and military junta for decades, the latest coup being in May 2014 by the National Council for Peace and Order. Its capital and most populous city is Bangkok and its maritime boundaries include Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast, and Indonesia and India on the Andaman Sea to the southwest. The Thai economy is the worlds 20th largest by GDP at PPP and it became a newly industrialised country and a major exporter in the 1990s. Manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism are leading sectors of the economy and it is considered a middle power in the region and around the world. The country has always been called Mueang Thai by its citizens, by outsiders prior to 1949, it was usually known by the exonym Siam. The word Siam has been identified with the Sanskrit Śyāma, the names Shan and A-hom seem to be variants of the same word. The word Śyâma is possibly not its origin, but a learned, another theory is the name derives from Chinese, Ayutthaya emerged as a dominant centre in the late fourteenth century. The Chinese called this region Xian, which the Portuguese converted into Siam, the signature of King Mongkut reads SPPM Mongkut King of the Siamese, giving the name Siam official status until 24 June 1939 when it was changed to Thailand. Thailand was renamed Siam from 1945 to 11 May 1949, after which it reverted to Thailand. According to George Cœdès, the word Thai means free man in the Thai language, ratcha Anachak Thai means kingdom of Thailand or kingdom of Thai. Etymologically, its components are, ratcha, -ana- -chak, the Thai National Anthem, written by Luang Saranupraphan during the extremely patriotic 1930s, refers to the Thai nation as, prathet Thai. The first line of the anthem is, prathet thai ruam lueat nuea chat chuea thai, Thailand is the unity of Thai flesh. There is evidence of habitation in Thailand that has been dated at 40,000 years before the present. Similar to other regions in Southeast Asia, Thailand was heavily influenced by the culture and religions of India, Thailand in its earliest days was under the rule of the Khmer Empire, which had strong Hindu roots, and the influence among Thais remains even today. Voretzsch believes that Buddhism must have been flowing into Siam from India in the time of the Indian Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Empire, later Thailand was influenced by the south Indian Pallava dynasty and north Indian Gupta Empire. The Menam Basin was originally populated by the Mons, and the location of Dvaravati in the 7th century, the History of the Yuan mentions an embassy from the kingdom of Sukhothai in 1282
25.
Organ (music)
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In music, the organ is a keyboard instrument of one or more pipe divisions, each played with its own keyboard, played either with the hands on a keyboard or with the feet using pedals. The organ is an old musical instrument, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria. It was played throughout the Ancient Greek and Ancient Roman world, subsequently it re-emerged as a secular and recital instrument in the Classical music tradition. Pipe organs use air moving through pipes to produce sounds, since the 16th century, pipe organs have used various materials for pipes, which can vary widely in timbre and volume. The pipes are divided into ranks and controlled by the use of hand stops, although the keyboard is not expressive as on a piano and does not affect dynamics, some divisions may be enclosed in a swell box, allowing the dynamics to be controlled by shutters. Some organs are enclosed, meaning that all the divisions can be controlled by one set of shutters. Some special registers with free reed pipes are expressive and these instruments vary greatly in size, ranging from a cubic yard to a height reaching five floors, and are built in churches, synagogues, concert halls, and homes. Small organs are called positive or portative, increasingly hybrid organs are appearing in which pipes are augmented with electronic additions. Great economies of space and cost are possible especially when the lowest of the pipes can be replaced, non-piped organs include the reed organ or harmonium, which like the accordion and harmonica use air to excite free reeds. Electronic organs or digital organs, notably the Hammond organ, generate electronically produced sound through one or more loudspeakers, mechanical organs include the barrel organ, water organ, and Orchestrion. These are controlled by means such as pinned barrels or book music. Little barrel organs dispense with the hands of an organist and bigger organs are powered in most cases by a grinder or today by other means such as an electric motor. The pipe organ is the grandest musical instrument in size and scope, along with the clock, it was considered one of the most complex human-made mechanical creations before the Industrial Revolution. Pipe organs range in size from a short keyboard to huge instruments with over 10,000 pipes. A large modern organ typically has three or four keyboards with five each, and a two-and-a-half octave pedal board. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart called the organ the King of instruments, some of the biggest instruments have 64-foot pipes, and it sounds to an 8 Hz frequency fundamental tone. For instance, the Wanamaker organ, located in Philadelphia, USA, has sonic resources comparable with three simultaneous symphony orchestras, most organs in Europe, the Americas, and Australasia can be found in Christian churches. The introduction of organs is traditionally attributed to Pope Vitalian in the 7th century
26.
Russia
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Russia, also officially the Russian Federation, is a country in Eurasia. The European western part of the country is more populated and urbanised than the eastern. Russias capital Moscow is one of the largest cities in the world, other urban centers include Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod. Extending across the entirety of Northern Asia and much of Eastern Europe, Russia spans eleven time zones and incorporates a range of environments. It shares maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk, the East Slavs emerged as a recognizable group in Europe between the 3rd and 8th centuries AD. Founded and ruled by a Varangian warrior elite and their descendants, in 988 it adopted Orthodox Christianity from the Byzantine Empire, beginning the synthesis of Byzantine and Slavic cultures that defined Russian culture for the next millennium. Rus ultimately disintegrated into a number of states, most of the Rus lands were overrun by the Mongol invasion. The Soviet Union played a role in the Allied victory in World War II. The Soviet era saw some of the most significant technological achievements of the 20th century, including the worlds first human-made satellite and the launching of the first humans in space. By the end of 1990, the Soviet Union had the second largest economy, largest standing military in the world. It is governed as a federal semi-presidential republic, the Russian economy ranks as the twelfth largest by nominal GDP and sixth largest by purchasing power parity in 2015. Russias extensive mineral and energy resources are the largest such reserves in the world, making it one of the producers of oil. The country is one of the five recognized nuclear weapons states and possesses the largest stockpile of weapons of mass destruction, Russia is a great power as well as a regional power and has been characterised as a potential superpower. The name Russia is derived from Rus, a state populated mostly by the East Slavs. However, this name became more prominent in the later history, and the country typically was called by its inhabitants Русская Земля. In order to distinguish this state from other states derived from it, it is denoted as Kievan Rus by modern historiography, an old Latin version of the name Rus was Ruthenia, mostly applied to the western and southern regions of Rus that were adjacent to Catholic Europe. The current name of the country, Россия, comes from the Byzantine Greek designation of the Kievan Rus, the standard way to refer to citizens of Russia is Russians in English and rossiyane in Russian. There are two Russian words which are translated into English as Russians
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Russian language
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Russian is an East Slavic language and an official language in Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and many minor or unrecognised territories. Russian belongs to the family of Indo-European languages and is one of the four living members of the East Slavic languages, written examples of Old East Slavonic are attested from the 10th century and beyond. It is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia and the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages and it is also the largest native language in Europe, with 144 million native speakers in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Russian is the eighth most spoken language in the world by number of native speakers, the language is one of the six official languages of the United Nations. Russian is also the second most widespread language on the Internet after English, Russian distinguishes between consonant phonemes with palatal secondary articulation and those without, the so-called soft and hard sounds. This distinction is found between pairs of almost all consonants and is one of the most distinguishing features of the language, another important aspect is the reduction of unstressed vowels. Russian is a Slavic language of the Indo-European family and it is a lineal descendant of the language used in Kievan Rus. From the point of view of the language, its closest relatives are Ukrainian, Belarusian, and Rusyn. An East Slavic Old Novgorod dialect, although vanished during the 15th or 16th century, is considered to have played a significant role in the formation of modern Russian. In the 19th century, the language was often called Great Russian to distinguish it from Belarusian, then called White Russian and Ukrainian, however, the East Slavic forms have tended to be used exclusively in the various dialects that are experiencing a rapid decline. In some cases, both the East Slavic and the Church Slavonic forms are in use, with different meanings. For details, see Russian phonology and History of the Russian language and it is also regarded by the United States Intelligence Community as a hard target language, due to both its difficulty to master for English speakers and its critical role in American world policy. The standard form of Russian is generally regarded as the modern Russian literary language, mikhail Lomonosov first compiled a normalizing grammar book in 1755, in 1783 the Russian Academys first explanatory Russian dictionary appeared. By the mid-20th century, such dialects were forced out with the introduction of the education system that was established by the Soviet government. Despite the formalization of Standard Russian, some nonstandard dialectal features are observed in colloquial speech. Thus, the Russian language is the 6th largest in the world by number of speakers, after English, Mandarin, Hindi/Urdu, Spanish, Russian is one of the six official languages of the United Nations. Education in Russian is still a choice for both Russian as a second language and native speakers in Russia as well as many of the former Soviet republics. Russian is still seen as an important language for children to learn in most of the former Soviet republics, samuel P. Huntington wrote in the Clash of Civilizations, During the heyday of the Soviet Union, Russian was the lingua franca from Prague to Hanoi
28.
Musical keyboard
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A musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument. Depressing a key on the causes the instrument to produce sounds, either by mechanically striking a string or tine, plucking a string, causing air to flow through a pipe. On electric and electronic keyboards, depressing a key connects a circuit, since the most commonly encountered keyboard instrument is the piano, the keyboard layout is often referred to as the piano keyboard. The twelve notes of the Western musical scale are laid out with the lowest note on the left, because these keys were traditionally covered in ivory they are often called the white notes or white keys. The keys for the remaining five notes—which are not part of the C major scale— are raised, because these keys receive less wear, they are often made of black colored wood and called the black notes or black keys. The pattern repeats at the interval of an octave, the arrangement of longer keys for C major with intervening, shorter keys for the intermediate semitones dates to the 15th century. The break was between middle C and C-sharp, or outside of Iberia between B and C, broken keyboards reappeared in 1842 with the harmonium, the split occurring at E4/F4. The reverse-colored keys on Hammond organs such as the B3, C3, the chromatic compass of keyboard instruments has tended to increase. Harpsichords often extended over five octaves in the 18th century, while most pianos manufactured since about 1870 have 88 keys, some modern pianos have even more notes. While modern synthesizer keyboards commonly have either 61,76 or 88 keys, organs normally have 61 keys per manual, though some spinet models have 44 or 49. An organ pedalboard is a keyboard with long pedals that are played by the organists feet, pedalboards vary in size from 12 to 32 notes. In a typical layout, black note keys have uniform width. In the larger gaps between the keys, the width of the natural notes C, D and E differ slightly from the width of keys F, G, A and B. This allows close to uniform spacing of 12 keys per octave while maintaining uniformity of seven natural keys per octave, over the last three hundred years, the octave span distance found on historical keyboard instruments has ranged from as little as 125 mm to as much as 170 mm. Several reduced-size standards have been proposed and marketed, a 15/16 size and the 7/8 DS Standard keyboard developed by Christopher Donison in the 1970s and developed and marketed by Steinbuhler & Company. There have been variations in the design of the keyboard to address technical and musical issues, thus, an octave would have eight white keys and only four black keys. During the sixteenth century, when instruments were tuned in meantone temperament, some harpsichords were constructed with the G♯. The broken octave, a variation of the short octave
29.
Keyboard matrix circuit
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A keyboard matrix circuit is a design used in most electronic musical keyboards and computer keyboards in which the key switches are connected by a grid of wires. For example,16 wires arranged in 8 rows and 8 columns can connect 64 keys — sufficient for a full five octaves of range, by scanning these crossings, a keyboard controller can determine which keys are currently pressed. Without a matrix circuit, a 61-key keyboard for a synthesizer, electronic organ, with a matrix circuit, any of 61 notes can be determined with only 16 wires. This is drawn schematically as a matrix of 8 columns and 8 rows of wires, the keyboard controller scans the columns. If a key has been pressed, the controller scans the rows —, the controller determines the row-column combination at which a key has been pressed, and generates a note corresponding to that key. This process occurs so quickly that the performer is unaware of any delay, there are at least two limitations with this system. The first is that it only a crude binary on/off signal for each key. Better electronic keyboards employ two sets of switches for each key that are slightly offset, by determining the timing between the activation of the first and second switches, the velocity of a key press can be determined — greatly improving the performance dynamic of a keyboard. The second is that instruments with a circuit can only play in a monophonic fashion without the addition of a diode for each key crossing. The diode is a valve which prevents unwanted notes from being triggered. Monophonic instruments and most low-cost computer keyboards reduce costs by leaving out most or all of those diodes, to avoid phantom keys, the keyboard controller in modern low-cost computer keyboards will ignore further key presses once two keys have been pressed, which is known as jamming. The matrix circuit approach is used in non-musical keyboards, such as in the keypads for calculators. The same matrix circuit approach is used in many pinball machines. Often in pocket calculators the multiplexed digit drive lines would be used to scan the keyboard as well, polyphony Musical keyboard Keyboard Crossbar switch Charlieplexing
30.
Sound module
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A sound module is an electronic musical instrument without a human-playable interface such as a keyboard. Sound modules have to be operated using a connected device. Controllers are devices that provides the interface and may or may not produce sounds of its own. Another common way of controlling a sound module is through a sequencer, connections between sound modules, controllers, and sequencers are generally made with MIDI, which is a standardized protocol designed for this purpose. Sound modules may use any number of technologies to produce their sounds. A sound module may be a synthesizer, drum modules are sound modules which specialize in percussion sounds. Drum modules may be triggered by external trigger pads or pickups as well as through MIDI, drum modules are distinguished from drum machines through their lack of dedicated on-board triggers and lack of an integrated sequencer. Sound modules are often rack-mountable, but might also have a form factor. The height of a module is often described in U or unit. Small sound modules are mostly 1U in height, the models a multiplication e. g. 2U or 3U. Because most electronic instruments are designed in a way, manufacturers often release a sound module version of their fully integrated instruments. A sound module may have all the features of the controller-equipped version. In this case, sounds can be loaded through MIDI or external media, in some cases, sound modules have expanded capacity for sounds in comparison to the controller-equipped version. In the 2010s, hardware sound modules have largely replaced with software equivalents, due to the increased speed and processing power of computers. Nevertheless, some DJs and EDM musicians continue to use vintage 1980s sound modules for their unique sound, a sound module may also be referred to as tone generator, synth module, MIDI sound generator or rack-mount synthesizer. With electronic drums, the module is colloquially called the brain. Many professional studios have a MIDI stage piano on hand, expandability — many sound modules can be expanded with sounds and memory. Troubleshooting – if a sound module develops problems, just this one unit can be removed for repair or replacement, obsolescence cycles — when it becomes obsolete, a sound module can be replaced without changing a favorite controller, or vice versa. Roland MKS20, Piano sound module used by acts in the 80s to early 90s
31.
Read-only memory
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Read-only memory is a type of non-volatile memory used in computers and other electronic devices. Data stored in ROM can only be modified slowly, with difficulty, or not at all, strictly, read-only memory refers to memory that is hard-wired, such as diode matrix and the later mask ROM, which cannot be changed after manufacture. Although discrete circuits can be altered in principle, integrated circuits cannot and that such memory can never be changed is a disadvantage in many applications, as bugs and security issues cannot be fixed, and new features cannot be added. More recently, ROM has come to include memory that is read-only in normal operation, the simplest type of solid-state ROM is as old as the semiconductor technology itself. Combinational logic gates can be joined manually to map n-bit address input onto arbitrary values of m-bit data output, with the invention of the integrated circuit came mask ROM. In mask ROM, the data is encoded in the circuit. This leads to a number of disadvantages, It is only economical to buy mask ROM in large quantities. The turnaround time between completing the design for a mask ROM and receiving the finished product is long, for the same reason, mask ROM is impractical for R&D work since designers frequently need to modify the contents of memory as they refine a design. If a product is shipped with faulty mask ROM, the way to fix it is to recall the product. Subsequent developments have addressed these shortcomings, PROM, invented in 1956, allowed users to program its contents exactly once by physically altering its structure with the application of high-voltage pulses. This addressed problems 1 and 2 above, since a company can order a large batch of fresh PROM chips. The 1971 invention of EPROM essentially solved problem 3, since EPROM can be reset to its unprogrammed state by exposure to strong ultraviolet light. All of these technologies improved the flexibility of ROM, but at a significant cost-per-chip, rewriteable technologies were envisioned as replacements for mask ROM. The most recent development is NAND flash, also invented at Toshiba, as of 2007, NAND has partially achieved this goal by offering throughput comparable to hard disks, higher tolerance of physical shock, extreme miniaturization, and much lower power consumption. Every stored-program computer may use a form of storage to store the initial program that runs when the computer is powered on or otherwise begins execution. Likewise, every non-trivial computer needs some form of memory to record changes in its state as it executes. Forms of read-only memory were employed as non-volatile storage for programs in most early stored-program computers, consequently, ROM could be implemented at a lower cost-per-bit than RAM for many years. Most home computers of the 1980s stored a BASIC interpreter or operating system in ROM as other forms of storage such as magnetic disk drives were too costly
32.
AC adapter
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An AC adapter, AC/DC adapter, or AC/DC converter is a type of external power supply, often enclosed in a case similar to an AC plug. Other common names include plug pack, plug-in adapter, adapter block, domestic mains adapter, line power adapter, wall wart, power brick, adapters for battery-powered equipment may be described as chargers or rechargers. AC adapters are used with devices that require power but do not contain internal components to derive the required voltage. The internal circuitry of a power supply is very similar to the design that would be used for a built-in or internal supply. Size and weight of the device was largely determined by the transformer, ratings over a few watts made the devices too large and heavy to be physically supported by a wall outlet. The output voltage of these adapters varied with load, for equipment requiring a stable voltage. Losses in the transformer and the regulator were considerable, efficiency was relatively low. In the early twenty-first century, switched-mode power supplies became almost ubiquitous for this purpose, mains voltage is rectified to a high direct voltage driving a switching circuit, which contains a transformer operating at a high frequency and outputs direct current at the desired voltage. The high-frequency ripple is more easily filtered out than mains-frequency, the high frequency allows the transformer to be small, which reduces its losses, and the switching regulator can be much more efficient than a linear regulator. The result is a more efficient, smaller, and lighter device. Safety is ensured, as in the linear circuit, because there is still a transformer which electrically isolates the output from the mains. However, unless very carefully designed and using suitable components, switching adapters are more likely to fail than the type, due in part to complex circuitry. Unless designed well, these adapters may be damaged by overloads, even transient ones. A very common mode of failure is due to the use of electrolytic capacitors whose equivalent series resistance increases with age, well-designed circuits pay attention to the ESR, ripple current rating, pulse operation, and temperature rating of capacitors. External AC adapters are used to power small or portable electronic devices. The advantages include, Safety – External power adapters can free product designers from worrying about some safety issues, much of this style of equipment uses only voltages low enough not to be a safety hazard internally, although the power supply must out of necessity use dangerous mains voltage. If an external power supply is used, the equipment need not be designed with concern for hazardous voltages inside the enclosure and this is particularly relevant for equipment with lightweight cases which may break and expose internal electrical parts. Heat reduction – Heat reduces reliability and longevity of electronic components, a separate power supply removes a source of heat from the apparatus
33.
Drum machine
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A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums, cymbals, other percussion instruments, and often basslines. Drum machines are most commonly associated with electronic music such as house music. They are usually used when session drummers are not available or if the production cannot afford the cost of a drummer. Also, many modern drum machines can also produce sounds, as well as allowing the user to compose unique drum beats. In the 2010s, most modern machines are sequencers with a sample playback or synthesizer component that specializes in the reproduction of drum timbres. The invention could produce sixteen different rhythms, each associated with a pitch, either individually or in any combination, including en masse. Received with considerable interest when it was introduced in 1932. The next generation of rhythm machines played only pre-programmed rhythms such as mambo, tango, Chamberlin Rhythmate In 1957 Californian Harry Chamberlin constructed a tape loop-based drum machine called the Chamberlin Rhythmate. It had 14 tape loops with a head that allowed playback of different tracks on each piece of tape. It contained a volume and a control and also had a separate amplifier with bass, treble, and volume controls. The tape loops were of real acoustic jazz drum kits playing different style beats, with additions to tracks such as bongos, clave, castanets. First commercial product – Wurlitzer Side Man In 1959 Wurlitzer released a drum machine called the Side Man. The Side Man was intended as an accompaniment for the Wurlitzer organ range. The Side Man offered a choice of 12 electronically generated, predefined rhythm patterns with variable tempos, the sound source was a series of vacuum tubes which created 10 preset electronic drum sounds. Combinations of these different sets of rhythms and drum sounds created popular rhythmic patterns of the day, e. g. waltzes and these combinations were selected by a rotary knob on the top of the Side Man box. The tempo of the patterns was controlled by a slider that increased the speed of rotation of the wiper arm, the Side Man had a panel of 10 buttons for manually triggering drum sounds, and a remote player to control the machine while playing from an organ keyboard. The Side Man was housed in a cabinet that contained the sound-generating circuitry. Raymond Scott In 1960, Raymond Scott constructed the Rhythm Synthesizer and, in 1963, scotts machines were used for recording his album Soothing Sounds for Baby series
34.
USB
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It is currently developed by the USB Implementers Forum. USB was designed to standardize the connection of peripherals to personal computers. It has become commonplace on other devices, such as smartphones, PDAs, USB has effectively replaced a variety of earlier interfaces, such as serial ports and parallel ports, as well as separate power chargers for portable devices. Also, there are 5 modes of USB data transfer, in order of increasing bandwidth, Low Speed, Full Speed, High Speed, SuperSpeed, USB devices have some choice of implemented modes, and USB version is not a reliable statement of implemented modes. Modes are identified by their names and icons, and the specifications suggests that plugs, unlike other data buses, USB connections are directed, with both upstream and downstream ports emanating from a single host. This applies to power, with only downstream facing ports providing power. Thus, USB cables have different ends, A and B, therefore, in general, each different format requires four different connectors, a plug and receptacle for each of the A and B ends. USB cables have the plugs, and the corresponding receptacles are on the computers or electronic devices, in common practice, the A end is usually the standard format, and the B side varies over standard, mini, and micro. The mini and micro formats also provide for USB On-The-Go with a hermaphroditic AB receptacle, the micro format is the most durable from the point of view of designed insertion lifetime. The standard and mini connectors have a lifetime of 1,500 insertion-removal cycles. Likewise, the component of the retention mechanism, parts that provide required gripping force, were also moved into plugs on the cable side. A group of seven companies began the development of USB in 1994, Compaq, DEC, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, NEC, a team including Ajay Bhatt worked on the standard at Intel, the first integrated circuits supporting USB were produced by Intel in 1995. The original USB1.0 specification, which was introduced in January 1996, Microsoft Windows 95, OSR2.1 provided OEM support for the devices. The first widely used version of USB was 1.1, the 12 Mbit/s data rate was intended for higher-speed devices such as disk drives, and the lower 1.5 Mbit/s rate for low data rate devices such as joysticks. Apple Inc. s iMac was the first mainstream product with USB, following Apples design decision to remove all legacy ports from the iMac, many PC manufacturers began building legacy-free PCs, which led to the broader PC market using USB as a standard. The USB2.0 specification was released in April 2000 and was ratified by the USB Implementers Forum at the end of 2001.1 specification, the USB3.0 specification was published on 12 November 2008. Its main goals were to increase the transfer rate, decrease power consumption, increase power output. USB3.0 includes a new, higher speed bus called SuperSpeed in parallel with the USB2.0 bus, for this reason, the new version is also called SuperSpeed
35.
Flash memory
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Flash memory is electronic non-volatile computer storage medium that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. Toshiba developed flash memory from EEPROM in the early 1980s and introduced it to the market in 1984, the two main types of flash memory are named after the NAND and NOR logic gates. The individual flash memory cells exhibit internal characteristics similar to those of the corresponding gates, where EPROMs had to be completely erased before being rewritten, NAND-type flash memory may be written and read in blocks which are generally much smaller than the entire device. NOR-type flash allows a machine word to be written—to an erased location—or read independently. The NAND type operates primarily in memory cards, USB flash drives, solid-state drives, NAND or NOR flash memory is also often used to store configuration data in numerous digital products, a task previously made possible by EEPROM or battery-powered static RAM. One key disadvantage of flash memory is that it can endure a relatively small number of write cycles in a specific block. In addition to being non-volatile, flash memory offers fast read access times, although flash memory is technically a type of EEPROM, the term EEPROM is generally used to refer specifically to non-flash EEPROM which is erasable in small blocks, typically bytes. Because erase cycles are slow, the block sizes used in flash memory erasing give it a significant speed advantage over non-flash EEPROM when writing large amounts of data. As of 2013, flash memory costs much less than byte-programmable EEPROM and had become the dominant memory type wherever a system required a significant amount of non-volatile solid-state storage, Flash memory was invented by Fujio Masuoka while working for Toshiba circa 1980. According to Toshiba, the flash was suggested by Masuokas colleague, Shōji Ariizumi. Masuoka and colleagues presented the invention at the IEEE1984 International Electron Devices Meeting held in San Francisco, Intel Corporation saw the massive potential of the invention and introduced the first commercial NOR type flash chip in 1988. NOR-based flash has long erase and write times, but provides full address and data buses, allowing random access to any memory location. This makes it a replacement for older read-only memory chips. Its endurance may be from as little as 100 erase cycles for a flash memory, to a more typical 10,000 or 100,000 erase cycles. NOR-based flash was the basis of early flash-based removable media, CompactFlash was originally based on it, however, the I/O interface of NAND flash does not provide a random-access external address bus. Rather, data must be read on a basis, with typical block sizes of hundreds to thousands of bits. This makes NAND flash unsuitable as a replacement for program ROM. In this regard, NAND flash is similar to other data storage devices, such as hard disks and optical media
36.
ROM cartridge
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ROM cartridges can be used to load software such as video games or other application programs. The cartridge slot could also be used for additions, for example speech synthesis. Some cartridges had battery-backed static random-access memory, allowing a user to save data such as game progress or scores between uses, an advantage for the manufacturer was the relative security of the software in cartridge form, which was difficult for end users to replicate. However, cartridges were expensive to manufacture compared to making a floppy disk or CD-ROM, as disk drives became more common and software expanded beyond the practical limits of ROM size, cartridge slots disappeared from later game consoles and personal computers. Cartridges are still used today with handheld gaming consoles such as the Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS, due to its widespread usage for video gaming, ROM cartridges were often colloquially referred to as a game cartridge. ROM cartridges were popularized by early home computers which featured a special bus port for the insertion of cartridges containing software in ROM. Notable computers using cartridges in addition to magnetic media were the Commodore VIC-20 and 64, MSX standard, the Atari 8-bit family, the Texas Instruments TI-99/4A, some arcade system boards, such as Capcoms CP System and SNKs Neo Geo, also used ROM cartridges. The modern take on game cartridges was invented by Jerry Lawson as part of the Fairchild Channel F home console in 1976, the cartridge approach gained more popularity with the Atari 2600 released the following year. From the late 1970s to mid-1990s, the majority of video game systems were cartridge-based. As compact disc technology came to be used widely for data storage, Nintendo remained the lone hold-out, using cartridges for their Nintendo 64 system, the company did not transition to optical media until 2001s GameCube. SNK still released games on the cartridge based Neo Geo until 2004, ROM cartridges can not only carry software, but additional hardware expansion as well. Examples include the Super FX coprocessor chip in some Super NES game paks, micro Machines 2 on the Genesis/Mega Drive used a custom J-Cart cartridge design by Codemasters which incorporated two additional gamepad ports. This allowed players to have up to four gamepads connected to the console without the need for an additional multi-controller adapter, the ROM cartridge slot principle continues in various mobile devices, thanks to the development of high density low-cost flash memory. For example, a GPS navigation device might allow user updates of maps by inserting a memory chip into an expansion slot. An E-book reader can store the text of several books on a flash chip. Personal computers may allow the user to boot and install a system off a USB flash drive instead of CD ROM or floppy disks. Digital cameras with flash drive slots allow users to exchange cards when full. Storing software on ROM cartridges has a number of advantages over other methods of storage like floppy disks, software run directly from ROM typically uses less RAM, leaving memory free for other processes
37.
Floppy disk
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Floppy disks are read and written by a floppy disk drive. Floppy disks, initially as 8-inch media and later in 5¼-inch and 3½-inch sizes, were a form of data storage and exchange from the mid-1970s into the mid-2000s. These formats are usually handled by older equipment and these disks and associated drives were produced and improved upon by IBM and other companies such as Memorex, Shugart Associates, and Burroughs Corporation. The term floppy disk appeared in print as early as 1970, in 1976, Shugart Associates introduced the first 5¼-inch FDD. By 1978 there were more than 10 manufacturers producing such FDDs, there were competing floppy disk formats, with hard- and soft-sector versions and encoding schemes such as FM, MFM and GCR. The 5¼-inch format displaced the 8-inch one for most applications, the most common capacity of the 5¼-inch format in DOS-based PCs was 360 kB and in 1984 IBM introduced the 1.2 MB dual-sided floppy disk along with its PC-AT model. IBM started using the 720 kB double-density 3½-inch microfloppy disk on its Convertible laptop computer in 1986 and these disk drives could be added to older PC models. In 1988 IBM introduced a drive for 2.88 MB DSED diskettes in its top-of-the-line PS/2 models, throughout the early 1980s, limitations of the 5¼-inch format became clear. Originally designed to be practical than the 8-inch format, it was itself too large, as the quality of recording media grew. A number of solutions were developed, with drives at 2-, 2½-, 3-, 3½-, the large market share of the 5¼-inch format made it difficult for these new formats to gain significant market share. A variant on the Sony design, introduced in 1982 by a number of manufacturers, was then rapidly adopted. By the end of the 1980s, 5¼-inch disks had been superseded by 3½-inch disks, by the mid-1990s, 5¼-inch drives had virtually disappeared, as the 3½-inch disk became the predominant floppy disk. Floppy disks became ubiquitous during the 1980s and 1990s in their use with computers to distribute software, transfer data. Before hard disks became affordable to the population, floppy disks were often used to store a computers operating system. Most home computers from that period have a primary OS and BASIC stored as ROM, by the early 1990s, the increasing software size meant large packages like Windows or Adobe Photoshop required a dozen disks or more. In 1996, there were a five billion standard floppy disks in use. Then, distribution of packages was gradually replaced by CD-ROMs, DVDs. External USB-based floppy disk drives are available, many modern systems provide firmware support for booting from such drives
38.
Memory card
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A memory card, flash card or memory cartridge is an electronic flash memory data storage device used for storing digital information. PC Cards were the first commercial memory card formats to come out, since 1994, a number of memory card formats smaller than the PC Card arrived, the first one was CompactFlash later SmartMedia and Miniature Card. The desire for smaller cards for cell-phones, PDAs, and compact digital cameras drove a trend that left the previous generation of compact cards looking big, in digital cameras SmartMedia and CompactFlash had been very successful. In 2001, SM alone captured 50% of the camera market. By 2005 however, SD/MMC had nearly taken over SmartMedias spot, though not to the level and with stiff competition coming from Memory Stick variants. In industrial and embedded fields, even the venerable PC card memory cards still manage to maintain a niche, while in mobile phones and PDAs, since 2010, new products of Sony and Olympus have been offered with an additional SD-Card slot. Effectively the format war has turned in SD-Cards favor, PCMCIA ATA Type I Card PCMCIA Type II, Type III cards CompactFlash Card, CompactFlash High-Speed CompactFlash Type II, CF+, CF3. MU-Flash C-Flash SIM card Smart card UFC FISH Universal Transportable Memory Card Standard Intelligent Stick SxS memory card, SxS complies to the ExpressCard industry standard. Nexflash Winbond Serial Flash Module cards, size range 1 mb,2 mb and 4 mb, many older video game consoles used memory cards to hold saved game data. Cartridge-based systems primarily used battery-backed volatile RAM within each individual cartridge to hold saves for that game, cartridges without this RAM may have used a password system, or wouldnt save progress at all. The Neo Geo AES, released in 1990 by SNK, was the first video game console able to use a memory card, AES memory cards were also compatible with Neo-Geo MVS arcade cabinets, allowing players to migrate saves between home and arcade systems and vice versa. Memory cards became commonplace when home consoles moved to read-only optical discs for storing the game program, until the sixth generation of video game consoles, memory cards were based on proprietary formats, later systems have used established industry hardware formats for memory cards, such as FAT32. Comparison of memory cards Hot swapping
39.
USB flash drive
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USB flash drives are typically removable and rewritable, and physically much smaller than an optical disc. Most weigh less than 30 grams, since first appearing on the market in late 2000, as with virtually all computer memory devices, storage capacities have risen while prices have dropped. As of March 2016, flash drives with anywhere from 8 to 256 GB are frequently sold, storage capacities as large as 2 TB are planned, with steady improvements in size and price per capacity expected. Some allow up to 100,000 write/erase cycles, depending on the type of memory chip used. USB flash drives are used for the same purposes for which floppy disks or CDs were once used, i. e. for storage, data back-up. They are smaller, faster, have thousands of times more capacity, additionally, they are immune to electromagnetic interference, and are unharmed by surface scratches.44 MB3. 5-inch floppy disk. The USB connector may be protected by a cap or by retracting into the body of the drive. Most flash drives use a standard type-A USB connection allowing connection with a port on a personal computer, USB flash drives draw power from the computer via the USB connection. Some devices combine the functionality of a media player with USB flash storage. Pua Khein-Seng from Malaysia is considered by many to be the Father of Pen Drive and he is notable for incorporating the worlds first single chip USB flash controller. Pua hails from Sekinchan, Selangor, Malaysia, pua founded Phison Electronics based in Taiwan with four other partners and is believed to have produced the worlds first USB flash drive with system-on-chip technology. Competing claims have made by Singaporean company Trek Technology and Chinese company Netac Technology, Both Trek Technology. Trek won a Singaporean suit, but a court in the United Kingdom revoked one of Treks UK patents, Trek Technology and IBM began selling the first USB flash drives commercially in 2000. IBMs USB flash drive became available on December 15,2000, in 2000, Lexar introduced a Compact Flash card with a USB connection, and a companion card read/writer and USB cable that eliminated the need for a USB hub. That is considerably slower than what a hard drive or solid-state drive can achieve when connected via the SATA interface. Transfer rates may be given in megabytes per second, megabits per second, or in optical drive multipliers such as 180X.1, which is limited to 12 Mbit/s with accounted overhead. The effective transfer rate of a device is significantly affected by the access pattern, for example. Like USB2.0 before it, USB3.0 dramatically improved data rates compared to its predecessor
40.
Korg
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Korg Inc. is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners. Under the Vox brand name, they also manufacture guitar amplifiers, Korg was founded in 1962 in Japan by Tsutomu Katoh and Tadashi Osanai as Keio Gijutsu Kenkyujo Ltd. It later became Keio Electronic Laboratories because its fledgling offices were located near the Keio train line in Tokyo and Keio can be formed by combining the first letters of Katoh, before founding the company, Katoh ran a nightclub. Osanai, a Tokyo University graduate and noted accordionist, regularly performed at Katohs club accompanied by a Wurlitzer Sideman rhythm machine, unsatisfied with the rhythm machine, Osanai convinced Katoh to finance his efforts to build a better one. The companys first product, released in 1963, was an electro-mechanical rhythm device called the Disc Rotary Electric Auto Rhythm machine Donca matic DA-20, the name Donca was an onomatopoeic reference to the sound the rhythm machine made. Buoyed by the success of the DA-20, Keio released a version of the Rhythm machine. In 1967, Katoh was approached by Fumio Mieda, an engineer who wanted to build keyboards, impressed with Miedas enthusiasm, Katoh asked him to build a prototype and 18 months later Mieda returned with a programmable organ. Keio sold the organ under the name KORG, created by using the first letter of each founders name plus RG from their planned emphasis on products targeted for the organ market, keios first synthesizer, the miniKORG, was thus released in 1973. During the 1970s, Korgs synthesizer line was divided into instruments for the hobbyist, in the early 80s, Korg branched out into the digital piano category. Korg is credited with a number of innovations and landmark products, the key transpose function was Katohs idea after a singer at his club needed her accompaniment played in a lower key, which the accompanist wasnt accomplished enough to do. Korg was the first company to feature effects on a synthesizer, the M1 workstation, released in 1988, sold over 250,000 units, making it the bestselling synthesizer ever at that time. In 1989, Korg recruited the team from Sequential Circuits just as they were relieved of their duties by then-Sequential owner Yamaha. Yamaha Corporation has always been a partner of Korg, supplying them with circuitry. In 1987, shortly before the release of the M1 Music Workstation, the takeover of the company was amicable, with Katoh drawing up the terms, and the two companies continued to independently develop their product lines and compete in the marketplace. After 5 very successful years, Katoh had enough money to rebuy most of the Yamaha share back in 1993, Korg has since diversified into digital effects, tuners, recording equipment, electronic hand percussion, and software instruments. In 1992, Korg acquired Vox, then primarily a manufacturer of guitar amplifiers, Korg was also the exclusive distributor of Marshall Amplification product in the United States for decades, with this distribution arrangement ending in 2010. Tsutomo Katoh died of cancer on March 15,2011, category, Korg synthesizers Electronic tuner Korg Museum. Audio interview with Mitch Colby - EVP / CMO of Korg USA Korg - Review NAMM Oral History Interview Tsutomu Katoh discusses his favorite of his many musical products, the tuner
41.
Music stand
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A music stand is a pedestal or elevated rack designed to hold a paper score or sheets of music in position for reading. Most music stands for orchestral, chamber music or solo orchestra-family instruments can be raised or lowered to accommodate seated or standing performers or performers of different heights, many types of keyboard instruments have a built-in or removable music rack or stand where sheet music can be placed. Music stands enable musicians to read music or scores while playing an instrument or conducting. Some singers use stands, such as singers and wedding vocalists who have a repertoire of hundreds of songs. There are various types of music stands for different purposes and intended users, folding stands collapse, which makes them convenient to take to rehearsals and performances out of the home. Folding stands are used by amateur musicians at rehearsals and performances. Professional musicians are likely to limit their use of folding stands to rehearsals held outside of normal performance venues or small gigs. Non-folding stands tend to be used by orchestras and big bands for rehearsals. Folding stands range from inexpensive, lightweight models made of metal, metal folding stands often have solid wire extensions or metal arms which can be folded out to support more than two pages of music or over-size sheets or pages. This is the kind most often used by students in youth orchestras. Lightweight folding stands are designed to collapsible, if folding stands did not collapse, they would be awkward, the collapsible nature of folding stands makes them small enough to slip into many instrument cases or backpacks. This feature makes folding stands more portable, as such, they are a popular stand type for rehearsals, auditions and even some types of performances. Lightweight stands are not designed to support heavy books of such as full-size fake books, while the fake book may stay open on the stand. Folding stands typically have a foldable tripod that supports the column, the portability of lightweight music stands can lead to some problems. Heavy fake books or full scores may overload the stand, leading to it falling over when a performer turns a page. As well, when a stand is used with its column fully extended, as by a standing orchestral timpanist or double bass player. Oversized parts, which are used in contemporary classical music, may be too wide to be supported by the stand. Heavy duty folding models typically use a cylindrical column as the main support
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Harpsichord
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A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed, Harpsichord designates the whole family of similar plucked keyboard instruments, including the smaller virginals, muselar, and spinet. The harpsichord was used in Renaissance and Baroque music. During the late 18th century, it disappeared from the musical scene with the rise of the piano. In the 20th century, it made a resurgence, being used in historically informed performances of music, in compositions. Harpsichords vary in size and shape, but all have the basic functional arrangement. The player depresses a key that rocks over a pivot in the middle of its length, the other end of the key lifts a jack that holds a small plectrum, which plucks the string. When the player releases the key, the far end returns to its rest position, the plectrum, mounted on a tongue that can swivel backwards away from the string, passes the string without plucking it again. As the key reaches its rest position, a felt damper atop the jack stops the strings vibrations and these basic principles are explained in detail below. The keylever is a pivot, which rocks on a balance pin that passes through a hole drilled through the keylever. The jack is a thin, rectangular piece of wood that sits upright on the end of the keylever, the jacks are held in place by the registers. These are two strips of wood, which run in the gap between pinblock and bellyrail. The registers have rectangular mortises through which the pass as they can move up. The registers hold the jacks in the location needed to pluck the string. In the jack, a plectrum juts out almost horizontally and passes just under the string, historically, plectra were made of bird quill or leather, many modern harpsichords have plastic plectra. When the front of the key is pressed, the back of the key rises, the jack is lifted, the vertical motion of the jack is then stopped by the jackrail, which is covered with soft felt to muffle the impact. When the key is released, the falls back down under its own weight. This is made possible by having the plectrum held in a tongue attached with a pivot and a spring to the body of the jack
43.
Recording studio
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A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are designed by an acoustician or audio engineer to achieve optimum acoustic properties. The engineers and producers listen to the music and the recorded tracks on monitor speakers and/or headphones. Major recording studios typically have a range of large, heavy, Isolation booths are small sound-insulated rooms with doors, designed for instrumentalists. This equipment may interfere with the recording process, Recording studios are carefully designed around the principles of room acoustics to create a set of spaces with the acoustical properties required for recording sound with precision and accuracy. This will consist of both room treatment and soundproofing to prevent sound from leaving the property. Even though sound isolation is a key goal, the musicians, singers, audio engineers and record producers still need to be able to see other, to see cue gestures. As such, the room, isolation booths, vocal booths. Some smaller studios do not have instruments, and bands and artists are expected to bring their own instruments, having musical instruments and equipment in the studio creates additional costs for a studio, as pianos have to be tuned and instruments need to be maintained. However, it makes it convenient for recording artists, as they do not have to bring in large. As well, less costly studio time is spent moving in gear, drummers bring their own snare drum, cymbals and sticks/brushes. The types and brands of equipment owned by a studio depends on the styles of music for the bands. A studio that mainly records heavy metal music will be likely to have large, powerful guitar amp heads, in contrast, a studio which mainly records country bands will likely have a selection of small, vintage combo amps. A studio that records a lot of 1970s-style funk may have an electric piano. General purpose computers have rapidly assumed a role in the recording process. A computer thus outfitted is called a Digital Audio Workstation, or DAW, other software applications include Ableton Live, Mixcraft, Cakewalk Sonar, ACID Pro, FL Studio, Adobe Audition, Auto-Tune, Audacity, and Ardour. While Apple Macintosh is used for most studio work, there is a breadth of available for Microsoft Windows. If no mixing console is used and all mixing is done using only a keyboard and mouse, the OTB is used when mixing with other hardware and not just the PC software
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Electronic music
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In general, a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound producing devices include the telharmonium, Hammond organ, purely electronic sound production can be achieved using devices such as the theremin, sound synthesizer, and computer. During the 1920s and 1930s, electronic instruments were introduced and the first compositions for instruments were composed. Musique concrète, created in Paris in 1948, was based on editing together recorded fragments of natural and industrial sounds, Music produced solely from electronic generators was first produced in Germany in 1953. Electronic music was created in Japan and the United States beginning in the 1950s. An important new development was the advent of computers for the purpose of composing music, algorithmic composition was first demonstrated in Australia in 1951. In America and Europe, live electronics were pioneered in the early 1960s, during the 1970s to early 1980s, the monophonic Minimoog became once the most widely used synthesizer at that time in both popular and electronic art music. In the 1980s, electronic music became dominant in popular music, with a greater reliance on synthesizers, and the adoption of programmable drum machines. Electronically produced music became prevalent in the domain by the 1990s. Contemporary electronic music includes many varieties and ranges from art music to popular forms such as electronic dance music. Today, pop music is most recognizable in its 4/4 form. At the turn of the 20th century, experimentation with emerging electronics led to the first electronic musical instruments and these initial inventions were not sold, but were instead used in demonstrations and public performances. The audiences were presented with reproductions of existing music instead of new compositions for the instruments, while some were considered novelties and produced simple tones, the Telharmonium accurately synthesized the sound of orchestral instruments. It achieved viable public interest and made progress into streaming music through telephone networks. Critics of musical conventions at the time saw promise in these developments, ferruccio Busoni encouraged the composition of microtonal music allowed for by electronic instruments. He predicted the use of machines in future music, writing the influential Sketch of a New Esthetic of Music, futurists such as Francesco Balilla Pratella and Luigi Russolo began composing music with acoustic noise to evoke the sound of machinery. They predicted expansions in timbre allowed for by electronics in the influential manifesto The Art of Noises, developments of the vacuum tube led to electronic instruments that were smaller, amplified, and more practical for performance. In particular, the theremin, ondes Martenot and trautonium were commercially produced by the early 1930s, from the late 1920s, the increased practicality of electronic instruments influenced composers such as Joseph Schillinger to adopt them
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Software synthesizer
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A software synthesizer, also known as a softsynth, is a computer program, or plug-in that generates digital audio, usually for music. Computer software that can create sounds or music is not new, softsynths are usually cheaper and more portable than dedicated hardware, and easier to interface with other music software such as music sequencers. Dedicated hardware synthesizers can have software as complex as a soft synth, the distinction is that softsynths run on a general purpose computer with a sound card, and the hardware synthesizers have the custom software built-in. The advantage to dedicated hardware is that it can be more stable, many softsynths use mathematical algorithms that directly emulate the electronic components and circuitry of the original hardware synthesizer. This produces an authentic sound, even capturing flaws in the original hardware. Many popular hardware synthesizers are no longer manufactured, but have been emulated in software, the emulation can even extend to having graphics that model the exact placements of the original hardware controls. Some simulators can even import the original sound patches with accuracy that is nearly indistinguishable from the original synthesizer. Popular synthesizers such as the Minimoog, Yamaha DX7, Korg M1, Prophet-5, Oberheim OB-X, Roland Jupiter 8, ARP2600 and dozens of other classics have been recreated in software. Some softsynths are heavily based, and frequently have more capability than hardware units. Some of these sample based synthesizers come with sample libraries many gigabytes in size, some are specifically designed to mimic real world instruments such as pianos. Many sample libraries are available in a format like WAV or SoundFont. The major downside of using softsynths can often be more latency, decreasing latency requires increasing the demand on the computers processor. When the soft synthesizer is running as a plug-in for a host sequencer, multi-processor computers can handle this better than single-processor computers. As the processor becomes overloaded, sonic artifacts such as clicks, when the processor becomes completely overloaded, the host sequencer or computer can lock up or crash. Increasing buffer size helps, but also increases latency, however modern professional audio interfaces can frequently operate with extremely low latency, so in recent years this has become much less of a problem than in the early days of computer music. It is also possible to generate sound files off-line, meaning sound generation does not have to be in real time, for example, the input could be a MIDI file and the output could be a WAV file or an MP3 file. Playing a WAV or MP3 file simply means playing a pre-calculated wave-form, the advantage of off-line synthesis is that the software can spend as much time as it needs to generate the resulting sounds, potentially increasing sound quality. It could take 30 seconds of computing time to generate 1 second of real-time sound, the disadvantage is that changes to the music specifications cannot be heard immediately
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Keytar
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A keytar is a relatively lightweight electronic keyboard that is supported by a strap around the neck and shoulders, similar to the way a guitar is supported by a strap. Keytars allow players a range of movement onstage, compared to conventional keyboards. The instrument has a keyboard for triggering musical notes and sounds. Various controls are placed on the neck, including those for pitch bends, vibrato, portamento. The term keytar is a portmanteau of the keyboard and guitar. This style of keyboard was referred to by manufacturers as a MIDI Controller, Remote Keyboard, Strap-on Keyboard. The Roland AX-Synth, which incorporates its own engine, is referred to by the manufacturer as a Shoulder Synthesizer. Keytars may either contain their own engines, or be MIDI controllers. In either case, a keytar needs to be connected to an amplifier or PA system to produce a sound that the performer. MIDI controller keytars trigger notes and other MIDI data on an external MIDI-capable synthesizer, the oldest forerunner of the keytar probably is the orphica, a small portable piano invented at Vienna in 1795, which was played in a similar position as the modern keytar. The piano accordion first appeared in 1852, in 1963, the East German manufacturer Weltmeister introduced the Basset, an electric bass piano in keytar shape. In 1966, Swedish organ manufacturer Joh Mustad AB introduced the Tubon and this instrument was worn with a strap around the shoulder and could be played standing or sitting. The Tubon had a half-keyboard on one end accessible to the hand, controls to be used at the neck on the opposite end for the left hand. It was sold in the UK as the Livingstone and it saw use by Kraftwerk and Paul McCartney in the 1960s and early 1970s. Jan is seen for instance using his PROBE in the video for the Miami Vice Theme. Also in the 1980s, Wayne Famous of the band the Producers strapped on a regular Oberheim synthesizer, among them, the most widely known earlier keytar may be the Moog Liberation released in 1980. Early users included Spyro Gyra keyboardist Tom Schuman, and Devo. W, the keytar was made popular in the 1980s by glam metal bands, as well as synthpop and new wave musicians. Another instance is in early 2008 with Snoop Doggs music video for his single Sensual Seduction, notable manufacturers of keytar models have included Moog, Roland, Yamaha, Korg and Casio
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