Yamaha TYROS Owners Manual - Page 142

Reference MIDI Built into the rear panel of the TYROS are two sets of MIDI terminals (MIDI IN A/B, MIDI OUT A/B), and a USB terminal. The MIDI Functions give you a comprehensive, powerful set of tools for expanding your music recording and performance possibilities. This section explains what MIDI is, and what it can do, as well as how you can use MIDI on your TYROS. What's MIDI No doubt you have heard the terms "acoustic instrument" and "digital instrument." In the world today, these are the two main categories of instruments. Let's consider an acoustic piano and a classical guitar as representative acoustic instruments. They are easy to understand. With the piano, you strike a key, and a hammer inside hits some strings and plays a note. With the guitar, you directly pluck a string and the note sounds. But how does a digital instrument go about playing a note? G Acoustic guitar note production G Digital instrument note production Sampling Note Tone Generator (Electric circuit) Sampling Note L Playing the keyboard R 142 Pluck a string and the body resonates the sound. Based on playing information from the keyboard, a sampling note stored in the tone generator is played through the speakers. As shown in the illustration above, in an electronic instrument the sampling note (previously recorded note) stored in the tone generator section (electronic circuit) is played based on information received from the keyboard. So then what is the information from the keyboard that becomes the basis for note production? For example, let's say you play a "C" quarter note using the grand piano sound on the TYROS keyboard. Unlike an acoustic instrument that puts out a resonated note, the electronic instrument puts out information from the keyboard such as "with what voice," "with which key," "about how strong," "when was it pressed" and "when was it released." Then each piece of information is changed into a number value and sent to the tone generator. Using these numbers as a basis, the tone generator plays the stored sampling note. G Example of Keyboard Information Voice number (with what voice) Note number (with which key) Note on (when was it pressed) and note off (when was it released) Velocity (about how strong) 01 (grand piano) 60 (C3) Timing expressed numerically (quarter note) 120 (strong) As described above, your keyboard performance and panel operations such as voice selection are handled as MIDI events. All the data of Style, Song, and Multi Pad played back or recorded consist of MIDI messeages. MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) allows electronic musical instruments to communicate with each other, by sending and receiving compatible Note, Control Change, Program Change and various other types of MIDI data, or messages. The TYROS can control a MIDI device by transmitting note related data and various types of controller data. The TYROS can be controlled by the incoming MIDI messages which automatically determine tone generator mode, select MIDI channels, voices and effects, change parameter values and of course play the voices specified for the various parts. MIDI messages can be divided into two groups: Channel messages and System messages. Below is an explanation of the various types of MIDI messages which the TYROS can receive/transmit. G Channel Messages The TYROS is an electronic instrument that can handle 32 channels (16 channels x 2 ports). This is usually expressed as "it can play 32 instruments at the same time." Channel messages transmit information such as Note ON/OFF, Program Change, for each of the 32 channels. Message Name Note ON/OFF Program Change Control Change Pitch Bend TYROS Operation/Panel Setting Messages which are generated when the keyboard is played. Each message includes a specific note number which corresponds to the key which is pressed, plus a velocity value based on how hard the key is played. Voice selecting Volume, panpot (Mixing Console), etc. Pitch Bend Wheel operation G System Messages This is data that is used in common by the entire MIDI system. System messages include messages like System Exclusive Messages that transmit data unique to each instrument manufacturer and Realtime Messages that control the MIDI device. Message Name System Exclusive Message Realtime Messages TYROS Operation/Panel Setting Effect type settings (Mixing Console), etc. Clock setting, Start/stop operation TYROS Owner's Manual 140