======================AUDIO_MIDI=======================================

MIDI                  Musical Instrument Digital Interface
                      midi are commands sent to synthesizers
                      tells when to start and stop playing a specific note. 
                      volume and modulation of the note
MIDI instrument       musical instrument with MIDI ports.
                      electronic keyboards, modules , synthesizers, 
MIDI port             5 pin jack which you plug a MIDI cable into. 
MIDI instrument       will have up to three MIDI ports. 
MIDI command          has a specific byte sequence. 
                      first byte = status byte, 
                      tells MIDI device what function to perform 
                      4 the MIDI channel. MIDI =16 channels, 0 ->15. 
MIDI units            will accept or ignore a status byte 
                      depending on what channel the machine is set to receive. 
Only  status byte     has MIDI channel number encoded. 
                      All other bytes on channel indicated by  status byte 
                      until another status byte is received.
functions             status byte are 
                      Note On, Note Off, System Exclusive (SysEx), Patch Change
                      and so on. 
On status byte        tells the MIDI device to begin sounding a note. 
                      Two additional bytes 
                      pitch byte = note ,
                      velocity byte, = how loud to play the note. 
stop playing note     a separate Note Off command. 
                      also requires two additional bytes 
                      with same functions as Note On byte. 
Patch Change byte.    requires only one additional byte: 
                      number corresponding to program number  synthesizer.
                      different for each synthesizer, 
                      set by the International MIDI Association (IMA). 
SysEx status byte     requires at least three additional bytes. 
                      first=manufacturer's ID number or timing byte, 
                      second =data format or function byte, 
                      third ="end of transmission" (EOX) byte. 
sequencer             records all MIDI information  MIDI instrument 
                      as series of events. 
General Midi          MIDI file made on GM device, 
                      heart of General MIDI is Instrument Patch Map, 
                      list of 128 sounds, corresponding MIDI program numbers. 
                      Most imitative sounds, 
patch 0               a grand piano, on EVERY GM device !
controller 7          channel volume control, on EVERY GM device.
General MIDI          also includes a Percusssion Key Map, 
                      GM restricts percussion to MIDI Channel 10. 
Theoretically,        the lower nine channels are for the instruments, 
GM spec states        sound module respond to 16 MIDI channels, 
                      with dynamic voice allocation and 24 voices.
GM sound module       include response to velocity, 
                      mod wheel, aftertouch, sustain and expression pedal, 
                      main volume and pan, All Notes Off and Reset All 
Controllers messages  module also must respond to both Pitch Bend 
                      and Pitch Bend Sensitivity (a MIDI registered parameter). 
default               pitch bend range is +-2 semitones. 
Middle C (C3)         corresponds to MIDI key 60, 
                      and master tuning must be adjustable.
(MMA)                 MIDI Manufacturers Association (MMA) 
                      created a new Universal System Exclusive message 
                      to turn General MIDI on and off 
                      (for devices that might have "consumer" 
                      and "programmable" settings). 
General MIDI patch    list GM patch numbers go from 0 to 127, but a
                      lot of software uses 1 to 128...
                      1.Accougrand piano33Accousticbass65Soprano sax97FX rain
                      2.Bright piano 34Fingered bass 66Alto sax 98FX soundtrack
                      3Electric grand piano35Picked bass 67Tenorsax 99FX crystal
                      4Honky-tonkpiano36Fretlessbass68Baritonesax100FXatmosphere
                      5Elec. piano 2 37Slap bass 1 69Oboe 101.FX brightness
                      6Elec piano 1 38Slap bass 2 70English horn 102.FX goblins
                      7Harpsichord 39.Synth bass 1 71Bassoon 103FX echo drops
                      8Clavi 40.Synth bass 2 72.Clarinet 10.FX star theme
                      9Celesta 41.Violin 73.Piccolo 105Sitar
                      10Glockenspiel 42.Viola 74.Flute 106.Banjo
                      11Music box 43.Cello 75.Recorder 107.Shamisen
                      12Vibraphone 44.Contrabass 76.Pan flute 108.Koto
                      13Marimba 45.Tremolo strings 77.Blown bottle 109.Kalimba
                      14Xylophone 46.Pizzicato strings 78.Shakuhachi 110.Bagpipe
                      15Tubular bells 47.Orchestral harp 79.Whistle 111.Fiddle
                      16Dulcimer 48.Timpani 80.Ocarina 112.Shanai
                      17Drawbarorgan49String ensemble181Square wave113Tinklebell
                      18Percussive organ50String ensemble282Sawtoothwave114Agogo
                      19Rock organ 51Synth strings 1 83Caliope 115Steel drums
                      20Church organ 52.Synth strings 2 84.Chiff 116Woodblock
                      21Reed organ 53.Choir ahh 85.Charang 117.Taiko drum
                      22Accordian 54.Choir oohh 86.Voice 118.Melodic tom
                      23Harmonica 55.Synth voice 87.Fifth's 119.Synthdrum
                      24Tangoaccordian56Orchestralhit88Bass&lead120Reversecymbal
                      25Nylon string guitar 57.Trumpet 121.Guit.fret noise
                      26Steel string guitar 58.Trombone 90.Warm 122.Breath noise
                      27Jazz guitar 59.Tuba 91.Polysynth 123.Seashore
                      28Clean elec.guitar60Mutedtrumpet 92.Choir 124.Bird tweet
                      29Muted elec.guitar61French horn93Bowed125Telephone ring
                      30Overdrive guitar62Brass section94Metallic126Helicopter
                      31Distortion guitar 63.Synth brass 1 95.Halo 127.Applause
                      32Guitar harmonics 64 Synth brass 2 96.Sweep 128.Gunshot
Percussion Key Map    (assigns drum sounds to note numbers. 
                      MIDI Channel 10 is for percussion)
                      35 Acoustic Bass Drum 59 Ride Cymbal 2
                      36 Bass Drum 1 60 Hi Bongo
                      37 Side Stick 61 Low Bongo
                      38 Acoustic Snare 62 Mute Hi Conga
                      39 Hand Clap 63 Open Hi Conga
                      40 Electric Snare 64 Low Conga
                      41 Low Floor Tom 65 High Timbale
                      42 Closed Hi-Hat 66 Low Timbale
                      43 High Floor Tom 67 High Agogo
                      44 Pedal Hi-Hat 68 Low Agogo
                      45 Low Tom 69 Cabasa
                      46 Open Hi-Hat 70 Maracas
                      47 Low-Mid Tom 71 Short Whistle
                      48 Hi-Mid Tom 72 Long Whistle
                      49 Crash Cymbal 1 73 Short Guiro
                      50 High Tom 74 Long Guiro
                      51 Ride Cymbal 1 75 Claves
                      52 Chinese Cymbal 76 Hi Wood Block
                      53 Ride Bell 77 Low Wood Block
                      54 Tambourine 78 Mute Cuica
                      55 Splash Cymbal 79 Open Cuica
                      56 Cowbell 80 Mute Triangle
                      57 Crash Cymbal 2 81 Open Triangle
                      58 Vibraslap
General MIDI          minimum sound module specs
Voices:               minimum of either 24 fully dynamically allocated voices
                      available simultaneously for both melodic 
                      and percussive sounds 
                      or 16 dynamically allocated voices 
                      for melody plus eight for percussion.
Channels:             General MIDI mode supports all sixteen MIDI channels. 
                      each channel can play number of voices (polyphony). 
                      Each channel can play a different instrument (timbre).
                      Keybased Percussion is always on Channel 10.
Instruments:          minimum of sixteen different timbres 
                      playing various instrument sounds. 
                      minimum of 128 preset for Intruments 
                      (MIDI program numbers).
Note on/Note off:     Octabe Registration: Middle C(C3) = MIDI key 60. 
                      All Voices including percussion respond to velocity.
                      Controllers:
                      Controller #                      Description
                      1                                 Modulation
                      7                                 Main Volume
                      10                                Pan
                      11                                Expression
                      64                                Sustain
                      121                               Reset All Controllers
                      123                               All Notes Off
                      Additional Channel Messages:
                      Channel Pressure (Aftertouch)
                      Pitch Bend
                      Power-Up Defaults:
                      Pitch Bend Amount = 0
                      Pitch Bend Sensitivity = +-2 semitones
                      Volume = 90
                      All Other Controllers = reset
MIDI keywords         Glossary 
A/D converter         converting analog data  into a digital signal
Aftertouch            Pressure applied to synthesizer keyboard after keypressed.
Attack                When the musical note begins. Antonym: Release. 
Clipping              Amplifier overload, a form of distortion. 
Channel               Each channel assigned a single instrument 
                      4 particular instant of time. 
                      percussion voice= mostly channel 10, 
Choking-              sequencer receives too much continuous data. 
                      Result: Tempos slow down and speed up randomly. 
Clock-MIDI            clocks are actually special messages 
                      sent 24 times (normally) per beat 
                      used to synchronize
Compression-          more constant output signal. 
Controller            MIDI data type that sends performance information. 
                      volume  vibrato of the violin, sustain pedal of  piano
                      panning right or left  in stereo,
Count in-             A command in a sequencer that 
                      plays a metronome for several measures 
                      until you are ready to record. 
                      You have got some more time to get tempo of  song. 
Cut and paste-        In MIDI,  can copy musical passage and paste elsewhere
Damper                Traditionally, damper pedal of  piano 
                      functioned to stop vibration of a piano string. 
                      SUSTAIN pedal held or prolonged the note.
Envelope              changes of a tone, e.g., attack, sustain, decay, release. 
Equalization-         selective adjustment of volume at a specific frequency. 
Event-                an occurrence, a happening. In MIDI, 
                      the signal (the piece of DATA) that is transmittted-
FSK                   Frequency Shift Key. A synchronization code 
                      that can be printed on a tape track and enable other
                      instruments to synchronize with that track. 
GUI                   Graphical user interface. 
Hardware Sequencer    Sequencing can be performed by software programs 
Headroom-             difference between the average operating power level 
                      and the point at which distortion occurs. 
LAN                   Local Area Network. Computers connected in one location. 
Librarian             In MIDI / Computer terminology,
                      software program designed 
                      to store synthesizer voice information. 
Marker                Something used to record a position. 
                      MIDI markers indentify, for example, musical cues. 
                      They work like tab stops in a word-processor. 
Mapping-              process of identifying patches and keys, 
                      so that sound files can be played properly. 
                      A key map will translate values for MIDI messages,
                      A patch map functions to identify correct patches 
                      (sounds, instruments). 
MIDI                  Musical Instrument Digital Interface.       
MIDI Note Numbers     (0-127) assigned to musical notes in the MIDI system. 
Multi-timbral         Capable of producing more than one type of tone-color 
                      or instrument sound at the same time. 
                      (Bi-timbral means two different instruments at one time) 
Multi-track           Recording- a guitar, with each string  different channel. 
Mute-                 sequencer command to turn off specified tracks.
Notation              writing- text or music 
Omni Mode             refers to what MIDI channels your Slave is listening to
Omni mode on          listen and respondmessages on all 16 channels.
Omni mode off         listen only to one MIDI channel that you tell it to       
Pan- To pan           move the sound between full left and full right 
                      in a stereo sound field.
Patch                 In some early keyboard synthesizers, 
                      one selected instruments to play ( vibraphone, clarinet)
                      term voice emerged(police whistles, human voices, etc.)
                      to a sequencer,  patch setting determine  nature 
                      of the sounds. Take a look at the GM patch list. 
Patch Layout          Manufacturers of synthesizers have not
                      standardized correspondence between patches and numbers. 
Pattern-Recording     Establishing a pattern, e.g., a bass drum beat, 
                      then embellishing it
PCM                   Pulse code modulation--a process of digital recording, 
Pitchbend-            synthesizer performance technique 
                      that involves sliding the pitch of a sound up or down by
                      means of a controller. 
Poly- Many.           Used in POLY Mode (MIDI) and Polyphonic (Many sounds). 
Polyphony             term used to define  maximum number of notes 
                      an instrument can play at any one time.
                      Sixteen note polyphony is common
PPQN                  Pulses Per Quarter Note. 
Real-time-            In MIDI, there are two types of recording procedures: 
                      real-time resembles a tape recorder. 
                      Step-time is sequential: note-by-note, chord-by-chord. 
Sequencer             Anything that stores performance information.       
SMPTE                 Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers.
Solo-                 If you want to listen exclusively to one track, 
Song Position         Pointer- MIDI timing information 
                      that enables MIDI sequencers to lock 
                      to an encoded analog tape track 
                      that has this location information recorded. 
Sound module          sound making device 
                      does not have integral controller (no keyboard) 
                      must be controlled using a MIDI cable connection. 
Standard MIDI File    Identified by its extension (.MID, s .MFF or .SMF)
                      data in MIDI file can be played, manipulated, edited. 
                      MIDI file comprises actions performed 
                      standard MIDI file format.uses little disk space
Step-time             In sequencing this refers to entering notes one at time. 
Synthesizer           programmable musical instrument 
                      capable of producing sound. 
SysEx                 System Exclusive data    
                      MIDI's way of letting each synthesizer manufacturer 
                      transmit private data about their products. 
                      A System Exclusive message has a manufacturer ID, 
                      rest of the message is completely proprietary 
                      file extension used is .SYX. 
Tempo change-         rate of speed, in Beats per Minute (BPM) can be adjusted.
                      does not effect pitch,
                      slow ballad could be 60 - 80 bpm
                      fast boogie at 140-160 bpm for example.
Track-                In MIDI,  designates a location
                      where one records or plays back a musical message-
                      usually a portion of the total arrangement. 
                      one might record an oboe melody line on Track Two, 
                      then record a bowed bass line on Track Three. 
                      MIDI software  accommodates 64 tracks of music, 
                      enough for a rich orchestral sound.
Track clear           To erase  contents of a specific track.        
Track merge           To merge  contents of two tracks and store in third track.
Track name            Names like melody line, bass line, left hand, etc. 
                      are assigned to tracks to help determine the
                      instrumentation of sequence, or function of the track. 
Transposing-          tonal center, or Key of individual tracks 
                      or entire piece can be changed, 
                      in half steps, or octaves, up or down. 
                      To those of you who know nothing about Music, 
                      song  too high (or too low) for me to sing!. 
                      The whole thing can be raised or lowered.
Velocity              is  MIDI way of determining 
                      how hard a note is pressed on the keyboard
WYSYWIG               What You See Is What You Get.
sequencer             records the MIDI data. 
                      play back the sequence,
                      sound module will play the notes 
MIDI                  Musical Instrument Digital Interface 
                      born 1983 when  major electronic-instrument manufacturers 
                      realized the need for such a standard
MIDI                  consists of three wires with five-pin DIN type connector
                      at each end (two pins are not used). 
                      "MIDI file", really  is Standard MIDI File, or SMF. 
General MIDI          adds standards on the order of patches (instruments)
                      Keyboard MIDI OUT ----- cable -----> Computer MIDI IN
                      Keyboard MIDI IN  <---- cable ----- Computer MIDI OUT
                      Keyboard MIDI THRU ---- cable -----> Drum Machine MIDI IN
your Mac              will not recognize your files as MIDI files
                      PC's normally use the extension .MID on MIDI 
                      filetype is used for this purpose. 
                      must change  filetype to "Midi". 
                      1.Load ResEdit 
                      2.Under  "File" menu, select "Get File/Folder Info..." 
                      3.Find  MIDI file  and open it 
                      4.Change four-character string in  "Type" box  to "Midi". 
                      Note this must be "Midi" and not
                      "MIDI" or "midi" or "mIdI" or, well, you get the idea. 
                      5.Close the window, and save the changes. 
                      6.Repeat for every MIDI file you need to change.
QuickTime             is General MIDI compatible  
                      Load your QuickTime movie player
                      Select Open from the file menu 
                      Select your MIDI file from the list 
                      Save dialog will appear,
                      you can save a converted version of this MIDI file.
                      saved version is a QuickTime movie with (no video).
                      Play   MIDI movie as QuickTime movie.
                      0dB    silence                 barely  3dB
                      8dB    threhold hearing        perceptible  5dB
                      15dB   whisper                 twice as loud  10dB
                      20dB   empty theater        
                      40dB   private office        
                      60dB   normal conversation        
                      80dB   inside high speed car        
                      90dB   band                   max 8hr/day  
                      100dB  Lawn mover             max 2hr/day  
                      110dB  close to train         max 30min/day  
                      120dB  Thunder                max 5min/day  
                      130dB  threshold pain        
                      140dB  Artillery & Jet        
                      196dB  Saturn Rocket         10KPa_rms= 1atm  
                      196dB  50lb TNT @ 50ft       10KPa_rms= 1atm  
                      225dB  Deafening 
                      
                      SPL_dB= sound pressure level=20*log(P/Pref)        
                      Pref_dynes/cm^2    0.0002    
                      P_dynes/cm^2       633    
                      SPL_dB             130.007    
                      P_psi/in^2 (rms)   0.00918  
                            
                      P_dynes/cm^2    0.0002  
                      SPL_dB    0  
                      P_atm (rms)    2E-10  
                      P_pascals (rms)    0.00002  
                            
                      1atm=10KPa      
                      Pref   =.00002pascal    =2e-5N/meter^2      
                      Pref   =.0002dynes/cm^2 =.0002ubar      
                      Pref   =1e-16wat/cm^2      
                      radiation power of speaker = 1watt      
                      Sound_Air_ft/sec    1130  
                      Sound_water_ft/sec    4900  
                      
EFFECTS               DESCRIPTIONS
                      AMPLITUDE BASED EFFECTS
Volume control        Manual level control. Twist knob, sound  louder or.
                      Examples : Morley and DeArmond Volume pedals ('70s)
Tremolo               Cyclical variation  volume by low frequency oscillator 
                      parameters are waveform of LFO, LFO frequency, and depth 
                      modulation; tremolo and vibrato are often
                      used interchangeably, tremolo actually variation loudness,
                      vibrato  variation in pitch or frequency.
Auto tremolo          tremolo where modulation frequency varied by   the
                      input signal, generally amplitude.
Panning/ping-pong     generalization tremolo more one channel; one channel goes
                      down level, another up. With non-square LFO waveforms
                      effect of sound source moving from place to place  or
Gating/repeat         percussion
                      tremolo 100% modulation by a square wave.
                      exponentially decaying waveforms (guitar ), gives the
                      effect of striking same note again at decreasing levels.                       
Compression           soft inputs louder,  loud ones softer, giving a one-level 
                      of sound with lessened dymanics.effectively volume control
                      level determined by  negation of  averaged envelope of
                      input level. Early compressors called "Sustain" pedals.
Expansion             loud sounds louder and soft ones softer.  volume
                      control with level determined by averaged of input
                      level. Compression and expansion can  complementary, 
                      com(pression/ex)panding for noise reduction.
Asymmetric            compression/peak compression
                      Only peaksget compressed, not the overall
                      level of the waveform envelope.  no averaging of
                      envelope and instantaneous waveform level is compressed. 
                      a much softer form of clipping, is part of  tube
                      sound, since tube with a soft B+ supply are prone to this.
Noise gating          modulates output off when  input level below a threshold. 
                      modulation may be  square wave, or variation of expansion 
                      low level inputs "expanded" down into silence,  gives less
                      abrupt transition.
Attack delay          variation  noise gating where  transition "on" from  "off"
                      or no signal state is slowed. gives output  perceptibly
                      rises level each new note envelope, reminiscent of a tape
                      recording played backwards. 
ADSR                  Term  from  synthesizer folks; stands for Attack Decay
                      Sustain Release, most general way to describe a musical
                      envelope. possible to generate artificial ADSR envelope fo
                      musical note to help fool ear which instrument generated 
Limiting              Like compression,  operates over some threshold only.
                      keep an input from going over some level, but
                      un-processed below  level, as signals on tape without
                      overloading the tape. Example 
Auto swell            rise in level from some starting level to  final level
                      when keyed . Can effectively add sustain to
                      some notes and not others , or can add a "swell" in
                      volume over run of notes, or help with presetting level of
                      lead.
WAVEFORM              DISTORTION EFFECTS
Symmetrical clipping  tops and bottoms of are clipped equally, symmetrically.  
                      generates only odd-order harmonics, giving a reedy, 
                      or raspy sound to the resultant waveform.
                      hardness or softness of clipping matters. 
Hard clipping         when  output wave equals  input up/down 
                      to a certain level, then stays at clipping level until 
                      input drops below the clipping level again, 
                      perfectly flat tops and bottoms to the clipped output. 
Soft clipping         gently rounds the top/bottom of 
                      output wave so the waveform is "softly" rounded
                      on top/bottom, not flat-topped. Soft clipping emphasizes 
                      lower- order  harmonics, the third and fifth, etc.
                      Hard clipping has a mix slewed to  higher order seventh 
                      up harmonics, which are harsher sounding.
Intermodulation       distortion,  production of sum and difference
                      frequencies from frequencies  input waveform, varies with 
                      amount and hardness clipping. Intermodulation harsh,ugly.
Asymmetrical          clipping top(or bottom) clipped more than  bottom
                      causes  generation of both even and odd harmonics,
                      more asymmetrical, more pronounced the
                      even-order harmonics; harsher  clipping, more  harmonics
                      are slewed toward higher order
                      Tubes produce asymmetrical distortion unless  circuitry
                      set up to remove them, as in push-pull.
Infinite limiting     waveform is amplified "infinitely" and hard and
                      symmetrically clipped, producing rectangular output 
                      only  zero crossings with  input waveform. Sounds buzzy
                      and synthesizer-ish.
Half wave             rectification  produces  prominent second harmonic, 
                      heard as an octave. 
Full wave             rectification only  second and higher harmonics of  
                      original input frequency.
                      very strong octave of the input waveform, a slew of
                      even-, odd-, and intermod- distortion products 
                      when more than a single frequency is  input 
                      ( as is the case for all musical instruments).
Arbitrary waveform    generation generates a completely new waveform 
                      of arbitrary shape which shares same frequency as 
                      input waveform. Guitarsynthesizers do a version of this.
FILTER/FREQUENCY      RESPONSE EFFECTS
EQ/tone controls      Allow to cut or boost  highs, lows, mids etc. Tend to be
                      broad-brush kinds  controls - all "high's" raised or cut.
                      Range is typically +/- 12 to 20 db boost/cut.
Treble/mid/bass       boost  like  additional eq control, narrower in frequency
                      range, and more boost range, no cut. 
Cabinet simulation    filter designed to mimic two- or four-pole low frequency
                      rolloff of  guitar speaker cabinet, to get that "miked
                      cabinet" sound into a PA without really miking cabinet.
Resonator             filter with boost in frequency at narrow rangefrequencies.
                      sounds like wah pedal when  pedal not being moved.
Wah                   resonator that can have its center frequency 
                      moved up or down in frequency by moving a pedal. 
                      "wah" name  mimics  moving resonance of human vocal 
                      tract in speech as the sound "wah" is made. 
                      was originally designed to emulate trumpet using a
                      mute(!).
Auto wah              "Envelope Follower"
                      wah filter where center frequency  determined by loudness
                      of input signal, making moving resonance on every note. 
Tremolo-wah           Wah where center frequency moved back forth cyclically, as
                      though pedal  connected to  motor or some such. can
                      generate effects similar to rotating speaker or phasing.                      
vibrato"              cyclical variation in basic frequency of  input signal,
                      similar to  moving the whammy bar on  suitably equipped
                      guitar. True vibrato as add on effect requires  time
                      delay, hard to do until analog  digital) delays came to
                      be. 
Phase shifting        a filter response generated by using long phase delays
                      mixing with original signal cause number of deep notches
                      and/or peaks in the overal filter response. mimics larger
                      number of notches and peaks by true time delayed flanging.
                      simple phase shifters or phasers  generating two notches,
                      some pedals make four notches.Flangers make many notches.
                      Phasers  incorporate feedback to sharpen up effect of 
                      notches.
TIME DELAY            EFFECTS
                      Echo                    
                      Reverb                 
                      True vibrato
                      Flanging
                      Slapback
                      Reverse echo/reverb
                      MISCELLANEOUS         EFFECTS
Octave division       Takes fundamental frequency of  input signal, 
                      divides it by two, and creates an octave-lower, 
                      sometimes a two-octave lower signal, which
                      are usually mixed back with  original signal. 
                      done with digital flipflops to divide signal by two/four
                      after squaring up  input to drive  flipflops.  provides
                      outputs substantially square waves, sounds like fuzz bass.
                      filtering is usually provided to tame the sharp buzz of
                      square waves. simple dividers get very confused when
                      fed more than one tone at once, single note  all  
                      really practical 
Harmony generation    Generation of other notes at 
                      musically-interesting intervals along with
                      your notes. 
Phase lock tracking   a "phase locked loop" can produce an
                      output signal exactly an integer multiple or small-numbers
                      fractions of a reference signal in frequency. generate: 
                      signal that follows your notes, 
                      perhaps lagging a little with a glide
                      onto note  octave or two above a third/fifth/seventh, etc
                      Sounds kind of like a computer playing harmony with you.
Noise addition        Noise (hiss, rumble, etc) is deliberately added 
                      done with restraint and matching  input signal envelope
                      can add a breathing effect like the hiss of air in flute.
                      Filtered low frequencies can add growling quality.
Talk box              effect produced by using small amp to produce sound 
                      conducted into your mouth by tube, you can mouth words to 
                      song, using your vocal tract resonances to shape 
                      instrument sound, which is then picked up by 
                      a microphone. This is the archetypical talking guitar".
Voice tracking        (vocoder) Ring modulation 
                      (Double Side Band Suppressed Carrier generation) Single
                      Side Band Suppressed Carrier generation   
Air Chamber           See the term wind chest.
Articulate            1. Sight separations made before notes this style playing.
                      organist decides length of separation and which notes to
                      separate. entire technique evolved around this principle a
                      used in playing early organ music Bach and. Handel.
                      2. Articulate also describe type stop thata clear attack
                      point or chiff.
Attack Point          moment which pipe begins to speak, when key  pressed,
                      isattack point. Different kinds pipes variety of attack
                      points ranging from soft to strong and clear.
Bellows               older organs, was used to pump air into the
                      reservoir.made of two wedge shaped pieces wood joined by 
                      expandable,fan-like leather. Closing bellows forced air
                      into  Reservoir.
Chiff                 Pipes that have clear edge to sound described as having
                      "chiff." Any pipe can have chiff but principals  always
                      have this clear attack point.
Circuit               electrical connection which, it magnetizes a piece of
                      metal. involved in the mechanism which opens valves
                      allow pipes to speak in electric action instrument.
Combination Action    type mechanism which controls work of pistons. One kind
                      of mechanism is digital.
Console               unit contains everything organist needs to control 
                      sound such as manuals, pedalboard, pistons, etc. All  
                      together is  console.                  
Coupler               coupler allows one division  connected to another.allows
                      stops of two divisions to controlled by one manual or 
                      pedals.the Swell to Great coupler allows  Great manual
                      to use stops from  Swell.also couplers which act within a
                      division to play stops at different octave. SW 4' is
                      a coupler which play stops in swell up an octave and at
                      regular pitch at t same time.
Divisional Piston     a piston that affects only one division 
                      division on organ  have sets  pistons that work only on 
                      particular division.
Division              pipes grouped into several separate sections = divisions.
                      Each has nameis controlled through  own manual or
                      pedalboard.  several manual divisions and most common are:
                      Great, Swell,Choir or Positive. only one Pedal division.
Drawknobs             turn  different kinds of pipe sounds on or off. Pulling 
                      knob out turns  stop on  pushing it in turns it off. 
                      builders use stop tabs = flip up down in place  drawknobs.
Electric Key Action   a wire, an electrical circuit and an electro
                      magnet cause valve below each pipe to open and close. 
                      When you press the key, you close an electrical contact.
                      electro-magnet to open and close the valves each pipe.
Electro-Magnet        metal which, when magnetized by an electrical
                      circuit, attracts  valve below  pipe. valve opens and air
                      flows through pipe, making the pipe speak.
Flue Pipe             kind of pipe made of metal or wood. sound is produced
                      when wind flows through foot of pipe and flows out
                      mouth (hole in front of pipe). air hits lip of
                      pipe and causes column of air to vibrate. length ofcolumn
                      air which, in turn, determines pitch of sound. pipe's
                      length determines size of air column. For diagram of flue
                      pipe, see  sound characteristics page. Most pipes on
                      organ are flue pipes. others are reed pipes. are several
                      types of flue pipes: Principals, Flutes, and Strings.
General Piston        piston affects entire organ  used to recall organist's
                      choice of stops and couplers from all divisions of organ.
Key Action            mechanism uses to used to control  pipe
                      speech.  by controlling the air flow to  pipes. 
Legato                1.this style organ playing,notes flow smoothly one to
                      next.Sometimes are breaks between notes for musicalphrases
                      or to accentuate a note, overall effect smooth compared
                      to articulate playing of the Baroque.
                      2. Legato also refer to technique needed to play 
                      notes smoothly.
Manuals               This is the organ term for the keyboards.
Mechanical Action     key connected to trackers eventually connect to valves
                      that open to admit air from  wind chest into pipe. When 
                      press  key, are physically opening alve in wind chest.
                      there is one valve for each note on  keyboard.
                      if organ has 10 stops, is one valve for all ten pipes
                      which correspond to that note on keyboard.
Memory Levels         In digitally controlled combination action,
                      a memory level is like a file. Multiple level are 
                      essentially multiple files, allowing several
                      different possibilities for one piston. S
Pallet                or Pallet Valve
                      When air flows to pipe,through  hole in wind chest
                      beneath pipe.pallet valve closes this hole when pipe is
                      not used. Pressing key open this valve. Pipe valve is
                      also another term.
Pedalboard            structure on floor which contains the pedals and
                      which link them to the rest of the organ.
Pipe Beard            Used only in flue pipes, a metal rod 
                      that extends in front of the mouth 
                      and connected to ears. Large pipes need this extra
                      piece to focus tone, larger mouth in these pipes makes
                      the tone unstable.
Pipe Toe              bottom opening of  pipe which rests in a hole on  top
                      of  wind chest. See this page for a diagram of a pipe.
Pistons               one of numbered thumb buttons or toe studs on 
                      console can memorize combination of stops. organist can
                      choose stops to use by turning them on 
                      and then set them on one of
                      the numbered pistons. (Most organ consoles 
                      have a Set button on the
                      lower left corner of bottom manual used for this purpose.)
                      organist can recall stops at any time by pressing
                      piston. There are general and divisional pistons.
Pitch                 in music is note that sounds. On organ, pitch does not
                      always correspond to  key which plays the pitch. 
Pluck Point           the point at which the tracker is pulling
                      the valve open. organist feels this through  key. It
                      similar to  pluck point in harpsichord, which musician can
                      feel when pressing a key.
Principal             A principal is one family of sound. 
                      is a flue pipe which is rather
                      narrow for its length and produces a bright, clear sound. 
Rank                  a row of pipes. row always has all pipes of  same kind
                      of sound. all the pipes for a Spitzflute (one kind of
                      flute sound) will be in  same row. Organs often described 
                      number of ranks they have. 60 rank instrument is large 
                      while 18 rank instrument is small. Practice organs 
                      from 3 to 9 ranks.
Reed Pipe             This pipe  like single reed orchestral instrument.  wind
                      flowing through pipe vibrates metal tongue, strip of flat
                      metal, against an open-faced shallot. not visible from 
                      outside because parts are contained in  boot,  bottom part
                      of  pipe which rests on  wind chest. sound is amplified by
                      resonator, top, flared part of  pipe. Pitch determined by
                      length of tongue.  a strong, penetrating tone. 
Reservoir             a storage container for wind.  top part of container
                      is expandable, lik accordian. Weights or springs used on
                      expandable part to keep   pressure. If  wind going
                      to  pipes is notconstant pressure,  sound will
                      waver and  note will warble.
Reversibles           a convenience item and each one has only one function.
                      Pressing stud reverses what  current status of stud was. 
                      ifsoff, now on and vice versa. Full Organ which
                      turns on all stops of organ without knobs or tabs 
                      moving, Great to Pedal which is foot control of coupler.
Roller                In mechanical action, keys directly in front of pipes and
                      wind chest so connection between key and valve straight
                      lines and right angles. Sometimes architecture 
                      necessitate  placing of  pipes off to  side. Then 
                      connection must follow straight lines at irregular angles.
                      roller, a wooden rod,used in this  as its rotation
                      can accommodate irregular angles. two arms each end. One
                      attached to  key (or pedal) and  other  attached to 
                      valve directly, or trackers which lead to valve.  roller
                      mechanism  frequently used in pedal division is  found in
                      mechanical action instruments.
Scaling               proportion of width of a pipe to  length. Tone
                      quality of the pipe will change as proportion changes.
Slider                a long wooden slat which has holes in it 
                      that correspond to a rows of holes in  top of wind chest
                      is used in a slider wind chest (see the next term).
Slider Chest          type wind chest uses slider to block  holes in wind
                      chest and prevent pipes from speaking.
Speaking Pipes,       Pipe Speech
                      organ slang means the pipe is making a sound.
Solid State           Combination Action
                      technology  allows  memory of  pistons to be
                      digitally memorized, multiple digital memory banks 
                      up to 128 levels,
                      all  pistons can be "re-memorized" on multiple levels
Staccato              notes are played short and detached, they are staccato.
Stop                  knob or tab used to turn sound on or off (see Drawknobs).
                      type of sound available on  organ. usually one pipe per
                      note, some kindsuse several pipes for one note on
                      keyboard. Many stops on organ result in 
                      tonal color and volume. T several families, or groups,
                      sounds: Reeds, Principals, Flutes, and Strings.
Stop Action           mechanism turns stops on  off through  use of drawknobs
                      on  sides of  console or stop tabs above  manuals.turning
                      stop on, barrier between pipes and wind chest moved  so
                      air can flow to pipe when its corresponding key pressed.
Stop Tabs             See Drawknobs.
Swell Pedal           or Swell Shoe
                      pedal on console  controls opening and closing of 
                      swell shades.
Swell Shades          Slatslook like Venetian blinds  opened and closed
                      through foot pedal called swell shoe.allows volumecontrol
                      because pipes behind blinds will get louder as shades 
                      opened.  shades are normally in front o division called 
                      swell. also be placed in front of solo and choir divisions
                      if  organ has these divisions.
Technique             in playing  instrument refers to all physical movements
                      and mental knowledge needed to play  instrument. 
                      factual knowledge be taught to anyone. in contrast
                      to artistry, which cannot be taught. 
                      Organ repertoire uses two main types of technique: 
                      Legato and Articulated Playing.
Thumb Pistons         below keys of each manual are small buttons. numbered ones
                      are pistons. others have various functions are reversibles
                      thumb  used to press is how they got their name.
Tone                  the color of sound. organ a wide variety of sounds
                      available. difference in sound colors of stops makes 
                      variety possible.
Toe Studs             large buttons on  console near  pedals that control
                      several mechanisms on  organ. On right, a group of
                      divisional toe pistons that memorize stops for pedaldivisi
                      group on left general pistons which affect all stops and
                      couplers on  organ. are repeats of thumb generals below
                      the manuals,last kind  toe studs you are called
                      reversibles.  usually spread out across  bottom of 
                      console, above generals and pedal divisionals.  a
                      convenience item and has only one function per stud.
Tracker               Another name for mechanical action.
                      also a long thin piece of wood used in mechanical
                      action instruments to open  valve (See next term).
Valve                 open or close to admit air to the pipe. Their movement is
                      controlled through  keys on keyboard.  key down pulls
                      valve open. Each key has spring underneath so key
                      returns to  "up" position, allowing valve to close.
Voicing, Voiced       All pipes in  organ are altered after organ installed 
                      acoustics  room affect organ's sound. Tonal color, volume,
                      stability of sound affected by  alterations. For example,
                      an unusually loud pipe that sticks out above rest is 
                      softened until  volume matches  other pipes of that stop. 
                      Pipe organs  intentionally voiced Each note will
                      sound slightly different in character, an overall volume 
                      increase as  notes go up  scale.
Wind Chest            pipes sit atop this plain wooden box. stop on, air flows
                      from reservoir into box. When notes are played, uses air
                      from this box to make the pipes speak.