generalized keyboard

a question on the actual use of generalized keyboards:

aren't they the same as the arrangement of bayan (and
probably bandoneon) knobs, whioch for 12 et have several
rows of diminished chords, halfsteps ascending and whole
steps descending obliquely? or is there more to it?

klaus

In-Reply-To: <3CA075F6.CF6DBA72@z.zgs.de>
klaus schmirler wrote:

> a question on the actual use of generalized keyboards:
>
> aren't they the same as the arrangement of bayan (and
> probably bandoneon) knobs, whioch for 12 et have several
> rows of diminished chords, halfsteps ascending and whole
> steps descending obliquely? or is there more to it?

What you describe sounds like a generalized keyboard. I looked up
accordions once, and they have a very different pattern where three notes
in a row are a 5-limit chord. The usual meantone layout for a GK would be
halfsteps in both directions for 12-equal instead of whole and half steps
in different directions. That means whole tones where you have minor
thirds.

Do you have a diagram anywhere?

Graham

In-Reply-To: <3CA075F6.CF6DBA72@z.zgs.de>
klaus schmirler wrote:

> a question on the actual use of generalized keyboards:
>
> aren't they the same as the arrangement of bayan (and
> probably bandoneon) knobs, whioch for 12 et have several
> rows of diminished chords, halfsteps ascending and whole
> steps descending obliquely? or is there more to it?

<http://www.bikexprt.com/music/bosanqet.htm> does say that a Bayan has a
GK.

There are some unindexed pictures at
<http://www.red-bean.com/~noel/keyboard-layouts/> so see if you can find
one that looks right.

You can find a Bandoneon layout at
<http://www.bandoneon-maker.com/harrygeuns.htm> (you'll have to follow
some links as it's framed). It's a bit like what you say, but lots of
discrepancies.

<http://www.geocities.com/heytud/dl/note-keys.pdf> shows a concertina
layout which is similar to what you say, except at the edges.

<http://www.accordionlinks.com/educational.cfm#layout> is where I found
some of these links.

Graham

> What you describe sounds like a generalized keyboard. I looked up
> accordions once, and they have a very different pattern where three notes
> in a row are a 5-limit chord. The usual meantone layout for a GK would be
> halfsteps in both directions for 12-equal instead of whole and half steps
> in different directions. That means whole tones where you have minor
> thirds.

So, judging from the links you sent, there are oodles of
variations. The one I described is that of a contemporary
Russian bayan. The more elaborate models have up to 5 rows
of diminished triads; having the largest steps along the
edge of the instrument means you don't have to move so much
with only three rows of buttons (on a three-row instrument,
you have an octave of the chromatic scale under four
fingertips).

If I remember correctly, the left hand side (on an
instrument that cost a veritable fortune) could switch
between the same layout as on the right for polyphonic music
and probably a more accordeonly, fifth based arrangement for
the oom-pah stuff.

>
> Do you have a diagram anywhere?

Only memories of the explanations I got when I was playing
alongside a "portable acoustic keyboard" (for an open air
theatre production) who just happened to come from Russia
and to play the bayan.

But for the fact that tuning a free reeds affects the
substance of the instruments, instruments of more than three
rows would seem very suitable at least for the common
practice enharmonics. Still not a mass market. But perhaps
it wre better for Starr Labs (for example) to garner the
accordeon market instead of guitarists?

Welcome the hell, here's your chromolodeon?

klaus

Compromise has little place in art. What if Beethoven decided that going from a 20 min to a forty min sym was just too long, what would have been gin by shortening it 10 min.
Such way of thinking stands in the very way of what art is and does. We are to look and be informed by the future. Anything less is an academic exercise. when you have something to say you say it, we are not diplomats
Percussionist although they tend to specialize go from instrument to instrument and if our keyboard players can go from piano, to samplers, to organ and harpsichord another type of keyboard is minor or would be in a little time. Nothing is more difficult that placing these scales on a conventional 12 note dinosaur and attempt to freely dive head long into a tuning. We need to be able to interact with our visual feedback to grab these mandalic entities by the horns and ride them across the stadium.
27 years of microtonal music for myself and i have no time to wait for others to catch up, or I and others need our keyboards now.
People like George Secor, or Michael Zarkey will act and built them as i do with some mallet instruments and we can not be concerned with whether it is accordance to one of history's least inspired moments.

-- Kraig Grady
North American Embassy of Anaphoria island
http://www.anaphoria.com

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