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morphonium
The Morphonium is a new way to play synthesized sounds with real time expressive control.
We want to give synthesizers the same potential for subtlety and nuance as acoustic instruments. Our gestural controllers allow musicians to sculpt sound in truly endless ways for deep emotional impact.
Over years of gigging with synths we have learned a few things, and it is time to share some of these ideas. Check out the demo and info below. If you want details there is a longer story.
Design
Design
The Morphonium is an expressive keyboard instrument with a suite of gestural controllers to allow synthesised sounds to be morphed while playing.
The keyboard includes a novel 2-axis "Vibe Bar" that allows vibrato and accurate interval pitch bends using the wrist of the playing hand. Rotating (front-back) and Sliding (left-right) contribute ±1 and ±2 semitones, giving fluid and precise bends of 1, 2, or 3 semitones without lifting the hand from the keyboard.
For timbre control the Morphonium includes a wheelboard with over 100 controls that can be mapped to MIDI continuous controls or assigned to trigger note events. Unlike traditional control knobs, Morphonium wheels can be adjusted with a single finger, allowing the left hand to smoothly control multiple sound parameters while playing with the right hand. The wheelboard has a keyboard-like layout, in which wheels can function as keys with polyphonic aftertouch. The wheel layout also aids memory, allowing control mappings to be associated with particular note positions.
The Morphonium consists of three parts:
Wheelboard (timbre control)
74 wheels and 30 buttons for MIDI notes and continuous controllers
Touch screen for programming and feedback
Keyboard (melody)
4 octave velocity sensitive keyboard
"Vibe bar" for vibrato and calibrated pitch bends
"Gliss strip" for up to 2 octave glissando
"Tron" for theremin-like continuous control of pitch and volume
"Pusher" (up/down) and "Spinitt" (rotary) expression controllers
"Transer" shifts octaves based on proximity of the hand to the back of the keyboard
Breath controller to articulate volume and brightness
Pedalboard
Continuous expression pedal for filter / brightness
Sustain pedal (continuous or digital)
4 digital pedals for loop control
Wheelboard
Wheelboard
The Wheelboard includes 74 control wheels, 30 buttons and two joysticks which can be used for timbre control. Each control can be mapped to MIDI CCs, or assigned to trigger note events.
Knobs require use of the whole hand, but wheels are more ergonomic and can be operated with just one finger, allowing up to 5 controls per hand.
Colour indicates position of the wheel. For the vision impaired there are ridges on the wheel edge which vary with rotation.
Vibe Bar
Vibe Bar
The Vibe Bar is a two-axis controller for vibrato and pitch bend.
Vibrato is produced by gently rocking the wrist side-to-side on the vibe bar.
Slide the bar fully side-to-side to bend pitch by ±2 semitones.
Rotate the bar forward and backward to bend pitch by ±1 semitone.
Combine rotation and slides for calibrated pitch bends of 1, 2, or 3 semitones. Customise the bend amounts to achieve other interval bends.
Tron
Tron
The Tron is a two-axis controller for continuous pitch and volume.
Rotating the lever controls pitch over a 2 octave range.
Twisting the lever controls volume and/or brightness.
Its like a theremin for one hand.
Transer
Transer
A pair of laser beams detects proximity of the hand to the back of the keyboard.
Playing notes closer to the back of the keys transposes the notes up by one, two, or three octaves.
Status
Status
The Morphonium shown here is a first prototype, combining earlier hand-made controllers into a single instrument.
Components of the Wheelboard, Keyboard and Pedalboard are laser-cut acrylic and most of the electronics are custom printed circuit boards.
The system is fully functional, though new features may be added through software updates. We are working on a second prototype that will focus on improved robustness and reduced time and cost to manufacture. This might include:
Replacing structural acrylic parts with wood, steel or aluminium
Using 3D printed designs for components made of multiple laser-cut layers
Using a separate ADC circuit for better noise-performance than the current microcontroller-integrated ADC
Increasing the size of the touch screen and button matrix
Using sensors and components available as SMD devices that can be cheaply assembled in the PCB manufacturing process
We will document our second prototype as an open-source project, allowing makers to remix or reproduce the device from scratch. We intend to produce a small run of instruments, and to make lower cost kits available to assemble at home. If there is sufficient interest we will investigate mass production. We are also designing a kit for retro-fitting existing keyboards with the vibe bar and other gestural controllers.
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