My new Kbd layout idea...

[jjj]

Greetings from Chile, to all you wonderful "Concertinos y Concertinas" (...sorry, I'm forced to speak Spanish now),

 

In my eternal struggle to find the elusive Kbd layout, which suits my 'two left hands', I come to realize that even the Janko layout cause me months of relearning problems. Maybe I'm already too old for that sort of change?

 

Yet, having had another good look onto the trusty, traditional zebra piano layout, I came up with some bright moments, which procured some interesting results. So, have a look at my latest "isomorhesized" traditional Kbd idea and it's advantages over the conventional piano layout:

 

1) All keys are of the same size.

2) All key are almost of the same level.

3) Far easier key transposition.

4) Black and white keys are nearer each other.

5) Key down/ up travel is only 3mm. *)

6) The keyboard is shorter.

7) Keyboard edges are rounded for easy gliding.

8) No relearning needed (!!)

9) It is Klavarskribo notation compatible.

10) The "dead" keys lay 3mm lower than the white keys

and can be made to trigger MIDI messages.

 

*) Dynamic volume, tremolo etc. variations should be done (like singers or accordion players) or via a knee/ foot lever, breath control etc.

 

Ideally, this layout could be adapted to an old/new accordion keyboard.

I.e., glue-gun gluing little, thin pieces of firm carton for the black keys and little, flat wooden distance pieces to the white accordion keys. The new wooden key tops are then glued with a good universal glue (such as UHU) on top of it. This glue gives us time to perfectly align the key tops.

 

 

----------------

The new Kbd layout can also be adapted to any Synth.

All you would need to do is to glue little wooden distance pieces under the end of each key (near their electronic contacts) so, that it makes contact at 3mm key down and the black keys have to be 3mm higher than the white keys. (Now they are 10mm at your Synth!!)

 

Once you got these levels right, you can hot glue thin pieces of firm carton on top of the black keys and little, flat wooden distance pieces to white keys of the accordion keys, using glue gun. The new, thin, wooden, rounded edged key tops are then glued with a good universal glue (such as UHU) on top of it. This glue gives us time to perfectly align the key tops.

 

Also, using glue gun to bond to the accordion key surface, allows you to remove the lot later on (with a hair dryer) without damaging the keyboard surface, in case we change our minds.

Remember, that the black keys should only be 3mm higher than the white keys.

The new, thin, wooden, rounded edged key tops are then glued with a good universal glue (such as UHU) on top of it. This glue gives us time to perfectly align the key tops.

 

Also, using glue gun to bond to the accordion key surface, allows you to remove the lot later on (with a hair dryer) without damaging the keyboard surface, in case we change our minds.

Remember, that the black keys should only be 3mm higher than the white keys.

So, it would only be a... glue job (no electronics job) !!!

 

Well, that's my latest progress and I thought of letting you know about, because it offers us some food for thought. jjj

 

 

Edited September 25, 2009 by jjj

[m3838]

Well, that's my latest progress and I thought of letting you know about, because it offers us some food for thought. jjj

 

 

 

 

http://www.accordionkravtsov.com/sys2.shtml

[jjj]

Hi m3838,

 

It has some graphic similarity, but not quite the same. All I tried to achieve is more uniformity. Ideally the whole chromatic scale should be in one row. Unfortunately, human hands/ fingers are too short to span chords on a chromatic scale of one row.

 

Thus, my question was: how to approximate the black keys and therefore think, it's the best one can do under given circumstances? The main bit is to equalize the size and levels of keys and there too, I did what was possible.

I don't like the idea of varying volume dynamics via keys and prefer to do it via the bellow or other similar means.

That allows for only 3mm key down. Today's electronics even allows for touch switches. All these technical advances allow us to design a totally new, innovative Kbd layout. The greatest advantage of my layout is that it doesn't require relearning, which non-of the other layouts is able to claim.

Is there anything else my layout could be amended with?

 

Enjoy my latest recording samples:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQpI6RsPo8k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNoG4-vowBM

On the 4th of next month, I'll be performing "Liberace's Ave Maria" in our local church

http://www.fotolog.com/fotosdechile/12918202

I have to carefully adjust my MP3 player, as not to put on Elvis Presley's Rock'n Roll...

[JimLucas]

...I tried to achieve is more uniformity. Ideally the whole chromatic scale should be in one row.

A properly constructed standard piano keyboard already has that.

 

The near ends of the white keys are of equal width (and therefore equal spacing) for a diatonic scale in the key of C, but at the back of the keyboard, the white and black keys are all of equal width, giving a single-row, equally-spaced chromatic scale.

 

How a player's hands and fingers interact with this design may be a separate issue.

 

It is also possible that some keyboards that have attempted to copy the piano's design may do so only superficially, and so not incorporate this double standard of equality.

[jjj]

...I tried to achieve is more uniformity. Ideally the whole chromatic scale should be in one row.

A properly constructed standard piano keyboard already has that.

 

Not really, because its black keys are half the widths of the white keys and 10mm above the white keys.

That makes it hard/ impossible to establish a uniform pattern, such as isomorphic layouts offer.

 

I want to cut down on practicing scales. My layout offers all of that, without the need of relearning a new layout.

Maybe you didn't have a thorough look at my proposed Kbd layout... (?)

Edited September 26, 2009 by jjj

[Dirge]

Maybe you didn't have a thorough look at my proposed Kbd layout... (?)

 

 

No, certainly not. Why should we? What has it to do with concertinas?

[Anglo-Irishman]

Maybe you didn't have a thorough look at my proposed Kbd layout... (?)

 

 

No, certainly not. Why should we? What has it to do with concertinas?

 

Dirge,

you took the words right out of my mouth!

 

This new keyboard layout is as unsuited to the concertina as the piano keyboard is. The one feature that all viable concertina systems have in common is compactness, because the thumb- or hand-straps allow very little lateral movement. The difference between English, Anglo, Crane, Maccann and Hayden ist that they achieve this compactness by different means. They all have several short rows of buttons rather than one long one.

 

The reason why the Rust ("piano concertina") system and the similar Jedcertina did not catch on is probably that most people's fingers won't splay wide enough to get a decent range, and if you have a playable set of buttons, the range is very limited. No amount of "isomorphing" will get rid of this inherent weakness.

 

@ jjj: You might find more interest for your linear layout on an accordion forum!

 

Cheers,

John