Motif ES 61 question.

T

The Green Hornet

New member
On my DX7, I can transpose the white notes into any key I want--"Yeah, I know that it's the easy way out but it saves time."

I'm sure this can be done on the Motif. Would someone kindly tell me what buttons to push to toggle say between three flats and C on the "white" keys?

Thanks for saving me the time searching in the "manual."

Green Hornet
 
:eek:

I didn't know I bought such an esoteric keyboard.

Not even Yamaha has answered my inquiry, YET.

Green Hornet :confused: :rolleyes: :cool:
I know it can be done--just have to figure out the jargon in the manual.
 
Y'know, G.H., there may not be a way to do what you seek on the Motif.

That sounds to me like a feature they put in early midi keyboards but has been scrapped over the last ten years...

If you still own your DX7 you could use it as a master keyboard / transposition master and play the Motif over midi.
 
:D Ahh, SSSScientist:

A light in the tunnel! Thanks. You may be correctemente on this one. I've found some transposition info in the manual and am now looking it over.

I still have the DX7--will probably keep it forever. I got this new synth for the patches as those in the DX have seen their day.

Appreciate the comeback.

Green Hornet :D
 
Hey, hey, SSS=Scientist

:D Yea, verily, you can transpose the keyboard on the Motif Boards.

After an hour of doing the manual, it took me about ten minutes with the board on to figure out what to do.

It all centers on going into the Utility mode and the screen changes. Lo! There is a set-up to raise the pitch of the given voice by half-steps. So, moving the cursor to the appropriate selection, it takes two pushes of the increment plus button to move the pitch of the voice from C to D or going the other way using the minus increment button, [or the value wheel if you want] you can go to the flat keys.

I didn't think that Yamaha would shelve that feature. It makes the keyboard something like, was it Irv Berlin or Hoagy Carmichael [sp] whose keyboard had a similar function so he could play using the white keys but be in another key.

The manual is really ugly in its method of explaining but my experience with the DX7 helped. I just knew it could be done after reading some pages in the early part of the manual. Now, I'm laughing at how easy it is. Before, I was ready to complain to Yamaha. It's just unbelieveable that a company as big as Yamaha can't get people to write a manual that is EASY to follow.

Thought you'd like to know.

Green Hornet :p :p :p :D
 
The Green Hornet said:
The manual is really ugly in its method of explaining but my experience with the DX7 helped. I just knew it could be done after reading some pages in the early part of the manual. Now, I'm laughing at how easy it is. Before, I was ready to complain to Yamaha. It's just unbelieveable that a company as big as Yamaha can't get people to write a manual that is EASY to follow.

Thought you'd like to know.

Green Hornet :p :p :p :D
Click to expand...

Apparently you've never owned anything made by Roland.

Since you're working with MIDI, the ability to transpose should almost always be possible. It's not a feature I ever use, but I'd be surprised if almost all MIDI keyboards can't do it.

One other thing- The black keys are you friends!! Learn to use them. They will not hurt you. Master that pentatonic scale! ;)

In fact, I find playing in keys like E flat, A flat and D flat is actually easier in many ways than C, F or G. Maybe easier isn't the best word. I mean that the flat keys seem to open up a lot more harmonic possibilities (to my ear, anyway) than the more "basic" keys.

This could bring up a whole discussion of how different keys affect us and key "colors" and such.


Ted
 
:D Yo Ted:

As a former English Composition teacher, I'm amazed at such terrible manuals put out by many major companies. Maybe someday Yamaha will get the message; but, while they're making $$, they are hard of hearing.

I have some friends for whom I do background music, as well as clients. It just saves me time to transpose to Ab and use the white notes. I am sure that playing in flat and sharp keys is not much more difficult, "once you work at it." It's a matter of understanding the root positions and fingering.

So, to save time, I use the transpose function. However, while fiddling and recording myself, I do wander into "those other keys" and learn more each time. It's like a C major triad is no different than an Ab major triad--one just needs to try.

But, thanks for the response--I've heard, via this site, that Roland manuals are no better than Yamaha's manuals.

Someone wrote a "recovery" manual for my DX7 years back--it was clear and set up in steps in clear language. Someone should do the same for the newer products, even the DAWS are mysterious in some aspects. I get around on my 2816 but there are many things I still need to understand.

Happy Thanksgiving,
Green Hornet :confused: :rolleyes: :D
 
The Green Hornet said:
:D Yo Ted:

As a former English Composition teacher, I'm amazed at such terrible manuals put out by many major companies. Maybe someday Yamaha will get the message; but, while they're making $$, they are hard of hearing.

I have some friends for whom I do background music, as well as clients. It just saves me time to transpose to Ab and use the white notes. I am sure that playing in flat and sharp keys is not much more difficult, "once you work at it." It's a matter of understanding the root positions and fingering.

So, to save time, I use the transpose function. However, while fiddling and recording myself, I do wander into "those other keys" and learn more each time. It's like a C major triad is no different than an Ab major triad--one just needs to try.

But, thanks for the response--I've heard, via this site, that Roland manuals are no better than Yamaha's manuals.

Someone wrote a "recovery" manual for my DX7 years back--it was clear and set up in steps in clear language. Someone should do the same for the newer products, even the DAWS are mysterious in some aspects. I get around on my 2816 but there are many things I still need to understand.

Happy Thanksgiving,
Green Hornet :confused: :rolleyes: :D
Click to expand...

Have you ever noticed that their advertising copy never suffers from the same problems?

I've never found Yamaha manuals to be particularly poor. All the information is usually there. It might not be presented in the easiest to understand manner, but it's normally free of the sort of gross grammatical and syntactical errors for whiche Roland is legendary. For instance, my old TB-303 manual warned against "idiotic operation". lol Many of these instruments are so complicated and feature laden, and the production cycle and product life so short, that it's a wonder they even have manuals at all.

True that a major triad is a major triad no matter what the key, but there are two other factors that I find have a major (no pun intended) influence on my playing. First is that musical notes have, for lack of a better word, "colors". A "G" just sounds a certain way to my ear and it's different than an "A" or "F". I can't really explain it, but it's there. I don't know if other people experience the same thing or, if they do, they experience it in the same way as I do. The other factor is that on a keyboard the physical layout of the keys affects how you play. Some things are awkward to play, some are nearly impossible (for instance, sliding from a white key to a black key to play a grace note, however sliding from a black key to a white is a common technique). These physical considerations result in certain combinations falling under my fingers more comfortably.

It might be that this is only me. I'm largely self-taught. People with more discipline and better chops might not suffer from the same limitations as I do. I can only speak from my experience.

Ted
 
The Green Hornet said:
:D Yea, verily, you can transpose the keyboard on the Motif Boards.
Click to expand...

Thanks, G.H. --- I'll file that away under 'Motif'.

You are one persevering mofo, Meester Hornet - and that manual must not have been QUITE as useless as it first seemed...
 
Yo Dr. Sylvania: [who remembers him?]

Sssssscientist-man:

Nay, the manual is not "useless;" however, it is not useful!

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

PS The Motif has more sounds and bells and dings than I ever imagined. Fun board. ;) :D :p :p :p
 
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