Keyswitches and Articulations
Learn about all keyswitches available for the melodic instruments in the East Asia library.
This section gives an overview of all keyswitches for the melodic instruments in the East Asia library. You will find tables that list all articulations for Plucked instruments and Sustained instruments, and tables that describe abbreviated articulation names in more detail.
Keyswitches for Plucked Instruments
The following table provides an overview of articulations available for plucked instruments:
Note | Guqin | Guzheng | Yangqin | Koto | Pipa | Shamisen | Gayageum |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
C0 | Short | Short | Short | Short | Short | Short | Short |
C#0 | Trem Short | Trem Short | Trem Short | Trem Short | Trem Short | Dbl Stroke | Dbl Stroke |
D0 | Open Strings | Sound Var | Sound Var | Pizz | Open Strings | Open Strings | Vib Small |
D#0 | Open + Harm | Octave | Trem Oct | Octave | FX 1 | Open LH Pizz | Octave |
E0 | Harmonics | Reso | Reso | Harmonics | Reso | LH Pizz | Reso |
F0 | Slide Up | Bend Up | Octave | Bend Up | Mordent Up | Bend Up | Bend Up |
F#0 | Open + Slide Up | Trem Velo | Trem Velo | Trem Velo | Trem Velo | Open Up | Trem Velo |
G0 | Slide Dn | Bend Dn | Gliss Dn | Mordent Up | Bend Dn | Bend Dn | Bend Dn |
G#0 | Open + Slide Dn | Tremolo | Tremolo | Tremolo | Tremolo | Open + Mordent | Tremolo |
A0 | Open + Note | Gliss Dn | Gliss Up | Gliss Dn | FX 2 | Mordent Up | Vib Wide |
A#0 | Damp Note | Damp Note | Damp Note | Damp Note | Damp Note | Damp Note | Damp Note |
B0 | Lower HT | Lower HT | Lower HT | Lower HT | Lower HT | Lower HT | Lower HT |
Keyswitches for Sustained Instruments
The following table provides an overview of articulations available for sustained instruments:
Note | Ajaeng | Daegeum | Dizi | Erhu | Hichiriki | Shakuhachi | Sho |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
C0 | Short | Short | Short | Short | Short | Short | Short |
C#0 | Pizz | Short 2 | Grace Short | Short 2 | Short 2 | Short 2 | Chord Low |
D0 | Up Bow | n/a | Upper Grace | Up Bow | Long Slide | Expressive | Inhale |
D#0 | n/a | Vibrato | Lower Grace | Legato Fingered | n/a | n/a | Chord High |
E0 | Portamento | Portamento | Portamento | Portamento | Legato Soft | Legato Grace | Chord Sus |
F0 | Bend Up | Bend Up | Grace Dn | Slide Up | Bend Up | n/a | Cluster |
F#0 | n/a | n/a | Flutter | n/a | n/a | Flutter | Flutter |
G0 | Bend Dn | Bend Dn | Bend Dn | Slide Dn | Bend Dn | Grace | Chord Short |
G#0 | Pizz Gliss | Grace Up | Tremolo | Tremolo | n/a | n/a | Chord Long |
A0 | Vib Small | Grace Dn | n/a | Mordent Dn | n/a | n/a | Chord Inhale |
A#0 | Vib Wide | Trill | Trill | Trill | Vibrato | n/a | Chord Flutter |
B0 | Grace | Mordent Up | Mordent Up | Mordent Up | n/a | Mordent Up | Chord Dbl Tong |
Common Articulations
The following table provides an explanation of common articulations available for most instruments:
Name | Description |
|---|---|
Short | Typical short articulation, for example, staccato. |
Reso | A sound based on the recorded resonance of the instrument. |
Mordent/Bend/Slide (Up/Dn) | Various pitch inflections. The interval of the ornament (minor second, major second, or minor third) is automatically set by the neighboring scale notes. If the interval of the neighboring scale note is greater than a minor third, the interval of the ornament defaults to a minor second. |
Sound Var | Provides generic sound variation. |
Gliss Up/Dn | Diatonic Glissando, for instance, only notes of the chosen scale are used. |
Tremolo | Default tremolo for most plucked instruments, the dynamic is controlled by the Performance Slider. |
Trem Velo | Default tremolo for most plucked instruments, the dynamic is controlled by velocity. |
Damp Note | Dampens a single note (as opposed to the Damp button on the Perform page, which dampens all notes). |
Lower HT | Plays the lower halftone of the default articulation. Used mainly by the included MIDI files for playing notes outside of the scale. |
Specific Articulations
The following table explains articulations available for specific instruments:
Name | Description |
|---|---|
Open Strings | Available for the Guqin, Shamisen and Pipa, triggers open strings (as opposed to stopped notes). |
Harmonics | Available for the Guqin and Koto: triggers the harmonics (i.e., natural overtones). |
Portamento | Available for Ajaeng, Daegeum Dizi, and Erhu: legato played notes are performed with a short glide, dependent on velocity. |
Pizz | Plucked on the other side of the bridge (Koto), plucked instead of bowed (Ajaeng). |
Inhale/Exhale | Available for the Sho, triggers either long notes produced by inhaling or exhaling. |
Chord (Low, High, Sus) | Available for the Sho, triggers diatonic chords, either short (Low and High) or sustained (Sus). |
Cluster | Available for the Sho, triggers a chromatic cluster, independent of the chosen scale |
Legato (Fingered, Grace, Soft) | Similar to Portamento, legato played notes are performed with a slight variation to the default Legato mode. |