Roland V-Arranger Keyboard VA-76 - Manual (Page 80)

VA-76 Owner’s Manual—More about the VariPhrase part
82
Mode
1. Press the [FUNCTION MENU] button.
2. Press the [VariPhrase] field.
3. On the page that appears now, press the [Global]
field.
4. Press the [Mode] field in the left column.
Loop
If you want the Phrase to play back as a loop (i.e. to be
repeated over and over), turn this ON. In the case of a
stepped phrase (see page 81), this means that the cur-
rent step will be looped for as long as you hold down
the key(s) you pressed. If you then press another key
after releasing the previous one(s), the next step will
be played in a loop.
You could also use this parameter for overriding the
automatic activation of the Loop function whenever
the Mode [STEP/SYNC] button in the VariPhrase pad
on the front panel is switched off. This selects the
Time Sync mode (see page 81) – and that, in turn,
switches on this Loop function, which may not always
be to your liking.
Note: If Trigger is set to [Drum] (see page 47), the LOOP
setting is ignored.
Note: The VA-76’s VariPhrases are always looped between
the Edit Start and End positions. If the rhythm of a User
phrase is odd, modify the Edit Start and/or Edit End posi-
tion(s) until it is just right. See page 72. Bear in mind,
though, that your phrase has to be encoded (EXECUTE)
again before these new positions become meaningful. Also,
do not forget to save your User phrase to disk after changing
its Edit Start and End positions (see page 76).
T. Quantize
This parameter allows you to ensure that the Vari-
Phrases can only be started at rhythmically meaning-
ful positions so that they always make musical sense.
Press the [OFF] field to make it read [ON] if you wish
to take advantage of the quantization.
Robot
Imagine you are using a phrase with lyrics that are just
right for a new song, while the melody isn’t. As you
know by now the melody of a sampled phrase can
change even though you press only one key (which is
about the same as the chords of the Intro or Ending
pattern of a Music Style). The phrases in ROM contain
no such pitch shifts, which is why they sound just
right in any key and at any pitch.
Your User phrases, however, may contain entire verses
of a song. What do you do then? Of course, you could
sample the vocal line yourself at the correct melody,
but maybe that wouldn’t provide quite the same “feel”.
You could also switch on the Robot function. This will
“equalize” all melodic shifts of the phrase, so that all
syllables are played back at the same pitch. When com-
bined with the Step parameter (see page 81), this
“equalized” phrase allows you to “build” an entirely
new vocal line based on the syllables of the phrase.
Note that this is meant as a “special effect” similar to
that obtained with a Vocoder (an effect that gives the
impression that a synthesizer, guitar, etc. can talk).
Note: Even slight changes in pitch (grace notes, etc.) will be
equalized so that the result may sound slightly more
mechanical. But then again, that’s what a robot is all
about…
Note: For optimum results, be sure to play only notes close
to the Original Key note (see page 74).
5.5 Controller functions for the
VariPhrase part
As shown on page 49, you can change the pitch, for-
mant and tempo of the currently selected VariPhrase
using the three on-screen sliders on the Controllers/
VariPhrase page. We also mentioned the possibility to
use the remaining performance functions, some of
which are built-in, while others are optional.
The following functions would already be worth the
purchase of an optional DP-2, DP-6, or BOSS FS-5U
footswitch, because they allow you to do something
truly amazing. There are also some convenient Hold
functions you may want to use at times (see page 192),
while you can also use the built-in controllers (Pitch
Bend/Modulation, Ribbon, etc.).
Legto Lock
By assigning this function to the optional footswitch,
you can cause a phrase to go on running even when
you play no note at all. Play a note, press the foot-
switch and then release the key, only to press it again a
little later. You will notice that the phrase now sounds
from its “logical position” (i.e. the one it would have
reached if you had held the key down). This technique
is an intelligent “audible/muted” switch for the
Original audio phrase
(with pitch changes)
Phrase after activating
the Robot function
VA-76.book Page 82 Friday, January 12, 2001 12:35 PM