I thought I'd post something done on my keytar (an ancient Yamaha KX-5). Please bear in mind, this is VERY early days of getting used to this feature, so there ARE flubs (yes, I'm human!).

We just did something showing off the LH bass, here's the absolute opposite of it!

I set my keytar up to control my BK-7m. Couple of rock guitar patches (edited up a bit). The real trick is, I use ONLY the guitar patch to play the lead AND control the chord section too. Piano mode allows me to solo on up to two notes without re-triggering the chord, so I'm working on trying to do guitar stuff and still chord, all with one hand. The ribbon is critical here. All vibrato's done with finger rocking, not LFO's (makes all the difference!). There's not a lot of hammer on/off stuff here, but that's another thing that the ribbon only does.

A work in progress, but quite fun to do. There's one feature I might try next time, that holds the chord with a pedal, so I can get away with accidental 3 note stuff. Something for next time.

The tune is just something improvised, so the chords meander a bit, but maybe it's the start of a song, who knows?! It's just up as an exercise in what you can do with one hand only (who knows what the other hand wants to do!)

I always wanted to try a Keytar, just for the visual effect.
Sounds like it works very well.
Thanks,
DonM

I was waiting for the vocals to kick in - C'mon Diki, you've got some good licks with that Keytar, just need to hear you punching out those vocals with some great vocal harmony.

Cheers,

Gary

It will change your life, Don! I know you are heavily into guitar emulation... The way the strip falls under your fingers, you will be amazed at how quickly you're are doing stuff you couldn't dream of on the lever.

Plus, it's amazing for horn and wind parts... trills, scoops, legato lines (by using the strip to change notes rather than re-triggering the sound).

Lastly, it is the ULTIMATE sitting in rig... You take up no room on stage, need next to no gear, and, being one handed, it removes the ability (mostly!) to overplay, and step on people! Sure, for full piano parts, it's very restrictive. But everything else, it's a jammer's dream come true.

Plus, it's cool to move about while you play. Watch out, you poser guitarists! Keytar's coming to rock your world!

BTW, even if you don't have a keytar, any of us can try this as an exercise.

Set up a guitar patch (acoustic, electric, no difference) to whole keyboard mode, piano mode on, pick a style, glue that LH to the wheel or lever, and have fun!

Want to take it further..? OK. Now forget about the wheel, and do it with your LH. Play a melody, be careful about sticking to two notes or less to not retrigger the chord until you WANT to. Master this, and you can now chord the arranger and play counter-melodies in your LH while you solo or play the main melody in the RH!

Another really cool use for this is, set up your LH side to be a slap and pop bass patch, but set the velocity up so it doesn't sound until you hit it REALLY hard. Now, you can chord without anything sounding, but every now and again, you can pop a bass note out when you feel like it. This is something bass players do a lot in funk, soul, pop musics... finger style mostly, pop bass to help the turnarounds or rhythm every now and again.

Yeah I owned the Roland one and actually did gig with it, but in a duo/solo situation I found it too constricting, even with minimalist backing tracks.

If I was still in a full band I would still own one They are excellent for playing bass with.

... looks cool too ...

I am afraid I didn't like the Roland keytars. That stupid pressure bar that you had to go around to get to the pitch strip drove me crazy!

I must admit, the Yamaha's prehistoric MIDI is quite a hurdle to get round. PC#'s only up to 64, only transmits on Ch1 and Ch2, no PC/00/32 codes, velocity only up to about 110 or so (early Yamaha's, including the DX7, didn't transmit past 110 or so for some insane reason), it's a nightmare to use with modern gear.

Fortunately, I can filter PC's from my BK, so I do Performance changes from buttons on my FC-7, Upr1/Upr2 selection from an FC-7 button, MFX on/off, Leslie Fast/Slow, sustain (it's on the keytar, but if bending, impossible to do at the same time).

But two really handy buttons and a knob give me instant control of Portamento on/off and time, and mono/poly modes, something you rarely see on front panels of arrangers any more.

I used to use a Roland M-GS-64 rack module of the Super Canvas, but this BK-7m module is the BOMB! Quite honestly, the best companion for a keytar made, right now...

OK... here's one on the same principles, but a more familiar tune. I didn't listen to the original before I tried this (to not put myself off biting off more than I could chew!) but I'm sure with a good listen, I could nail Mark Knopfler's lines a bit better. Anyway, I hope some of this does a bit for Roland's reputation when it comes to guitar sounds. I have to admit, the guitar amp sims in the BK are much better than my G70, and some of the guitar sounds, too...

Still getting my head together about being ultra cautious with not playing 3 notes until I want the change (you can hear a few flubs, but it's better than the last one (I hope!).

Next thing I want to try is maybe an overdub, and do something by the Allman Bros, and do the dueling guitars bit. Lay the first one down live, then overdub the second. Maybe Jessica (the Top Gear theme tune, LOL). Let's see.

that's nice work Diki ...

Enjoy

Bill

I've carried the KX-5 on gigs for years ... keep it in the van, it's a convenient back-up keyboard. I also use it on some oldies and margarita night gigs. Love it! (Actually have 2 of 'em - back-up to the back-up).
Ciao,
Jerry

Thanks Bill... fun stuff. Mind you, Back in Black triggering the chords and playing the lead might be a hair scary!

A lot of clubs round here have scaled back to guitarists, either solo or with tracks or loopers. I'm thinking of trying a whole gig solo with this, perhaps a bit less intimidating than bringing in the G70 and sitting down.

I think mostly I'll go with sequences, but quite a bit I can possibly pull off with this technique (and the odd request.... the odder, the better!). It'll certainly be unique for my area, anyway!

Just wish I had one of those screamer rock voices!

Loved it Diki. You have an intuitive feel for how a guitar part should sound. You really make that keytar work for you ... and it worked for me too. I don't care about flubs ... in fact I prefer a more human performance because it has more raw emotion and playing a convincing guitar part is all about emotion.

By the way I still listen to your performance http://www.synthzone.com/songs/diki/Zawinul.mp3 which always moves me. It is the only time I have heard anyone cover this wonderful tune by the late Joe Zawinul from the Heavy Weather album ... and it always moves me intensely. I saw Joe perform this live so many years ago so it has a very special memory for me. He was playing with Wayne Shorter and Jaco Pastorius at the time I saw them. A truly magical concert I will never forget. Thank you for keeping this magic alive.

I just wonder what REAL Guitar players think about the KEYTAR..
is it frowned upon like Workstation Synth vs Arranger KB players or embraced ? For me personally I think its kool and when I close my eyes it sounds Great and that's the bottom line.

What is the name of the song?

some friends run a 70s showband, the keyboard player uses a Roland AX to very good effect

This was at a charity gig last summer.

Dennis, that is 'A Remark you Made' from the Heavy Weather album.

Mind you, my piece was more a sketch of it rather than the full thing. He had just died that day (Zawinul) and I was a bit overcome. One of my personal heroes (though I don't really try to play his style - just had enormous love for his work).

Donny, I've played my keytar with real guitarists forever. Never had one say a bad word. Admittedly, I rarely spend all my time playing guitar patches when I have a good guitarist right there, but I still like to freak 'em out a bit!

I did one gig where I sat in for a band member who couldn't make it who played guitar and fiddle, so just for fun, I stuck to just guitar and fiddle patches... That seriously weirded them out, seeing it all come from a keytar!

And, belated thanks to Nigel... glad you enjoyed it. Maybe rock is a bit of a hard sell here, in our land of Broadway showstoppers and 50's doo-wop fans, but I'm glad someone gets it! After the last thread about a EVH guitar emulation, I wasn't sure!

The amp sims on those guitars is really quite good. I can back the volume down a hair and clean the sound up a bit, or push it into more overdrive by a bit of boost. Really fun, once you dial it in (most of the factory presets overdo it, as always!). It's not ALL 11/11/11..! (Hmmmm...I wonder how well Big Bottoms would go over here?!)

I am a REAL guitar player and I love it. I love keyboard players that can provide the same raw energy as a guitar player. Jan Hammer, who used to play with Jeff Beck is an example of this.

It is a wonderful tribute Diki !!!!! I listen to it often. You really capture the emotion of the piece.

Here is Weather Report performing it live.

Let's see ROTFL

Kevin playing Keytar.

Cool version. I'm not really a big fan of the looper thing, but they make it work. Got something in the works on the keytar... Some heavy Ska/Reggae from the Specials.

Stay tuned!

Diki,
I really enjoyed your posts and performance. Good stuff. The BK-7M sure does sound good. Often wish I had kept mine.

Deane

Man! Weather Report, Spinal tap, Beck and Keytars! Here's one guitar player who LOVES everything on this post!

The spinal Tap guys are GREAT, in all of the productions they dod (eg. Best In Show, the one about old folk groups, and others).

I have an old Roland I pull out and use with the Philharmonic when they do one of their 70's-80's tribute productions.

GOOD, entertaining stuff, Diki and Nigel (who could be the "stand-in" "Nigel" from Spinal Tap).

Specially loved the "Big Bottom" deal, with everyone playing basses. Oh, and the completely blank black cover.....


PRICELESS!


Russ

When I first moved to the USA in 1990 and had to open bank accounts and get a drivers license one clerk asked me for my name and I said "Nigel" she said ... like in Spinal Tap? I said yes. Then she said do you play lead guitar too? I said yes again. Funny stuff.