GS:
A General MIDI extension defined by the Roland
Corporation and now also used by several other ma-
nufacturers. GS obeys all General midi instructions
and adds several new sounds and controllers.
Harmonics:
All the waveforms of a sound except the
fundamental.
High Pass Filter:
A filter which attenuates frequen-
cies below its cutoff frequencies.
Keyboard Split:
A common keyboard feature that
allows you to play different sounds on different areas
of the keyboard simultaneously. For example, your
left hand could play a bass sound while your right
hand plays a trumpet sound.
Layer:
In musical context it means an instrumentati-
onal principle, where musicians stack two or more
different sounds to achieve a new one.
Latency:
The side effect of computer based music
technologies. Softwares use buffers to maintain the
accurate timing and precision, but it always results a
kind of delay, usually measured in milliseconds, which
is called latency. The basic principle: the bigger the
buffer size, the bigger the latency, less strain of
computer’s CPU.
LFO:
An inaudible low-frequency waveform that al-
ters a basic setting – a waveform's pitch, a tone's
filter or panning settings – in a cyclic manner accor-
ding to the shape of the LFO's waveform. An LFO is
typically used as a means of adding vibrato, tremolo
or auto-panning.
MIDI:
Musical Instrument Digital Interface. MIDI is a
standardized protocol for communication between
electronic music devices as well as between those
devices and computers. For example, sound modules
and computers can use MIDI to communicate.
Low-Pass Filter:
A filter which attenuates frequencies
above its cutoff frequency.
Loop:
As a verb, the act of playing the same section
over and over. As a noun, a chunk of audio that is
played over and over.
MIDI Channel:
A discrete portion of the complete
MIDI signal that can include as many as 16 channels.
Each channel carries independent messages. Instru-
ments that can respond to multiple channels at once
are called multitimbral.
MIDI In:
One of three common connectors found on
MIDI equipment. The In jack receives MIDI messages
from outside equipment.
MIDI Interface:
A device that translates MIDI signals
from a digital piano or other electronic instrument
into a form that a computer can accept and vice versa.
MIDI Out:
One of three common connectors found on
MIDI equipment. The Out jack carries MIDI messages
generated by the instrument.
MIDI Thru:
One of three common connectors found
on MIDI equipment. The Thru jack passes on an exact
duplicate of the messages received by a device at its
MIDI IN connector, allowing other instruments or
sound modules to respond to the MIDI data.
Modulation:
A technical word for “change.” In synths,
a modulator changes a pre-programmed value of a
parameter. Common modulators include modwheels,
envelopes, LFOs, keyboard velocity and aftertouch.
Monophonic:
An inherent design or operating mode
of a synthesizer or sampler, in which only a single
note will sounds at a time no matter how many notes
are played. When a new note is played the previous
note is stopped.
Multitimbral:
Any electronic instrument that can play
several parts at the same time, each under the
controll of different channel.
Multi-sample:
The creation of several samples, each
covering a limited musical range, the idea being to
produce a more natural range of sounds across the
range of the instrument being sampled. For example,
a piano may need to be sampled every two or three
semitones in order to sound convincing.
Modulation Wheel:
A controller used to control vib-
rato, tremolo, or other modulation effects.
Notch Filter:
The opposite of the Bandpass Filter, it
attenuates the frequencies around the cutoff frequency.
9
NORD MODULAR G2 SERIES - VOL. 01. - Club Life
USER GUIDE •
www.samplerbanks.com
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