Rhythm-based musical game for generative group composition

Number: 9646587
Published: 2017-05-09
Filed: 2016-03-09
Assignee: Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Inventors: Becker; Jonathan Michael, Robertson; James R., Wang; Dolce Lin
CPC: G10H1/0025; G10H1/0066; G10H1/361; G10H1/46
Verdict: Medium Notable software
Source: Google Patents · FreePatentsOnline

The keeper's note

A musical game system with a hardware/software pipeline enabling unguided, free-form group musical expressivity to generate a collaborative song.

Abstract

A musical game system and associated methods configured to allow for unguided, free-form group-based musical expressivity during generation of a collaborative digital music track (or song). The musical game system is designed to provide a hardware and software pipeline that functions to record, quantize, and loop multiple (e.g., 1 to 15 or more) users' inputs (e.g., via a piezoelectric MIDI controllers or triggered instruments or other user input devices) in a dynamic playback space.

Background

As a specific example, amusement and theme park operators often define their parks and areas within their parks by groups of characters and the worlds or lands that these characters exist within or call home. Visitors to the parks find the worlds or lands defined by many things with music being one of the most important. Historically, though, music in amusement and theme parks has been a mostly passive experience.

Claims

1. A method of providing a musical game, comprising: first operating an audio output assembly to output sound associated with a background rhythm track...; during the first operating, sensing a plurality of interactions with a plurality of user input devices; in response to the sensing, generating a note trigger signal for each of the user input devices; with a processor running a music composition and playback module, processing each of the note trigger signals...; and... second operating the audio output assembly to play the group collaborative composition... 7. A music game system, comprising: a controller with a processor executing code to provide a music composition module; an audio system with a set of global speakers and a set of local speakers; and a plurality of user input devices adapted to generate trigger signals... 11. A music game system, comprising:... memory storing a plurality of additive sound tracks... 12. An apparatus for facilitating rhythm-based group composition of music, comprising: a controller; an audio system with a plurality of speakers; and a plurality of user input devices each generating trigger signals in response to a predefined user activity...