Electric and electronic keyboard instruments

thumb|Early Minimoog by R.A. Moog Inc. ()

musical instrument component

electromechanical organ

The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a capstan, which pulls it across a playback head. As the key is released, the tape is retracted by a spring to its initial position. Different portions of the tape can be played for different sounds.

electronic keyboard instrument

alt=|thumb|400px|KORG RK-100 (1984) MIDI remote controller

The Clavinet is an electric clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds with rubber pads, each matching one of the keys and responding to a keystroke by striking a given point on a tensioned string, and was designed to resemble the Renaissance-era clavichord.

musical instrument which uses samples and synthesisers to replicate the sound of an acoustic piano and other instruments

musical instrument

musical keyboard played with the feet, usually used for low-pitched notes

music performance controller developed by Lippold Haken

piano-style keyboard that sends MIDI inputs to a computer or device lacking a sound module cannot produce sounds

thumb|Simplified diagram of how a tonewheel works thumb|Goldschmidt tone wheel (1910), used as an early beat frequency oscillator

Foot-operated musical instrument

right|thumb|Chamberlin logo

right|thumb|300px|Keyboard overview of a model 35002 Optigan. The coded strip above the main keyboard corresponded to numbers in the music books for those unable to read music. The Optigan (a portmanteau of optical organ) is an electronic keyboard instrument designed for the consumer market. The name stems from the instrument's reliance on pre-recorded optical soundtracks to reproduce sound. Later versions (built under license and aimed at the professional market) were sold under the name Orchestron.

Electone is the trademark used for electronic organs produced by Yamaha. With the exception of the top end performance models, most Electones are based on the design of the spinet electronic organ. Current models are completely digital and contain a variety of sounds, effects, and accompaniments, on top of the ability to store programming data onto memory devices.

subsidiary of the Allen Organ Company