Methods and apparatus to use predicted actions in VR environments are disclosed. An example method includes predicting a predicted time of a predicted virtual contact of a virtual reality controller with a virtual musical instrument, determining, based on at least one parameter of the predicted virtual contact, a characteristic of a virtual sound the musical instrument would make in response to the virtual contact, and initiating producing the sound before the predicted time of the virtual contact of the controller with the musical instrument.

One or more assigners selecting a note to be sounded according to operation state of plural controls corresponding respectively to notes are provided, it is decided for each of the assigners whether or not to select a note to be sounded in response to a key-off operation of any of the controls, and when a key-off operation of any of the controls is detected, the assigner which is decided to select a note to be sounded, is instructed to select a note to be sounded according to operation state of the controls after the detection of the key-off operation.

A computer-implemented reproduction control method includes reproducing sound from sound data representing a series of sounds including first sound and second sound that follows the first sound. The method includes starting reproducing the first sound, continuing the reproduction of a first sound until an end of the first sound in response to receiving a first instruction in a reproduction period of the first sound, stopping the reproduction of the first sound, and after the stopping of the reproduction of the first sound, starting reproducing the second sound in response to receiving a second instruction provided by a user.

A device for reading waveform data of a musical tone from a primary storage device and transferring the read waveform data to a secondary storage device for tone reproduction includes a processor configured to perform: retrieving, for each waveform of a plurality of waveforms that represent a musical tone stored in the primary storage device, segment group information from the primary storage device; retrieving the plurality of waveforms that represent the musical tone from the primary storage device, the waveform group retrieval process retrieving a waveform or waveforms, among the plurality of waveforms, that have the same segment group information as a group; and writing, as a single group, the waveform or waveforms, among the plurality of waveforms, that have the same segment group information onto one of prescribed storage segments that are storage regions of prescribed sizes in the secondary storage device.

A system is described that permits identified musical phrases or themes to be synchronized and linked into changing real-world events. The achieved synchronization includes a seamless musical transition—achieved using a timing offset, such as relative advancement of an significant musical “onset,” that is inserted to align with a pre-existing but identified music signature, beat or timebase—between potentially disparate pre-identified musical phrases having different emotive themes defined by their respective time signatures, intensities, keys, musical rhythms and/or musical phrasing. The system operates to augment an overall sensory experience of a user in the real world by dynamically changing, re-ordering or repeating and then playing audio themes within the context of what is occurring in the surrounding physical environment, e.g. during different phases of a cardio workout in a step class the music rate and intensity increase during sprint periods and decrease during recovery periods.

An electronic musical instrument includes a performance operator and at least one processor. In accordance with pitch data associated with the performance operator operated by a user, the at least one processor digitally synthesizes and outputs inferential musical sound data including inferential performance technique of a player. The inferential performance technique of the player is based on acoustic feature data output by a trained acoustic model obtained by performing machine learning on: a training score data set including training pitch data; and a training performance data set obtained by the player playing a musical instrument and is not played in the user operation of the performance operator.

A device is provided for capturing vibrations produced by an object such as a musical instrument such as a drum head of a drum kit. The device comprises a detectable element, such as a ferromagnetic element, such as a metal shim and a sensor spaced apart from and located relative to the musical instrument. The detectable element is located between the sensor and the musical instrument. When the musical instrument vibrates, the sensor remains stationary and the detectable element is vibrated relative to the sensor by the musical instrument.

A computer-implemented method of training an artificial neural network (ANN) by generating one or more learned parameters for use during a subsequent inference phase of the trained ANN, comprises providing training data representing first and second input signals, the second input signal exhibiting one or more transformations relative to the first signal selected from a set of transformations; using the ANN and in response to the one or more parameters, generating a magnitude and phase representation of each of the first and second input signals; and training the one or more parameters, in dependence upon a constraint which causes the magnitude representation of the first input signal and the magnitude representation of the second input signal to tend to become more similar to one another, the training step comprising: detecting an error signal; and updating the one or more parameters in dependence upon the error signal.

A voice processing method realized by a computer includes compressing forward a first steady period of a plurality of steady periods in a voice signal representing voice, and extending forward a transition period between the first steady period and a second steady period of the plurality of steady periods in the voice signal. Each of the plurality of steady periods is a period in which acoustic characteristics are temporally stable. The second steady period is a period immediately after the first steady period and has a pitch that is different from a pitch of the first steady period.

A system and method for assembling segments of recorded music or video from among various versions or variations of a recording, into a new version or composition, such that a first segment of a first version of a recorded work is attached to a segment of a second segment of a second version of the recorded work, to create a new version of the recorded work.