Apparatus for and method of generating musical tones

A method of generating musical tones comprising:

• (A) storing formant waveform signals having waveforms synthesized from frequency components of formants of musical tones;
• (B) reading a formant waveform signal stored in said step (A);
• (C) generating formant density data indicative of the density of frequency components of a formant corresponding to the formant waveform signal read out in said step (B);
• (D) controlling, during the reading of the formant waveform signal in said step (B), the density of the frequency components of the formant of the formant waveform signal according to the formant density data generated in said step (C);
• (E) generating formant center frequency data of a formant center signal for synthesis as a center signal with the formant waveform signal read out in said step (B), the formant center frequency data being independent of the formant density data generated in said step (C);
• (F) generating the formant center signal at a frequency corresponding to the formant center frequency data generated in said step (E);
• and
• (G) synthesizing formant waveform signal with a formant, which has a density of frequency components controlled in said step (D), on the formant center signal generated in said step (F).

An apparatus for generating musical tones comprising:

• formant waveform signal storage means for storing a plurality of formant waveform signals having different waveforms synthesized from specific frequency components of formants of musical tones;
• reading means for reading a formant waveform signal stored in said formant waveform storage means;
• reading rate designating means for designating the rate of reading of formant waveform signal stored in said formant waveform storage means;
• reading control means for causing said reading means to read data at a rate corresponding to the reading rate designated by said reading rate designating means;
• musical factor generating means for generating a musical factor;
• and
• switching means for switching, after a first formant waveform signal has been read out from said formant waveform signal storage means according to the generated musical factor, to a different, subsequent formant waveform signal to be read out from said formant waveform signal storage means, the different, subsequent formant waveform signal being read out by said reading means according to the musical factor generated by said musical factor generating means.