Electronic Musical Instruments in the Vienna Technical Museum

This 1930s multimedia furniture was meant to represent the very latest in radio technology and still be less expensive than a regular piano. However, following very positive initial feedback from the press and experts, sale numbers remained well below expectations. Around 150 units were produced in total.

In 1932, Bohemian piano manufacturer Petrof based in Hradec Králové in the Czech Republic obtained the license to produce the Neo-Bechstein piano.

In 1932, George Beauchamp filed a patent for the instrument. Although the Frying Pan was already being marketed and sold in ever-increasing numbers, the US Patent Office long questioned its suitability as a musical instrument. The patent was eventually granted in 1937. The electric guitar was a key part of the history of music in the 20th century.

Lew Termen (1896–1993) built the first instrument of this type in 1919 in Petrograd. He later emigrated to the US where news spread of his design. He had it patented and sold the license to the RCA (Radio Corporation of America). Around 500 instruments were made under the RCA brand.

Pitches are changed using a drawstring, along which a rotatable resistor or capacitor can be moved. Since it is difficult to play without markers, the design was added to by an adjustment aid in the form of a plotted and later real claviature. It was still possible to seamlessly adjust the pitch, however. A drawstring is moved back and forth above the keys using a ring. Even microintervals can be played by simply adjusting the frequency.

The Superpiano was based on the principle of the optical siren. Emerich Moses Spielmann presented the instrument in Vienna in 1929. For this early form of the sampler, sounds from desired sources were stored on disks using optical technology and scanned using lights and photo resistors while playing.

The Optigan's sound data carrier is a rotating disk which is scanned using photocells. There are 57 different concentric sound tracks for melodies and accompanying instruments included on the 12-inch plastic disk.

These electronic drums use modern sound storage technology—namely, semiconductor memory. The pads have pressure-sensitive sensors which trigger the playback process of the stored sound in the sound module. Stored samples can easily be exchanged.

The AKA 2000 was designed and constructed from 1975 to 1985 in the Institute of Electroacoustics at the Vienna Conservatory. The starting point of their efforts was the creation of a universal system for sound synthesis, sound processing, and sound analysis, which did not rely too heavily on a specific technical development standard.

The Wurlitzer electric piano can be easily disassembled and packed into a small, handheld suitcase.

Consisting of a keyboard and amplifier unit, the unit is mounted onto a piano or electric organ as an additional device or played as a standalone instrument.

The first fully electronic instruments existed from the 1950s, and the first marketed instrument, the Hohner Electra-Melodica, was sold in Germany from 1967. The keyboard and mouthpiece were taken from the piano 36 acoustic melodica by Hohner. Six different tones (clarinet, brass, strings, oboe, flute, saxophone), a wah-wah effect, and frequency vibrato can be selected.

The Pianix is an electronic wind instrument from the late 1960s/early 1970s with a wind controller. It was developed alongside the German Hohner Electra-Melodica. The Pianix keyboard is polyphonic and can produce multiple combinable sounds. It has a generator with filters for string, clarinet, and flute tones. The filter can also be turned on at the same time to create mixtures. The wind controller can be disabled. The instrument can therefore be played on a stand or while lying down.

With the arrival of the MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) standard from 1981/82, the analog wind synthesizer was developed into the digital MIDI-capable breath controller.

The Variophon is a wind instrument synthesizer developed at the Institute of Music Science at the University of Cologne in the 1970s and 1980s. It was based on a synthesizing principle that was completely new at the time: pulse shaping. The core idea of this principle is that any wind instrument sound can essentially be traced back to its stimulating pulse—the vibrations of the reed or lips.

The wind controller and synthesizer unit are separate and connected by a cable. The wind controller is used to control the synthesizer unit. This generates the sound and allows the player to set different tone parameters.

Records with explanations and example sounds for learning and practicing.

A multitude of wind instruments can be simulated by changing the sound module: saxophone, trumpet, trombone, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, or pan flute.

A digital wind instrument that is held like an acoustic saxophone. Saxophone sounds (soprano, alto, tenor, baritone), clarinet, flute, trumpet, but also string instruments and synthesizer sounds can be selected. The volume and tone can be adjusted through a mouthpiece by controlling the airflow and mouth position.

The acoustic part of the Yamaha Disklavier is combined with digital controls. The piano can record playing. This includes not just the audio signal but also the action triggered by the keys and pedals. The data created is saved in MIDI format.

In the 1970s, building an electronic organ yourself was a popular pastime. Components and instructions were provided by various companies. With business offices as their bases, a hobby builder scene grew.

The pressure sensors in these gloves turn fingers into keyboard keys and detect the tone struck. The fingers must be pressed onto a fixed surface. The small box serves as a loudspeaker and control element. The gloves can also be connected to a stereo system. Octave can be switched between using sensors on the hand edges. Different effects can be turned on at the box.