Yamaha's TYROS3 Arranger Workstation Takes Keyboards To A New Realm Of Realism

Playing the Tyros3 Arranger Workstation keyboard is like controlling a virtuoso musician who happens to play hundreds of instruments.

Yamaha Tyros3 Arranger Workstation

Almost every aspect of the computer-compatible Tyros3 has been redesigned and upgraded, from the stunning sounds to the layout of the controls to the addition of faders and a high-resolution TFT 7.5-inch VGA color screen that is visible from every playing angle.

"It's uncanny how human-like some of the voices sound," said Mark Anderson, marketing manager, Portable Keyboards, Pro Audio & Combo Division, Yamaha Corporation of America. "Tyros3 utilizes the latest technological advances from Yamaha, which means that the best just got a whole lot better."

As the only electronic keyboard manufacturer to also make acoustic pianos, Yamaha sets the standard for stunning keyboard sounds, and with Tyros3, it delivers: organ sounds replicate vintage tone-wheel organs with rotary speakers. The new deep, detailed three-layer piano voice, drawn from a CFIIIs Concert Grand Piano, derives from the CVP Series of Clavinova digital pianos. Tyros3 can even recreate the sound of an acoustic piano with the top open or closed.

Creating standout sounds for other instruments, Super Articulation 2, created with Articulation Element Modeling, is capable of reproducing natural legato and staccato expression, vibrato, pitch bend and glistening glissando passages. The feature builds on Yamaha's legendary MegaVoice technology, which added an element of humanistic playing techniques to recorded instrument samples. For the guitar, these include muted string sounds, finger slides, fret noises and harmonics. Wind instrument voices include the ability to add strategically placed breaths that sound like a person is performing, from passages played on clarinets and saxophones to the bent notes of a harmonica.

The board can also perform 450 musical styles with authentic corresponding sounds that blend into a professional-sounding backup band. With the One Touch Setting function, the Tyros3 delivers a polished arrangement with appropriate voices and effects just by pressing a button. The one-button Registration Memory option lets users easily recall favorite settings. Song Creator also helps orchestrate and arrange songs with the help of a 16-track sequencer.

Other features include a touch sensitive keyboard that gives unmatched expressiveness to performances, enabling players to control dynamics and expression. Tyros3 is packed with studio-quality DSP effects like reverb, distortion and chorus along with the ability to perform one-touch recording onto the hard-disk recorder.

A USB port, conveniently located on the keyboard's front panel, facilitates easy computer connectivity for transferring song data from the Tyros3's 3.2 MB internal flash storage. The LAN port connects to Yamaha's online music portals, Internet Direct Connection, Yamaha MusicSoft and Digital Music Notebook. Users can download different song styles, instrument voices and upgrades to the Tyros3, along with sheet music, song books and software.

"Tyros3 will appeal to songwriters, professional musicians and arrangers, churches and home hobbyists who are interested in having the world of music at their fingertips," said Anderson.

For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Pro Audio & Combo Division, Portable Keyboards, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; or e-mail infostation@yamaha.com.