Wind controller

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San Francisco musician Onyx Ashanti playing a wind controller

A wind controller, sometimes referred to as a "wind synth" or "wind synthesizer", can loosely be defined as an electronic wind instrument. Wind controllers are most commonly played and fingered like a saxophone though models have been produced that play and finger like other acoustic instruments such as the trumpet, recorder, tin whistle, and others. A wind controller might convert fingering, breath pressure, bite pressure, finger pressure, and other sensors into control signals which are then used to control internal or external devices such as analog synthesizers or MIDI-compatible synthesizers, softsynths, sequencers, or lighting systems.

Since a wind controller usually does not make a sound on its own, it must be connected to a sound generating device such a MIDI or analog synthesizer which is connected to an amplifier. For this reason, a wind controller generally can sound like anything depending on the capabilities of the connected sound generator. The fingering and shape of the controller are not related to how the wind controller sounds. For example, woodwind type wind controller could sound like a trumpet, drum, or barking dog, while a brass-type wind controller could sound like a saxophone.

[edit] EWI

The EWI (an acronym for Electronic Wind Instrument) is an electronic musical instrument developed by the Akai Electronic Musical Instruments Corporation of Japan. The early models consisted of two parts: a wind controller and a synthesizer. The current model, EWI 4000S, combines the two parts into one, placing the synthesizer in the lower section of the controller. It uses the Boehm fingering system and is designed to be similar in action to a soprano saxophone, although players familiar with the clarinet should have no problem adjusting to the fingering. Like a soprano sax, it is straight, and is held in front of the body with a neck strap.

The major manufacturers of wind controllers are Akai and Yamaha. Available models include the AKAI-EWI3020, AKAI-EWI4000s, Yamaha WX-5, Yamaha WX-11, and Yamaha WX-7. There is also a controller intended to be played by brass instrumentalists called an EVI (for Electric Valve Instrument). The Akai EWI4000S has a special EVI mode that allows brass players to play the EWI. There are also homemade and experimental EWIs with different designs.

The wind controller part of the EWI has a mouthpiece with sensors for air pressure (volume control) and lip pressure (vibrato). The EWI keys do not move, but work through conductivity, sensing the positioning of the fingers by electrical current; this allows for very fast playing. The octave is determined by a set of rollers operated by the left thumb. The wind controller is used to control a synthesizer. Some EWIs have to be attached to a specific synth module, and some have direct output to the MIDI interface. It is also possible to connect the EWI to a Digital Work Station (soundboard) to produce an even larger variety of sounds.