Back in the middle 1980’s I had an idea for converting a standard keyboard into a keyboard capable of applying 53-equal temperament. It was developed for the Apple 2E computer synthesizer called the Soundchaser. It uses software to change subsets of the wider field of possibilities. This file also includes a printout of the computer program. The project was funded by a Canada Counsel Arts Grant.
Click on the link to see the article in your browser or right-click to save the file to your drive.
http://siementerpstra.com/writings/Terpstra-ModularKeyboard.pdf
The Spectrum Keyboard is a redesigned music keyboard intended for digital synthesizers, samplers, and other electronic media applications. It is planned as a ‘musical typewriter’, making the playing of chords and scales much easier than the old black-and-white keyboard. This is the first version (1988) of the keyboard built in New York in 1991 called the Terpstra-keyboard.
The GLOBAL KEYBOARDS refer to a complimentary pair of generalized musical typewriters for computer-based electronic media. Since the design was formulated in 1986 it has been given several names: the Spectrum Keyboards (after a discarded color scheme), the One-Circle Global Keyboards (after an essential parameter of the design), or just my generalized keyboards. The complimentary relation between the two keyboards has also led me to call them male and female.
I was asked to evaluate 37 notation proposals by the committee of the MNMA. I examined all the proposals and gave their strong and weak points. Then I chose the six best and further narrowed it down to two alternatives. It was published by the MNMA in 1999.