Keytar

A keytar is a special musical instrument that mixes parts of a keyboard instrument and a guitar. It is often like a synthesizer or a MIDI controller. The keytar is played by holding it with a strap around the neck and shoulders, like a guitar.

Many famous musicians have used keytars. Lady Gaga played a keytar during The Monster Ball Tour in 2010. Matthew Bellamy of Muse used one during The Resistance Tour in 2010. Bridgit Mendler also used it in her Summer Tour in 2014.

The name “keytar” comes from mixing “keyboard” and “guitar.” This instrument lets musicians move easily while playing and make many different sounds. It is a fun and useful tool for concerts and recordings.

Overview

A keytar is a musical instrument that looks like a mix between a keyboard and a guitar. You can wear it around your neck like a guitar, so musicians can move more freely on stage. It has keys for playing music and special controls on the "neck" to change how the notes sound.

Keytars can make their own sounds or connect to other devices to create music. They need to be plugged into an amplifier or sound system so people can hear the music. Besides making music, keytars can also control other equipment like lights or sound effects when connected properly.

musical keyboard pitch vibrato portamento sustain keyboard amplifier PA system MIDI sound module

History

Early history (18th century–1970s)

The oldest forerunner of the keytar is likely the orphica, a small portable piano invented in Vienna in 1795. It was played in a similar way to the modern keytar. The piano accordion appeared in 1852. It was a small version of the Reed Organ that you could wear on straps and pump with your left hand. In 1963, the East German company Weltmeister made the Basset, a keytar-shaped electric bass piano. In 1966, a Swedish company called Joh Mustad AB made the Tubon, a tubular electric organ. You could wear the Tubon with a strap and play it standing or sitting. It had a half-keyboard on one end for the right hand, controls at the "neck" for the left hand, and a speaker at the end of the tube. It was sold in the UK as the Livingstone. It was used by Kraftwerk and Paul McCartney in the 1960s and early 1970s.

In the early 1970s, Edgar Winter often played keyboards around his neck, but they were not keytars because they had no "neck". He used an ARP 2600 keyboard and a lightweight Univox electronic piano with shoulder straps added.

Keytar as synthesizer/controller (1970s–)

The first keytars sold in the late 1970s and early 1980s include:

• Hillwood RockeyBoard RB-1 (synth piano with VCF) released in 1977, influenced by Edgar Winter,
• PMS Syntar, an early keytar synthesizer made by George Mattson (Performance Music Systems) and shown at the 1979 NAMM International Music & Sound Expo in Atlanta
• Davis Clavitar (controller) used by George Duke and Herbie Hancock in early 1980
• Powell Probe (controller) made by Roger Powell, and
• Royalex Probe (controller) used by Jan Hammer in the early 1980s

etc. (for details, see List of keytars)

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Jan Hammer, known for his work on Miami Vice, often used keytars including the Royalex PROBE which he helped develop. Hammer used his PROBE in the music video for the "Miami Vice Theme". In the 1980s, Wayne Famous from the band the Producers used a regular Oberheim OB-X synthesizer, which gave him back problems.

Among these early keytars, the most well-known may be the "Moog Liberation" released in 1980. Early users included Spyro Gyra keyboardist Tom Schuman. Though Devo is linked to keytars, they only used them in music videos and ads for the Liberation. The word "keytar" first appeared in print in 1980, in an interview with Jeffrey Abbott (Keytarjeff) by Tom Lounges of Illianabeat magazine (now Midwest BEAT Magazine).

The keytar became popular in the 1980s with glam metal bands, synthpop, new wave and electro musicians. Its popularity dropped in the 1990s, but returned in the late 2000s with artists like The Black Eyed Peas, Damas Gratis, Flight of The Conchords, Motion City Soundtrack, No Doubt, and Steely Dan. In 2008, Snoop Dogg used a keytar in his music video for "Sensual Seduction", paying tribute to older bands.

Current state (2010s–)

Well-known keytar makers include Moog, Roland, Yamaha, Korg and Casio. As of 2013, the Roland AX-Synth, the Roland Lucina, the Alesis Vortex and Rock Band 3 Wireless Pro Keyboard, are keytars made for lots of people to buy.

Starr Labs makes a version of the keytar (called a Ztar) that is good for guitar players, with piano-style keys on the fretboard instead of strings.

Examples

Main article: List of keytars

The Moog Liberation was released in 1980 and was the first keytar made for many people to use. It had special parts to change sounds and was played like a guitar.

The Roland SH-101 from the early 1980s is a small keyboard that can be turned into a keytar when worn with a strap. It has knobs to change pitch and sound.

The Yamaha SHS-10, released in 1987, is a tiny keyboard with special sounds inside. A bigger version, the Yamaha SHS-200, came out the next year with more keys.

The Roland AX-7 from 2001 to 2007 had many new features for performers, like special knobs and lights. In 2009, Roland made the Roland AX-Synth, which could make its own sounds and connect to computers. In 2010, they made the Roland Lucina AX-09, which you could wear like a guitar but had extra parts for playing music files.

Also in 2010, Mad Catz made a keytar for the game Rock Band 3 that could be used for real performances. In 2012, Alesis made a keytar with special pads for making beats and controlling sounds by tilting it.