Roland E-80 Professional transitions: Fill In, Intro & Ending

Quick Start

E-80 Music Workstation

key to its left is enough.

Note: The function that takes care of this easy fingering is

called “INTELLIGENT” (page 89). See also p. 273 for a list of

other chords that can be played using this system (augmented,

diminished, etc.).

What you hear now is the “MAIN 1” pattern (the

[MAIN] and VARIATION [1] buttons light). This is the

simplest accompaniment of the selected Music Style.

Let’s listen to the accompaniment you could use for

your choruses:

(8) Press the VARIATION [2] button (the [MAIN] and [1]

buttons light and [2] flashes).

At the end of the VARIATION [1] pattern, the VARIA-

TION [2] button lights steadily and the Arranger plays

a different accompaniment.

(9) Now try out Variations 3 and 4.

Professional transitions: Fill In

So far, we have only used the main accompaniment

patterns (i.e. the phrases that are repeated over and

over until you stop the Arranger).

The various variations can be used for verses (1), second

verses (2), choruses (3 & 4) and other song parts.

Switching between these patterns is a matter of press-

ing the VARIATION [1]~[4] buttons. Yet, that produces

instant changes of the accompaniment, while “real”

musicians tend to “announce” new song parts by means

of roll in the drums or slightly different accompaniment

notes.

The E-80 allows you to make such “announcements” in

the following way:

(1) Start playback of the MAIN [1] pattern (see above).

(2) Play a chord in the left half of the keyboard.

(3) Press the [AUTO¥FILL¥IN] button (it lights).

(4) Press a VARIATION [1]~[4] button to select another

MAIN pattern.

The [MAIN] button and the selected VARIATION [1]~[4]

button flash.

What happens now depends on when you press this

button:

• If you press it on any beat before the last of the cur-

rent bar, the Arranger plays a Fill-In pattern that lasts

until the end of the current bar. It then changes to

the newly selected pattern (at which point [MAIN]

and the selected numeric VARIATION button light

steadily).

• If you press it on the last beat of the current bar, the

Fill-In will start on the next downbeat and last an

entire bar, after which the Arranger automatically

selects the new pattern.

If you press the same numeric button ([1]~[4]) again,

the Fill-In is played according to the above rules. But

when it finishes, the Arranger returns to the pattern

you had been using up to that point.

(5) Switch off the [AUTO¥FILL¥IN] button if you do not

want the next pattern change to be preceded by a

Fill-In.

Note: The length of a Fill-In can be halved. See “Half Bar on Fill

In/Main” on p. 71, 75 and 77.

Intro & Ending

Now that we’ve got the transitions covered, you may

start wondering how to create more professional intros

for your songs – and how to end them in style. That is

what the [INTRO] and [END/RIT] buttons are for.

While the MAIN patterns keep repeating the same

accompaniment until you select another one or until

you stop Arranger playback, Fill-Ins (see above), Intros

and Endings are played only once.

Once the INTRO pattern is finished, the Arranger auto-

matically proceeds with the MAIN [1]~[4] pattern

(depending on which button flashes). At the end of the

Ending pattern, however, the Arranger stops.

(1) Stop Arranger playback by pressing the

[START÷STOP] button (it goes dark).

(2) Play a chord in the left half of the keyboard to

specify the key of the Intro pattern.

C major C minor

Only the key that corresponds to

the chord's name.

Root note + third key to the

right.

Root note + second key to the left.

INTRO MAIN END/RIT START

START

STOP

BASS

INVERSION

AUTO

FILL IN

VARIATION

1234

SYNC

STYLE CONTROL