Is it a synth? Is it a keyboard? Simon Trask takes the i3 test to find out...

If terms like 'auto-accompaniment' and 'keyboard' turn you off, perhaps it's about time you reassessed your prejudices - and a good place to start is with Korg's latest music workstation, the i3. In many respects it's a regular Korg workstation synth (to be more precise, an X3); however, it also sports an auto-accompaniment section, though Korg haven't called it that - like they haven't given their new workstation built-in speakers or provided little pictures of drum and percussion instruments above its keys. So, is the i3 a keyboard for people who don't like keyboards? Or is it simply the 'all-in-one' philosophy of the synth workstation taken a stage further with the introduction of a built-in backing band?

As space is at a premium here, and the X3 was reviewed recently in the magazine (MT September '93), I'll concentrate on those features which make the 61-note i3 and its 76-note companion, the i2, unique in the Korg range. To begin with, the i3's front panel is somewhat better endowed than the typical Korg synth - its generous complement of buttons delivers the all-important 'immediacy factor', considered de rigeur in the keyboard world but typically lacking on modern synths. At the same time, the i3's LCD screen-based interface, used for more detailed programming, will be very familiar to existing Korg users.

Although it is possible to create a small number of combination-type sounds in Backing Sequence mode (see Hard fax), Korg's new workstation forgoes the combis which have been a part of the company's instruments since the M1; however, the familiar Korg Program architecture, Korg sounds and Korg onboard 16-track Song sequencer are all in place. It's when you hit the Synchro Start/Stop button and play a chord in the lower half of the keyboard that unfamiliar things start happening: the instrument takes on a life of its own, with drums, percussion, bass and three further instrumental parts bursting into ensemble activity.

If you've just switched on the i3 you'll be in Rolling Stones territory, with an Arrangement titled 'Mick&Keith' and a Style called 'Open Rock'. Play another chord and the 'band' will change harmony with you. Yep, you're in auto-accompaniment mode. The i3 recognises a wide variety of chord types, including any jazzy chord you care to throw at it. Full keyboard scanning is best if you want to play big two-handed chords; this also lets you switch quickly between chords and single- or double-note playing with either or both hands. Lower and Upper keyboard-range scanning modes are also available.

Styles include rock, pop, dance pop, r'n'b, '70s disco, ballad, reggae, fusion, blues, big band, swing and Motown. The familiar traditional keyboard Styles, such as bossa nova, samba, beguine, waltz, march and polka, are in place on the i3, but more contemporary musical styles in the form of new jack swing, house, rap and rave are also convincingly represented - helped by a thumping bottom end and Korg's usual upfront selection of drum and percussion sounds. All in all, the company's Style programming is as good as any on offer; my only criticism is that there aren't enough preset Styles or Arrangements.

An i3 Style has four Variations, two Intros, two Endings and two Fill-ins (known as Elements), each consisting of the abovementioned musical parts; in addition there are two keyboard parts intended for live playing in solo/split/layer configurations over the backing. The i3 goes beyond usual keyboard Style organisation by providing 6 'sub-variations' for each Variation and 2 'sub-variations' for each Intro, Ending and Fill-in. These sub-variations are selected live by playing chords, so that, for instance, you can have different accompaniments for major, minor and dominant chords; all in all, 20 chord types can each have a sub-variation assigned to them in a Chord Variation Table, accessed via the i3's LCD.

In i3-speak, a Style is assigned to an Arrangement, which governs the sound, level, pan position, octave and effects send settings for the keyboard and backing tracks, together with settings for tempo, drum-map selection (per Variation), part mute on/off and playback status (internal/MIDI/both). Arrangements also let you set which Variation will play after each Fill-in, and which one of four kicks and four snares will be played from the selected drum map(s).

The i3 lets you record an auto-accompaniment performance ie. the chord changes, melody and front-panel button presses, in its Backing Sequence mode. This mode also provides eight Extra tracks (standard sequencer-type tracks) so you can record additional parts if you want; alternatively these tracks can be used for creating combination sounds, by assigning them to the same MIDI channel and setting up appropriate key and velocity ranges. What you can't do, it seems, is transfer your finished songs across to the regular onboard sequencer and save them as Standard MIDI Files for use in other sequencers with other (GM/GS-compatible) instruments.

You can create your own Styles on the i3, but only a measly four of them can be in onboard memory at any one time. The workstation lets you import sections of up to 16 bars (the maximum length for a Style Element) from any track in the Song sequencer, so you can draw on existing material of your own or from someone else (via a MIDI songfile in Standard MIDI Files format). If you're using the i3's programmable Styles as a way of triggering sequenced patterns live, the instrument's sub-variations significantly increase the number of patterns you can draw on - while the Arrangements provide other possibilities, such as mute snapshots and instrumentation and effects changes. If you want to get into live sequencing, this is one very effective way of doing it. And as each keyboard and backing part can transmit on its own programmable channel via MIDI, integrating/substituting MIDI'd instrumental parts is easy.

All in all, the i3 is a very convincing addition to the current line-up of auto-accompaniment instruments - whether you want to call it a synth or a keyboard.

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