Japanese Pop Music: 10 Week : Future

I write about VICALOID at the forefront of music technology in Japan last week.

VOCALOID is a speech synthesis technology developed by Yamaha. It is a general term applied products. It can be synthesized human voice is sampled by entering a melody and lyrics. Synthesized as an audio library voice of the person who actually recorded. Therefore, in addition to be able to synthesize more natural singing voice, you can specify the required voice intonation and pitch change, such as vibrato or fist, easily create expressive music. Without actually recording the human voice, it has become a vocal part of the creation of human voice alone PC. The name of VOCALOID is a coined word made by combining the "-oid" suffix to, "vocal". Suffix meaning "-oid" is "something like". The combination of "human (human)" and "humanoid (humanoid)", when combined with "andr" meaning man in Greek and meaning, such as "android (android)", and "like a vocal" about VOCALOID.

By December 2012, as well as Yamaha, ZERO-G (UK), Crypton Future Media, PowerFX (Sweden), the Internet, AHS, Bee Platts, Kuhn record, SBS Artech (South Korea) and so on corespond for the PC. It has been commercialized from 12 companies outside of Japan.

It had been the beginning of development, such as the usage of backing chorus will be the main purpose for the use of VOCALOID. But it became popular after the release is also available to the main vocal. Music since 2007 "Hatsune Miku" was adopted has been released "VOCALOID2" In Japan in particular, has been appointed as the main vocal VOCALOID around on the net are now numerous publications. It is also the cultural aspects of the show as one song, such as those that appear on the market from major labels from popular music backdrop. In 2010 and 2011, album a collection of vocal music that was used in the VOCALOID "EXIT TUNES PRESENTS Vocalogenesis feat. Hatsune Miku", "EXIT TUNES PRESENTS Vocalonexus feat. Hatsune Miku" and has won first place in the Oricon weekly charts.

Crypton Future Media Japanese companies that sell products VOCALOID. Products are sold using the character illustrations from the package aim to broaden the customer base. Consists of three products Hatsune Miku, Kagamine Rin and Len, and Megurine Luka especially on the "Character Vocal Series" is made on the concept of product and produced a virtual idol singer pushed to the front of the image of the character singing. Recently, the character set is attached to VOCALOID are selling from other companies.

Name / Sex / Voice providers / Favorite thing

Hatsune miku / ♀ / Huji Saki (voice actor) / welsh onion

Kagamine Rin・Len / ♀・♂ / Shimoda Asami (voice actor) / orange, banana

Megurine Luka / ♀ / Asakawa Yu (voice actor) / tuna

KAITO / ♂ / Huga Naoto (stadio musician) / ice cream

MEIKO / ♀ / Haigo Meiko (singer-songwriter) / beer

Megpoid (GUMI) / ♀ / Nakajima Megumi (voice actor) / carrot

Gakupoid (Kamui Gakupo) / ♂ / GACKT (singer-songwriter, actor) / eggplant

IA / ♀ / Lia (singer) / scallop (?)

MAYU / ♀ / - / -