EWI (musical instrument)

EWI (from electronic wind instrument, pronounced EE-wee) is a type of wind controller, an electronic musical instrument. The EWI was invented by Nyle Steiner, it was his second electronic wind instrument design. Steiner originally conceptualized the idea of a brass style analogue wind synthesizer instrument in the 1960s, later to become known as the EVI. Steiner then went on to develop both the concepts of the EVI (brass style fingering) and the EWI (closer to woodwind style fingering). These instrument designs first working models appeared in the 1970s.[1]

An EWI

The early models of EWI and EVI consisted of two parts: a wind controller and a digitally-controlled analog synthesizer in a rackmount box (which also houses the instrument's electronics). Akai (a Japanese company at the time) took over the EVI and EWI instruments from Steiner and released several models (with the help of EWI designer Nyel Steiner). Today Akai only makes designs based around the EWI, having dropped the less commercially successful EVI. The current Akai models EWI5000, and EWI SOLO contain built-in sample-based digital synthesizers and don't strictly require an external box. Akai also offers the EWI USB, a five-octave MIDI controller that connects directly to a Mac or Windows computer via USB and uses software for control.

EWIs, depending on the brand (Akai or Berglund; the latter referred to as NuRad), can use the Boehm fingering system used by most woodwind instruments, or other fingerings, like that of the recorder or tin whistle. The instrument feels somewhat like a soprano saxophone or clarinet, except that its keys are activated by touch rather than being depressed (i.e. the player's fingers don't rest on the keys).

Nyle Steiner’s EWI fingering was novel because it does not operate as an acoustic instrument. Instead of closing or opening a hole, each EWI key acts as a pitch modifier that can change note values by plus or minus a half step or whole step. As a result, fingerings that are similar to that of a Boehm instrument, but many other alternate fingers are possible on EWI that are not possible on acoustic instruments. This gave Steiner’s invention flexibility yet remains familiar to woodwind players.[2]

Later generation EWIs can be switched to flute, oboe, and saxophone fingering modes.[3] The EWI 5000 and EWI USB also have an electronic valve instrument (EVI) fingering mode that allows brass players to play the EWI.[4] Like a straight soprano saxophone or clarinet, the EWI is straight with a slight inward bend a few inches below the mouthpiece, and it is held in front of the body with a neck strap.

The EWI has a silicone mouthpiece with sensors for air pressure (sending MIDI Breath Control by default) and bite pressure (which sends vibrato, more specifically a quick pitch up-down "blip" by default). Because the EWI keys do not move (instead, they sense when fingers are touching them by body capacitance). Owing to the touch capacitative switches and breath and bite sensors the instrument is highly responsive, however, this sensitive nature of the touch capacitative switches does not appeal to all players; some of which may prefer electronic wind instruments with mechanical buttons on which they can rest their fingers, more similar to a saxophone. It also requires substantially less breath control than an acoustic instrument; breath sensitivity is one of the parameters that can be adjusted to the player's preference.

Unlike acoustic wind instruments, the fingering is identical in every octave. The current octave is determined by putting your left thumb between any two of the four to eight rollers (*depending on model), and also by rolling the thumb to the ends of the EWI USB roller track to achieve the fifth octave from just the four-octave rollers on that model. Touching a plate next to the rollers sends portamento by default (this portamento strip is not on the EWI USB). EWI USB and EWI 5000 also have pitch bend up and down plates (EWI SOLO has pitch bend down plate only) all operated by the right thumb.

EWI models can control external synthesizers or other MIDI instruments, either simultaneously or instead of the synthesizers that come with the instrument. Earlier EWIs require the external box unit, while the discontinued (as of 2019) EWI4000s and current EWI5000 have built-in MIDI outputs. The EWI SOLO and EWI USB have only a USB connector. In 2021 a small volume (cottage industry) company Berglund also makes its own original variations on the EVI and EWI designs, approved and demonstrated by Nyle Steiner himself. The Berglund designs offer MIDI over wireless, unlike the current Akai products (as of 2022). Wireless MIDI can be achieved on the Akai models with unofficial third party add on products at lower cost, albeit in a somewhat DIY fashion.

Any EWI can play software synthesizers running on a computer.