Roland Corporation
Roland Corporation is a manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, electronic equipment and software. It was founded by Ikutaro Kakehashi in Osaka on April 18, 1972, and was named after the French epic poem, Le Chanson de Roland.
Roland use a number of additional brand names for their products:
- BOSS (guitar effects pedals, effects units, rhythm machines)
- Edirol (Desktop Media Production or 'DTMP')
- Rodgers Instruments (electronic and combination pipe organs)
- Roland Digital Group (Roland DG).
- Inspire the enjoyment of creativity
- Be the best rather than the biggest
- The Roland Family - Cooperative Enthusiasm
- Roland Jupiter-6: First Roland synthesizer to support MIDI
- MC-303 The first non-keyboard drum machine, sample based synthesizer and sequencer combination bearing the now generic term "Groovebox."
- MC-505 Successor to the MC-303 with more powerful synthesizer and sequencer. Featuring "Megamix."
- MC-909 2002 Successor to the MC Groovebox series featuring a full 16 track sequencer and sampling built in.
- Roland RE-201: Renowned 'Space-Echo' machine - arguably the most popular tape delay-based echo machine ever produced
- Roland SH-1000: Claimed by Roland to be Japan's first commercial keyboard synthesizer
- Roland SH-101: Monophonic synthesizer designed to be worn hung around the neck with a strap, with an optional modulation attachment that protruded like the neck of a guitar
- Roland SoundCanvas: One of the first General MIDI synthesizers
- Roland TB-303: Defined the "acid" sound for rave music
- Roland TR-808: One of the first and most popular of the programmable drum machines and the sounds that are particular to that machine have become pop music cliches, heard on countless recordings
- Roland TR-909: Was (during the 1990s) and arguably still is the most popular drum machine for use in modern Electronic Dance Music
- Octapad
