Thank you for purchasing a KAWAI ES6 digital piano! The ES6 digital piano is a revolutionary new instrument that combines the latest digital technology with traditional piano craftsmanship inherited from KAWAI’s many years of experience in building fi ne acoustic pianos. The authentic tone has been created through the stereo sampling of concert grand pianos, and is reproduced using KAWAI’s unique Harmonic...
Page Important Safety Instructions SAVE THESE INSTRUCTIONS INSTRUCTIONS PERTAINING TO A RISK OF FIRE, ELECTRIC SHOCK, OR INJURY TO PERSONS WARNING TO REDUCE THE RISK OF CAUTION FIRE ELECTRIC RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK SHOCK, DO NOT EXPOSE DO NOT OPEN THIS PRODUCT TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.
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Page WARNING - When using electric products, basic precautions should always be followed, including the following. WARNING Indicates a potential hazard that could result in death or serious injury if the product is handled incorrectly. ● If you are going to use an AC power cord, The product should be connected to 120V 230V...
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Page Indicates a potential hazard that could result in injury CAUTION or damage to the product or other property if the product is handled incorrectly. Do not use the product in the following areas. Using the product in such areas may result in ●...
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Page ● Doing so may cause the product to become Do not stand on the product or exert deformed or fall over, resulting in breakdown excessive force. or injury. Do not place naked flame, such as Doing so may cause the illumination to fall over, resulting in fire.
Page 1. INTRODUCTION 1) PACKAGE CONTENTS The ES6 digital piano package contains the following items: z ES6 digital piano z AC power adaptor (PS-154) z Foot pedal (F-10H) z Music rest z Owner’s manual Owner’s Manual...
Additional Sound Selection With a total of 32 realistic internal sounds, the ES6 digital piano is suitably equipped for playing various musical styles. In addition to the rich piano sounds, the ES6 digital piano also features a broad selection of other instrumental sounds, ranging from electric pianos and organs, to harpsichord, strings, percussion instruments, and even synth sounds.
The SPLIT function divides The SOUND SELECTION buttons are used to select the of the ES6 digital piano. Move the slider to the right the keyboard into two sections sound(s) that will be heard when pressing the keys. (page 14)
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Two pairs of headphones can be connected and used simultaneously. zMIDI IN/OUT Connectors Used to connect the ES6 digital piano to external MIDI devices such as other electronic instruments or computers. (page 63) zUSB Connector Used to connect the ES6 digital piano with a personal computer to exchange MIDI data.
CONNECTING THE F-20 FOOT PEDAL The optional KAWAI F-20 foot pedal can also be utilised by connecting the unit to the DAMPER/SOFT pedal jack. The r ight pedal will behave as a damper pedal,...
BASIC OPERATION Step 1 Connect one end of the AC power cable to the DC IN jack of the ES6 digital piano, and the other end of the cable to a wall AC outlet. Step 2 Press the POWER button to turn on the power.
Use the VOLUME slider to adjust the volume, if necessary. The ES6 digital piano is capable of playing up to 192 notes simultaneously (192 note polyphony). However, when playing in DUAL mode, or when playing a stereo piano sound, the polyphony will be reduced by half due to the...
Page 2) DEMO SONGS The internal demonstration songs provide an excellent introduction to the varied capabilities of the ES6 digital piano, presenting the instrument’s rich selection of voices and powerful speaker system. There are three different types of demonstration available: the Main Demo song, an additional 27 separate Internal Sound demo songs, and a Rhythm Section demo song, with pop, jazz, and classical styles, highlighting the useful accompaniment feature.
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The LED indicator for the RHYTHM SECTION button will start to fl ash, and the Rhythm Section demo song will start to play. When the Rhythm Section demo song has fi nished, the ES6 digital piano will return to playing the Main Demo song automatically.
Page 3) DUAL MODE The DUAL function allows two internal sounds to be layered together, creating a more complex sound. For example, a piano can be layered with strings, or a church organ with a choir sound. Step 1 Press and hold the PIANO1 button, then press the STRINGS/CHOIR button.
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Page Step 5 Press the T or S VALUE/BALANCE buttons to adjust the volume balance between the two sounds. The current volume balance between the primary and secondary sounds will be shown in the LED display. The sum of the primary and secondary sound volume balances will always total 10 (e.g. ‘1-9’, ‘5-5’, ‘9-1’, etc.), with larger values producing greater volume.
Page 4) SPLIT MODE The SPLIT function divides the keyboard of the ES6 digital piano into Upper and Lower sections, allowing each section to be played with a different sound. Step 1 Press the SPLIT button. The LED indicator for the SPLIT button will turn on, indicating that SPLIT mode has been activated.
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Page Step 4 Press the PIANO2 button three times. The LED indicator for the PIANO2 button will turn on. ‘1-3’ will be shown in the LED display, indicating Press three times t h a t t h e U p p e r s e c t i o n s o u n d h a s b e e n changed to Mellow Grand 2.
Lower section. Please refer to the instructions on page 57 for more information. If the included F-10H foot pedal unit is connected to the ES6 digital piano, the pedal will be used as a damper pedal for the Upper section. If the optional F-20 foot pedal unit is connected, however, the left (soft) pedal will also be used as a damper pedal for the Lower section.
Page 6) REVERB, EFFECTS, AND EQ The ES6 digital piano allows performers to alter sounds by adding reverb, applying effects, and adjusting equalisation (EQ). When selecting some internal sounds, the LED indicator for the EFFECTS or REVERB buttons may turn on automatically.
‘Slow’ and ‘Fast’ effect modes. In addition, if the optional F-20 foot pedal unit is connected to the ES6 digital piano, the rotary speaker effect mode can also be alternated by pressing the left (soft) pedal.
Recommended for normal playing circumstances, such as in a living room or classroom. EQ 1 With headphones connected, the normal sound of the ES6 digital piano is reproduced. Recommended when the ES6 digital piano is facing a wall. EQ 2 With headphones connected, the higher frequencies are enhanced compared to EQ 1 or EQ 3.
Page 7) TOUCH CURVE The TOUCH function allows different touch sensitivities for the keyboard to be selected, other than the standard touch of an acoustic piano. The sensitivity can be changed to one of fi ve different types: Light 2, Light 1, Heavy 1, Heavy 2 or Off.
Page 8) TRANSPOSE The TRANSPOSE function allows the audible pitch of the ES6 digital piano to be raised or lowered in half steps. This is particularly useful when accompanying instruments with different tones, or when a song learned in one key must be played in another key.
Rhythm is one of the most important elements when learning music. It is important to practise playing the piano at the correct tempo and with a steady rhythm. The ES6 digital piano’s metronome function helps learners to achieve this by providing a steady beat to play along with.
Page Step 2 Press the T or S VALUE/BALANCE buttons to select the desired time signature. The currently selected time signature will be shown in the LED display. Step 3 Press the BEAT button again to deactivate the metronome. The LED indicator for the BEAT button will turn off, indicating that the metronome has been deactivated.
3. SONG RECORDER The ES6 digital piano allows up to 4 different songs to be recorded, stored in memory, and played back at the touch of a button. Each song has two separate tracks called ‘parts’ that can be recorded independently. For example, this allows the left-hand part to be recorded fi...
Saving may take a few moments. During this time, the ES6 digital piano will not respond to any other operations. To record the part again, simply repeat the above procedure. The new recording will completely erase the previous recording.
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Saving may take a few moments. During this time, the ES6 digital piano will not respond to any other operations. The total recording capacity of the ES6 piano’s memory is approximately 60,000 notes, with button and pedal presses also counted as one note.
Page 2) PLAYING BACK A SONG The PLAY/STOP button is used to start and stop playback of the recorded song, and to also select which song and part is played. In the following example, the song recorded to the SONG1 memory will be played back. ...
Page PLAYING BACK PARTS SEPARATELY When selecting a song recorded with two parts, it is possible to playback PART1 and PART2 separately. In the following example, only PART1 of the song recorded to the SONG1 memory will be played back. ...
Page 3) ERASING A SONG/PART This function allows any songs that are no longer listened to, to be cleared. In the following example, PART1 of the song recorded to the SONG1 memory will be erased. Step 1 Press and hold the PLAY/STOP and REC buttons. Press and hold both buttons The LED indicators for the SOUND SELECTION buttons will turn on to indicate which song memories (SONG1- SONG4) have been recorded to.
Page 4. REGISTRATION The ES6 digital piano allows many of the preferred panel settings such as the selected sound, effect type etc., to be stored as registration memories and conveniently recalled at the touch of a button. There are 14 registration memories in total, with two memories assigned to each SOUND SELECTION button.
Page SELECTING A REGISTRATION In the following example, sound settings will be recalled from the second memory of REGISTRATION3. Step 1 Press the REGISTRATION button. The LED indicator for the REGISTRATION button will turn on, and the currently selected registration memory will be shown in the LED display.
5. RHYTHM SECTION RHYTHM SECTION OVERVIEW The ES6 digital piano’s Rhythm Section function provides automatic backing tracks that are suitable for accompanying various musical styles. There are 100 different types of backing available, consisting of drums, bass, guitar, organ, etc., allowing musicians to enliven their performances with multi-instrumental accompaniments.
Page 1) ACTIVATING THE RHYTHM SECTION Press the RHYTHM SECTION button. The LED indicator for the RHYTHM SECTION button will turn on, indicating that the Rhythm Section function has been activated. The currently selected Rhythm Section style will be shown in the LED display. The LED indicator for the SPLIT button will also turn on, indicating that the Lower section of the keyboard (from F#2 and below) will be used to control the Rhythm Section chord progression, and the Upper section of the keyboard will be used to play the melody.
Page 2) PLAYING WITH THE RHYTHM SECTION Step 1 Press the PLAY/STOP button. The LED indicator for the PLAY/STOP button will turn on, the Count-in drum pattern will start, and a countdown will be shown in the LED display. After the Count-in, the Rhythm Section will change to the Basic pattern.
3) RHYTHM SECTION STYLES The ES6 digital piano Rhythm Section function features a wide selection of accompaniment styles, ranging from Pop, Rock, Ballads, and Jazz, to Funk, Dance, Latin, and World Music styles. Please refer to page 76 for a complete listing of available Rhythm Section styles.
Page SELECTING THE RHYTHM SECTION GENRE Selecting a specifi c accompaniment genre allows Rhythm Section styles to be selected more effi ciently. Step 1 Press and hold the RHYTHM SECTION button, then press the T or S VALUE/BALANCE buttons to select the desired Rhythm Section genre.
Page 4) RHYTHM SECTION PARTS Each Rhythm Section style consists of 4 parts: 1. Drums 2. Bass 3. Guitar 4. Others (Strings, Organ, Electric Piano, etc.) By default, all four parts of a Rhythm Section style will be turned on, however, the Part function allows different parts to be turned on or off, tailoring the accompaniment for specifi...
Page 5) ADJUSTING THE RHYTHM SECTION TEMPO Step 1 Press the TEMPO button to activate the tempo adjustment mode. The LED indicator for the TEMPO button will turn on, and the current Rhythm Section tempo in beats per minute (BPM) will be shown in the LED display.
Page 6) ADJUSTING THE RHYTHM SECTION VOLUME Step 1 Press the TEMPO and BEAT buttons simultaneously to activate the volume adjustment mode. The LED indicators for both the TEMPO and BEAT buttons will turn on, and the current Rhythm Section volume will be shown in the LED display. ...
Page 7) ADJUSTING THE RHYTHM SECTION SPLIT POINT The Split Point specifies the Lower section of the keyboard used to control the Rhythm Section chord progression, and the Upper section of the keyboard used to play the melody. This point can be adjusted, allowing the Lower and Upper sections to be increased or decreased.
The LED indicator for the SPLIT button will turn off, indicating that all 88 keys of the keyboard can be played freely. SELECTING THE PRESET CHORD PROGRESSION STYLE The ES6 digital piano features 100 different Preset Chord Progression styles, suitable for accompanying various types of music.
Page 9) RECORDING THE RHYTHM SECTION It is also possible to record a Custom Chord Progression to PART1 of a song memory using the Recorder function. This allows all 88 keys of the keyboard to be played freely, while the Rhythm Section plays an automatic accompaniment.
Page Step 5 Press the PLAY/STOP button to start recording. The LED indicators for the PLAY/STOP and REC buttons will turn on, the Count-in drum pattern will start, and a countdown will be shown in the LED display. Step 6 Play chords in the Lower section of the keyboard.
Page 6. FUNCTION SETTINGS The function settings are responsible for controlling various advanced parameters within the ES6 digital piano, and can be selected by pressing a combination of buttons. The functions are assigned as follows: Menu Button Pressing once Pressing twice...
Page 1) BRILLIANCE This function allows the brightness of the ES6 digital piano sound to be adjusted. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the PIANO1 button. Press the PIANO1 button Press and hold both buttons The LED indicators for the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, and PIANO1 buttons will start to fl...
Page 2) TUNING The TUNING function allows the pitch of the ES6 digital piano to be fi nely adjusted, and may prove useful when playing with other instruments. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the PIANO2 button.
Voicing is a technique used by piano technicians to mould the character of a piano’s sound. This function allows the tonal quality of the ES6 digital piano to be set to one of six voicing types: The normal tone character of an acoustic piano throughout the entire dynamic range. This Normal is the default voicing setting.
When a note or chord is played on the piano with the damper pedal depressed, not only will the strings of the notes played vibrate, but also the strings of other notes, vibrating in sympathetic resonance. The Damper Effect function of the ES6 digital piano attempts to simulate this phenomenon. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the ORGAN button.
String Resonance refers to a phenomenon present among acoustic pianos, whereby the strings of held notes resonate ‘sympathetically’ with other notes of the same harmonic series. The String Resonance function of the ES6 digital piano attempts to simulate this phenomenon. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the HARPSI/MALLETS button.
Page 6) TEMPERAMENT The ES6 digital piano offers immediate access to a variety of musical temperaments popular during the Renaissance and Baroque periods. It may prove interesting and educational to experiment with different temperaments, other than the modern ‘equal temperament’ standard this is dominant in music today.
Page Step 2 Press the T or S VALUE/BALANCE buttons to select the desired temperament type. TEMPERAMENT Equal (Piano) Pure (Major) Pure (Minor) Pythagorean Meantone Werckmeister III Equal Equal (Flat) Kirnberger III Any changes made to the Temperament setting will remain until the power is turned off. ...
Page 7) LOWER OCTAVE SHIFT When using SPLIT mode, this function allows the Lower section to be raised by one, two, or three octaves. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the BASS button. Press the BASS button Press and hold both buttons The LED indicators for the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, and BASS buttons will start to fl...
Page 8) LOWER PEDAL ON/OFF When using SPLIT mode, this function determines whether or not pressing the damper pedal will also sustain the Lower section sounds. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the BASS button twice. Press the BASS button twice Press and hold both buttons The LED indicators for the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, and BASS buttons will start to fl...
Page 9) DAMPER HOLD ON/OFF This function determines whether or not pressing the damper pedal will sustain continuous sounds such as organ or strings after the keys are released. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the BASS button three times. Press the BASS button three times Press and hold both buttons The LED indicators for the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, and BASS buttons will start to flash, indicating that the...
Page 10) AUTO FILL-IN When using the Rhythm Section, this function controls how frequently the Auto Fill-in will be played. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the EFFECTS button. Press the EFFECTS button Press and hold both buttons The LED indicators for the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, and EFFECTS buttons will start to fl...
Page 11) ONE FINGER AD-LIB™ ON/OFF The One Finger Ad-lib™ feature provides an enjoyable way of creating music by simply pressing one key at a time. When enabled, One Finger Ad-lib™ allows various musical phrases to be performed at any time, by pressing one of the topmost 17 keys on the keyboard.
Reset User When set to ‘rES’ (Reset), the ES6 digital piano will reset all settings to the default value, however the song and registrations memories will not be reset. When set to ‘uSr’ (User), the ES6 digital piano will store the current user-defi nable settings, recalling them every time the power is turned on.
(MIDI recorders) and other electronic instruments so that they can exchange performance data. The ES6 is equipped with two MIDI jacks for exchanging data: MIDI IN and MIDI OUT. Each uses a special cable with a DIN connector.
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The ES6 digital piano will respond to MIDI volume data sent from a MIDI- connected musical instrument or device. Multi-timbral setting The ES6 digital piano is able to receive multiple channel MIDI data from a MIDI- connected musical instrument or device, when multi-timbral mode is turned on. Transmit / receive exclusive Transmit/receive front panel or menu function settings as exclusive data.
The LED indicators for the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, and PIANO1 buttons will stop fl ashing. By default, the ES6 digital piano will receive MIDI information from all channels, 1 to 16. This state is called ‘omni mode on’. The ES6 digital piano will switch to ‘omni mode off’ when a specifi c channel is selected using the above MIDI Channel function, and data will only be received on that specifi...
Page 15) SEND PROGRAM CHANGE NUMBER This function allows the ES6 digital piano to send program change numbers. Using this function, any program change number from 1 to 128 can be sent to external MIDI devices and instruments. Step 1 Press and hold the TOUCH and TRANSPOSE buttons, then press the PIANO2 button twice.
When set to ‘On’, the ES6 digital piano will play a sound when the keyboard is played. With set to ‘Off’, the ES6 digital piano will not play a sound when the keyboard is played, yet will continue to transmit data on the selected MIDI channel to an external MIDI device.
Page 17) TRANSMIT PROGRAM CHANGE ON/OFF This function determines whether or not the ES6 digital piano will transmit program change information when pressing the control buttons. Program Change Number Mapping Multi-Timbral mode Sound Button Sound Name Off, On 1 On 2 Prog No.
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Page When transmit program change is set to ‘Off’, program change and other panel information will NOT be transmitted via MIDI. When transmit program change is set to ‘On’, the following MIDI exclusive data will be transmitted: • Reverb settings (On/Off, type) •...
Page 18) MULTI-TIMBRAL MODE ON/OFF This function allows the ES6 digital piano to receive data on more than one MIDI channel simultaneously. In this mode, the ES6 digital piano can play several musical parts, with different sounds for each part.
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Page Step 3 Press one of the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, SOUND SELECTION, EFFECTS, or REVERB buttons to exit Multi-timbral setting mode. The LED indicators for the TOUCH, TRANSPOSE, and HARPSI/MALLETS buttons will stop fl ashing. Any changes made to the Multi-timbral mode On/Off setting will remain until the power is turned off. ...
Page 19) CHANNEL MUTE This function determines which MIDI channels are activated to receive MIDI information when Multi-timbral mode is set to ‘On’. Each of the 16 channels can be individually activated or deactivated. When Multi-timbral mode is set to ‘Off’, the Channel Mute function cannot be selected. ...
Please use the controls on the external device in order to adjust the volume level of the mixed audio. LINE OUT JACKS These jacks provide stereo or mono output of the sound produced by the ES6 digital piano to amplifi ers, mixers, recorders, and similar equipment.
To establish MIDI communications with the ES6 digital piano, ensure that the MIDI IN device is defi ned as ‘KAWAI USB MIDI IN’ and that the MIDI OUT device is defi ned as ‘KAWAI USB MIDI OUT’ within the MIDI application.
When connecting a USB cable to the ES6 digital piano, first connect the USB cable and then turn the ES6 digital piano power on. y When connected the ES6 digital piano to a computer via the USB port, there may be a short delay before MIDI communications begin.
Page 3) RHYTHM SECTION STYLE LIST Genre Display Style Name Genre Display Style Name 16th Swing Funk Shuffl e 1 8th Straight 8 Beat 1 Funk Shuffl e 2 8 Beat 2 Hip Hop 1 Smooth Beat Hip Hop 2 Pop 1 Hip Hop 3 Pop 2...
4) RHYTHM SECTION CHORD TYPES The following is a list of chord types recognised by the ES6 digital piano Rhythm Section. Each chord can be played by pressing the notes marked with a z symbol in the diagrams below. In addition, the common Major, Minor, M7, and 7, chord types can also be played by pressing just the notes marked with a Ì...
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Page Chord Name Notes Display Chord Name Notes Display Chord Name Notes Display E Maj F Maj sus4 E sus4 F sus4 E aug F aug E min F min E M7 F M7 ...
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Page Chord Name Notes Display Chord Name Notes Display Chord Name Notes Display G Maj sus4 G sus4 sus4 G aug G min ...
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Page Chord Name Notes Display Chord Name Notes Display Chord Name Notes Display A Maj B Maj A sus4 sus4 B sus4 A aug B aug A min B min A M7 B M7 ...
5) PRESET CHORD PROGRESSION STYLES The following is a list of Preset Chord Progression styles utilised by the Rhythm Section of the ES6 digital piano. The Preset Chord Progression styles can last for 8, 12, or 16 bars, with the bar number and chord name written in the spaces below.
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Page Chord pattern No. of Display bars 1 (9) 2 (10) 3 (11) 4 (12) 5 (13) 6 (14) 7 (15) 8 (16) B A M7 B A M7 D7( 5) G7( 5) F m7( A 5) A7( 5) G7( 5) FmM7 G7sus4 Bm7( A 5)
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