US3994500A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Musical composition board game
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1974-06-24
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Granted: 1976-11-30
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Expires: 1994-06-24
Abstract
Abstract Two or more players move respective playing pieces in turn around a peripheral portion of a playing board as determined by spinning a spin dial. The peripheral portion of the playing board is divided into colored spaces including different musical symbols or terms used in musical composition. Each player uses the musical symbols or terms included in the spaces on which his or her playing piece lands to compose four measures of music in the major key of C. Play money is given to each player based on the popularity of his or her musical composition as determined by throwing numeric dice and for other reasons based on chance and skill. The winner is the player who earns the most play money while completing four measures of music. Different awards are given to the players based on the amount of play money they earn. More advanced players may increase the number of measures of music to be composed, may compose their music in a key other than C, as determined by throwing alphabetic dice, and may employ accompaniments selected by themselves or determined by drawing cards bearing different accompaniments.
Inventors
- 👤 Sylvia Jessop Schow
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-05 06:09
CPC Classifications
A; A63; A63F; A63F3/00; A63F3/00003; A63F3/00119; A63F3/00006
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 32
Claim 1
Independent Claim
122 words
A musical composition game comprising a playing board having a portion divided into a plurality of spaces including different musical symbols or terms used in musical composition and relating at least to melody and rhythm, a plurality of playing pieces for movement along said portion of the playing board to determine the musical symbols or terms to be notated in composing musical compositions, means of chance for regulating movement of the playing pieces along said portion of the playing board, means of chance for determining the popularity of a musical composition at different stages, and a supply of staff-lined music paper for use in notating musical compositions as determined by movement of the playing pieces along said portion of the playing board.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
122 words
A musical composition game comprising a playing board having a portion divided into a plurality of spaces including different musical symbols or terms used in musical composition and relating at least to melody and rhythm, a plurality of playing pieces for movement along said portion of the playing board to determine the musical symbols or terms to be notated in composing musical compositions, means of chance for regulating movement of the playing pieces along said portion of the playing board, means of chance for determining the popularity of a musical composition at different stages, and a supply of staff-lined music paper for use in notating musical compositions as determined by movement of the playing pieces along said portion of the playing board.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
43 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 wherein said portion of the playing board comprises a continuous peripheral portion of the playing board, and each space of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board is colored one of several different colors.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
60 words
A musical composition game as in claim 2 wherein a plurality of spaces of one of said colors serve as starting spaces from which the playing pieces may be moved either forward or backward along the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board a number of spaces determined by the means of chance for regulating movement of the playing pieces.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
21 words
A musical composition game as in claim 3 including a supply of play money awarded according to both chance and skill.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
58 words
A musical composition game as in claim 3 wherein some of the spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board includes musical symbols or terms relating to dynamics and tempo, and each of said plurality of spaces of said one of said colors designates a different time signature to be used in composing a musical composition.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
40 words
A musical composition game as in claim 5 wherein some of the spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board include an indication of an alternate, moreadvanced musical composition technique that may be used in a musical composition.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
45 words
A musical composition game as in claim 4 wherein some of the spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board include musical symbols or terms of greater difficulty to incorporate in a musical composition than the musical symbols or terms of other spaces.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
90 words
A musical composition game as in claim 6 wherein the means of chance for regulating movement of the playing pieces comprises a spin dial, the means of chance for determining the popularity of a musical composition comprises a plurality of numeric dice, and the musical composition game further includes a plurality of alphabetic dice that may be used for determining a minor key or a major key other than C, and a plurality of cards bearing different accompaniments that may be selected by chance for use in a musical composition.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
13 words
A musical composition game as in claim 8 including a plurality of awards.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
36 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 wherein the spaces of said portion of the playing board include different musical symbols or terms used in musical composition and relating to dynamics, melody, rhythm, and tempo.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
31 words
A musical composition game as in claim 10, wherein some of the spaces of said portion of the playing board include a choice of musical symbols or terms to be notated.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
31 words
A musical composition game as in claim 10 wherein each of the spaces of said portion of the playing board includes a different musical symbol or term used in musical composition.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
42 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 wherein said portion of the playing board comprises a continuous peripheral portion of the playing board divided into a plurality of contiguous spaces each including a musical symbol or term used in musical composition.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
41 words
A musical composition game as in claim 13 wherein the playing board is rectangular in shape, and the spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board include different musical symbols or terms on each side of the playing board.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
48 words
A musical composition game as in claim 13 wherein each of the spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board is colored one of several different colors, a plurality of spaces of at least one of said colors being associated with a reward or a penalty.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
50 words
A musical composition game as in claim 13 wherein selected ones of the spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board include different time signatures to be notated, and selected ones of those time signatures are of greater difficulty than others and are therefore associated with a reward.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
63 words
A musical composition game as in claim 13 wherein some of said spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board include musical symbols or terms of greater difficulty than those included in other spaces of the continuous peripheral portion of the playing board, notation of selected ones of said musical symbols or terms of greater difficulty being associated with a reward.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
44 words
A musical composition game as in claim 13 wherein some of said spaces include an indication of an alternate, moreadvanced musical composition technique that may be used in a musical composition, each of said alternate, more-advanced musical composition techniques being associated with a reward.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
29 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 including means of chance for determining a major or a minor key in which a musical composition is to be composed.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
41 words
A musical composition game as in claim 19 wherein the means of chance for determining a major or a minor key includes a first alphabetic die for determining a major key and a second alphabetic die for determining a minor key.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
29 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 including a plurality of accompaniment cards bearing different accompaniments that may be selected by chance for use in a musical composition.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
46 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 including means for designating more-advanced musical composition techniques of an advanced form of the musical composition game that may be played on the playing board at the same time as a regular form of the musical composition game.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
66 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 wherein different groups of spaces of said portion of the playing board are colored different colors, and the musical composition game includes a plurality of explanatory cards each colored the same color as a corresponding one of said groups of spaces and including explanations and directions related to those spaces and the musical symbols or terms included therein.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
46 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 including a supply of play money awarded according to both chance and skill as a musical composition is composed, the supply of play money including different denominations each bearing the name and likeness of a different musical composer.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
14 words
A musical composition game as in claim 24 including a plurality of different awards.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
19 words
A musical composition game as in claim 25 wherein the awards comprise figures related to the field of entertainment.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
22 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 wherein each of the playing pieces comprises a statuette of a different musical composer.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
43 words
A musical composition game as in claim 1 wherein the means of chance for regulating movement of the playing pieces comprises a spin dial, and the means of chance for determining the popularity of a musical composition comprises a plurality of numeric dice.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
101 words
A musical composition game comprising a playing board having a portion divided into a plurality of spaces including different musical symbols or terms used in musical composition and relating at least to melody and rhythm, a plurality of playing pieces for movement along said portion of the playing board to determine the musical symbols or terms to be notated in composing musical compositions, means of chance for regulating movement of the playing pieces along said portion of the playing board, and means of chance for determining a major or a minor key in which a musical composition is to be composed.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
101 words
A musical composition game comprising a playing board having a portion divided into a plurality of spaces including different musical symbols or terms used in musical composition and relating at least to melody and rhythm, a plurality of playing pieces for movement along said portion of the playing board to determine the musical symbols or terms to be notated in composing musical compositions, means of chance for regulating movement of the playing pieces along said portion of the playing board, and means of chance for determining a major or a minor key in which a musical composition is to be composed.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
41 words
A musical composition game as in claim 29 wherein the means of chance for determining a major or a minor key includes a first alphabetic die for determining a major key and a second alphabetic die for determining a minor key.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1979-11-30 | 1980-05-31 | 1980-11-30 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1983-11-30 | 1984-05-31 | 1984-11-30 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1987-11-30 | 1988-05-31 | 1988-11-30 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |