Combination/Combi

In keyboards and workstations Combination or Combi (for short) refers to patches or programs that are made by combining several independent sounds together. For example, one might take a piano sound from patch number 1, a string sound from patch number 27, a pad sound from patch number 54, and a mellow brass sound from patch number 36 and layer them all together as one big program where they can be used simultaneously. It may pertain to a performance where a player wants to actually play all the sounds at the same time, or a sequencing setup where different parts are to be triggered individually from a sequencer. In either case this big program would be known as a Combination, or Combi. Korg is one well known brand that has historically used this terminology. In some other systems this type of setup may also referred to as a Performance, Multi, Setup, or by some other name.