Korg Monotron Demo by PatchPierre

As most of you know, i bought a fully analog Korg Monotron -analogue ribbon synthesizer- a while ago.
I promised you to make a short demo of it as soon as i had the time, so here it is.

The Korg Monotron is a cheap (39 Euro) battery-powered synthesizer, but what a lot of fun i already had with this little thing.
It features one VCO, a real VCF (This true analog filter is taken from the classic MS-10 & MS-20 synthesizer) with Filter-Cutoff and Peak (resonance) Control.
An LFO with variable speed (and an LED that flashes in tandem) can be applied to the Pitch (VCO) or Filter(VCF)
*note: only the LFO>filter cutoff is shown in this video

Video: Korg Monotron -analogue ribbon synthesizer- demo by PatchPierre

" Created by PatchPierre
http://patchpierre.blogspot.nl/

Equipment used: Korg Monotron"

A Short Guide to Sound Synthesis by Zoë Blade

You have probably seen this next video already somewhere on the web, but i thought it was a good idea to post it here too... just in case you missed it.

Video: A Short Guide to Sound Synthesis

" A brief guide to sound synthesis / how synthesisers (synthesizers) work. Using a Doepfer A-100 modular synthesiser, I demonstrate CV pitch and gate signals, oscillators, attenuators, mixers, ADSR envelope generators and filters."

Uploaded by Zoë Blade, check out her YouTube channel for more analogue modular videos,
and follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/zoeblade

Booktip XII - How To Make A Noise by Simon Cann

Simon Cann is a musician and writer based in London. He is the author of a range of music-related and music business-related books and published this book in 2005. (my copy is the revised 2007 edition)

The book is " a comprehensive, practical guide to sound design and synthesizer programming techniques using subtractive (analog) synthesis, frequency modulation synthesis, additive synthesis, wave-sequencing, and sample-based synthesis. "

Every function of a synthesizer gets discussed in this 278-page book, and the author shows practical uses for these building-blocks to make/recreate sounds.

The book is illustrated with many pictures and screen-shots from (software) synthesizers that i had/have never heard of, and that might be the only 'problem' that i have with this book.

In my opinion this book is a bit too much focused on Software synths and some of the sounds can only be created with these soft-synths.

For analog purists (like me) this can be a bit of a trouble, but nevertheless i enjoyed reading it and had fun trying out new patches.

I like the book a lot because it is stuffed with info, patch-ideas and other suggestions, but i advice beginners to start with the more basic synth-books. (check the BookTip section of this blog)

Published by Coombe Hill Publishing

Paperback   178 pages
ISBN10      0955495504

ISBN13      9780955495502

Click here if you want to get hold of the full free download of this book for your tablet or PC.

The author recently wrote 3 digital (not on paper) follow-ups to this book.
A video with more info on these 3 e-books can be found HERE
Find additional info/ ordering details at http://simoncann.com/ or http://noisesculpture.com/
or follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/simonpcann

CD-Tip VI : More Electronic Music by Badings - Henk Badings

Henk Badings is still pretty unknown to a lot of us, but he was a classical-schooled Dutch composer/ engineer who was born in 1907 and passed away in 1987.

He had been composing since his youth, but after the 2nd World War he discovered (early) electronic and tape-music.
From 1956 until 1963 he worked with other Dutch electronic music pioneers like Dick Raaijmakers (who declined Stanley Kubrick's request to make the Clockwork Orange soundtrack)  en Tom Dissevelt in the acclaimed Philips NatLab.

He has written symphonies, concerto's, electronic and film music in his life, but this 2CD-set contains 5 of his most important electronic works.
Did they already "partly cover Badings' Electronic Music on the Popular Electronics Boxset (Basta 3091412), here's the best of the rest, to say so" (so not containing tracks that were already on THESE CD's that i reviewed earlier)

Fans that like Wendy Carlos, other NatLab CD's that i posted and such will probably like this collection of weird and sometimes dreamy, well composed soundscapes and even the more progressive electronic poetry-slam track "Dialogues for Man and Machine" with lyrics by Dutch singer/poet Ramses Shaffy

Preview:
  Capriccio (1959) for violin and 2 sound tracks - Henk Badings by Basta Music

More info and tracklisting HERE
Published by Basta Music

http://BastaMusic.com
Cat. Nr.: 3091 722
A more comprehensive list of all his works can be found HERE (in Dutch)
- also see http://www.badings.nl/

CD-Tip V : Anthology of Dutch Electronic Tape Music Vol 1 and 2 - Various Artists

These summer weeks i have been too busy to blog regularly, but i did have time to read and listen.
The main topic of this summer's research was Early Dutch Electronic (Tape) Music, you can expect the review of the book "Onder Stroom" (in Dutch) by Jacqueline Oskamp later, but first this quick quadruple CD-Tip.

This 2 x 2CD collection gives another nice overview of the early Dutch Electronic and Tape-pioneers.
It shows the listeners that there were more creative people interested in the spectrum between noise and sound besides the people who worked at the Philips NatLab (more info HERE and Wiki HERE).
A collection of work from throughout the Netherlands from Dutch legends like Dick Raaijmakers, Henk Badings, Ton Bruynèl, Tom Dissevelt and more from the years 1955 to 1966 fills up Volume 1.
Volume 2 has music from the years 1966 to 1977 and contains compositions of lesser known tape-artists that were not included on the first volume.

"Anthology of Dutch Electronic Tape Music Volume 1 Electronic music has been the subject of intense activity in the Netherlands since 1955, and the variety of this activity is reflected in the histories of the large number of electronic studios. The aim of Anthology I is to illustrate both the work of the various studios and that of individual composers; we have tried to represent as many composers from each studio as possible with preferably their earliest and most characteristic works...

... The second and last volume of the Anthology of Electronic Tape Music contains works composed after 1966, during a period when electronic music broadened its horizons and established links with other disciplines, a period when the studios opened their portals to influences and involvement from outside. Although electronic music from 1966 onwards became very fragmented and manifested itself in many different forms in Holland, the present volume of the Anthology aims merely to give an overall picture of pure tape music. "

Overall i find this a perfect compilation series. Most of the compositions sound fresh ( also because of the brilliant remastering by Kees Tazelaar) and at times make you feel excited and amazed on how this could be made half a decade ago without 'modern' effect machines.
If you are new to Dutch Electronic Tape-Music and you need a good starting point, try these 4 CD's.
Together with the 2 thick inlay-booklets (in English), that provide info on each track and a short composer biography this is a very complete and diverse overview...

Published in 2008 by Basta Music
http://bastamusic.com
Volume 1 2CD: Cat. Nr.: 3091 822 / More info HERE
Volume 2 2CD: Cat. Nr.: 3091 832 / More info HERE

Booktip IX - Analog Synthesis by Reinhart Schmitz

One of the smallest books in my whole BookTip section, but nevertheless a pretty informative one is this 128-page booklet by Reinhard Schmitz.

Analog Synthesis -The Newbie Guide to Synthesizers and Sound-Design  (also available in German) is full of basic info on how synthesis works. Very easy to read, and focused mainly on beginners this is a nice resource for all things synth...

In different chapters the main components of a (modular) synthesizer are explained, accompanied by simple  black/white pictures and graphs. 

The book is completed with an extensive glossary and a pretty nice 39-track audio-CD with audio-examples of the most important analog synthesizers of Moog, Oberheim, ARP and Sequential Circuits, to name but a few.

Some time ago Doepfer used to give this book (or the German version) away for free if you purchased a full Doepfer system. 

Getting it is better than buying it; for such a small book the price ( 36 USD ) is a bit too high IMHO...

Wizoo has quite an extensive collection of other English and German audio/ recording -books too.

You can find the other English books here

ISBN:  978-3-934903-01-2
Publication Date: 1999 by Wizoo Publishing GmbH

More info on this book HERE

Booktip VIII - History of House by Chris Kempster

History of House is a very interesting book about the history of House music and the technology behind it.
The book is compiled and edited by Chris Kempster in 1996,  the articles come from music-technology-magazines like 'the Mix', 'Music Technology' and  'Electronics and Music Maker' (E&MM)

The 206-paged book is divided into three parts; The Artists USA, The Artists UK & Europe and a third part that is called 'The Technology'

The first part contains interviews with some of the most influential house-deejays/producers like Marshall Jefferson, Lil'Louis, Larry Heard, Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, Richie Hawtin and Carl Craig.
The interviews that the author/ compiler picked are very well written, and besides giving an insight into the history of house music, they also contain a lot of tech and synthesizer references. Most producers explain what instruments they used and why.
The second part of the book features UK and European artists Kraftwerk, M/A/R/R/S, S-Express, Baby Ford, 808 State, A Guy called Gerald, The Orb and Goldie.

The third and last part is all about the classic House-instruments and probably the most interesting for the readers of this blog.
Here you can find some  interesting articles about the classic house drum machines like the TR-808 and TR-909, the Roland TB-303 acid bassline, SH-101 and Juno 106 synthesizers, the Alesis MMT-8 and Korg SQD1 sequencers and from more modern machines like the Ensoniq Mirage, Yamaha DX100 to the Akai S-1000 and Kurzweil K2000 samplers.

Overall this is a very entertaining book for anyone who is interested in house music, the (mid-)80's synthesizer history and/or its instruments.  8/10

Sanctuary Publishing, Limited, 1996
ISBN: 1-86074-134-7

Booktip VII - Keyfax Omnibus Edition by Julian Colbeck

The Keyfax Omnibus Edition, written in 1996 by Julian Colbeck, is a pretty interesting 192-page book about synths and synthesizer history. It is the sixth volume of a series by the author, his first one appeared in 1985 although he already writes about synthesizers since 1976.

The book is divided into 2 main parts, The Hot 100 and the Product Directory.
The first and largest part of the book delves into the 100 most important synthesizers in history, alphabetically ordered by manufacturers name. Together with the company profiles this book gives a nice overview on the global history of synthesizers. I like the style that it is written in, very informative...

The second part, The Product Directory exists out of an extensive list of almost every synthesizer on the planet. The directory also provides production data like production year, release-prices, the instrument's value in 1996, and often a short extra description. Very useful if you are looking into buying a second-hand ( pre-1996 ) synthesizer.

The book reads like a synthesizer history book. It is a nice resource for anyone interested in older synths and synth history. PatchPierre rates it at 8 out of 10 stars

More PatchPierre Booktips

Published by Mixbooks,
later editions published by Hal Leonard Corporation
ISBN: 0-1918371-08-2

SiteTip IV : MIT OpenCourseware Music and Technology: Contemporary History and Aesthetics

A great resource for beginners and all other synthesizer-enthusiasts is the OpenCourseWare site from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

This course, as given by professor Christopher Ariza in the fall of 1997 is highly informative and perhaps a must-read to all of you new to analog sound or music in general.

'This course is an investigation into the history and aesthetics of music and technology as deployed in experimental and popular musics from the 19th century to the present. Through original research, creative hands-on projects, readings, and lectures, the following topics will be explored. The history of radio, audio recording, and the recording studio, as well as the development of musique concrète and early electronic instruments. The creation and extension of musical interfaces by composers such as Harry Partch, John Cage, Conlon Nancarrow, and others. The exploration of electromagnetic technologies in pickups, and the development of dub, hip-hop, and turntablism. The history and application of the analog synthesizer, from the Moog modular to the Roland TR-808. The history of computer music, including music synthesis and representation languages. Contemporary practices in circuit bending, live electronics, and electro-acoustic music, as well as issues in copyright and intellectual property, will also be examined'

Surfing through these pages you will find a lot of interesting information on (analog) sound, music history and much more, accompanied by many links to other interesting reads and audio-examples.

Video: Lecture 13 | MIT 21M.380 Music and Technology (Contemporary History and Aesthetics)


Preview Lecture 13 / Modular synthesizers
See the complete course HERE

Check the massive PDF (37 Mb / right-click and save as) for the complete set of notes and all other information on this course and enjoy!

Licence info:
Ariza, Christopher. 21M.380 Music and Technology (Contemporary History and Aesthetics), Fall 2009. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT OpenCourseWare), http://ocw.mit.edu (Accessed 16 Oct, 2011). License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA

CD-Tip IV : Clara Rockmore - The Art of the Theremin (1977)

Okay... Either you love the sound of the Theremin, or you don't. If you count yourself to the last category, feel free to skip this post and return to this blog in 3 or 4 days.

Yesterday was what would have been theremin virtuosa and electronic music pioneer, Clara Rockmore's 100th Birthday.
Clara Rockmore ( born as Clara Reisenberg ) studied violin in Leningrad, Russia, but she had to stop her career because of bone-problems due to malnutrition in her youth.
After she moved to the USA she started to work with Léon Theremin, who had recently invented the Theremin, and very quickly she mastered the instrument and became a virtuoso Theremin player.

In all the years performing with USA's finest orchestras and touring she developed a distinguished technique for playing the instrument and she proved that the Theremin really was a serious instrument, and not just an instrument to make 'eerie' sound effects for scary movies.

Although she also did these sound effects on commission, her true love was for the real classical compositions.

This 12-track CD has special arrangements of great classic composers like Saint-Saens, Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky, Ravel, Stravinsky and a few others.

Rockmore plays the Theremin beautifully, accompanied by her sister Nadia Reisenberg on piano. Pure and simple. If you are into classical music you will probably appreciate these wonderful recordings.

I have to admit that the tracks do sound a bit sad or moody, but that might just be the power of Clara's playing-style. With this recording and performances she definitely proved that you can really touch someone's soul with this instrument, and that is a great accomplishment with such a difficult to play instrument.

Video: Clara Rockmore - The Swan from Saint Saëns


CD catalog nr: Delos DE1014

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_the_Theremin

A few more recordings that were made during these sessions later appeared on the 'Lost Theremin Album' (1989), together with other old recordings.

Also worth watching: Theremin, an Electronic Odyssey, a 1997 documentary about Léon Theremin, his instrument and life, including various interviews and performances by Clara Rockmore.
Trialer: HERE

Booktip VI - The Museum of Synthesizer Technology by Martin J. Newcomb

Okay... the cover-design of this book isn't outstanding, but the content is in fact very interesting.

This book, simply called The Museum of Synthesizer Technology, written by Martin J. Newcomb in July 1994 shows the huge collection of what used to be the Museum of Synthesizer Technology that was situated in a  part of Berkshire, UK.

The museum, opened by Bob Moog, only existed for a few years ( 1994 - 1997 ) and was at the time the largest collection of analogue synthesizers in the world.
The idea was nice; the aim was to preserve all these analog synthesizers for future generations, and today's generation would be helped by exhibiting them and by keeping the (service- and normal) manuals available for the public.

Basically the book ( A4-sized, 118 pages ) is an overview of the museum's collection, with a lot of large (color-) pictures and accompanied by well-written background-information on the different synth-companies and types.
...most of all i like it for it's pictures...

Not included with the book, but there was also an interesting video out about this museum with uncut demonstrations, that was published in 2006 by Analogue Heaven, called Analogue Heaven The Museum of Synthesizer Technology. It is a revised release of the original museum-video, but including some extras.
Find the 65 minute documentary HERE (in six parts)
or HERE (full version)

The book has no ISBN number.

Booktip V - The A-Z of Analogue Synthesizers by Peter Forrest

This 'Encyclopaedia of all the great analogue synthesizers and keyboards' is written by Peter Forrest and is probably one of the most detailed analog synthesizers-catalogs out there.

The books list all analog synthesizers that were ever produced, and is spread across 2 parts with a total of 600 pages, filled with useful info about manufacturers, statistics and lots of pictures in black and white.
Both books also have a 16-page full-color-section, stuffed with cool pictures.

The first edition of Part One (A-M) was published in 1994, two years before Part Two (N-Z) arrived. The Revised version of Part One was published in 1998.
Although the layout of the books and some b/w pictures may look a bit cheap the books are highly informative if you are interested in analogue synthesizer history.

ISBN Part One A-M revised 0 9524377 2 4
ISBN Part Two N-Z              0 9524377 1 6
Susurreal Publishing: http://www.vemia.co.uk/susurreal/

CD-Tip III : Analogklang - Modulsystem A-100 Demo CD

This CD was published by Doepfer in 1995 to show off their then brand new A-100 modular system. It has 29 tracks and a large, colorful, fold-out booklet (in German) with a description of most of their early modules.

All the basic modules are demonstrated on this CD, that was produced by Andreas Merz from Weltklang and  narrated in German by a vocoded voice. The tracks are short, between 25 seconds and 3½ minute, what brings the total length of the CD to just 30 minutes.
This CD itself must be a collector's item by now i guess, because the item isn't available anymore on Doepfer's website. I'm quite sure i won't sell my copy... ever. This CD still means something special to me, and i did listen a lot to it, even before i bought my first modules.

Although the CD isn't available anymore, all tracks ( and some other sound-examples ) are still available for download HERE ( ...sadly enough in a poor ( 16Kbps) quality due to file-size decisions, but if you really need better audio-files you can contact Doepfer for better ones )
A must-have /or at least must-listen CD for all the real A-100 geeks and you might even get some new, fresh ideas out of it.

Booktip IV - The Complete Simmons Drum Book by Bob Henrit

Perhaps a bit of an outsider on this blog, but this 104-page book about Simmons Electronic Drums is in fact quite an interesting read.
The British Simmons company produced drum modules since the late seventies and is perhaps best known for their distinctive sounds and their 'hexapad' drum-surface design.

This book tells the whole story, their conception, development, and even their problems.
Allmost all their drumkits are included in this book, from their first SDS-3 (SDS series), ClapTraps and expanders up to models that were never released.
The book was written and published in 1987, seven years before Simmons produced their last products so only a few models are not mentioned in this book ( like the TurtleTrap and the SDS-2000 )

I have no idea why this book was written, but it looks like a nice thick brochure to sell Simmons products.
It is filled with (b/w) pictures, background stories and stories by players and is very well-written.
I recommend this if you are interested in (drum)-synthesizer history.
A good read from beginning to end.

Wise Publications ISBN: 0-7119-0933-4
Order No. AM 63173

Booktip III - Synthesizers by Hans de Vries ( in Dutch Language )

This little Dutch book, written in 1983 (!) is probably one of the best synthesizer-technology-books that I own. The fact that it is written in Dutch wasn’t enough reason to keep this book out of this blog.

In 144 pages, Hans de Vries explores the basics of sound creation.
The first half clearly explains the basic building blocks of synthesized sound, very clearly written (... but in Dutch, remember...) and with lots of graphs and explanatory pictures ( b/w )

The second half of the book delves more into the use of synthesizers in practical situations like (home-) studio’s etc.. The book ends with an overview the most popular or groundbreaking (analog) instuments of that time, like the Korg MS20, various Moogs, Oberheims and Rolands, up to the fisrt digital synthesizer; the Yamaha DX-7

Funny detail in this book is the writer’s skepticism towards MIDI and Computerized sequencing. Remember... around 1983 there were only a few instruments equipped with MIDI, and computers weren’t cheap. Above that, computer-sequencing-programs were not widely available back then.

ISBN: 90-201-1642-8

Filtering

A filter is a device for eliminating selected frequencies from the soundspectrum, and in some cases to emphasize the level of other frequencies.

Lowpass filter: Removes frequencies above its cutoff frequency

Highpass filter: Removes frequencies below its cutoff frequency

Bandpass filter: Only allows frequencies to pass through above and below a specified range

Notch filter: Allows frequencies to pass between specified ranges ( = Band-Reject filter )

CD-Tip II : Popular Electronics by Philips Research Lab

This 4-CD Boxset with the subtitle  " Early Dutch Electronic Music from Philips Research Laboratories 1956 - 1963 " is a collection of great (restored) works from the Dutch pioneers in electronic sound.

These four CD's contain hard-to-find compositions and sound-examples from the groundbreaking Philips NatLab studios in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.
Pioneers from that time like Dick Raaijmakers,Henk Badings and Tom Disseveld were already working on electronic sounds in the late 1950's, and this collection of Dutch electronic and tapeloop-music is the most complete one ever compiled.

The boxset includes 7 booklets (180 pages) and a few mini-posters, full with background information on the history of Philips NatLab and the composers and technicians of that time. You will also find all the CD details in these books, as well as lots of pictures, scores, schematics and other related documents.

 Popular Electronics: Early Dutch electronic music from Philips Research Laboratories, 1956-1963 by Basta Music

Additional info on this  Popular Electronics  4CD Boxset
BastaMusic: Cat. Nr.: 3091 412

Booktip II - Vintage Synthesizers by Mark Vail

Another interesting read; 
The subtitle of this book: “Groundbreaking instruments and pioneering designers of electronic music synthesizers” explains a lot about the content...

This neat 300-page book, written in 1993 by Mark Vail, one of the writers of Keyboard magazine, is a very complete overview of 30 years of synthesizer history - from 1962 until 1992.
The book is full with background-stories and funny anecdotes by designers and early users and it is loaded with nice (mostly black and white) pictures.

The buying guide, the giant glossary and the comprehensive index in the back of the book make this book an unmissable read for anyone interested in (analog) synthesizers, sequencers and drum machines.

ISBN: 0-87930-275-5
More info at http://www.markvail.com/

CD-Tip I : Secrets of Synthesis by Wendy Carlos

This CD ( a 2003 enhancedCD re-issue by East Side Digital ) is a nice introduction into analog synthesis by the American synth pioneer Wendy Carlos

Secrets of Synthesis ( originally from 1987 ) is a lecture by Carlos with her own audio examples. The main topic is 'Electronic Orchestration' - the use of analog ( and digital ) synthesizers in ways that orchestral instruments sound.

Some of the audiotracks are an introduction to synthesis, and some of it is aimed at the more experienced musicians.
A great tutorial CD in my opinion, with some very good information and great and usefull insights.

One short soundexample: Secret of Synthesis, discussion with musical examples ~ Introduction
01 Secret of Synthesis, discussion with musical examples~Introduction by NetPierre
Wikipedia: Wendy Carlos
Ordernr: East Side Digital ESD 81702 or ESD 81692

Booktip I - Analog Synthesizers by Mark Jenkins

Analog Synthesizers - Understanding, Performing, Buying - by Mark Jenkins

One of the most interesting books about synthesizers and synthesis is probably this one by Mark Jenkins, has 336 pages, and was published in 2007

The book starts with basics like 'what is analog' and goes through the aspects of analog sound by the hand of the different components of a synthesizer.

A large part of the book is about the history of synthesizers, and there are also a lot of interviews; with Robert (Bob) Moog, Keith Emerson, Hans Zimmer, Rick Wakeman, Jean-Michel Jarre and many more.

The book is complimented with a lot of nice black/white pictures and also includes a tuition and sound-sampling CD with over 30 different analog synthesizers, spread over 79 tracks

ISBN: 978-0-240-52072-8