Synthesizers
Moog Synthesizer Co-Inventor and Educator, Herb Deutsch, Dead at 90
Herb Deutsch, the co-inventor of the revolutionary Moog synthesizer, has died at the age of 90. Deutsch was a seminal figure in music technology during the ’60s and ’70s. In 1964, he teamed up with Bob Moog to develop what eventually evolved into the first-ever Moog synthesizer. Deutsch’s work in the project was primarily on the keyboard interface’s design. The goal for the Moog was to be a “small and affordable music synthesizer” that wouldn’t limit its accessibility for those who wish to create with it because of a hefty price tag. “People have accused me of modesty, but actually I think that someone else would have been int he same place and gotten to a similar point within a short time,” Deutsche said in an early-aughts interview wi...
Watch Rolling Stones Co-Founder Keith Richards Create Ambient Electronic Music
Who knew Rolling Stones guitarist and songwriter Keith Richards also played with modular synthesizers? In a clip unearthed by Far Out Magazine, the legendary musician is seen making experimental electronic music on a modular synthesizer. The footage shows Richards arranging cords and cables to create ambient sounds as a soft, dreamy hum emanates from the machine, most likely a Moog. The clip comes from an obscure documentary called Umano Non Umano, which was screened at the 30th Venice International Film Festival. The film’s title translates to “Human Not Human.” Mario Schifano, an Italian painter known for exhibiting alongside Andy Warhol, released the doc in 1969, per Far Out. According to IMDb, “artists and poets meet in a dreamlike space be...
Teenage Engineering Unveils Intricate Choir of Wooden Vocalizing “Doll” Synths
Teenage Engineering is bringing the vocal range of a full choir to your home studio. The Swedish hardware company has always been forward-thinking when it comes to production functionality and design, like their portable pocket synth series and Record Factory, the company’s at-home solution for allowing musicians to print their own 5″ vinyl records. Now, the developer has returned with a new studio weapon, the Teenage Engineering Choir. The choir consists of an eight-piece set of crafted wooden “dolls,” each equipped to “sing” with its own unique vocal pattern. Each doll was created with the influence of a specific musical culture in mind and when placed together, they are capable of recognizing each other in the space. They can then deliver harmonized performances. Scroll to Continue Reco...
There’s No Calming This Creepy, Light-Sensitive Baby Synthesizer
If you’re a music producer looking to give your sound some edge, perhaps the frenetic “wails” of this baby-shaped synth will do just the trick. The crimson Baby Bot Light Theremin: Powland Edition is the brainchild of Moon Armada and Powland. And consistent with its unique appearance, this synthesizer is certain to produce some sounds that will turn heads. As one might expect, there’s certainly no hope of calming this vocal child. “The best way to play it is to just start turning knobs until you find combinations you like,” Moon Armada says of operating the synth. “Generally, having the knobs turned higher will result in more abrasive, noisy sounds, while having them turned down will yield more beep-boop type sounds.” In addition to the Frank...
Design Studio Unveils Concept to Turn the Nintendo Switch Into a Music Production Instrument
From DJ Hero to Beat Saber, console games have played a pivotal role in gamifying music creation and performance. And the Nintendo Switch may just be capable of introducing the next level of utility. Capitalizing on the Nintendo Switch’s modular qualities, Alquemy, a boutique design studio based out of Sydney, has devised a well-considered concept as to how they foresee the console aiding a new generation of music producers. The concept is based on the Akai Pro MPC and it features two snap-on modules with all the bells and whistles of an industry-standard controller. The module incorporates nine pads, control knobs and hotkeys for agile editing and playback. Plus, the team thoughtfully utilized the sides of the modules to outfit the device with speakers, ensuring an enhanced pla...
Dave Smith, Synthesizer Pioneer and “Father of MIDI,” Has Died at 72
Dave Smith, a trailblazer in synth design revered as the “father of MIDI,” has died at the age of 72. Sequential, the synthesizer design company Smith founded, announced his death earlier this week in a statement shared via social media. “We’re heartbroken, but take some small solace in knowing he was on the road doing what he loved best in the company of family, friends, and artists,” Sequential wrote. Perhaps Smith’s most impactful creation was the Prophet-5. Built in 1978 while Smith was in his twenties, the Prophet-5 broke ground on two fronts: it was the first synth with an embedded microprocessor and the first fully programmable polyphonic synth. Prior to the invention of the Prophet-5, synths involved manually adjusting cables and knobs with no way of reproducing exact setting...
Roland’s AIRA Compact Synthesizers Are Pocket-Sized, Powerful Hardware for Beginners
Everything is getting smaller and more portable, including synths. Roland‘s new AIRA Compact devices utilize Analog Circuit Behavior (ACB) instead of resistors and capacitors to make sounds. While you won’t exactly get the tried-and-true analog sound, you’ll receive powerful modern processors that closely resemble that of their analog counterparts. Additionally, you’ll also get the same amount of tweaking and manipulation. The AIRA Compact line includes the T-8 Beat Machine, J-6 Chord Synthesizer, and E-4 Voice Tweaker. The T-8 Beat Machine features classic Roland drum machines like the TR-808, TR-909, TR-606, and TB-303. The J-6 Chord Synthesizer is modeled after Roland’s JUNO-60 synth. And the E-4 Voice Tweaker features a microphone input for art...
Artist Plugs Mushrooms Into a Synthesizer and Makes Blissful Electronic Music
Mushrooms aren’t always used for their hallucinogenic effects. They are used to create music, too. Artist and composer Tarun Nayar, who creates and performs music under the moniker Modern Biology, plugged mushrooms into a synthesizer and wrote music with the electrical waves the fungi produce. To achieve this sound, he places electrodes into the mushrooms and wires them up to his soundboard, allowing electrical signals to flow through the plants and trigger a synthesizer before turning them into sounds that humans can hear. Nayar has also written music with watermelon, cacao, mango, and cactus. His raving mushrooms don’t have a method to their madness, as to be expected with nature. This unique ability to transform electrical waves from mushrooms and other objects has given Nay...
Yuri Suzuki Creates Functional Online Studio of Classic Roland Synthesizers
Legendary music hardware company Roland is celebrating its 50th anniversary in a big way: by collaborating with renowned electronic musician and experience designer Yuri Suzuki. In honor of Roland’s annual “303 Day,” Suzuki has collaborated with Counterpoint Studio to digitally recreate some of the brand’s most iconic synthesizers. The experience is an ode to Roland’s seminal TB-303 synthesizer, which was first introduced in 1981. Roland and Suzuki have collaborated in the past, like when they joined forces for in 2020 for the web-based music tool “808.303.studio.” They’ve now added the classic SH-101 to the TB-303 and TR-808 interfaces. Yuri Suzuki presents his “Color Chaser 2010” project at the 2010 Lift Conference in...
New PC App Turns Your Nintendo Console Into an 8-Bit Synthesizer
An innovative app developer recently managed to unlock some hidden value in the Nintendo Entertainment System, a console discontinued decades ago. For those who’ve managed to hold onto their consoles, or buy a reissued version, Avicr has a new app that empowers players to turn their classic systems into a functioning synthesizer. Titled SynthNes, the app effectively allows users to control the system’s five dedicated audio channels NES’s with a MIDI instrument of your choosing. The reason why this works on the old-school Nintendo specifically is because the NES was part of an era in videogame history where consoles were sold containing dedicated sound chips. In the 1980s, CPU and storage technology was in its most primitive form, and the way music was produced in vi...
This Dr. Seuss-Style Children’s Book Teaches Kids About Vintage Synthesizers
Because who needs Crayola, a new children’s book about synth-collecting is now available. My Daddy Has 100 Synths is the perfect book for dads looking to introduce their kids to the vintage synthesizer world. Penned by Billy Cardigan, one-half of Shy Boyz, the Dr. Seuss-style rhyming book is told from the perspective of a child whose father flaunts his encyclopedic synth collection. “This one is polyphonic and has a vocoder! This one was used by Giorgio Moroder,” reads one passage. “This is the classic mini-moog, used by Kraftwerk and Depeche Mode.” A page from Billy Cardigan’s synthesizer book for children, “My Daddy Has 100 Synths.” Billy Cardigan/Bandcamp Recommended Articles A page from Billy Cardigan’s synthesizer book fo...
Play a New Post-Apocalyptic Puzzle Game Inspired by Modular Synthesizers
Imagine a post-apocalyptic world where agriculture is scarce and the only way to save it is through a revolution involving modular synthesizers. That’s the world of The Signal State, a complex new puzzle game by Reckoner Industries. Within each puzzle are machines to be repaired, and each machine closely resembles a modular synth component typically used in electronic music production. Samplers, signal delays, output, and more are waiting to be programmed cohesively as the user attempts to solve the challenges, dragging and dropping cables to each unique module. Leaderboards and achievements will encourage competition between players as they attempt to solve the apocalyptic agriculture crisis within the game by fixing synth-like machines that help produce food. Down the line, The Sig...
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