Calculus

To anyone who takes a moment out of their day to listen to this, thank you.

Crap, this was a complicated piece, but it felt so good I didn't want to stop. I made it for fun, but the project consumed me. Anyway, welcome to what it sounds like inside my head.

I like to think that if you're going to create something within the field of electronic music, you should offer an experience that can't be achieved though other means. For example, Pixar makes movies about talking fish, robots in love, and a rat that cooks in a restaurant kitchen. Arguably, they're telling stories that almost have to be realized with computer animation. So, this is music that, I believe, has to be realized synthetically.

Calculus by stretta

(yes! you can download the lossless version here)


Calculus by Escape Philosophy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at stretta.com.

Everything below this point is for people who enjoy reading about process.

The drums are MOTU BPM and Audio Damage Tattoo, processed and edited inside Digital Performer. The hi-hats were critical to pulling off the feel of the piece, but early on I felt they were monotonous timberally. This is where Tatoo's modulation features came in handy. I used the function that seeds a new set of random modulations each measure, so the sound is constantly changing. The kick and snare from Tattoo were largely unprocessed and appear fairly consistently throughout the piece.I worked on the drums first to firmly establish the feel of the piece. Later, I was able to remove some of these parts that were implied by the subsequent synth lines. I suspect working with a modular has changed my method somewhat, even when I'm not actually using the modular. Making music in this fashion is somewhat like animation and you need to have a very clear idea what the final product will be before proceeding to the next step.

Most of the synth work was realized on the modular, controlled by Volta. I did use a touch of Circle, for one part. The Prophet 5 produced polyphonic parts, which was processed through the modular. I used My Plan B low pass gates with control voltages supplied by the Make Noise Maths module for a lot of the rhythmic filtered effects. I found the vactrols in the LPGs responded very favorably to the Maths, which isn't surprising since it was designed to pair with the QMMG.

One technique I used involved creating eight Volta trigger sequencers all running at different related beat divisions, flowed into a Doepfer A-152 shift register. After playing with this setup with a joystick, I automated the selection with ramp automation from the DAW. I did the same thing with eight Volta beat-synced LFOs at various beat divisions feeding a VCA. Other filters used include the Cwejman MMF-1 and RES-4. Oscillators used were three TipTop audio Z3000s and one Livewire AFG.

One thing I wanted to do was feed four control voltages into a specific module (the AFG waveform animation inputs and, separately, the frequency inputs of each band on the RES-4). Each voltage would hold steady, but change at the onset of a new note, producing a unique timbre for the duration of that note. I only have a pair of sample & hold functions (curses!), so I ended up using my two Doepfer A-155s. I guess I could have accomplished the same thing by carefully animating four ramp outputs from Volta, but that wouldn't allow me to 'play' the patch in real time.

I feel like I'm comfortably commanding the modular to execute ideas. Really, it has been this way since Volta, but one night I patched up a complex idea, set the knobs, but on the headphones, pressed play and the exact sound I had in mind came out. This is the modular equivalent of a hole-in-one and there was no one around to witness this. Actually, my wife was there, but all she saw was me put on the headphones and start giggling.

At this point, I'm starting to lose my perspective about the piece due to my familiarity. Often it is difficult to make hard edit decisions that remove sections of the piece. What I'm left with clocks in at three minutes and change, but it is a fairly dense three minutes. There was some final bits I wanted to add with the new Synthesis Technology e340 and e350 modules. I wrote some parts for these modules then waited for the modules to arrive. While I was waiting, there was still some clean up work to do in the DAW, so I set about fixing some problems and continued wrestling with the mix until it finally came into focus on Sunday night. During this time I debated releasing the work in progress or just wait until the piece was finished. I opted for the latter.

The modules arrived on Monday, so I was able to work with them Monday night. I modulated the timbre of the e350 with Volta in sync with the project, so the tonal shifts reinforce the slippery pulse of the project. If you're curious what these sound like, they're providing a bulk of the digital-soudning textures at 1:40. The e340 can also be heard producing some 'super saw'-like stabs sprinkled around the piece, like at 1:04 and 2:29. That sort of thing.

Overall, I recorded a ton of material for this, including one serious false start before abandoning the idea, generating nearly 7GB of audio in the process. Much of this is scrapped, or heard only for a small moment.

Thanks for listening, and I appreciate your comments.

Some ebay stuff

I'm selling a bunch of electronic music stuff on ebay, including analog modules, and, yes, my monome 256. I've been flooded with questions asking why I'm selling my 256. I've sold monomes before. I sold my 40h prior to buying the 256. I still have my 64, so there is no cause for alarm. Even within the narrow field of electronic music, I can only focus my attention on one thing at a time and I like to cycle my interests. Eventually, I intend to buy one of the newer monomes, but for now, someone else can make some use of my 256.

All the analog stuff has low starting bids with no reserve, so please, check it out.

Some choice eno quotes on The Guardian

Paul Morley interviews Brian Eno

Instruments sound interesting not because of their sound but because of the relationship a player has with them.

Yes! This quote was taken from the context of using synths. If you listen to Eno's synthesizer work, stretching back decades, he has a way of using synths so they sound timeless. This is amazing. Listen to any music with a synth 10 or 20 years ago, and you can immediately pin point the time period because it sounds dated. Rapidly evolving technology dates quickly. When you listen to Eno, you don't hear the synth, you simply hear Eno.

All the signs were in the air all around with ambient music in the mid 1970s, and other people were doing a similar thing. I just gave it a name. Which is exactly what it needed. A name. A name. Giving something a name can be just the same as inventing it. By naming something you create a difference. You say that this is now real. Names are very important.

Names are important because it is my belief that names are tied closely to consciousness. A name is a symbol that allows something to exist in your mind when it isn't in front of you. The origin of consciousness in humans can be traced to when we started remembering the dead.

Zappa was important to me because I realised I didn't have to make music like he did.

I lol'd.

I think records were just a little bubble through time and those who made a living from them for a while were lucky. There is no reason why anyone should have made so much money from selling records except that everything was right for this period of time. I always knew it would run out sooner or later. It couldn't last, and now it's running out. I don't particularly care that it is and like the way things are going. The record age was just a blip.

I know this is difficult for people to understand as the record industry has been around for their entire life, but it is over. It was fun while it lasted but its very existence was an aberration in the grand scheme of things. All this nonsensical flailing around comes from people who refuse to admit this fact. The other thing that makes this difficult to accept is we really don't know for sure what will replace it.

The earliest paintings I loved were always the most non-referential paintings you can imagine, by painters such as Mondrian. I was thrilled by them because they didn't refer to anything else. They stood alone and they were just charged magic objects that did not get their strength from being connected to anything else.

Piston Honda NAMM demo

Scott Jaeger of Harvestman takes us on a tour of the Piston Honda wavetable euro-format module and some of its interesting tricks like switching banks with a gate signal, switchable smooth or disjointed wave interpolation, and VC waveshaping when driven by an external oscillator.

The Piston Honda also has an optional ROM expander, which is a daughterboard and requires no additional panel space, that ships with MOAR factory wavetables including (cue trumpet fanfare) my Bosch Gardens ROM. Up to six ROMs can be loaded onto the daughterboard.

See for yourself!

Calibrate your expectations

I have posted about the dubious necessity of trade shows within the past year. One complaint was that the arbitrary timing of trade shows often bullies manufacturers into announcing or previewing products before they should. Keep this in mind when you're reading trade show news about products that haven't shipped yet.

A product is vaporware until it has shipped and is in customer's hands. A working prototype or beta does not change vaporware status. An announced ship date does not change vaporware status. If you've demoed a product at a trade show, and the next year rolls around and you still haven't shipped that product, you, well, fail.

Vaporware hurts the industry because customers calibrate their spending around promises that often fail. This is especially insidious in situations where customers 'pre-order' a product to reserve a place in line. Sometimes the manufacturer uses pre-orders to fund development, which is a huge warning sign. This practice ties up the customer's funds and locks them into an agreement, even when the goal posts keep moving and ship dates keep slipping. Some manufacturers provide money back clauses if they miss a goal, but it doesn't matter as the commitment is still psychological and the customer often resigns themselves to "I've waited this long, guess I can wait a bit longer." In some rare cases, a product never makes it out of development.

Sometimes a manufacturer is in denial, and they truly believe they're close to shipping. Sometimes they knowingly mislead the public. How often does a manufacturer pre-announce a product that cannibalizes a potential competitor's sales vs. a new product that would cannibalize their own sales? Think about it. If Akai pre-announces a new MPC and can't ship shortly thereafter, they're only hurting themselves, they've officially killed their own sales.

Here are a few examples of recent vaporware. Unless these manufacturers announce at NAMM they've shipped product to paying customers, the products are still vaporware.

New drum machine from Roger Linn/Dave Smith debuted at NAMM 2007. Still not shipping.



Teenage Engineering will be showing their OP-1 synth previewed at Messe 2009. Granted, a year has not yet passed, but I'd be pleasantly surprised if they have production units in the hands of customers by Messe 2010.



John Bowen will be showing his new Solaris synthesizer. Well, it was new in 2008 when he first showed it at NAMM. That is a generation in the lifetime of a DSP chip. He's been accepting pre-orders for a while now. Still not shipping. He's obligated to show at NAMM. If he doesn't show, his pre-order customers will freak. If he does show, he has to face these people in person. Not a show I'd be looking forward to. On the bright side, he'll be able to distract them with all the neat things his prototype does.



Beat Kangz showed off the Beat Thang drum machine at NAMM 2009. To their credit, they have shipped a virtual version of their product. However, that isn't the product they were flashing around last year. Are Beat Kangz shipping the Beat Thang yet? Stay tuned.



Waldorf has been showing the Stromberg since 2008. (thanks anukirk!)

Modern touch plate controllers

Over the past three years, Doepfer has continued to dangle various prototypes of touch-plate-based keyboards/input/CV sources. The first touch keyboard I ever played was a Buchla Music Easel. If you're a musician and you look at this keyboard-looking thing with no moving parts, your immediate reaction is probably negative. The device doesn't give physically, or provide any physical feedback.



As such, the actual playing experience is quite different. Even though the pitch layout evokes a piano-type pitch-based keyboard, it is extremely sensitive, but in a very different way that requires a completely different technique. When you touch a plate, you get a voltage to represent something, like pitch, but you also get a varying voltage that corresponds to pressure. If you're used to MIDI keyboards controlling virtual instruments, playing a completely analog, touch plate controller is a revelation in terms of response.

I believe touch plates came about as users begged Buchla for a keyboard input. He thought about various approaches, came up with the touch plate idea and offered it back. I suspect some people said, "this isn't what we want" and Buchla said, "No! This is better!"

I think Buchla received a raised eyebrow or two, the fact of the matter is touch plates provided an unprecedented degree of real-time control and sensitivity, albeit in a form that forced players to adjust themselves to the technology.

Fast forward to the control voltage revival of today. Without buying a Music Easel or vintage Buchla touch plate controller, choices were few, and expensive. Serge has a touch plate sequencer idea called the TKB ($2700).



Buchla has the 222e Multi Dimensional Kinesthetic Input Port for the 200e ($2850), and, more recently, offered a small separate frame for the controller part, so it isn't eating up valuable panel space on the modular itself.


The first real affordable touch plate-like device that I know of is Snyderphonics Manta USB device ($675 - limited run of 50), touch-plate/monome (LED feedback!) hybrid that receives surprisingly little attention.



But, back to Doepfer. There have been multiple tantalizing prospects for an affordable native CV touch plate over the years, but no viable products have arisen. Many people have offered their very different requirements for this product which has resulted in some overly-complex and expensive proposals.



The latest design uses capacitance, which, I assume, will produce better sensitivity and reliability. Not having played any of the previous prototypes, I can't comment on how they performed. I hope that Doepfer is able to settle on a design and go into production. I'm definitely interested, assuming the result is affordable.



There are a few other interesting items on the doepfer site, like this 16x8 mini trigger sequencer. which looks very handy, indeed, especially in conjunction with something like the TipTop Z8000 which doesn't have trigger outputs.

Public relations: compare and contrast

Here are two recent items making the rounds recently. Based on @blix's tweet, I would like to rename this post, "Shades Slopedforeheaderson and Spectacles McBaldy." First, I'm sure you've heard about Bono's January 2nd op-ed in the New York Times. I've read more about the hysteria, than the actual three paragraph segment. He closes with "Note to self: Don’t get over-rewarded rock stars on this bully pulpit." That should have been his first thought, then he should have deleted the entire thing. So, he's aware to some degree, but he either doesn't care, or doesn't understand the magnitude of the PR disaster he's just unleashed.

The first problem is he points out that content filtering and tracking is technically possible. He does this by citing China's "ignoble effort to suppress online dissent" OMG! HE'S PRO-CENSORSHIP! Er, no, that isn't what he's saying at all, but that is what people will remember. But when you think about it, using China as an example isn't far from the mark. The idea that a government or corporate entity should monitor our packets in the name of protecting copyright is incredibly dangerous and irresponsible.

The next problem is is suggests that bandwidth providers are the ones profiting from file sharing. REALLY? Citation needed. Everything I've heard from service providers is they HATE file sharing. They hate the excessive bandwidth and are racking their brains to figure out how to clamp down on these people. Remember Comcast's class action throttling lawsuit? I really don't think they're the ones profiting at Bono's expense. They're certainly not encouraging it.

His piece isn't totally without merit. For example, he notes that in America, "...music, film, TV and video games help to account for nearly 4 percent of gross domestic product." Go ahead and throw software in there too. With manufacturing sectors down substantially, job outsourcing and import inequities, most of the truly interesting and valuable properties the US produces also happen to be the most pirate-able. We don't make cars or TVs, but we do make video games, music and big screen extravaganzas. Yes, I'm aware Hollywood had a banner year. Yes, I'm aware Avatar made a shit ton of money, but you and I both know this technical advantage is temporary and can't be applied to all genres. A Hugh Grant romantic comedy in IMAX 3D isn't going to draw people to the theatre and (if CES 2010 is any indication) it won't be long before you'll be able to enjoy 3D at home, from a torrent download.

This doesn't prove anything, of course. It is impossible to say how internet piracy helps or hurts theatrical releases because, despite what each side says, you can't decorrelate the data.



Bono makes one more point that people seem to ignore or misrepresent. "[Filesharing hurts]...the young, fledgling songwriters who can’t live off ticket and T-shirt sales..." The internet is a powerful tool for young musicians. Finally we have a method of wide distribution accessible to anyone, so talented people can find their audience without a corporate gatekeeper.



Readers of this blog know my releases are creative commons and free to download. However, I bristle whenever someone suggests that recorded music has no value and musicians should make a living by touring only. There is only a narrow slice of music (music for 18-24 years that can be played in clubs) that is supported by this model, and supportive arguments ignore this fact. All recorded music is devalued, regardless of if it can be supported by touring or not. The fact that songwriters aren't getting paid, is Bono's way of making note of this.

Bono is out of touch. He's out of touch because he is taking this position publicly at all. He would have been better off penning an editorial about why it is a good idea to stomp on puppies. NO! HEAR ME OUT! Stomping on puppies is important for the economy! You simply can't take his position without getting destroyed. Share your opinions with your band mates, your record company, but don't get on a soapbox. You'll piss off all your paying customers, and alientate yourself from all your future potential paying customers. You'll be shafted out of principle.

Now, compare Bono's editorial with this recent 'Embedded Tour Stop With Moby' video.



Wow. What a humble, intelligent guy. You can't help but like him. I want to support him. This quote is the best, "I've made a record that I really like, and I'd like people to hear it. If someone wants to hear the record, I'll give them a copy of the record. If someone goes online and listens to it on a bit torrent site or spotify or whatever, I'm thrilled. You know, I'm just incredibly flattered if anyone makes the effort to listen to what I've done. For someone to give up an hour or two of their life to listen to the record that I've made, they're doing me a service. I think that the relationship between musician and audience at some point got turned on its head. Musicians started to feel as if the audience needed them. The truth is I need an audience way more than the audience needs me."

I feel exactly the same way.

UPDATE: Chris Randall points out that Moby makes HUGE sums from licensing his music, so, in Moby's case, distributing his recordings to the widest audience only helps him secure these lucrative deals. This is a win-win for Moby as he can appear (genuinely or not) to be altruistic about 'giving the album away', while setting the stage for windfalls to come. Obviously, this isn't something smaller artists have access to, but the precedent is one we all are pressured to adhere to.

The perfect bell curve of mediocrity

Google is not Apple. There is a lot of comparing going on, especially with the Nexus One announcement, but you have to understand their DNA is fundamentally different. The actual Nexus One press event brought some interesting commentary about the presentation itself. The public now expects announcements like this to be delivered by a charismatic visionary. This will never happen because this type of person is fundamentally incompatible with Google culture.

Google is a company of engineers. All problems can be solved though the application of engineering. This is perfect for functions like, search or email. It doesn't need to be pretty, but it needs to be reliable, fast, and produce useable results. All of Google's triumphs, and there are many, are in areas where engineering reigns supreme. Very often, Google will come up with an astounding application of technology dressed in the drabbest clothing. The public, largely, doesn't understand technology unless it provokes desire. Desire and art do not flourish in such an environment. Desire is irrational and not solvable. Google's approach to visual design is also reduced to an engineering problem. Focus groups are employed to find the shade of blue that offends the fewest number of people. This results in a perfect bell curve of mediocrity. What else would you expect?

Imagine Apple.
Now, imagine Apple without Steve Jobs.

We got a taste of that in the early 90s; Apple as an undistinguished bland corporate brand pooping out a confusing array of undifferentiated products. Steve Jobs birthed the Macintosh and after his departure the company coasted on the innovations he was largely responsible for nurturing. Then he returned in 1997 and everything changed. Steve understands desire.

Visionaries are rare people, it turns out. At least, visionaries who can back up their crazy ideas with real successes. At Apple, engineering is in the service of a tyrannical visionary. When it works, it works well. However, there is a single point of failure. With that in mind, Google may ultimately prevail over Apple, but what a bland future that would be. We need more people like Steve Jobs, or maybe, we need more people in power to take a chance and give budding visionaries the resources they need to create something spectacular.



UPDATE: a good article about the Nexus at The Register.

The pros and cons of various modular formats. An opinionated guide.

Not everyone will use a modular in the same way, so what works for one person may not be ideal for another. What I personally use works best for me, but that doesn't mean it is ideal for everyone.

For the purposes of this discussion, I'm leaving out patchable synths. Modulars are collections of individual modules that share a common power supply. If you can't add or remove a module, it ain't modular. So, sorry Arp 2600 and Macbeth M5N. You are fine, patchable synths, but you're not modular. On a more pedantic note, I loathe the 'semi-modular' moniker. You can't semi-remove a module, so nothing is 'semi-modular'

Serge is an edge case. Panels come in various configurations of modules. By contrast, there aren't different panels of an Arp, 2600, if you get my drift. Not really modular by my definition, but it quacks like a duck, so I'm calling it a modular. My blog, my rules. OK, then.

Of course, you don't have to stick to any specific format. I know a number of people who dabble in multiple formats with various levels of cross-format integration. The reality is you do have to choose a core format, at least at first, and while cross-format interoperation works for some people, others may find it impedes workflow.

5U modulars (.com, MOTM, ModCan B)
There is no debating the allure of a big modular. For some people, this is really important. If you have big hands, find smaller formats space-restrictive, or simply appreciate the look and feel of vintage in a new unit, 5U modulars are for you. There is something to be said for the solid mechanical feel of 1/4" connections and a bit of breathing room around the knobs. The MOTM pots feel silky and wunnnerful.

Don't underestimate where your modular is going. You may think you have everything planned out and know how much of a footprint these things take up, but, you'll be wrong and 5U modulars get big, fast.

The Buchla 200e arguably has the worst interoperability of the various formats. 3.5mm jacks are used for audio and bananas are used for control voltage. Positive voltage only. 0 to +10 voltage range.  In other words, Buchla modules prefer to talk to other Buchla modules. But, if you're concerned about inneroperability, you're missing the entire point of the 200e: total system integration. Some level of patching can be recalled with the router module, and knob settings can be memorized by the system interface. That's right, you can recall patches on a physical modular. No other system offers this functionality. The 200e is forward-thinking, re-working the entire modular concept using modern technology, yet still retaining compatibility with vintage 200-series modules. The system enables concepts that are simply unavailable in other formats. The whole thing is frighteningly elegant. And pricey. Bare minimum starter systems begin around the $10K mark. A nicely spec'd system weighs in around $20K.

 

Serge
Much has been said of the subject of banana cables. Stackabity is the key strength, allowing you to take a source and route it to many destinations without a multiple. This doesn't sound like a big deal until you understand the principle in the context of workflow. On a non-banana system. if you've made a patch and later decide to route to multiple destinations, you have to UNpatch, insert a multiple and go from there. If you're trying to hold several things in your mind when doing this, you can begin to understand the appeal. This is the reason for innovations like the TipTop Stackcable.

As I mentioned, Buchla systems use 3.5mm for audio connections so they can be shielded for better noise performance. However, this removes the ability to patch anything to anything willy nilly that you get with a Serge system. Besides banana cables, Serge and Buchla, though often compared, share little in common these days. The Serge is all-analog, though, and is more evocative of vintage Buchla than the 200e (which is a fine instrument, but different and modern) Serge does retain the West Coast modular philosophy, with various module primitives hiding a deep level of multi-functionality. The Maths euro-format module from Make Noise is a good example of this philosophy. A single Serge panel, while simplistic-looking, is capable of huge sonic mayhem.



Modcan A
The Modcan A series provide all-banana patching in a true modular format. Cyndustries also provides modules in this format.



Euro is, without question, the most vibrant format, in terms of manufacturer support. There are more manufacturers making euro gear than any other format, and as such, you have the largest pool of interesting modules to choose from. Even companies like MOTM can't ignore the largest modular-format market anymore. You even have options when it comes to cases, frames and power supplies. Euro uses 3.5mm plugs and often panel designs can get cramped. You don't grab a knob like you can on a large format modular, sometimes you have to simply use the edge of your pinkie. You can fit a lot more modular in the same space as a 5U format modular. They can still get big, though. I can barely lift a half monster case by myself.

MMM
About the size of a phone book, the diminutive size of the MMM can not be overstated. As Mattson is the only supplier of the format, you're stuck with whatever module choices the company provides. However, a complete set of basic modules is available enabling a nice, patchable monosynth in a cute, fun, great-sounding package.

Frac (Blacet, Metalbox, PAiA…)

Frac uses 3.5mm jacks like euro does, but typically the panels have a bit more space around them. Blacet is the most prolific frac supplier, and a starter kit system can be had for under $1K. If you're into building your own modular, Blacet is one of the few remaining options. Blacet also offers fully-built and tested modules.

Rhodes restoration complete

Man, this project took a long time. Honestly, I didn't think it was going to be done before 2010. It was fun, but labor-intensive. I have to say I'm impressed with how serviceable Rhodes are. They're designed to last several lifetimes and all the parts that degrade or wear are replaceable. They don't build them like this anymore.

The pictures below show the initial state and then a progression of the restoration.