"Just serviced and fully working one of two Mini Moogs in original 70s wooden cases that toured on the Ziggy Stardust tour around the world up until Hammersmith in 1973- comes with provenance information and one of Ziggys black cloths with the red zigzag
This Bowie Spiders Mini Moog has just been serviced a real working piece of history will ship in its wooden case and the well wrapped around that to any part of the world"
"I've already unboxed a Sytlophone Beat and a Stylophone Bowie and today I'll be unboxing the Sytlophone Gen X-1. This is a fully-featured analog synthesizer with both a stylus and a ribbon controller. It also has sub oscillators, pulse width modulation, and an external input."
"I recently unboxed both of these Stylophones (Stylophone S-1 Bowie & Stylophone Beat) so I decided to do a jam with both of them together. I also added the audio track from ma vintage WWII-era US Army training film.
"I got this as a Christmas present. The Stylophone Bowie is a limited run of the S-1 Stylophone dedicated to the late David Bowie. It functions like a normal S-1 Stylophone but has a slightly different aesthetic. I also check out the Limited Edition case in this video.
"Revolutionize Your Sound: Exploring EMS VCS3's Modulation & Filter Capabilities
Demo of a wide range of sounds & special FX of the VCS3 - & how to program them - explained by Andy Whitmore at Greystoke Studio.
The audio is DIRECT, 100% DRY, & IN STEREO - You are hearing the raw audio as it comes directly from the synthesizer. NO post processing (Effects, EQ, or Dynamics) whatsoever.
The VCS 3 (or VCS3; an initialism for Voltage Controlled Studio, version) is a portable analog synthesiser with a flexible semi-modular voice architecture, by Electronic Music Studios (London) Limited (EMS) in 1969. This product was called various names by EMS. For example, the printed logo written to the front left of products are: 'V.C.S. 3' or 'The Putney (VCS 3)' on the earlier version, then 'The Synthi (VCS 3) II' on the later version (Synthi VCS 3 II).
The VCS 3's basic design was reused by EMS in many other of their own products, most notably in the EMS Synthi 100 (1971), and the Synthi A (1971) and AKS (1972) (essentially a VCS 3 housed in a plastic briefcase). The AKS also has a sequencer built into the keyboard in the lid.
VCS3 - as used by BBC Radiophonic Workshop Brian Eno Chemical Brothers Hawkwind David Bowie Flood Ice-T Jean-Michel Jarre John Paul Jones - Led Zeppelin King Crimson Kraftwerk Pete Townshend - The Who Rick Wright, David Gilmour & Roger Waters - Pink Floyd Tangerine Dream
"Unlocking the Magic: Synthi AKS Sequence in Pink Floyd's On The Run
Demo of a wide range of sounds & special FX of the VCS3 - & how to program them - explained by Andy Whitmore at Greystoke Studio.
The VCS 3 (or VCS3; an initialism for Voltage Controlled Studio, version) is a portable analog synthesiser with a flexible semi-modular voice architecture, by Electronic Music Studios (London) Limited (EMS) in 1969. This product was called various names by EMS. For example, the printed logo written to the front left of products are: "V.C.S. 3" or 'The Putney (VCS 3)' on the earlier version, then "The Synthi (VCS 3) II" on the later version (Synthi VCS 3 II).
The VCS 3's basic design was reused by EMS in many other of their own products, most notably in the EMS Synthi 100 (1971), and the Synthi A (1971) and AKS (1972) (essentially a VCS 3 housed in a plastic briefcase). The AKS also has a sequencer built into the keyboard in the lid.
VCS3 - as used by BBC Radiophonic Workshop Brian Eno Chemical Brothers Hawkwind David Bowie Flood Ice-T Jean-Michel Jarre John Paul Jones - Led Zeppelin King Crimson Kraftwerk Pete Townshend - The Who Rick Wright, David Gilmour & Roger Waters - Pink Floyd Tangerine Dream
"This is an Oberheim Xpander XP-1 in excellent condition. I purchased this Xpander in 1996 from the website of a used gear dealer in Connecticut; their listing stated that the unit had previously belonged to David Bowie's keyboard player, which I assumed meant Mike Garson (but I've never been able to substantiate this). The unit was in remarkably great condition upon receipt and it has remained that way since. I have never gigged with it; rather it has stayed in my non-smoking, temperature-controlled office/studio the entire time, mostly under a custom-fitted cover as I just haven't had the use for its extensive capabilities that I'd thought I would. So I've decided it's time to put it into someone else's hands who I hope will harness its potential and make some killer music.
"Ambient, kosmiche synth Christmas music inspired mainly by old synthesizer New Age holiday music cassette tapes. We wanted to make a Christmas concept album but maybe less cheesy. We tried to make it accessible for friends and family but it kinda turned into weird experimental Christmas music anyway. Probably because we are weird.
00:00 Sleigh Ride (When Stressings Turn to Blessings) 04:14 Myrrh Ye Genteel (God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen) 11:01 LDB/POE (Little Drummer Boy / Peace on Earth) 15:15 Lullaby (MKDVB original) 18:01 Hark! The Herald Angels Sing 21:04 Child, What Song is This? (What Child Is This?) 25:34 Auld Lang Syne (Elf Party) 27:51 Cosmic O (MKDVB original) 33:07 Turn Your Blessings Into Bliss (MKDVB original)
01. Sleigh Ride (When Stressings Turn to Blessings) This is the first track from our Cosmic Christmas album. Recorded with Synthstrom Deluge, Sequential Prophet Rev2, Roland V-Synth XT (D50 card).
02. Myrrh Ye Genteel (This is our version of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen") Recorded with Synthstrom Deluge, Sequential Prophet Rev2, Roland V-Synth XT (D50 card), Elektron Analog Keys. Matt Kretzmann - guitar, Miguel G. Miranda - Percussion
03. LDB/POE vPTSD (Our version of the 1977 Bing Crosby & David Bowie Christmas Special song, Little Drummer Boy / Peace on Earth) Recorded with Elektron Analog Rytm, Roland V-Synth XT (D50 card), Synthstrom Deluge, Sequential Prophet Rev2. Matt Kretzmann - guitar, drums. Drums Recorded by Aaron Kretzmann at Phos Studios, Mission Viejo, CA.
04. Lullaby (MKDVB original)
05. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing Recorded with Roland V-Synth XT, Synthstrom Deluge, Sequential Prophet Rev2. Matt Kretzmann - drum programming.
06. Child, What Song is This? (Our version of What Child Is This?) Recorded with Roland V-Synth XT, Synthstrom Deluge. Matt Kretzmann - guitar, samples
07. Auld Lang Syne (Elf Party) Recorded with saxophone, Eventide Eclipse.
08. Cosmic O (MKDVB original) Recorded with Juno 106, Synthstrom Deluge, Sequential Prophet Rev2, Roland V-Synth XT. Live video improvised/synthesized with Vidiot analog video synthesizer.
09. Turn Your Blessings Into Bliss (MKDVB original) Recorded with Juno 106, Synthstrom Deluge, Sequential Prophet Rev2, Roland V-Synth XT. Live video improvised/synthesized with Vidiot analog video synthesizer."
"Had to cut the Genesis intro due copyright claim....
0:00 - 0:11. The Beatles - Strawberry Fields Forever
0:12 - 0:44. King Crimson - In The Wake Of Poseidon
0:45 - 1:08. Coolio - Gangsta's Paradise
1:09 - 1:41. David Bowie – Space Oddity
1:42 - 2:18. King Crimson - Epitaph
2:19 - 2:51. Genesis - Watcher of the Skies
2:52 - 3:14. The Zombies - Changes"
7" Radio Edit - Glorified Lyric Video video upload by Alex Simesky
A new track from supporting member Alex Simesky who had the following to say about the release:
"The genesis of Such Imperfection comes from a demo tape that I did a few years ago. At the time I had eliminated the computer from the studio to get back to my roots - recording synth demos on cassette tapes. The original groove was recorded with Roland TR-505, MS-20 and electric guitars. This idea was then expanded using some of Arturia's V Collection synths like the SEM V (bass), CZ V (pads) and Emulator II V (drums and bass). A once in a lifetime encounter with Fritch lead to the finished track, for which he came up with the lyrics and the vox."
And the description with links from the video:
"A future retro love-letter to gloss-polished pop, neon nu-wave and cool indie.
As the decades collide from The Cure, Peter Gabriel and Brian Eno to Tears for Fears, Royksopp and Robyn, every sweetly honed sonic shines sultry. And in extending that love letter to the best lost tradition of A-side and B-side 80’s vinyl, the 7” edit arrives with a full 12” mix that weaves synthwave with prog-glam and grandeur. This is lo-fi turned hi-fi and glistening.
Living in Belgium, United Simesky Institutes has worked with Budapest Scoring Orchestra and scored high with releases of sweet 80’s synthwave amongst the ranks of Vice & We Write About Music. Fritch comes from Wales, and comes fresh from an album that gained 5-star comparisons to Bowie’s Blackstar and Scott Walker. This is music that moves across boundaries, this is UK and Belgium combined.
But right here a new cult is created. Right here is a new sound entirely.
With shared production, shared writing, shared artwork, shared visions, the debut single from Simesky+Fritch is a celebration of a meeting of minds. It’s a lean synth-kissed passion for pop.
"Introducing the world's first completely invisible synthesizer, 4 light years in the making.
The iconic invisiSYNTH seeks to reinvent how you see synthesizers, delivering an imperceptible aesthetic which blends seamlessly with it’s surroundings, in absolute harmony with your studio.
Made possible by particle phase cancellation, the finished unit is rendered from dark matter beyond the human visual spectrum, making it imperceptible to the naked eye, although bats, badgers, and bowie can somehow see it.
The game changing invisiSYNTH comes with 4 GTFO oscillators, 9 pitchfork filters, 3 XK8s, a proton beard, 4 vector STIs, digital CBDs, and a upturned trigonometry matrix, capable of outputting 16,974 crosswave prisms per nano-second.
Putting a lightweight keyboard with a heavyweight sound at your fingertips - its 100% non-tactile transparent keybed comes in two variations: with 49 key and 61 key versions, and a limited edition tabletop module available this time tonight.
All of the components and parts of the invisSYNTH have been responsibly sourced from the finest non-existent artisan craftspeople on the planet. Each environmentally friendly unit comes individually numbered with a certificate of authenticity - and a guarantee that Behringer won’t copy it, or your money back!
Offering an impalpable experience limited only by your imagination, the invisiSYNTH is sure to be one of the most invisible synths…. you've ever seen.
"The Suzuki Portachord was the first in the family of Omnichords, teaching instruments that became beloved oddity instruments. David Bowie, Brian Eno, Depeche Mode and many more played these, usually slathered in effects to bring out their nature as wonderful texture and ambient instruments. The Portachord is the rarest of all of them, as it was quickly abandoned in favor of the more featured OM-27. In this video, I show you all its functions, demo how it was used, and make a track with it. I also touch upon other Omnichord variants, like the OM84 and the Folktek Mod."
Analogue synth, Eurorack, modular, Dave Bessell, Liam Boyle, 360 , VR, ambient, psychedelic visuals video upload by David Bessell
"New release from Dave Bessell (Node) and Liam Boyle (soundtrack composer) on Groove Unlimited. The album is titled Imaginator and was released on 1st Jan 2022.
A compelling release of electronic music on the borders between ambient, soundtrack and Berlin school with wide ranging influences from prog to techno, the Bowie/Eno electronic collaborations, Krautrock, classical and probably some more things that we forgot to list! As such it is a varied album with melodic tracks, atmospheres and creative sound design using the full range of analogue keyboards and modular synths along with a little treated guitar. On a couple of tracks an unusual instrument appears called an Aum guitar which is designed to be played with an ebow and sounds nothing like a guitar! Overall it is a good showcase for what can be done with these instruments in the hands of these experienced and well respected musicians.
This release also has an interesting immersive promotional video filmed in 360/VR. [above]
Available from bandcamp and the Groove Unlimited website as CD or download. This one will repay repeated listenings as it reveals its multiple layers."
Posting this one for the pics. You can find a demo and details on the David Bowie Stylophone in this previous post. You can find a pic of the carry bag in this prevoius post.
BOWIE STYLOPHONE - Limited Edition video upload by
Stylophone
"⚡NEW LIMITED EDITION BOWIE STYLOPHONE - OUT NOW ⚡
We are very proud to announce this unique collaboration with @davidbowie
celebrating a career long association between the legendary musician and
Stylophone.
The Bowie Limited Edition White Stylophone with analog sound comes with a
booklet celebrating David Bowie's career and featuring exclusive photos."
Update: the press release:
David Bowie celebrated with limited-edition Bowie Stylophone
David Bowie’s career-long association with the world’s first ‘pocket synthesizer’ is being celebrated with the launch of a Bowie Stylophone.
The limited-edition Stylophone commemorates Bowie’s longstanding association with the iconic instrument, which famously featured on his breakthrough 1969 single “Space Oddity” which was composed around the Stylophone’s unique sound.
The launch is the result of a collaboration between The David Bowie Archive and Dubreq, the British company that makes the instrument. Together they have released a selection of pictures of the music legend using the Stylophone. Whilst legendary American record producer Tony Visconti, who worked closely with Bowie over many years, has gifted the team a Bowie photo from his private collection. (Pictures available here)
“Space Oddity” appeared on Bowie’s second album which was produced by Tony Visconti – who recalls how the young Bowie was ecstatic to be chosen by the makers of the Stylophone to receive a complimentary unit.
Mr Visconti said: “He was one of the first to own one and to discover this new, quite radical way of making music. He immediately put it to work and wrote a song around the unique sound of the instrument, which was of course, Space Oddity.
“For many years to come Bowie and Stylophone were names that were matched in the same breath. He would be very proud of this new incarnation named after him.”
Regarded as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, Bowie continued to use the instrument throughout his career. As late in his career as 2002 he recorded with the Stylophone for the song “Slip Away” on his Heathen album.
The limited-edition Stylophone goes on sale from www.dubreq.com on 17th September for £29.95/ €34.95/$39.95 and is accompanied by a commemorative booklet that explores Bowie’s music.
John Simpson, managing director of Dubreq, the British company that makes Stylophone said: “There’s a big resurgence in interest in the mini synthesizer from young musicians. This limited edition Stylophone is a great way to commemorate David’s affection for the instrument and to inspire the next generation of musicians to create even more great music with the Stylophone.”
Ground control to Major Tom: introducing the limited-edition Bowie Stylophone, a stylish reimagining of the original pocket synthesizer.
The ultimate collectible for any Bowie fan.
Limited-edition David Bowie-inspired synthesizer
Special white design featuring embossed Bowie logo
Full colour booklet celebrating David Bowie’s work and featuring exclusive contributions and archive photographs
Compact & battery-powered 3 way Octave switch / Vibrato switch Built-in speaker & headphone socket for playing on the go Batteries required: 3 x AA (not included)
"Circa 1975: A photo from the Frankfurt Music Fair
Peter Zinovieff in the EMS synthesizer booth.
They are featuring the rare SYNTHI P model, just announced on the left side and stand. Underneath the board listing EMS musical artists is a SYNTHI HI-FLI effects unit is barely seen. Another unusual/prototype model is next to the Hi-Fli."
Peter Zinovieff and Electronic Music Studios video upload by JeffreyPlaide
Peter Zinovieff: Synth Pioneer video upload by Sound On Sound magazine Jul 21, 2016
Peter Zinovieff talks about modern musical interfaces video upload by Expressive E Jan 6, 2016
Peter Zinovieff feature uploaded by Erica Synths on Nov 23, 2020. This was the latest video to feature Peter Zinovieff that I am aware of.
Peter Zinovieff interview 2015 video upload by 香港電子音樂社 Hong Kong Electronic Music Society Jun 30, 2015
Dr Peter Zinovieff intro & performance excerpt - Deliaphonic 2017 video upload by Deliaphonic Aug 29, 2018
And a few perspectives from others:
Bright Sparks Behind The Scenes - The Brits video by GForce Software published Feb 16, 2021
Cosmic Tape Music Club Podcast hosted by The Galaxy Electric - E1 Peter Zinovieff
video by The Galaxy Electric published Jan 27, 2021
"Peter Zinovieff, a hugely influential figure in British music whose early synthesisers helped to change the sound of pop, has died aged 88. He had suffered a fall at home earlier this month.
With its marketing slogan 'think of a sound – now make it', his company Electronic Music Studios (EMS) was one of the first to bring synthesisers out of studios and to the public. With products such as the portable VCS3 and Synthi A, EMS customers – including David Bowie, Kraftwerk, the Who, Tangerine Dream and Pink Floyd – were often taught to use the instruments by Zinovieff.
In 1967 he collaborated with Paul McCartney on Carnival of Light, a performance of a 14-minute avant garde composition created between Beatles sessions for Penny Lane that has never been released.
He was also a respected composer of his own work, including early experiments with AI composition and sampling – he claimed to have invented the latter technique." You can read the full post here.
"Peter Zinovieff (26 January 1933 – 23 June 2021) was a British engineer and composer, whose EMS company made the VCS3 synthesizer in the late 1960s. The synthesizer was used by many early progressive rock bands such as Pink Floyd[3] and White Noise, and Krautrock groups[4] as well as more pop-oriented artists, including Todd Rundgren and David Bowie. In later life he worked primarily as a composer of electronic music.
Zinovieff was born on 26 January 1933;[5] his parents, Leo Zinovieff and Sofka, née Princess Sophia Dolgorouky, were both Russian aristocrats, who met in London after their families had emigrated to escape the Russian Revolution and soon divorced.[6] During World War II he and his brother Ian lived with their grandparents in Guildford and then with their father in Sussex. He attended Guildford Royal Grammar School, Gordonstoun School and Oxford University, where he earned a doctorate in geology.[7][8]
Zinovieff's work followed research at Bell Labs by Max Mathews and Jean-Claude Risset, and an MIT thesis (1963) by David Alan Luce.[9] In 1966–67, Zinovieff, Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson ran Unit Delta Plus, an organisation to create and promote electronic music. It was based in the studio Zinovieff had built, in a shed at his house in Putney. (The house is near the Thames, and the studio was later partially destroyed by a flood).[10][11] EMS grew out of MUSYS, which was a performance controller operating as an analogue-digital hybrid.[12] It was a synthesiser system which Zinovieff developed with the help of David Cockerell and Peter Grogono, and used two DEC PDP-8 minicomputers and a piano keyboard.[13] Unit Delta Plus ran a concert of electronic music at the Watermill Theatre in 1966, with a light show. In early 1967 they performed in concerts at The Roundhouse, at which the Carnival of Light was also played; they split up later in 1967.[11] Paul McCartney had visited the studio, but Zinovieff had little interest in popular music.[14]
In 1968, part of the studio was recreated at Connaught Hall, for a performance of pieces by Justin Connolly and David Lumsdaine.[15] At the IFIP congress that year, the composition ZASP by Zinovieff with Alan Sutcliffe took second prize in a contest, behind a piece by Iannis Xenakis.[16]
In 1969, Zinovieff sought financing through an ad in The Times but received only one response, £50 on the mistaken premise it was the price of a synthesiser. Instead he formed EMS with Cockerell and Tristram Cary.[17] At the end of the 1960s, EMS Ltd. was one of four companies offering commercial synthesizers, the others being ARP, Buchla, and Moog.[18] In the 1970s Zinovieff became interested in the video synthesizer developed by Robert Monkhouse, and EMS produced it as the Spectron.[19]
Jon Lord of Deep Purple described Zinovieff as "a mad professor type": "I was ushered into his workshop and he was in there talking to a computer, trying to get it to answer back".[20] Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco, in their history of the synthesizer revolution, see him rather as aristocratically averse to "trade".[21]
Zinovieff wrote the libretto for Harrison Birtwistle's opera The Mask of Orpheus,[22] and also the words for Nenia: The Death of Orpheus (1970).[23] The section Tristan's Folly in Tristan (1975) by Hans Werner Henze included a tape by Zinovieff."
Update:
Peter Zinovieff: A Tribute by CatSynth TV
video upload by CatSynth TV
"We look back at the life and work of Peter Zinovieff, who passed away last week at the age of 88. His work at Electronic Music Studios (EMS) was a major influence on musicians of the 1970s and beyond. At EMS, he co-created the well-known and coveted VCS3 and Synthi series. But he was also a composer in his own right, working on pioneering electronic music in the 1960s and returning to active composition in the 2010s with several collaborations with artists in other media and exploring massive sound spatialization.
Additional background music provided via the Arturia Synthi V as a tribute."
"A while ago french company Arturia released its software emulation of the famous Emulator II Sampler by E-mu Systems, an iconic piece of hardware which has left a big mark in music history.
The Emulator II was very popular in the 1980s and heavily used by the likes of Front 242, Depeche Mode, 808 State, New Order, ABC, Genesis, Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Herbie Hancock, Vangelis, Tangerine Dream, Jean-Michel Jarre, Yes, OMD and many many more. Its famous ‘The Loon Garden’ preset for example was used in classic club tracks like Sueno Latino and 808 State’s Pacific State.
Our friend, Dresden based artist, Jacob Korn who is a proud owner of the Original Emulator II wanted to know if Arturias’s Software emulation can compete with the famous 8 Bit sound of the original, so he did this little comparison for us.
Put your headphones on, take a listen and decide for yourself how close the software comes to the original."
