Electronic Perspectives: Vintage Electronic Musical Instruments by Tom Rhea

via Electronic Perspectives

“A Love-Letter for Fans of Electronic Musical Instruments” … from one of the foremost historians in the field, Dr. Tom Rhea.

Forty-five years in the making, Electronic Perspectives: Vintage Electronic Musical Instruments contains all of Tom Rhea’s fifty-two influential columns that were first published in Keyboard magazine from 1977-1981. This 400-page tome greatly expands on the original content with updated information and hundreds of newly restored images. Electronic Perspectives: Vintage Electronic Musical Instruments includes two CDs of unearthed recordings; spanning multiple eras of electronic music. All in a gold foil-embossed hardcover book, housed in a deluxe slipcase.

Electronic Perspectives: Vintage Electronic Musical Instruments is in pre-production. Price/release date to be determined.

This one was sent my way via Brian Kehew who tells me it will feature the "first Buchla and Moog recordings ever made (both unreleased) as well as Con Brio, etc." See the link above for full details including video featuring the inside of the book. It's a beauty.

Functional and Audio Demos of the Ultra Rare Con Brio ADS 200R Synthesizer

Those of you who have been coming to the site over the years should be familiar with the ultra rare Con Brio ADS. There was a keyboard version and a remote, or rather desktop, version. They are identical in function and sound. There is only one known ADS 200R in existance and that is it in the videos above (and farther below). Note the placeholder image is the ADS 200 keyboard version but you will see the videos feature the 200R. Brian Kehew wrote in to let us know he is working on a website that will cover the history of this rare synth. He also made the set of functional and audio demos. Above are the functional demos and farther below are the audio demos. You will find video titles and descriptions for each video in the playlistbelow, but before that, here's what Brian had to say:

"I've been making a website for the Con Brio synth history. Will be ready in a few more months. But meanwhile I've uploaded some video of how the thing worked. Primitive now, especially to younger musicians. But for anyone who lived through the days of floppy discs and early digital synthesis will see how advanced the Con Brio's design was.

We still don't know much about the workings, as all known manuals are gone, and the designers can't recall everything of how it did work. Here are some simple explanations and demonstrations of the main functions.

It's also a true 16-bit synthesizer, which was rare and expensive at the time. It also used an iron output transformer (like good studio consoles) which somehow also helps it sound (in my opinion) better than the Fairlight, DKS and Synclavier designs.

The two instruments I had are now at the EMEAPP Archive Project in PA, they may be able to make better headway figuring out more of the system and it's operations..."

Be sure to see the Con Brio label for various bits of info that have come in over the years. Also see the exclusive label for the rare of the rare in the synth world.

Playlist: 1. Con Brio Synthesizer Instructional #1: Loading the O.S. and Light Show

This is the basic beginning, to load an Operating System for the Con Brio synthesizer from an 8" floppy disc. First, the Light Show disc is used, then the standard OS disc that allows for music synthesis.

2. Con Brio Synthesizer Instructional #2; Panel lights show relevance.

One of the most-brilliant and unique aspects of the Con Brio design is the implementation of panel lights; they guide you to work much faster and more accurately.

3. Con Brio Synthesizer Instructional #3: Loading Sounds onto the keyboard zones.

Finding sounds on the 8" floppy disc directories, and then assigning them to the two keyboards in various combinations.

4. Con Brio Synthesizer Instructional #4 - Speed of Disc Access

One of the notable aspects of the Con Brio systems is a custom-written code to make disc access practically instantaneous. This demonstration shows the rapid access speed when loading from the floppy drive.

5.

Further demonstration of loading sounds from disc and sequences to play them.

Con Brio Synthesizer Instructional #5 - Basic Loading 6. Con Brio Synthesizer Instruction #6 - Ensemble

Loading and using the Ensemble feature; the Con Brio could store a combination of sounds, layers, outputs, and sequences - and then save the whole set as an "Ensemble" preset - which loads nearly instantaneously.

7. Con Brio Synthesizer Instruction #7 - Loading and Stacking

Bringing in two sounds and layering them together.

8. Con Brio Synthesizers #8 - String Sequence with Tempo change

Basic Tempo control of a string sequence with the panel Tempo knob.

9. Con Brio Synthesizer Instructional #9 - Tuning and Synthesis modes experiment

As none of the Con Brio Owner's Manuals survived, it's very difficult to understand how they were supposed to operate. With a little guidance and help from the inventors, some methods produce results. This video is an experiment with saved alternate Tuning Tables and the Synthesis modes.

1 Con Brio Audio Demo One

A really nice wide-ranging set of sounds, changing across time, yet just a beginning demonstration of what the instrument could have done with more time and exploration.

2 Con Brio - String Section

Some string section sounds, very detailed and shimmering timbres.

3 Con Brio - Pipe Organ

Mussorgsky's Pictures At An Exhibition using a basic pipe organ program.

4 Con Brio - Wine Glasses

Digital synthesizers excel at this kind of crystalline ringing sound.

5 Con Brio - Sound 67

Playback of a sound with glitching, jittery elements; a fairly complex layered tone with some noise components, too.

6 Custom Con Brio Sounds

These tones are quite ahead of their time for 1980, and still sound quite modern. Easy enough to do them today, but back then, these were exceptional tones.

7 Random Number demo

Very similar to the randomness of a Sample/Hold on an analog synthesizer, but quickly becomes more layered and deep, a complexity that would take many analog synths to generate.

Con Brio Synthesizers #8 - String Sequence with Tempo change

Basic Tempo control of a string sequence with the panel Tempo knob.

9 Con Brio - Clear and Bright sequence

Demonstrates the sharp and detailed sound of these instruments.

10 Con Brio - Short Latin sequence

Just as the title suggests...

11 Con Brio - Dramatic

Dramatix, suspenseful set of sounds.

The ARP 2600 Synthposium (Trailer)

video upload by Alan R. Pearlman Foundation

"TICKETS: bit.ly/2600-event

Join the Alan R. Pearlman Foundation online Saturday, September 18th, for a virtual Festival and Fundraiser honoring the 50th anniversary of the mighty ARP 2600, hosted by The Record Co. in Boston, MA!

This online celebration will feature live performances, live panel discussions, a 2600 synthesizer clinic, premiered videos of performances and interviews, special guests, a silent auction, and more. All proceeds will benefit the Alan R. Pearlman Foundation and the ARPs For All project. (For schedule please see below.)

Panelists include:
Alsún Ní Chasaide, Alison Stout, Antonio Guitterez (Antonus) BT, Brian Kehew, David Baron, David Friend, David Frederick Jr, David Mash, DJ CherishtheLuv, EMEAPP, Jack Hotop, Jennifer Hruska, Jean-Michel Jarre, Jon Carin, Korg, Lisa Bella Donna, Marie Ann Hedonia, Michael Bierylo, Michael Brigida, Richard Boulanger, Richard Devine, Steve McQuarry, Tom Piggott

New and exclusive content by:
Alex Ball (video performance), Berklee Ensemble (video performance), Bill T. Miller (video performance), David Van Pelt (video performance), DJ CherishtheLuv (video performance + interview), Don Slepian (video performance + demo), EMEAPP (video performance + Live Stream), Ernesto Romeo (video performance + demo),Renzo Torti Forno (video performanc),, Glen Harlock (2600 video patchbook)*, Jennifer Hruska (video performance with ensemble), Jim Mitchmerhuizen (interview excerpt), Lisa Bella Donna (video performance), Marie Ann Hedonia (video performance + interview), Steve McQuarry (video performance + interview)

The ARP 2600 is one of the most influential synthesizers ever created and has been played by artists such as Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, Edgar Winter, Joe Zawinul, and sound designer Ben Burtt (as the voice of R2D2). Recently brought back into production by Korg, the ARP 2600 is once again a beacon of unlimited possibilities for a whole new generation of musicians.

The event will live stream from Boston’s own The Record Co, a community music workspace with professional recording and rehearsal studios. The event will focus on the ARP 2600, the iconic synthesizer that brought semi-modular synthesis to performers and educators around the world. It will feature panel discussions, performances, and interviews with world-renowned artists, technicians, engineers, and more. Participants will be able to interact live with panelists via Zoom.

Proceeds will benefit ARP Foundation initiatives, including The ARPs For All project, a joint effort by The Record Co. and ARPf, enabling anyone who rents studio or rehearsal time to use these incredible instruments at no additional cost.

Come join us!

CREDITS
Video Editing by Margot Bennett
Music by Omer Berger"

Reminder: THE ARP 2600 SYNTHPOSIUM is Coming Saturday, September 18TH

This is a follow-up to this post. You can purchase tickets at the event page here. For Group rates and free scholorship tickets see the admission section below.

"Join the Alan R. Pearlman Foundation online Saturday, September 18th, for a virtual Festival and Fundraiser honoring the 50th anniversary of the mighty ARP 2600, hosted by The Record Co. in Boston, MA!

This online celebration will feature live performances, live panel discussions, a 2600 synthesizer clinic, premiered videos of performances and interviews, special guests, a silent auction, and more. All proceeds will benefit the Alan R. Pearlman Foundation and the ARPs For All project.
Who
Panelists include:
Alsún Ní Chasaide, Alison Stout, BT, Brian Kehew, David Baron, David Friend, David Frederick Jr, David Mash, DJ Cherish the Luv, EMEAPP, Jack Hotop, Jennifer Hruska, Jean-Michel Jarre, Jon Carin, Korg, Lisa Bella Donna, Marie Ann Hedonia, Phil Cirocco, Richard Boulanger, Richard Devine, Steve McQuarry

New and exclusive content by:
Alex Ball (demo), Berklee Ensemble (video performance), Bill T. Miller (video performance), David Van Pelt (video performance), DJ Cherish the Luv (video performance + interview), Don Slepian (video performance + demo), EMEAPP (video performance + Live Stream), Ernesto Romeo (video performance), Glen Harlock (2600 video patchbook)*, Jennifer Hruska (video performance with ensemble), Jim Mitchmerhuizen (interview excerpt), Lisa Bella Donna (video performance), Marie Ann Hedonia (video performance + interview), Steve McQuarry (video performance + interview)

Why
The ARP 2600 is one of the most influential synthesizers ever created and has been played by artists such as Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, Edgar Winter, Joe Zawinul, and sound designer Ben Burtt (as the voice of R2D2). Recently brought back into production by Korg, the ARP 2600 is once again a beacon of unlimited possibilities for a whole new generation of musicians.

How
The event will live stream from Boston’s own The Record Co, a community music workspace with professional recording and rehearsal studios. The event will focus on the ARP 2600, the iconic synthesizer that brought semi-modular synthesis to performers and educators around the world. It will feature panel discussions, performances, and interviews with world-renowned artists, technicians, engineers, and more. Participants will be able to interact live with panelists via Zoom.

What
Proceeds will benefit ARP Foundation initiatives, including The ARPs For All project, a joint effort by The Record Co. and ARPf, enabling anyone who rents studio or rehearsal time to use these incredible instruments at no additional cost.

Come join us!

When

EVENT SCHEDULE:
There will be an approximate 5-minute break after panels.

11:00am – Berklee Synth Ensemble (opening music)

11:30am – Opening Address

12:00pm – Panel 1 - ARP 2600: The First 50 years

1:00pm – Intermission (videos)

1:30pm – Prerecorded- The Next Fifty Years (remaking, restoring and reimagining)

2:00pm – Panel 2 – Maintaining Vintage 2600s in a Modern World

3:00pm – David’s 2600 Tutorial/Demonstration – A comparison of the original ARP2600, the new Korg ARP2600 FS, and the upcoming Korg ARP2600M Module. Demonstrations of some of the more esoteric capabilities of the 2600.

3:30pm – Intermission (videos)

3:45pm – Lisa Bella Donna

4:15pm – Panel 3- Artists using ARPs

5:15pm – Jennifer Hruska Group

5:45pm – Finding a New Voice

6:15pm – Live Stream from EMEAPP

6:30pm – Results from Silent Auction and Closing Remarks!

ADMISSION:
Students (Only): $10.00

Access to the Synthposium
Price of admission will increase to $12 on Sept 15th
General Public:

$20.00

Access to the Synthposium
Price of admission will increase to $25 on Sept 15th
$50.00

Access to the Synthposium
10% Discount off a t-shirt at our store
Special access to full length interviews & concerts
$100.00

Access to the Synthposium
10% Discount off a t-shirt at our store
1 ARP CD Download
Special access to full length interviews & concerts
Special access to tutorials

Synthposium Scholarship: In light of our challenging times, we can provide access to free scholarship tickets if circumstances dictate. Please send an email to dina@alanrpearlmanfoundation.org

Group Rates: For group rates, please email dina@alanrpearlmanfoundation.org

Interested in being a sponsor: For inquiry please email dina@alanrpearlmanfoundation.org"

SAVE THE DATE! The ARP 2600 Synthposium: 50 Years of the 2600

via The Alan R. Pearlman Foundation

"SAVE-THE-DATE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 18TH

THE ARP 2600 SYNTHPOSIUM

A hybrid in-person/online event and fundraiser celebrating 50 years since the release of the very first ARP 2600. The day will feature live performances, panel discussions, special guests, synthesizer clinics, a cocktail reception, and more!

The in-person segment of the SYNTHPOSIUM and fundraiser will take place at The Record Co., a community recording and rehearsal space for musicians in the Boston area. With its brand new facilities and impressive array of equipment, The Record Co. has partnered with us to house seven ARP synthesizers, shipped from around the world, that are available for public use.

The online event will be streamed live via several different sources.

Tickets and Information
We want to ensure everyone's safety, so tickets will go on sale two weeks before the September 18 event, so we can plan as accurately as possible.

Visit our Facebook Event page or the event page regularly for updates.

All proceeds will benefit the Alan R. Pearlman Foundation. The Foundation's mission is to celebrate the legacy of inventor, musician, entrepreneur and engineer Alan R. Pearlman by making his innovative inventions publicly accessible, and inspiring future generations to imagine and create.

OUR GUEST SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

David Baron
Phil Cirroco
Lisa Bella Donna
David Friend
Jennifer Hruska
Brian Kehew
David Mash

THE ARP 2600...
To call the ARP 2600 an influential synthesizer is a grand understatement. When first produced in 1971, the 2600 presented musicians with the power of a full-fledged modular synthesizer, but with "normalled" connections allowed anyone to play without knowing how to program. It was educational, powerful, and flexible... And it sounded phenomenal. The 2600 can produce amazing sonic textures, leads, basses, sound effects, and just about any other sound you can imagine.

Early adopters such as Edgar Winter, Pete Townshend, Joe Zawinul and Stevie Wonder helped popularize the 2600 in a musical context. Stevie even had a customized 2600 with the controls labeled in Braille. The 2600 is also famously known as the voice of Star Wars' R2-D2, being played by sound designer Ben Burtt.

And with the reintroduction of the 2600 by Korg, as well as Antonus and 2600 VSTs such as Time wARP, Cherry Audio's CA2600 and Arturia, a whole new generation of musicians can now experience the endless possibilities of this incredible synthesizer. LEARN MORE"

EMS Founder Peter Zinovieff Has Passed Away

Update: Image of Peter Zinovieff (previously in via Brian Kehew).

"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 Electronic Calendar

video by Mark Jenkins published Dec 9, 2019 - Electronic Calendar available through this post.

You can find a history of posts mentioning Peter Zinovieff here.

via The Guardian

"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.

via Wikipedia:

"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."

You can find additional posts featuring Peter Zinovieff here.

Mystery Moog Keytar Identified

See the red Update and video here.

Thanks goes to Brian Kehew of Round&Wound for letting us know what it was.

Moog Equalizer Keytar Controller?

Retro Synth Ads shared this one on Twitter.

"Can someone please explain to me what a @moogmusicinc Equalizer is, where it came from, and why no one has told me this existed. A Liberation without synth guts?"

Anyone seen one before? This appears to be the first one featured on the site.

Update: according to Brian Kehew of roundandwound.com and more, this was the prototype of the Liberation. "The EMEAPP collection in Philadelphia has two of them. Stevie Wonder's old ones."

The Allman Bros had one on the road as well as you can see at 30:39 in the following video (it should start right when in comes in):


The Allman Brothers Band - Full Concert - 01/16/82 - University Of Florida Bandshell (OFFICIAL)
video by Allman Brothers on MV

Moog Sonic Infinity Clinic (2005)

video uploaded by Rhythmicons

"In 2005, Moog offered this DVD for free to anyone who asked. It consists of a product clinic led by Brian Kehew and showcased the Moogerfoogers up to the 105 and the Voyager.
I am offering this for educational purposes only. The DVDs are scarce, the Moog products are discontinued."

The DVD was actually free back in 2006.

Update:

MoogerFooger Training DVD Clinic, 2007

video uploaded by Rhythmicons

"This is the no longer available MoogerFooger Training DVD featuring Brian Kehew demonstrating the Moogerfoogers through the Murf and Bass Murf.
This DVD is no longer available on the market, the Foogers are discontinued, so I thought that I'd upload the DVD for educational purposes to suit the fancy of Fooger enthusiasts everywhere."

Minimoog Voyager Training DVD 2007

video uploaded by Rhythmicons

"This is the no-longer-available Minimoog Voyager Training DVD clinic hosted by Brian Kehew. Since the DVD is out of production and the Voyager has been discontinued, I thought I would share this excellent demonstration of the Voyager's features for educational purposes and to suit the fancy of Moog Synthesizer Connoisseurs everywhere.

Clinician: Brian Kehew
Videographer: Mark Mahoney
Producer: Jared White
Sound Production: Collapsible Studios
Original Music: Mark Mahoney"

The Very Rare 1969 R. A. MOOG 1502 Stereo Analog Tape Recorder

video by Round and Wound tape transfers

This one is in via Brian Kehew.
Never knew this existed. Just when you think you've seen it all, something new but old appears. Giving this one the exclusive label as well.

"At Round and Wound, we have over 100 vintage tape machines, many formats needed to transfer people's old tapes into digital files. But this one holds a special place for us: it's possibly the last of its kind, and with an incredible pedigree. This was built circa 1969 by the Moog synthesizer company as part of a never-successful push to create full electronic music studios. Afterwards, this machine toured the world with Chris Swansen's group, Badger - as playback for difficult parts recorded previously in the Moog factory studio. It's not comparable, sonically, to our more modern/professional machines - so we don't use it for transfers. But it has a place of pride among our many machines, as a custom creation from the team at Moog!"

And some info on Round And Wound:

Round And Wound audio tape transfers, digitizing, conversion;

video by Round and Wound tape transfers

"Round and Wound is a professional tape and media transfer facility in North Hollywood, CA. We have numerous machines and formats to access your old recordings and convert them to digital files.

Please go to our website for more info: www.roundandwound.com
or call (818) 856-8701 afternoons and evenings.

Analog Machines:
1" 8-track: AMPEX MM1100, SCULLY 280
2" 24-track and 16-track: 3M M79, SONY APR24, Studer A800
1" 16-track: OTARI MX70
1" 24-track: TASCAM MSR24
16-channel: FOSTEX E16, TASCAM MSR16
8-channel: OTARI MX5050, TASCAM TSR8, FOSTEX 80, FOSTEX R8, TASCAM 38
4-channel: OTARI MX5050, MCI JH110C, Tascam 424
2-channel: MCI JH110C, Ampex 800, Ampex ATR102
Cassette: TASCAM 122 MkIII, Denon DN730R, SONY
Microcassette: SONY

Digital Machines:
DAT: Panasonic SV3700, 3800, TASCAM DA30, DA40
Alesis ADAT (x4)
Mitsubishi X-86
TASCAM DA88 DA98 DA98HR (x4)
SONY F1
SONY Minidisc

Vinyl:
MAZE Turntable, mono 78 rpm
AKAI AP-207 Turntable stereo 33rpm, 45rpm

Noise Reduction:
Dolby A, dBX I and II, Dolby SR

Computer Media:
CD
ZIP drive
JAZ drive
3.5" floppy
5.25: floppy
Magneto Optical drive"

Fifty Years of ARP: The 2500 in 2020 (a synthposium) Part Three - Composers & Producers + Concert

Alan R. Pearlman Foundation

Moderator:
Brian Kehew

Panelists:
David Baron, Producer and Composer
Pablo Garreton, Composer and Performer
Don Slepian , Composer and Performer
Asha Tamarisa , Composer, Performer and Educator

Live Concert from Pablo Garreton

Last Q & A, closing remarks.

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT: https://alanrpearlmanfoundation.org/f...

Fifty Years of ARP: The 2500 in 2020 (a synthposium) posts

Fifty Years of ARP: The 2500 in 2020 Online Event This Saturday, September 26

via The Alan R Pearlman Foundation:

ALAN R. PEARLMAN FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES “FIFTY YEARS OF ARP: THE 2500 in 2020” SYNTHPOSIUM EVENT

Celebrating five decades of the 2500 synthesizer with interviews, panels and more

STONE RIDGE, NY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2020– The Alan R. Pearlman Foundation has announced “Fifty Years of ARP: The 2500 in 2020”, a virtual event to be held on September 26th at 12PM EST on Zoom via Eventbrite. The event will be free for all participants with a suggested donation. Registration and other information can be found here.

The event will focus on the ARP 2500, the groundbreaking synthesizer made famous in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. It will feature panel discussions and interviews with original ARP engineers, software developers, artists, composers, producers, educators, and others. Participants will be able to interact live with panelists via Zoom.

"We are beyond thrilled for this deep dive into the iconic ARP 2500,” said Dina Pearlman, ARP Foundation founder and daughter of Alan R. Pearlman. "We’ve assembled an amazing collection of engineers who made the original 2500s, artists who have used them, and ARP historians and organizations that work to preserve them."

The Foundation continues its work with contributors, collaborators, vendors, manufacturers, venues, and owners of rare original ARP synthesizers. Among their goals is the creation of installations where students can utilize ARP synthesizers as part of their music curriculum, and to explore the endless possibilities of electronic music.

For more information about the Foundation, visit www.alanrpearlmanfoundation.com.

CLICK FOR MORE »

The Very First Synth Cartoon?

This one is in via Brian Kehew who had the following to say:

"I believe this may be the very first 'synthesizer cartoon' from an in-house RCA publication in 1956 (The RCA MkI synthesizer was completed then.)"

If you know of anything earlier, let us know!

P.S. I first thought that was one messed up Santa going after the floating kid with a sword, but it appears he is holding, and offering, a bow and violin. :) Hence the caption of the kid yelling "I wanted a synthesizer!". He must be jumping in anger with his fists clenched. That or he managed to levitate by vibrating at some harmonic frequency only possible with a synthesizer? What's with the spikes in his shadow?

P.P.S. I'm guessing the "COOK" under the tree is the artist's name, that or they missed the IE. Santa wants his cookies.

MOOG Modular Synthesizer 2 Evolving Patch

Published on Feb 1, 2019 OFR

via Brian Kehew:

"I like to make non-traditional Moog system patches. People have this illusion that a Moog modular is a tonal keyboard-oriented instrument, but that's obviously a limitation of thinking. Here are some live videos of evolving patches to demonstrate the concept.

All the audio modules are Moog: 1960s, 70s, and 2015. The top cabinet has some other CV modules from DotCom, SSL, and STG."

Side note: You can find all three parts here. I had parts 1 and 3 posted as they went up, but missed part 2. I added all three to the first post.

SynthPlex 2019 Pics by John L Rice

"Photos taken at the SynthPlex convention held in Burbank CA March 28th - 31st 2019"

Mouse over and click on the arrows to the left and right to scroll through, or click on any pic to get to the set on Flickr.

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Bryce still has his jacket! Along with familiar faces in the maker/synth world, you'll spot Depeche Mode's Martin Gore and his wife Kerrilee, Junkie XL, BT, Brian Kehew of the Moog Cookboog, & Mitchel Sigman of Berlin & more.
Update: JJ Abrams is in there as well. I thought I recognized him. Yes, he's into synths. Check out his custom Synthwood Pro-One. He's been mentioned on the site a few other times as well.
Update2: a few more you might recognize, aside from the makers of course: Michael Boddicker, Ellison Wolf of Waveform, Bill Brown, Drew Neumann, and Ed Buller – of Node etc.

If I missed anyone let me know!

Resynator Documentary Kickstarter Launches

Follow-up to this post. The Kickstarter campaign is now live here. Click through for full details including the different pledge levels.
Some info captured for the archives here on MATRIXSYNTH:


"Hi, my name is Alison, this is my story about finally connecting with my dad through a synthesizer from the late '70s. I know it’s weird, stay with me…

When I was 23, I began working for Grace Potter as a tour assistant. Grace is my hero and one of the most talented humans I’ve ever met. Over the years of touring and being around musicians constantly, it would come up in conversation that my dad invented a synth, but I didn't know anything else about it - I truly didn't even really understand what a synthesizer was. Eventually when we had a few weeks off tour in 2014, I flew to Indiana to get it.

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SOLARIS (John Bowen) Synthesizer - 100 Brian Kehew Presets

Published on Apr 2, 2018 OFR

"Here is a quick demo of the 100 custom sounds I programmed for John Bowen's amazing synthesizer, the Solaris. It's a fascinating system, a brilliant design with astounding sonics (although YouTube audio won't represent the full audio quality.)

I was finding so many people were doing 80s analog-synth type sounds (which are common elsewhere already) so I wanted to show a wider range of the possibilities it offers. I still don't understand all of what the Solaris can do - I'm still learning it - so there is more to come for sure. There are NO samples used, just pure synthesis modes. Enjoy!

** Thanks to Curt Anderson for the camerawork and Todd Lampe for editing..."

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Update: For the month of April, John Bowen Synth Design is offering a $500 discount on the Solaris. You can find details here.

David Van Koevering Has Passed Away

Update: this post will be pinned on top for the day. You can find newer posts below.

Brian Kehew wrote in to let us know synth legend David Van Koevering passed away yesterday at the age of 77. Per Brian, "So many people in the industry knew him; such a long and varied life!" Indeed. The following is the obituary sent to him from Van Koevering's family.

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Vintage Moog Synth & Swag Spotting at the Kohoutek Festival 1984 @ Pitzer College

Gary Vodvarka
Published on Aug 4, 2016

Check this out. The first band has lots of Moog swag including the elusive painters hat/cap, t-shirts, and of course the synths. Curious if it they were sponsored by Moog. You can also spot a Roland Strings RS-202 I believe, and an Oberheim OB-8. Don't miss the "Have You Had Your Moog Modified Today" shirt. Thought that was pretty cool/interesting considering. It meant there was enough of a focus on modding your synths to market it.

The second band appears to have a Yamaha SK30. P.S. Almost thought the announcer said "Rik Ocasek and his band". :)

This one in via Brian Kehew.

New Book on Max Brand - MACHINES FOR THE OPERA. THE COMPOSER MAX BRAND

This one in via Brian Kehew:

"There is a new book on Max Brand, German composer who lived in the USA for a while. He used the Trautonium and, later, was an early Moog synthesizer customer...

It is written bilingually, in English and German"

You can find the German page on the book here, Googlish here.

See the Max Brand label for previous posts if you are not familiar with him.

via the Googlish translation:

"A contemporary of Arnold Schoenberg and Kurt Weill Max Brand was a figure between late romanticism, futurism and outbreaks of the electronic age. The cultural breakdown by the Nazis, before which he fled in 1937 from Vienna and ended up in Rio de Janeiro, began a promising career as an opera composer to an end. In 1940 he settled in New York, where he pursued his vision of an electronic music machine for the stage. Many attempts did not lead on, one of which was an optical synthesizer with self-drawn waveforms, finally Moogtonium, a slightly ajar to the Mixturtrautonium Oskar Salas, Robert A. Moog synthesizer built. The development work on the machine dragged on far too long, so that fire could never realize his dream to have an electronic one-man band for the operatic stage. In 1975 he returned to Austria, where he lived in Langenzersdorf and in 1980 died.

As a contemporary of Arnold Schoenberg and Kurt Weill, Max Brand was a figure shaped by late romanticism, futurism, and the early electronic age. The cultural upheaval Caused by the Nazis, from splat he fled from Vienna to Rio de Janeiro in 1937, put on end to a very promising career as composer of opera. In 1940 he settled in New York, where he worked to realize his visions of an electronic music machine for the stage. There were many Attempts, Which all fell short, one of which thesis on optical synthesizer with waveforms he drew himself, and finally the Moogtonium, a synthesizer based on Oskar Sala's Mixture-Trautonium and engineered by Robert A. Moog. But development Took much too long, and fire that never able to Fulfill his dream of an electronic one-man orchestra for the opera stage. In 1975 he returned to Austria, where he lived until his death in Langenzersdorf in 1980th"