Malcom Cecil Has Passed Away

Another synth legend has passed away. Anyone that regularly visits this site should know who he is.

via The Bob Moog Foundation

"It is with the heaviest of hearts that we share the passing of the legendary creative genius, musician, engineer, producer, and synthesizer pioneer, Malcolm Cecil, shown here with his creation TONTO (The Original New Timbral Orchestra, created in 1968). Malcom's son Milton informed us that he passed away at 1:17am this morning after a long illness.

Bob Moog and Malcolm had a deep mutual respect and affection for each other, remaining lifelong friends after working together to assure that the Moog components of TONTO were properly integrated into the system. Our hearts are heavy with the loss of such a monumental contributor to the Moog legacy and a truly stellar, generous, kind human being. Our love goes out to his family and friends.

You can see Malcolm talking about TONTO in this video from the National Music Centre | Centre National de Musique, where TONTO now resides:"

Malcolm Cecil on Creating TONTO

video by National Music Centre

"TONTO is an acronym for The Original New Timbral Orchestra. It was created by Malcom Cecil and Robert Margouleff in 1968 , and marked the first attempt at creating a universal language for different synthesizers to communicate with each other, which was revolutionary at the time.

Now housed at Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre, TONTO is being used for a new generation of artists to create music.

Support music in Canada by donating to the National Music Centre, a registered charity. Your donation directly shapes the future of Canadian music by providing music education programs, world-class artist development programs, and one-of-a-kind opportunities for collaboration. Learn more: http://bit.ly/SupportNMC"

And via Wikipedia:

"Malcolm Cecil (born 9 January 1937) is a British jazz bassist and Grammy Award-winning record producer.

Born in London, Cecil was a founding member of the UK's leading jazz quintet of the late 1950s, The Jazz Couriers,[1] before going on to join a number of British jazz combos led by Dick Morrissey, Tony Crombie and Ronnie Scott in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He later joined Cyril Davies and Alexis Korner to form the original line-up of Blues Incorporated.

He later joined Robert Margouleff to form the duo TONTO's Expanding Head Band, a project based on a unique combination of synthesizers which led to them collaborating on and co-producing several of Stevie Wonder's Grammy-winning albums of the early 1970s."
You can find numerious posts featuring Malcom Cecil here, and TONTO here.

Chick Corea, In Memoriam

video by CatSynth TV

Legendary composer and keyboardist Chick Corea has passed away. Above is a tribute from supporting member, CatSynth.

"We pay tribute to the great jazz composer and keyboardist Chick Corea, who passed away on February 9, 2021. We look at his seminal work with Miles Davis in the late 1960s into his launching Return to Forever in the 1970s. We also touch on his Elektric and Acoustic bands, his duets with Herbie Hancock, his explorations of orchestral and chamber music, and his reunions in the 2000s.

His pioneering work included embracing the electric piano and then synthesizers in his jazz performances (something he shared with his contemporary Herbie Hancock), but returned to acoustic jazz and explored other aspects of music over the years. He leaves behind a multi-decade legacy.

We extend our thoughts to his family, friends, and many collaborators on his passing."

And a few synth related videos featuring Chick Corea (if you have any other favorites, feel free to link to them in the comments):

Chick Corea Jazz Keyboard Demo — Rhythmic Displacement
video by Chick Corea

Chick Corea best Mini Moog solo.wmv

video by bandasabanagrande

chick corea & return to forever / herbie hancock & the headhunters "soundstage chicago 1974"

video by I See The Land

Wowa Cwejman Has Passed Away

Some sad news in today. Legendary synthesizer maker Wlodzimierz Cwejman, known as Wowa Cwejman to the synth community, has passed away. As anyone who has visited this site over the years knows, his creations are recognized as the best of the best when it comes to quality and sound. He will be sorely missed.

The following was shared by Maho Cwejman:

“I’m incredibly sad to say that Wlodzimierz Cwejman (Wowa ) passed away yesterday. Wowa was an incredible man making great things and I love that we made so many together. Right now I hope you appreciate I need some time but will come back as soon as possible with an update to Cwejman. I want to thank everyone for your support and kind words🙏 Wlodzimierz Cwejman 1949-2021

Cwejman music AB
#Cwejman”


A tribute by verstaerker:

In Memory of Wowa Cwejman
video by verstaerker

"In memory of Wowa Cwejman who passed away 30.01.2021
Thank you Wowa for you wonderful instruments wich always inspired me making music.

The video is from a workshop long time ago in Schneidersbuero .. i think around 2008.
The music is made in 2007 after i bought my Cwejman S1. The sounds are done with a Doepfer A-154/155 Sequencer, Cwejman S1 and a Roland JV1080 for the pad.

Rest in Peace!"


And a couple of interviews from the archives:

Wowa Cwejman Interview From Totally Wired [previously posted here]

Published on Jan 19, 2017 brian tregaskin

"last bit of totally wired which includes interview with wowa cwejman"

Totally Wired was a documentary associated with Schneiders Buero, the people behind SUPERBOOTH.

Workshop with Wowa Cwejman @SchneidersLaden [previously posted here]

Published on Jan 15, 2019

"At the beginning of July 2018 SchneidersLaden had the opportunity to welcome Wowa Cwejman again. The occasion was the presentation of four new modules. Wowa Cwejman was so kind to give us an overview of these modules in the large showroom of SchneidersLaden, together with Tom Körting they went through all new aspects of the modules and patched some sound examples. With the displayed oscilloscope you get a good sense of what is happening with the signals. All in all a lot of new possibilities to explore!

Update: a tribute from C Nich0llsL.



"Single take recording from Cwejman S1. I was fortunate to pick up one of the last batch (in grey). Had been kicking myself for not getting one when they fist launched for several years. It is beautiful.
The recording had been sitting on my desktop for a couple of months. After hearing of Wowa's passing, I am sharing as an homage to the beautiful tone of this instrument and to the man that created it.
Recorded through Strymon;s Night Sky, the resonances seem to stretch out into the darkness.
Left unadorned for those who may want to take a moment and gaze at the Night Sky.
Thank you, for a beautiful instrument."

Legendary Synth Designer Chris Hugget of EDP, OSC, and Novation has Passed Away

I'm hearing news that Novation's Chris Hugget passed away on Friday. Anyone coming to this site, likely knows he designed the original EDP WASP series of synths, the Oxford Synthesizer Company's OSCar, and more recently, various synths for Novation. Novation has a timeline of his creations here.

"Most people know him as the genius behind Wasp and OSCar, the legendary monosynth from Ultravox's Love's Great Adventure, Stevie Wonder's Skeletons, and Jean-Michel Jarre's Revolutions Overture.

Chris' synths have been used by everybody: Orbital, Ultravox, Tom Yorke, Trent Reznor, Dire Straits, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Stevie Wonder, Jean Michel Jarre, Keith Emerson- the list is endless. His heritage synths are sought across the world, and sell for upwards of £5000.

He is a true synth legend. He is also our synth designer. Every Novation synth has been conceived, shaped and refined by his passion and expertise, which spans five decades."

Below are a few videos that pay tribute to his work. You can find additional posts mentioning Chris Hugget here.




Novation // Innovation Since 1992

Inside: Novation's Innovative Instrument Laboratory (Electronic Beats TV)




The WASP - A Very British Synthesizer


Alex Ball

"The WASP is an iconic British synthesizer designed by Electronic Dream Plant in 1978.

EDP were Adrian Wagner (yes he was a relation), Chris Huggett and Steven Evans. They only traded until around 1982, but that wasn't the end of their synth story. Chris Huggett in particular has had a prolific career in the industry, founding the Oxford Synthesizer Company in 1983 and releasing the (also iconic) OSCar and subsequently (after work with Akai), he joined Novation, who are still trading to this very day.

Back to 1978, the concept of the WASP was to build a powerful, low cost synthesizer. That seemed to have worked as one of the original reviews I found uses the headline "The Synth we can all afford" but still dubs it a professional instrument.

I also found a Moog price list dated June 15th 1978 and it lists the Minimoog as $1,995, the Multimoog as $1,495 and the Micromoog as $895. Assuming they sold for about the same in the UK, the equivalent prices would be approximately £1,090, £820 and £490 respectively. The aforementioned WASP review also states that an Odyssey is still over £1,000 in 1978, so with the WASP priced at £199 this demonstrates what a bargain it was at the time.

In fact, I had a brief conversation with a friend who remembers running out to buy it the moment he heard about it in 1978 and he still has his. It was also the first synth of Dave Stewart and Nick Rhodes among others."

RIP Eddie Van Halen

VHTelevision

Update: Don't miss the 1982 interview below. Make the time. It is worth it.

Known for his mastering of the guitar, Eddie Van Halen also embraced synths in his music. As you are likely well aware of, Eddie played the OB-Xa in the classic Jump video above. You can see him solo at 2:34. The keyboard lines in Jump have essentially become to keyboardists what the guitar lines in Stairway to Heaven have become to guitarists.

He passed away today at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer. To say he will be missed is an understatement.

Interesting note: Eddie was also a classical pianist.

Eddie Van Halen on How He Switched From Kid Classical Pianist to Shredding Axeman

Billboard

"The legendary guitarist talks to Billboard about his rock'n'roll start as a kid and how a good guitar riff 'engulfs you.'"

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Eddie Van Halen Interview 1982 | Plays 'Jump' Keyboard Riff On The Phone

SimpsonMusic Productions

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And and interview with Sammy Hagar, post Jump and David Lee Roth, on Eddie's love for synths:

Who's to "Blame" for Van Halen's Use of Keyboards? | AUDIO ONLY


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Eddie Van Halen before Van Halen

Rock Pills

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Pic via Project EVH

One with his classic guitar via tumblr.

And some interesting history from Wikipedia:

"Born in Amsterdam,[3] Netherlands, Edward Lodewijk van Halen (Dutch: [ˈɛdʋɑrt ˈloːdəʋɛjk vɑnˈhaːlə(n)]) was the son of Jan van Halen and Eugenia van Halen (née van Beers). Jan was a Dutch clarinetist, saxophonist, and pianist, and Eugenia was an Indo (Eurasian) from Rangkasbitung on the island of Java in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia).[4][5] The family eventually resettled in Nijmegen.[6]

In February 1962, the Van Halen family moved from the Netherlands to the United States, settling in Pasadena, California.[5] Both Eddie and his older brother, Alex van Halen, naturalized as U.S. citizens.[7] The brothers learned to play the piano as children starting at the age of six.[8][9] They commuted from Pasadena to San Pedro to study with an elderly piano teacher, Stasys Kalvaitis.[10]

We came here with approximately $50 and a piano, and we didn't speak the language. Now look where we are. If that’s not the American dream, what is?[11]

Van Halen revealed in an interview that he had never been able to read music. Instead, he learned from watching and listening. During recitals of Bach or Mozart, he would improvise. From 1964 through 1967, he won first place in the annual piano competition held at Long Beach City College.[10] Afterward, the judges would comment that he had an interesting interpretation of the classical piece. Van Halen's view was, "What? I thought I was playing it correctly!" However, according to one interview, playing the piano did not prove to be challenging or interesting to him.[12] Consequently, while Alex began playing the guitar, Eddie bought a drum kit and began practicing for hours every day."

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Update:

You can find additional posts mentioning Van Halen here. You'll find some demos and other interesting synth connections.

The following is a video I found while searching on YouTube. I was going to post this separately, but I thought it was a nice tribute to the song and an example of the influence Eddie has had on people in the synth community.

Van Halen's 1984 & Jump Covered on Oberheim OB-8

Inasimplerhyme

"First I play '1984' on the OB-8 and then 'Jump' along with the original song's stems. The ending I crafted is modeled after how they performed the song live on the 1984 tour. (Check out Jump + Montreal on youtube and you can see my inspiration.) I did this by editing together individual drum hits, guitar and bass parts from the split stems and other Van Halen songs."

RIP Oleg Parastaev - 80s Soviet Synthpop Альянс - На заре (At dawn) USSR, 1987

Олег Парастаев

This one is in via Soviet Space Child, who let me know of Oleg Parastaev's passing back in June of this year. Oleg was one of the keyboard players in the Soviet band Alliance, featured above. That's him with the hat. He actually wrote the song as well. The synth used for the song, and what you are hearing, is an original Sequential Circuits Prophet-10, as mentioned in the video below. The synths used in the video are of course props. You can see they are not connected.

Side note: It's interesting having to differentiate between an original Prophet-10 and the newly released Prophet-10.

На заре - Новости проекта Выпуск 1 (17.10.2019)

Олег Парастаев

Prophet-10 comes in at 1:07. You can enable CC on the bottom right of the player for a rough translation.

Simeon Coxe and Silver Apples: A Tribute by CatSynth TV

CatSynth TV

"We pay tribute to electronic-music pioneer Simeon Coxe, who passed away on September 8, 2020. As half of the duo Silver Apples, he was among the first to introduce synthesizers into rock music as a central melodic and harmonic element (rather than as a novelty) with his custom instrument made up of numerous test oscillators, telegraph keys, wah-wah pedals, and Echoplexes. The original duo only lasted three years, but they had a major influence on the electronic-infused bands of the 1970s and beyond. Coxe reformed Silver Apples in 1996, and then continued to perform as a solo act in the 2000s.

We extend our thoughts to his friends and family. We also feel that Simeon Coxe has not gotten his proper due for his early innovative and influential work with electronics and hope that his legacy continues to grow.

https://silverapples.com/

News reports
https://pitchfork.com/news/silver-app...
https://www.al.com/life/2020/09/famed..."

"Musical clips by Silver Apples, with a few additional background clips by Amanda Chaudhary on modular synthesizer."

https://www.catsynth.com

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Update: you can find additional posts featuring Simeon Coxe here.

Patch Notes: Ennio Morricone Tribute

TheEndorphines

"Ennio Morricone tribute patch based on the Good, Bad & Ugly soundtrack.
In this patch we are using Furthrrrrr generator with exponential FM to add inconsistent pitch drift in order to make the sound more realistic and human."

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As many of you likely know, film composer Ennio Morricone passed away on July 6. He didn't work primarily with synths but he did incorporate them. He actually composed the soundtrack for The Thing using synths as a tribute in a sense to John Carpenter. From The Vinyl Factory:

"This is an unusual release in the soundtrack back-catalogue in it being a rare instance where John Carpenter chose not to score one of his own films, and where Morricone experiments with synth-tones in his composition, seemingly in acknowledgement of Carpenter’s style.

There’s a lot of muddied details that surround it, but as the story goes Carpenter was disappointed with what his musical hero (he got married to the music of Morricone) presented and embellished what appeared in the cinema with some of his own fills, leaving out a great deal of what Morricone had prepared. The LP however, includes tracks selected by Morricone and trumps his other works for horror in suspense and execution. Nominated for a razzie. Go figure."

I read that Ennio Morricone believed a synth shouldn't be used to recreate real world instruments, but rather as it's own instrument. via Wired:

"To create that original score for Tarantino, Morricone largely turns to tools unavailable in 1964, like synthesizers, which drive the tense, gloomy eight-minute overture. (Morricone’s compositions for The Thing, used in The Hateful Eight, were some of his first work with synths in the early 1980s.)

The experimenting composer isn’t above technological advances, but he’s quick to warn young composers of the dangers of seductive technology. “Electronic instruments have to be used to justify something that doesn’t exist, not to replace for instance an orchestra,” he says. “If you use the synth just to recreate the sound of an existing musical instrument, it is wrong. But if you use the synth to create sound that doesn’t exist, that’s a very wise way to use it.”

So technology can be a cautious step forward in music composition, as long as you don’t use it as a crutch. “If the composer—or the so-called composer—becomes a kind of slave of technology, if he uses technology in a toxic way, this is not progress,” he says. As Morricone sees it, technology’s role in music is “a moral stance, not only a technical stance.” A broader variety of possible sounds can benefit a soundtrack, of course, but the ease of synthetic sounds is not worth the loss of the authentic and everyday. Use technology to add a human whistle or the real tick of a watch, but don’t replace them with false facsimiles. As he describes it, in composing, “everything must start from your soul, from your heart, even when you use technology.” In his score for The Hateful Eight, Morricone is, in part, reusing music composed for a thriller in 1982 for a Western in 2015—but 70 years after his first Western, he insists he’s still experimenting, from the heart."

P.S. Thanks to gridsleep for requesting a post on Ennio Morricone and TheEndorphines for the video. I was hoping something to pay proper tribute would come in and it did.

ARP Odyssey | On The Wire - RIP Buena Pearlman

Alex Ball

Buena Pearlman is Alan R. Pearlman's wife. She passed away Friday, July 3, 2020.

"This is an original composition and performance I made with the ARP Odyssey from the mid-70s.

A few days ago as I was finishing this video I heard that Buena Pearlman had sadly passed at the age of 93. I had the pleasure of briefly speaking to her on a Skype call last year whilst we were recording with an ARP 2002 and she said 'I remember those' with a wry smile when we proudly showed the instrument.

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obitu...

As a small gesture, I've put this song up on Bandcamp and any sales I generate from it will go to the Alan R Pearlman Foundation.

https://alexball.bandcamp.com/track/a...

https://alanrpearlmanfoundation.org/

Thank you"

Update: via Levine Chapels

"Buena (Alcalay) Pearlman, age 93, of Newton, passed away on Friday, July 3, 2020. Beloved wife of the late Alan R. Pearlman. Buena was born in Belgrade, then the capital of Yugoslavia, on August 1, 1926. The lives of Buena, her brother, Albert, and their parents, Lepa and Samuel Alcalay, were interrupted by the German invasion of Yugoslavia in 1941. She and her family fled Nazi-occupied Belgrade, where Jews faced near-certain death, and were eventually interned in the Ferramonti camp by Italy's Fascist government before it fell, allowing them an opportunity to escape Europe for good. Years later, she recounted her Holocaust survival story to the Shoah Foundation.

Buena was a bookkeeper for several Massachusetts-based companies including ARP Instruments and The Society of Arts and Crafts. She was a crafts-person in her own right, creating beautiful enamels on copper.

A friend to many, Buena’s humor and kindness will be missed by all who knew her.

Buena is survived by her only daughter, Dina Ruth Pearlman of Kingston, New York and many nephews and cousins."

Alan R. Pearlman passed away on January 5, 2019

Kraftwerk's Florian Schneider Has Passed Away

Some sad news in. Florian Schneider has passed away at the age of 73 due to cancer. As you can see below he was recently active and accessible in the synth community. To say he will be missed is an understatement. It could be said that Florian along with Kraftwerk is directly responsible for bringing the appreciation of synthesizers and electronic music to the masses. His influence is legendary. According to the WhoSampled site, Kraftwerk has been sampled 769 times, covered 180 times, and remixed 56 times.

Via The Guardian

"Florian Schneider, who as one of the founding members of German group Kraftwerk changed the sound of pop music forever, has died aged 73 of cancer.

The news was confirmed to the Guardian by one of his musical collaborators, who said Schneider had died a week ago and had a private burial. It was also confirmed via Sony Berlin.

Born in 1947, Schneider was the son of Paul Schneider-Esbelen, a noted architect who designed Cologne’s airport. Schneider first played music in various groups while studying in Düsseldorf, beginning in a band called Pissoff. Operating in the experimental, open-minded rock scene dubbed “krautrock” in the British press, he formed the group Organisation with Ralf Hutter, the pair later forming Kraftwerk in 1970.

Schneider played the flute, violin and guitar, though often filtered through electronic processing. His interest in electronic music grew. 'I found that the flute was too limiting,' he later said. 'Soon I bought a microphone, then loudspeakers, then an echo, then a synthesiser. Much later I threw the flute away; it was a sort of process.'"

Great tribute video from a djmixsound in 2009:


Electronic legend Florian Schneider Published on Jan 8, 2009 djmixsound

An nterview with Florian Schneider at SUPERBOOTH16 (previously posted here)


Some tributes from various artists in this BBC article, sent my way via Michael Hewel:

My dear Florian
Your Autobahn will never end..
Le Tour de France ne sera plus jamais le même..#FlorianSchneider #kraftwerk #Autobahn pic.twitter.com/07Oks7PV2j

— Jean-Michel Jarre (@jeanmicheljarre) May 6, 2020

We are absolutely devastated to learn that one of our heroes Florian Schneider has passed away. pic.twitter.com/Y2dnYfxkj8

— Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (@OfficialOMD) May 6, 2020

Such an important influence upon so much of the music we know, from Bowie, to electronica, much of the 80s and beyond into modern techno and rap, Florian Schneider was forging a new Metropolis of music for us all to live in. RIP #FlorianSchneider #Kraftwerk pic.twitter.com/y2nXuAY66e

— Gary Kemp (@garyjkemp) May 6, 2020

Take a look back at posts featuring Florian Schneider here.

Update: a nice tribute from CatSynth and couple of tributes from Korg and Moog below:

Florian Schneider (1947-2020)

Published on May 6, 2020 CatSynth TV

"We look back at the life and legacy of Florian Schneider, who passed away today (May 6, 2020).

Schneider was a founding member of Kraftwerk and saw the group’s evolution from experimental rock in the early 1970s to the icons of electronic music that we know today. He began as an accomplished flutist, and many of the Kraftwerk’s early albums feature him on flute and electronics. He later moved to pure electronics including vocoders for the band’s most well known albums and their iconic stage performances.

We at CatSynth send our thoughts to his family, friends and collaborators."

We are absolutely gutted to hear about the passing of @kraftwerk Co-founder, Florian Schneider, due to cancer. He was 73 years old. Florian, while being a part of Kraftwerk, helped shape electronic music & its influence on many genres from synthpop to rock. pic.twitter.com/tSrmnOgMQl

— KORG USA (@KorgUSA) May 6, 2020

Florian Schneider will forever be an inspiration to the world of electronic music. His artistry has been influential to creatives for the last 50 years. Today, we thank and honor him for helping to guide and shape our community through sound, imagination, and innovation. pic.twitter.com/wrq4nB4icz

— Moog Synthesizers (@moogmusicinc) May 6, 2020

Update:
Farewell Florian Schneider - Vintage Synth Lab tribute - The Model - Das Model
Novation Pays Tribute to Florian Schneider
MIKE303 'Tribute to Kraftwerk'
KRAFTWERK tribute to Florian Schneider 1947 - 2020

A Special Message From Eric Persing of Spectrasonics - Stéphane Bonvallet Passed Away From COVID-19

A Special Message From EP Published on Apr 15, 2020 SpectrasonicsVIDEO

"A Special Message to our Community from Spectrasonics Founder Eric Persing."

Stéphane is the first person in the synth industry that I'm aware of who has passed away from the coronaviris / COVID-19. He was too young.

via Spectrasonics:

"Stéphane Bonvallet is truly Spectrasonics’ French Connection.

It all started with a D-50 and an explosion of music programming around the planet. Stéphane was one of the first to own this legendary synth in France. His addiction to it and all things audio secured him a position in the dawning of this age of musical programming. Some say he could often be seen programming sounds with his eyes shut in a state of audio nirvana.

It's this kind of passion that keeps Stéphane the eternal optimist in all things pertaining to music and destiny. The allure of the industry eventually lead him to pursue a Masters in Sound Engineering. Studying music arrangement and jazz at the CIM, considered the premiere jazz school in Europe, Stéphane built his skill set through countless studio hours. His talents found their first home in French television work for Les Enfants de la Télé and La Fureur du Samedi Soir.

His association with Spectrasonics spans nearly a decade as a consultant, demonstrator and as a member of the renown sound development team for Omnisphere and Trilian."

Gershon Kingsley Has Passed Away

Gershon Kingsley- Music to Moog by, full LP (1969) Published on Feb 8, 2015 Gershon Kingsley


Gershon Kingsley - Popcorn

Published on Jun 16, 2007 sometest353

"The Original Popcorn Video cuz i didn't found it on youtube."

This one was sent my way via Joshua Shroyer.

Via user Peake on Muffs

https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/obituary/8546355/gershon-kingsley-dead

Bettmann/Getty Images
Gershon Kingsley demonstrates a Moog Synthesizer on Aug. 25, 1969.

via Billboard where you'll find the full article:

"Composer, conductor and electronic music pioneer Gershon Kingsley, who wrote the top 10 hit “Popcorn” and played a pivotal role in popularizing the synthesizer sound, died Dec. 10 in New York. He was 97.

The Emmy Award-winning composer recorded 'Popcorn' in 1969, but it was a remake by Hot Butter that reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972, and No. 1 in at least six other countries. In 2005, Crazy Frog released its version, with the song again going to No. 1 in a number of countries. In 2018, Kingsley released a yellow vinyl 12” of his trademark song for Record Store Day.

Kingsley, who also composed 'Baroque Hoedown,' the theme song for Disney parks’ Main Street Electrical Parade, was born in Germany in 1922. He came to New York in 1946 and then attended the LA Conservatory of Music..."

You can find previous posts featuring Gershon Kingsley here. One of my favorites growing up in Los Angeles and going to Disneyland as a kid (as well as an adult during NAMM :), was Baroque Hoedown with Jean-Jacques Perrey.

Thank you for the memories Gershon Kingsley, they literally lasted a lifetime. You made the world a better place for so many.

Baroque Hoedown 1967-2015

Published on Mar 8, 2017 Macro Magic

"The original Baroque Hoedown plus all variations used in the American Disney theme parks. Tracks used:

Baroque Howdown- Jean-Jacques Perrey and Gershon Kingsley (1967)

The Main Street Electrical Parade Soundtrack: Disneyland (1977-1996) Magic Kingdom (1977-1991) (1999-2001) Tokyo Disneyland (1985-1995) Disneyland Paris (1992-2003) Disney's California Adventure (2001-2010)

Disney's Electrical Parade/Dreamlights: Tokyo Disneyland (2001- present) Magic Kingdom (2010-2016) Disneyland (2017)

Paint the Night Parade: Hong Kong Disneyland (2014-present) Disneyland (2015-2016)

No audio owned by me. All rights go to their respective owners.
Enjoy!"

RIP Carl Matthews

Some sad news in via ABSTRKT:

"I just learned a family friend died last week.

Carl Matthews was one of the early pioneers in the UK electronic/synthesist movement in the 70’s and 80’s producing cassette releases via Mirage, Electronical Dreams and various compilations. Recently he had a track featured on the compilation 'On The Noise Floor' (Cherry Red Records), and 'Winters Past', a remastered release of his early cassette years."

https://carlmatthews.bandcamp.com
https://www.discogs.com/artist/317237-Carl-Matthews

RIP John Blacet

It has come to my attention from Joshua Shroyer that John Blacet passed away on June 22 after a battle with cancer. There is a thread on his passing at Muff's as well. The news comes as a bit of a shock. The last email I received from the Blacet newsletter was dated June 19, with only "Sorry, closed for now.....". I thought this was in reference to the latest sale. The email I had prior to this, dated April 18, was for a Rak-3 sale. There was no hint of his cancer or condition. John was extremely private. He reached out to me back in October of 2017 for a banner on the site. He continued the banner through December of 2018 and then just kind of disappeared. His communication was always brief and non personal. I respected that and I respected his privacy.

The Blacet website is currently down: http://www.blacet.com. The first two images in this post are from the Internet Wayback Machine, dated June 22, 2019.

I'm assuming anyone that comes to this site is familiar with Blacet and his Frac rack format modules. The Blacet.com domain name was registered back on June 6, of 1999. He was creating modular synths before the modular scene became popular, before eurorack took off. Back then Frac was king for many. Blacet along with Modcan and Cynthia were it. Eurorack may have taken over, especially now that there is a market to support it, but back then, pioneers like John Blacet provided a small oasis for the world of modular, after years, if not decades, of being forgotten for mainstream synths. John helped keep the modular world alive, when by all circumstances it should have been lost. We have him and the handful of botique manufacturers to thank for what we have now. He will always be appreciated on this site. Not only for his creations, but also for his support. His banner will remain in the banner archives, and his label will live on.

The following is from the front page of his website:

"Be inspired by the sounds, colors and shapes of nature. Find new sounds with some of our electronic music kits. Featuring everything you need to easily achieve kit building success, our kits are complete with beautiful front panels, PCBs and all the parts needed, right down to the power cable. Dedicated to Frac Rak. +/- 15 volt power and power supply protection on each module.

Our complete documentation is second to none and our module quality and feature set is legendary. Decades of experience and craftsmanship means that you can count on Blacet. Complete kits or factory assembled."

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Apparently John was also into planes. The following is from a thread on taptalk mentioning his passing on June 22:

"John Blacet passed away June 22 at home in Lakeview after battling cancer for a year.

John was an early Sonoma Wings member who flew with us locally, in Nevada, Idaho, and the Owens Valley.

He made the first Sonoma Wings web sites.

His Atos B was for sale on www.cloudbasecafe.com and his family hopes the Atos and trike will find a good home.

hanger at the Lakeview airport" [pictured below]

Update: a picture of John from his Facebook page.

French DJ and Producer Philippe Zdar of Cassius Has Passed Away

Philippe Zdar on the Yamaha CS80 from will seelig on Vimeo.
Above is a video of Philippe on a Yamaha CS80 posted back in 2009.

He was a member of the French electro band Cassius and produced Phoenix's album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix and debut album.

An anonymous reader wrote in with the following:

"Cassius was / is a huge French electro band. They were part of the scene that Daft Punk and Air came out of. Additionally he DJ'd, produced, and mixed records.He had an insane studio in Paris called Motorbass with an insane collection of synths and recording equipment.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48701514

From that BBC article:

Fusing disco and acid house, Cassius - named in homage to US boxing legend Cassius Clay - emerged as part of a new wave of French dance music in the late 90s, alongside acts like Daft Punk and Air.

Their debut single, Cassius 1999, which featured a chopped-up sample of Donna Summer's If It Hurts Just a Little, reached number seven in the UK charts.

Although they never matched that success again, the duo remained in demand as producers and remixers, working with acts like Phoenix, Hot Chip and MC Solaar, while their 2006 album Ibifornia featured artists like Pharrell Williams, Cat Power and Beastie Boy Mike D.

Prior to Cassius, Zdar also released an album with Etienne de Crécy under the moniker Motorbass.

Currently unavailable on streaming services, the record, titled Pansoul, was listed as one of the '100 lost albums you need to know' by NME magazine.

A retrospective review by Uncut magazine described Pansoul as "the starting point for the French dance movement", while Spin called it 'the most important album in French house'."

And via the Guardian:

"Zdar’s solo production for other artists earned him a reputation in his own right. He stepped in to save Phoenix’s 2000 debut album, United, when sessions with the initial producer went awry. His next fully fledged work with the French soft-rock group was with their 2009 breakout album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, which won the Grammy award for best alternative music album in 2010."



Playlist:
Philippe Zdar on the making of the Phoenix Album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
MixbusTV Studio Tour Episode 1: Cassius' Motorbass Studio Paris
Cassius - Toop Toop

RIP Mike McGrath of Muff Wiggler

It's come to my attention that Mike McGrath, founder of the Muff Wiggler forum, has passed away. I am in complete shock. I don't know what to say, what to post. As most of you know, Mike created the de facto modular synth forum on the internet, Muff Wiggler, and he did it in a way that put members first. He created a platform for makers and users of synths to come together and engage directly with each other.

Some personal history:  Mike reached out to me years ago, before starting the Muff Wiggler forum. He actually had a couple of blogs including Muff Wiggler before the forum. That image to the left is the first image of his I posted here back on Dec 4, 2006 (he also had a classic blue Wiard modular system that was the envy of many synth enthusiasts). The last post from Mike went up back on July 30, 2018 when he gave away a Buchla Music Easel to save a life.

I met Mike at NAMM, and at the opening of the Muff Wiggler store in Portland back in 2014. We chatted off and on over email over the years and he was always supportive. He was real and down to earth. I was looking forward to reminiscing with him on the "old days" and what it was like for him to run the best modular (and synth) forum on the net. He once corrected me when I said he ran the best modular forum - he said the forum covered synths too! :)

I just can't believe he is gone. As the host of this site, I feel like I lost a fellow compatriot. Someone I had history with through the ups and downs. Running a site can be a challenge, and just knowing he was out there doing his thing helped. I am going to miss him and the lost experiences we would all have had with him around.

RIP Mark Hollis of Talk Talk

Published on Jul 13, 2011 exDrBob1

Mark Hollis of Talk Talk passed away today at the age of 64. He was one of my favorite musicians. I wasn't expecting to put a post up as it's synths only on the site, but I remembered there was some single synth spotting in the video for their first hit single above.  It appears to be an Oberheim OB-Xa with the 120 preset expansion badge on the front right. The OB-Xa was released in 1981 and the song came out in 1982 (not sure when the video came out though). You can also see some Simmons drum triggers. Synth spotting aside, I am going to miss him. I never got to see Talk Talk live. Apparently he stopped touring and pulled out of the music scene to spend more time with his family and to raise his kids. I heard he said he couldn't tour and be a good father at the same time so he chose to be a good father. Much respect to that. Below is a live concert from 1986. Some synth spotting there as well.

Talk Talk Live at Montreux 11th July 1986

Published on Jan 12, 2013

"Talk Talk Live on 11th July 1986 at the Jazz Festival in Switzerland. The show was part of a tour that started in April 1986 to promote the band's recent album The Colour of Spring, and was to be their only appearance at Montreux.

The extended line-up for the 1986 tour consisted of Hollis, Webb and Harris, plus John Turnbull (guitars), Rupert Black and Ian Curnow (keyboards), Phil Reis and Leroy Williams (percussion), and Mark Feltham (harmonica). Most notable among these concerts was this appearance at the Montreux Jazz Festival, released on DVD in 2008 as Live at Montreux 1986.

Running order as follows...

00:00:00 Presentation
00:00:44 Talk Talk*
00:03:59 Dum Dum Girl**
00:07:44 Call in the Night Boy**
00:14:36 Tomorrow Started**
00:22:20 My Foolish Friend°
00:26:50 Life's What You Make It***
00:31:45 Does Caroline Know**
00:39:51 It's You**
00:43:49 Living in Another World***
00:51:40 Give It Up***
00:57:26 It's My Life**
01:05:02 I Don't Believe in You***
01:10:26 Such a Shame**
01:18:55 Renée**"

RIP Alan R. Pearlman

It has come to my attention that ARP founder Alan R. Pearlman has passed way. He was 90 years old at the time of the NAMM TEC Awards in 2015. The ARP 2600 SYNTHESIZER received the award that year. You can find a video from the event featuring Pat Gleeson and Jim Heintz of WayOutWare, who worked with Alan on their ARP emulations, below. Alan was no longer traveling at the time and was not at the event.

You can find a great video interview with Alan R. Pearlman from 2006 at the NAMM website here. The following is an interesting excerpt from the site: "Alan R. Pearlman was nicknamed 'ARP' as a kid growing up in New York City, so it seemed the perfect name for a company when he was later designing electronic musical instruments. The first instrument created by Alan was the modular synthesizer known as the ARP 2500. The monophonic product was released years after the first Moog and Buchla instruments, but gained attention for several new features including the ever-popular function of not drifting out of tune, which was a common problem in the earlier products. Next came the now classic ARP 2600, and soon the company became a great leader in the growth and development of the electronic musical market."

And via Wikipedia:

"Pearlman was born in New York City in 1925. His father was a movie theatre projector designer and his grandfather made parts for phonograph machines. He grew up building radio sets, inspired by Popular Science and Popular Mechanics magazines, and served in the military briefly following World War II.

Following his military service, Pearlman attended Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts and in 1948, for his senior thesis designed a vacuum tube envelope follower that could extract the envelope of a sound from an instrument. He later audited a Harvard University course taught by one of the inventors of the transistor, Walter Brattain.[1]

Pearlman spent five years designing amplifiers for NASA's Gemini and Apollo programs. He worked at George A. Philbrick Researchers with Roger Noble, and the two later founded analog module and op amp manufacturer Nexus Research Laboratory in Canton, Massachusetts in the early 1960s. Nexus Research Laboratory's business grew to $4 million in annual sales before being acquired by Teledyne in 1966.[2][3]

In 1969, Pearlman founded ARP Instruments, Inc. (originally Tonus, Inc.) with $100,000 of his own money and matching funds from a small group of investors. The name ARP was derived from Pearlman's initials. ARP entered the fledgling synthesizer industry with the introduction of the ARP 2002, which with twice as many switch rows on top, became the 2500 analog modular synthesizer. The 2002 was introduced at the AES show in Fall 1970, and subsequently competed head to head with other leading synthesizer companies of the time. Pearlman eschewed patch cord methodology for interconnecting synthesizer modules, designing instead a system of sliding matrix switches. He also applied his op-amp experience by utilizing dual transistors on a single integrated circuit to overcome temperature gradients and provide very stable oscillators - more stable than other popular synthesizers on the market at the time, namely offerings from Moog Music and Buchla.[4][5]"


ARP 2600 Synthesizer Award Show w/ Dr Pat Gleeson & Jim Heintz NAMM TEC Awards 2015

Published on Feb 3, 2015 Byron Hotchkiss

"ARP 2600 SYNTHESIZER receives NAMM TECH Award at 2015 show. Speakers Dr. Pat Gleeson and Jim Heintz of WayOutWare recall stories of the ARP 2600 instrument. Quotes from Pete Townsend, Alan R. Pearlman (ARP name taken from inventors nickname as a youth) Video by B K Hotchkiss"



Note it is extremely difficult to pick videos for a RIP post especially considering how many great videos there are out there and how many have been already featured on the site as you can see via the ARP label. I'll be searching for some not previously featured to put up in individual posts throughout the day. If you have any you'd like to share please do so in the comments. I wanted to share the following as it features Alan R. Pearlman's first iconic synth, the ARP 2500.

A Portrait of Eliane Radigue (2009) from Maxime Guitton on Vimeo.

"A portrait of Eliane Radigue, produced by the Austrian IMA (Institute for Media Archeology), which observes Eliane in her workspace, operating the ARP and talking about the process of composing and recording."



Featuring ARP engineer Philip R Dodds who passed away in 2007.

Update: found this ARP 2500 playlist on YouTube:

Erthenvar Closes Shop

This one is in via John L Rice who had the following to say:

"They came up with a lot of important contributions for the Eurorack community including 1U Tiles, right angle 3.5mm patch cables, and case hardware, etc. (fact check me on that though, they are just the first people I know of that offered some of those items)" I'm not sure myself. If anyone knows feel free to comment.

Here is the announcement via Erthenvar:

"September 24, 2018

End of the Road

Dear friends,

We regret to inform you that effective Sunday, September 23rd 2018, Erthenvar is no longer accepting orders and is working to wind down.

We would like to thank you for your continued support over the years. You made this a fun and fulfilling endeavor.

I would like to thank M, which is actually short for mom, for her tireless work helping my dreams become a reality. Without her, I would have had to shut down years ago. Love you, mom!

A shout to John Kennedy, who I began this journey with way back in November, 2010.

Thank you to Jason Degelman for helping with builds and so many good modular discussions.

I still love the logo after all these years, thanks Alex Vu!

Please contact us if you are interested in purchasing the company.

I look forward to the next chapter,

Nicholas Gregorich"

You can find a handful of posts featuring Erthenvar here on MATRIXSYNTH.

RIP John Leimseider

Update: "A memorial and celebration of life will be held at Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre, this Sunday, September 30 at 5:00 pm in Studio Bell’s Performance Hall (850 4 Street SE).

More info can be found here.

Pictured: John Leimseider on the right with Malcom Cecil from this recent post on the upcoming event, TONTO Week.

It has come to my attention that John Leimseider has passed away. John was the head synth technician at the National Music Centre in Calgary, Canada, and previously the Cantos Music Foundation. He was recently scheduled to give a presentation on TONTO with Malcom Cecil on Nov 17 as part of TONTO Week. Please note, that talk is still scheduled to go on with Malcom Cecil. According to NMC, "TONTO was one of the last major projects of JL’s, so this event has much more significance now that he’s gone. But there will be an enormous void without him."

John Leimseider's influence spread far beyond the museum. Many of you visiting MATRIXSYNTH likely know him. I unfortunately never had the opportunity to meet him in person, however I remember seeing him engage on both the Rhodes Chroma and Yamaha CS80 lists. I still have some of those threads. I was hoping to one day make it out to the National Music Centre and meet him in person.

Below is a short playlist featuring John including his work at the NMC, an introductory video on the Roland System-8 from Roland, a video for The Moog Legacy featuring John, and a fun video featuring Neil Diamond's band paying a visit to the NMC, invited by none other than John Leimseider. He will be sorely missed by the synth community.



Playlist:
National Music Center Mini Doc [be sure to listen in stereo - you can only hear John on the left channel to start]
First Impressions of the Roland SYSTEM-8 with John Leimseider
Virtuality: The Moog Legacy, by Amin Bhatia [John Leimseider comes in at 1:58]
Quarter Note Video Tweet: Neil Diamond's band visits the NMC collection [keep an eye out for John]

You can find a handful of posts mentioning John Leimseider in the archives here. He worked on quite a few synths sold by individuals over the years. It's neat to think each one of those synths were touched by him at some point, and the work he did on them will live on.