ARP: The Innovator, The Instruments, The Impact Opening August 9
We invite you to step into the world of innovation with our new exhibition "ARP: The Innovator, The Instruments, The Impact." The impact of ARP synthesizers and the legacy of their innovator Alan R. Pearlman (1925-2019) was vast and deeply influential. From progressive rock and jazz to pop, film, and experimental music, ARP instruments helped shape the sound of a generation and inspired countless artists.
Curated by Brian Kehew, the exhibition brings together a stunning array of instruments, vintage media, and behind-the-scenes insights.
Guest Curator: Brian Kehew
Brian Kehew is a Los Angeles-based producer, engineer, and co-author of Recording The Beatles. Kehew’s deep expertise as a synthesizer programmer and performer with artists such as The Who and The Moog Cookbook brings a uniquely informed perspective to this presentation.
Exhibition Events Day 1: Opening Reception and Concert Celebration Saturday, August 9 @ 6 pm Join guest curator Brian Kehew and Dina Pearlman-Ifil, daughter of Alan R. Pearlman, for an in-depth look at the exhibition. Stay for special performances by renowned synth artists Rupert Greenall, Robin Hatch, and Steve McQuarry. This event is free for museum members, and $30 for non-members.
"The Crow Hill Company creates POCKET STRINGS as no-barrier-to-entry-styled string library plug-in produced without compromise… with added ‘synthy spice’
EDINBURGH, UK: having recently rebranded itself with an aesthetic that truly realises company co-founder and composer Christian Henson’s heartfelt dream of encouraging people to make music and help them on their journey, regardless of whatever point they were at and wherever their journey began, The Crow Hill Company continues its journeying into ‘Season Two’ as a producer of resources and tools to protect, inspire, support, and provide opportunities for music-makers the world over, believing that music is, and should remain, a wholly human experience, one that is by far one of the most powerful forms of expression, escape, comfort, and remembrance, of which its newly-created POCKET STRINGS — styled as a definitive string library plug-in that opens the doors to collaboration between anyone anywhere, creatively combining live cinematic orchestral recordings with some rarefied vintage synth classics made to measure for added body, depth, and character — readily represents the cornerstone of this ethos, as of July 10…
“A string library that’s accessible to all without compromise — a distillation of the last 25, nearly 30, years that I’ve been working as a media composer, which means that I write music for film, TV, and computer games, giving you the very basic necessities to write pro-end string arrangements. Whether that be adding to productions, songs, collaborating with others, or, indeed, creating professional film scores — whether that be to demo for an orchestra to play, or, indeed, to go to broadcast, there’s been no compromises here. But accessibility is the key — not just with the price point, but with usability.” So says Christian Henson himself, perfectly positioned — as The Crow Hill Company’s original founder, forging forward by building upon his extensive experience gained from founding Spitfire Audio to originally offer a palette of sounds he had created for his own use as a professional composer to his film world colleagues by invitation only, though the rest, as they say, is history — to proudly introduce POCKET STRINGS as a never-tried-before strings library plug-in that aims to bring broadcast-grade string possibilities to everyone.
"It's been a month. As I said, my wife lost her job in May. We hoped she would get a job that seemed like a great fit, someone had reached out to her and said she'd be perfect. Guess they didn't think so later. Oh well.
I did manage to extract all the audio from my old Roland VS-840GX. I kind of wish I was still recording using that thing, it was so good for just sitting down without a screen and recording whatever I wanted, but using a DAW is just so much nicer.
I had half written the rhodes part on this track, when I ended up recording something else that I plan to put into a rock track (yes, I am trying to get back into writing that type of music). Came back to this last night and recorded this, with some changes. Funny how walking away and coming back to something helps you change it for the better.
I used the Fractal Audio FM3 as a looper to loop the first part and then played everything else over it. The Rhodes and Prophet VS was performed in one go, the guitar was done in a second round with Eventide Blackhole VST for reverb.
Well, I hope you enjoy this - my first track written in a month."
"An album of IDM, Drum & Bass, and glitchy electronic music, for the more intense parts of your day. Songs were composed and performed on the Torso S-4, with additions and polish added in the box.
Buy the album here: https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com
00:00 - Imaginary countries
03:48 - Dreams must explain themselves
07:21 - Very far away from anywhere else
12:24 - The farthest shore
17:28 - The unreal and the real
20:57 - The word for world is forest
26:06 - Dancing at the edge of the world
29:33 - Always coming home
I recently posted a workflow video about why the Torso S-4 was an inspiration to me. Here's the proof.
I started sketching on the S-4, and before I knew it, I found myself writing song after song after song. Most of the songs needed a little more after the fact (the four tracks of the S-4 are not enough for full arrangements, for me), but the inspiration of the S-4 was enough to get me performing even before the song was finished.
So here you have eight songs, performed on the S-4, and then added to in the box as necessary to get them to the finish line. Many of the samples come from my Patreon community's sample pack from last year; a number of the samples come from a DJ Crystl sample pack, especially on the Drum & Bass tracks (2, 5, 7); and some of the samples are from the factory sounds.
Overall, this album is a showcase of how and why hardware can inspire, can surprise, and can lead to performance. It's wonderful to use hardware synths and drum machines, but sometimes audio loops and mangling is where the performance really comes alive. I'm extremely proud of this record and how spontaneous, energetic, and cohesive it is.
"I finally scanned in over 7700 photos of my parents and their lives. It was so nice to see them again, happy, exploring. Somewhere in there it all changed, but they still looked and seemed happy. So many times I'd see a photo and just stare at it for a few minutes, as though I'd been hit by something. Like seeing them arrive at their first motel on their honeymoon. Or seeing photos from the 70s and then the 00s when they went to the same cabin. It was clearly a world that just hung so close to me, but I never saw it. By the time I could get to know them in this capacity - they were both gone.
Now that I have my studio back - I can finally start writing music again. I pulled out the Cirklon. As you can see, I didn't use the Cirklon here. My goodness that thing just antagonizes me at every turn. I know I need to give it more time, but after two days using it, I put it away and within an hour, I had something I was enjoying making and playing.
"German DAW-maker Bitwig has revealed its very first hardware product - Bitwig Connect 4/12. Ostensibly a 4-in and 12-out CV and MIDI-enabled audio interface, Bitwig states that its debut hardware product is 'far more than just an audio interface'… We caught up with them at NAMM 2025 to find out more."
More Than An Audio Interface
Bitwig Connect 4/12 is a class-compliant, 4‑in/12‑out CV- and MIDI‑enabled audio interface with monitor- and DAW-control functionalities and a unique Bitwig Mode.
Your Ultimate Studio Sidekick
Connect is a three-in-one audio/MIDI interface, monitor and DAW controller. Six mode buttons allow its 360°, touch-sensitive dial to adjust interface parameters or control software. It can set input gain, regulate the volume levels for two sets of monitors and your headphones, or even move the playhead and control any Bitwig Studio parameter with exceptional resolution.
The front panel gives you immediate visual feedback, with accurate input and output meters and a ring of 32 RGB LEDs around the dial to visualize parameter values and automation data. Plus, gain settings are accessible and saved within Bitwig Studio, so you can pick up right where you left off next time you open it.
CV Connects the Best of Both Worlds
With two DC-coupled inputs and four outputs easily accessible via 3.5 mm minijacks directly on the front panel, Connect is a superior choice for musicians with CV-enabled hardware. That means it goes both ways: To external devices from Bitwig Studio or other programs, and from hardware sequencers and modulation signals into the software realm.
Thanks to factory calibration, Connect plays pitch-perfect and without offset with Bitwig Studio right out of the box. And since jacks can also be used for audio signals, they can act as additional ins and outs for line-level signals, making them useful to all types of users.
Bring Bitwig Studio to Life
Connect's unique Bitwig Mode puts Bitwig Studio at your fingertips with DAW controller functionalities. Seamless integration makes writing automation, fine-tuning settings, and navigating the timeline in Bitwig Studio with Connect's main dial intuitive and precise. Get quick access to any control with the high-resolution dial by hovering over it with your cursor, and lock a selected parameter to Connect by double-tapping. The LED ring indicates its current task by matching the color of the parameter or track in Bitwig Studio so you'll never get lost.
To control it it has 6 potentiometers and 3 buttons. The pots are:
-TEMPO. It controls the tempo/speed.
-BASE REGISTER. It determines if the machine is more musical or glichy. Better left it around 3 o'clock position for more musical results. Turning it to the center and left side produces more noisy/glitchy and chaotic outputs. You have been prevented!
-INTENSITY. The higher this pot, the more amount of notes and percusions sounding. This is a very playable way of alter the generative composition by transitioning between the simple and complex sound patterns.
-SEQUENCE. It let you browse between sequences. Turn it to select random patterns.
-DISPERSION. the higher this pot, the most registers that we are writing on the chip, so the sequences get more complex and chaotic. This and intensity are a very playable pair and both are related. Once you tuned something that you like, try to do variations playing this pot and INTENSITY one.
-COMBINATION. It multiplex, demultiplex and recombines sequences, keeping the output related but always fresh and different. At minimun it produces a 16 step sequence. At maximun it produces a 8 steps sequence. Between is where the magic happens, and it recombines and produce generative patterns via bitshifting and logic operations of the sequences.
It has 3 buttons, Left, Right and Reset. Reset is located in the arduino and is self explanatory. If you have been playing in the BASE REG pot center/left side and it has turned too chaotic or noisy, just put BASE REG pot around 3 o'clock and press reset. It will come back to more musical landscapes.
Left and Right buttons are to be determined as the firmware is still in development.
It has Clock In and Clock Out so you can synch it with external gear. To accept external clock set TEMPO pot at minimun."
"He's one of the founding fathers of electronic instruments, a legendary name in synthesizer history, and a most humble and unassuming genius. We sat down with Tom Oberheim to learn about his personal history, and that of the company that bears his name. Part One of our two-part interview."
"Hello! Jason here. Thank you for watching this video :)
This Signature Edition limited re-release of the tràigh low-pass filter module is available for purchase direct from Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/18233...
I am producing a limited batch which will be available for purchase while stock lasts.
This revised module was developed as a creative side project over the past month or two as a means of dealing with the unfortunate situation of having a very large pet greyhound with a relatively large diagnosis of cancer. Winston was confirmed to have a stage 2 soft cell sarcoma earlier this year. He underwent a surgery on September 24th during which the tumour was successfully removed. (He has recovered very well and quickly!) Due to the location of the sarcoma there is a high likelihood of cancer cells remaining at a microscopic level. If left unchecked they will likely return as a tumour with a chance of metastasising. Winston began a 4 week treatment of radiotherapy on November 4th. As of writing this we are now past the half way point and he is responding very well with no significant side effects presenting. Each treatment requires full general anaesthetic, so I have a very dopey boy every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for the entire month of November. The vets do provide him with some roast chicken each session when he wakes up. So he seems quite happy with his current unusual routine.
Craig Knudsen plays the Yamaha Genos2 arranger workstation in The Gallery at Kraft Music.
Yamaha Genos2 represents the leading edge in Yamaha Keyboard technology in content and hardware. It's the foundation on which future Yamaha keyboards will be built. If you've ever dreamed of playing your favorite songs, writing new music, or arranging professionally produced tracks, Genos2 is the most comprehensive tool in your arsenal. Genos2 gives passionate DIY musicians seeking perfection the highest quality Voice & Style content with unmatched real-time control for entertaining and performing.
Get more for your money with an exclusive Yamaha Genos2 bundle from Kraft Music. These package deals include the accessories you'll need to get the most out of your new synth, all for one low price. If you have any questions, please contact us. Our knowledgeable sales advisors will be happy to assist in choosing the bundle that's right for you!"
"The P-6 Creative Sampler joins the AIRA Compact gang, packing legendary Roland sampling technology into a compact, user-friendly gadget. Seamlessly blending classic sampling techniques with granular sound design, the instrument features a built-in mic and advanced sequencer in a lightweight, rechargeable package. With a versatile stash of hands-on FX and intuitive controls, the P-6 delivers unparalleled portable sampling power.
Watch Dustin Good dive into the depth of features and connectivity within this mini roving recorder:
00:00 Intro
01:43 Layout
02:05 Sampling Settings
02:41 Sampling Examples
03:46 Chop
04:05 Step Sampling
04:46 Granular
05:39 Pattern Sequencer
06:47 FX
07:24 Resampling
07:56 Connectivity/AIRA Compact Series"
Adam Berzowski jams on the Yamaha Geno2 arranger workstation, showing a variety of sounds and styles.
Yamaha Genos2 represents the leading edge in Yamaha Keyboard technology in content and hardware. It's the foundation on which future Yamaha keyboards will be built. If you've ever dreamed of playing your favorite songs, writing new music, or arranging professionally produced tracks, Genos2 is the most comprehensive tool in your arsenal. Genos2 gives passionate DIY musicians seeking perfection the highest quality Voice & Style content with unmatched real-time control for entertaining and performing.
Get more for your money with an exclusive Yamaha Genos2 bundle from Kraft Music. These package deals include the accessories you'll need to get the most out of your new synth, all for one low price. If you have any questions, please contact us. Our knowledgeable sales advisors will be happy to assist in choosing the bundle that's right for you!"
"Something's wrong if you're making music but not having fun. It should all be fun. But writing good, coherent, interesting and long patterns is difficult (for me) and often liable not to be much fun. The usual path is to make a good 16-step pattern, copy it, add some variations, and bump to 32 steps. Then what about little fills and other bits? Now you're talking about "song mode" and other mathematical duties.
So the idea here was: Let's use the Arp to create long patterns, then hit record on the DB-01 and just feed in the result. I did try that and it worked a treat. But as an alternative you can just manually "play" the entire thing on the Arp - which is what I did here.
It took a bit of practice to get the timing right and I wouldn't want to be playing the entire "song" to a live audience with one finger unless there were a few other things running to cover in case of a mistake. Of course in the studio no one can hear you scream after five errors in a row.
Live-playing the DB-01s like this you lose various programmable goodness like the pitch envelopes, filter mod and accents; but on the flipside you can use portamento on the sequence (although I didn't here) and can use the Arp to set and vary the gate lengths. For example the top DB-01 is playing the high blippy theme on the Arp channel 3 and the longer three-note bass prod on channel 4. It can seemingly produce two sounds almost simultaneously because channel 3 has a short gate and high octave, while channel 4 has a long gate and low octave.
When you think about it that is pretty amazing work for an arpeggiator! It's like instant program change on a synth with no programs.
In this piece all the music is coming from the two DB-01s, with a drum track added afterwards in the DAW. I chopped it up a little to make a 90-second jam (instead of the 8-minute director's cut) but it is essentially live-played. There are no DAW effects, no extra layers or EQ.
After all this intricate fun it seems to me that calling the Midicake Arp an "arp" is monstrously understated. I see it more like your synths are big dumb blue-ribbon bovines standing around in a field and the Arp is a supercharged border collie begging to chase them through a Marine bootcamp obstacle course. Make those machines sweat! They cost enough.
Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: / richarddehove
Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free
My website: https://richarddehove.com/"
"I still can't get over how good that Kawai SX-240 was... that filter sounded so good. I keep looking through my library of synths and wonder 'can this one get there?' And the answer here was: no. The ESQ has very 'steppy' behavior in the LFOs and envelopes, not very smooth. It does its own thing (well, I might add). It's different. It's good. It's unique. I do enjoy it.
This was one of the hardest videos to make - I was so tired working on it that I almost fell asleep writing it and trying to sync up the video to the audio! I thought it was all correct and I uploaded it and the audio was still not synced up properly! Went back and had to do it again. Sigh... Well, I think it's ok now.
"Slot machines (AKA pokies and speilautomat) supposedly get a lot of their appeal through the fast cycle of anticipation and reward. And if you don't get the reward you wanted then you can instantly run the cycle again. Wins are reinforced by pretty lights and little tunes.
Well, that sounds a lot like small-chunk randomization with the DB-01: Quick randomizations of a few steps and with instant rewards. Except you won't be broke at the end.
I'm always trying to find fun ways to write patterns and this method is, imo, one of the best. Although it's specific to the DB-01 you could just as easily take a MIDI-Out feed and power other machines.
I also think it's very interesting to see the actual process people use to write patterns. If you've got a favorite method please share it in the comments.
0:00 The idea
0:49 Full random?
1:24 The usual way
2:29 Little chunks
4:55 More chunks
7:50 16-steps
8:52 Example 2
15:01 Example 3
"Join us as we embark on a sonic journey with Replay, a new polyphonic synthesizer and multi-mode arpeggiator from Vongon. First up we test its prowess in the realm of synthwave - spoiler alert: it excels! In the latter half, we delve into the interface and its versatile capabilities complete with an immersive sound exploration, unleashing the arpeggiator and tweaking various parameters for a mesmerizing experience. Video and music production crafted by DeadMidi.
"Replay is a six-voice polyphonic synthesiser and a little window into synth heaven.
Lush pads, tiny plinks, snappy arpeggios, warbling melodies, resonant filters with midi connectivity and a sleek web interface!"
Vongon Replay Virtual Analog Synth | Overview + Exploration
"A demo and walkthrough of the new polysynth Replay, by Vongon. Replay is a 6-voice polyphonic synthesizer with a compact form factor that takes inspiration from classic poly synths from the 1980s, like the Roland Juno series + the Korg Polysix.
This video includes an overview of what Replay is and how it works, along with a number of sound examples demonstrating Replay on its own and in combination with FX pedals, to create a wide range of sounds from classic synth leads, pads, and arpeggios to more experimental textures and noisy sound worlds."
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Intro
02:45 Replay Overview & Tour
17:03 Musical Demo
19:09 Filter Experiments on Replay
23:50 Exploring the Arpeggiator
28:00 Combining Replay with FX
"Today we take the beautiful Replay by Vongon out for a spin and also have a conversation about synthesis basics in honor of my five year synth-a-versary. Vongon really hit it out of the park with this instrument and--whether it's your first synth or your 10th-- there's a lot here to love."
VONGON REPLAY Polyphonic Synth & Arpeggiator | Can I write a synth-pop track with it?!
"Man, I just love gear that makes you approach writing differently. That reminds you how fun it can be to find new sounds and feels, explore new ways of composing. And today, the new Vongon Electronics REPLAY is doing that for me - a super fun, approachable, compact polyphonic synth and arpeggiator."
"The Replay is the first synthesizer offering from boutique pedal designers Vongon, offering a six-voice virtual analog sound engine with multi-mode arpeggiator. Inspired by beloved keyboard synths of the early 80s like the Roland Juno and Korg Polysix, the Replay faithfully delivers warm and lush vintage timbres in a compact package that drips with modern aesthetics and utility. In Replay, Vongon has struck an impressive balance between scope of features, user experience, and overall sound quality. The result is an instrument that sounds wonderfully rich and nostalgia-laden, with an interface that is easy to understand - perfectly approachable for a beginning synthesist, yet deep enough to inspire veteran wigglers to explore the edges of its capabilities.
Replay's front panel is incredibly straightforward, with simple controls for its primary functions conveniently accessible. Additional options are selected via the "secret menu" alt functions. At the heart of Replay's sound engine are multiple selectable waveforms for its primary oscillator, with ramp, square, triangle, and sine modes. Noise amount, pulse width modulation, and LFO pitch modulation offer further timbral manipulations before passing to the four-pole, low-pass filter. Highly resonant and warm, the filter includes modulation depth controls from the primary envelope, keyboard tracking, and the LFO. The VCA features options for maximum amplitude and modulation source. An organic and responsive ADSR envelope and the on-board LFO round out this straightforward voice, with flexible modulation routing options between the main controls and alt functions.
The multimode arpeggiator on the Replay opens up a variety of fun and engaging options for controlling the synthesizer voice. Latch and keyed modes, in addition to the three poly modes available on the alt functions, offer a variety of ways for creating snappy and spiraling arpeggios and fuzzy, morphing pads. Up/Down, order, and random modes provide further ways to organize pitch material. The alt functions allow the LFO to be clocked by the ARP speed, creating rhythmically modulated phrases that are a joy to get lost in.
All in all, the Vongon Replay delivers a premium virtual analog experience that feels streamlined and purpose-built for getting beautiful analog sounds quickly. With plenty of depth in sound color and just the right amount of tricks up its sleeve to keep you immersed in music making rather than menu diving, the Replay is sure to become a go-to instrument for lush pads and other classic synth timbres. Its physical design is beautifully simple, and the responsive feel of its Cherry MX keys invite playful interaction that is hard to put down. Of course, the Replay is a lovely source for running through Vongon pedals, creating an instant synthwave or soundtrack machine paired with an Ultrasheer or Polyphrase. If you're needing a straightforward synth with limitless sonic charm, the Vongon Replay is a wonderful choice.
The following, in via Neil Hetrick, is a more detailed update to this earlier post.
via Neil: "I wanted to post this information regarding use of PCMCIA SRAM cards with the Korg Wavestation SR (and presumably also with the Korg 01/W series) in case it proves helpful for others trying to use custom waveform data with their synth.
It turns out that the synth requires that the PC Card be dual-mode, auto-switching 8-bit/16-bit. Currently-available (in 2023) PCMCIA SRAM cards are all single-mode, 16-bit only or 8-bit only, due to a specific chip no longer being available. After having trouble with a modern, 16-bit-only SRAM card, I received a tip-off from a kind fellow at Voice Crystal (they used to make custom soundware for many vintage Korg synths of that era) suggesting that the auto-switching functionality may be an important factor in getting a card to work with the synth. I subsequently found some forum info online relating a similar issue with PCMCIA cards in the Alesis Andromeda:
About the 8-bit/16-bit dual-mode PCMCIA SRAM cards
"In this video I share a live example of how I use the Ocatatrack as a performance mixer at a live show. The Techno Template is a prebuilt FX template I made using the Octatrack's effects. In this video share a full song that I wrote live on YouTube using the input of several viewers.
"We're about to embark on an exciting journey as we craft techno music entirely from scratch. Our creative arsenal includes the Octatrack MK2, Digitakt, Digitone, and Syntakt, all working in harmony to produce some mind-bending sounds.
What adds an extra layer of magic to our performance today is my newest Octatrack template "Techno Performance Mixer 1.0.1," the latest addition to my Patreon offerings and soon to be available on Ko-Fi. This performance template for the Octatrack not only provides master clocking, 8 bar auto-modulated effects, 8 bar loops, and many other features that will undoubtedly take our music to the next level.
Our journey begins with a rumbling foundation, achieved through a unique resampling technique. We'll also be diving into an intriguing side-chain ducking trick, which I shared with you all last week. It's going to be an immersive and educational experience, so let's get started and delve into the world of techno creation.
