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"History
The Triadex Muse is the first digital musical composition instrument. It is a sequencer based tone synthesizer and it was first produced in 1972. Essentially, the Muse is a deterministic algorithmic event generator that uses early digital integrated logic circuits to generate an audio output that produces a sequence of notes based on the settings of various parameters. In the 1970's when most synthesized music makers were huge and cost thousands, the Triadex Muse was a reasonably sized tabletop model and cost $300. Only a few hundred (we think around 300) were produced and they were never made available in stores. The Muse was designed by two famed MIT professors, Marvin Minsky and Edward Fredkin. At the time, Minsky was moonlighting on the movie set of '2001 A Space Odyssey', teaching Stanley Kubrick about Artificial Intelligence as he created Hal. Isaac Asimov described Minsky as one of only two people he would admit were more intelligent than he was, the other being Carl Sagan. Ed Fredkin was an early pioneer of digital physics. In 1980, Carnegie Mellon U. created the Fredkin Prize, to be awarded to the creators of the first computer to win the World Chess Championship. The Muse was designed to replace a radio - why listen to old music when this neat-o box can make new music?
How it WorksThe front panel sliders, which control the melodies that are generated, allow for the possibility of 14 trillion musical note combinations. The four small sliders in the lower-left control Volume, Tempo, Pitch, and Fine Pitch. The switches to either side of the sliders are used to start and stop the sequence, or to step through it note-by-note. Of the eight larger sliders on the right, four control the musical intervals used (labeled A, B, C, and D), and four control the theme (labeled W, X, Y, and Z). There is also a "Rest" toggle switch at the lower right which acts as a "lowest note".
DetailsThe musical computer is housed in a sleek mid-century modern wedge shaped finished wood and brushed aluminum case. Located at the upper left of the unit panel is the internal speaker.
It measures 10 inches high x 11 inches deep x 13-1/2 inches wide.
The cosmetic condition of this Muse is good, but it has seen some use and it is almost 40 years old. It is missing the on/off switch, however the switch is in the ON position, so when you plug it in, it works. There is a scratch in the brushed aluminum above the tempo slider, and the wood has warped a little bit and has some surface scratching here and there around the case. The electrical cord has also been cut at some point, not all the way through but enough to expose the copper inside. It has been repaired with some electrical tape and hasn't had any issues since.
Muse Model: Muse-1
Serial no.: 00954-216
AC 115-125v 60CPS 40w
ok50Hz"
