"Japanese designer Yuri Suzuki has reimagined a sixty-year-old electronic sequencer machine as a physical piece of music software that uses artificial intelligence to generate melodies.
Conceived by musician Raymond Scott in 1959, the Electronium, which is regarded as the world's first electronic sequencer, was made up of three switchboards mounted on a wooden cabinet.
Although the machine was never completed, it was meant to allow users to perform and compose music simultaneously.
Using pre-programmed algorithms, it would turn a snippet of any given melody into a full composition while enabling users to add embellishments over the top.
Presented at the upcoming Barbican exhibition AI: More Than Human, Suzuki – who is a partner at Pentagram – wanted to recreate the landmark machine using musical AI software Google Magenta.
"This is a conceptual synthesizer design from the mind (or neural network?) of an artificial intelligence called Midjourney. Ostensibly this synth employs the rare synthesis technique called scanned synthesis. Is this a possible future synth? For consumers? The design ideas given by an AI like Midjourney are valuable beyond comprehension, exterior designs that can inspire syntheziser companies all over the world for an eternity."
1499 Euros for the Xm, available soon. The Xm demo from sonicstate in the playlist sounds like my Jupiter-8. No four-voice limit like the Boutique series. Added XV-5080, & TR engines. This will be tempting.
Playlist:
Roland JUPITER-X Series Synthesizers: JUPITER-Xm and JUPITER-X - RolandChannel
ROLAND JUPITER-Xm - 4 Layers Performance by Gattobus
Roland Jupiter Xm | Roland 1909 Launches - sonicstate
"Since the release of the JUPITER-4 in 1978, the name JUPITER has marked the pinnacle of Roland sound and playability. With the new JUPITER-X series (available as 61-note JUPITER-X and 37-note portable JUPITER-Xm), classic Roland design and a powerful new sound engine combine to faithfully recreate sought-after instruments from our long history of genre-defining sounds—JUPITER-8, JUNO-106, SH-101, XV-5080, JX-8P, modern RD pianos, TR-808, TR-909, CR-78… and always expanding with more inspiring sounds. Experience the next-generation arpeggiator, I-Arpeggio, that uses artificial intelligence to not only accompany you... but to inspire you. I-Arpeggio takes your input—notes, rhythms, phrases—and creates complementary drum parts, basslines, chords, and arpeggio lines, simultaneously.
Both the JUPITER-Xm and JUPITER-X feature metal construction for durability.
Both the JUPITER-Xm and JUPITER-X can "layer up to five parts, four for synths and one for drums. Its engine can power multiple authentic Roland classics like the JX-8P or JUPITER-8 with enough polyphony to create thick layers and complex backing parts. Create the perfect bass and lead split with an SH-101 and JUNO-106, layer a rich RD piano with lush JX-8P strings, or make a monster stack of JUPITER-8s."
Both the JUPITER-Xm and JUPITER-X are "equipped with our latest sound engine, capable of morphing into legendary synths from our long history of genre-defining sounds. It’s so flexible that it can reproduce our highly sought-after analog classics like the JUPITER-8, JUNO-106, and SH-101, as well as digital machines like the vintage XV-5080 and modern RD pianos. You also get the many Roland drum machines that are the foundation of electronic and dance music like the TR-808, TR-909, CR-78, and more. It’s like a studio full of vintage gear, with modern capabilities and a deep synth engine so you can explore unmapped sonic territory.
Both the JUPITER-Xm and JUPITER-X are "part of an expandable platform, so it can be updated with fresh new content as it becomes available. It can also directly share sounds and other contents with the highly-mobile JUPITER-Xm."
All synth elements are from the Nord Lead 4 being both played lived and sequenced live via Octatrack. Video further below.
"This dark cinematic electronica song was inspired by James Barrat's book 'Our Final Invention: Artificial Intelligence and the End of the Human Era' (www.jamesbarrat.com ).
This is really a live version of the song recorded in two sessions - the first on June 4th, 2014, the second on July 19th, 2014. I first sequenced the underpinnings of the songs then rehearsed controlling the arrangement on-the-fly and playing the lead lines as well as some sound manipulation in real-time. Once I felt good about my performance, I recorded the song directly to a digital recorder (Zoom H2n). I then picked my favorite takes from each session and combined them using Ableton Live and only used light mastering FX to sweeten the mix. I made a video recording of the first session as a teaser for the release of this single which you can watch here youtu.be/IN6p9QhScKw?list=UUm36lYPbh4W464V_6XPu-ow. [below]
While at first listen, you’ll hear what appears to be repeating motifs - but if you listen back a few times you’ll hear that it’s quite an unusual arrangement in that I really mix up how the motifs are repeated and combined. I vary the lead lines in each section as well.
All synth elements are from the Nord Lead 4 which I played live on keys and sequenced live via Octatrack. I make heavy use of trig-level automation to manipulate parameters on the Nord Lead via MIDI CC messages. I also sequenced real-time automation plus manipulate the Nord on-the-fly. The Octatrack also acted as a mixer allowing me to record audio down to the digital recorder.
Mark Mosher
Synthesist, Composer, Sound Designer, Producer
Boulder, CO www.MarkMosherMusic.com
credits
released 22 July 2014"
Join my newsletter to get email notifications of music/video released and events http://eepurl.com/PrtWn
Video Production Notes
I used a combination of practical projection with video feedback, real-time video effects via two webcams run through visual Software Resolume, and primary footage captured with a GoPro. I then composited all the shots in video editing software with only a teeny bit of post-production to create this dark -- almost old-school analog video processing vibe.
The computers in the video are there to process and capture video from the two web cams - plus are part of the shot as a story element and for side-lighting. One is being used to project a camera in real-time over my right shoulder. This same camera is also seeing the projection which causes video feedback.
This rig is quite snappy, so all the latency between the different versions of my image are intentional introduced with the video editing software to create tension.
AANN is an interactive, handmade electronic sculpture that responds to changes in ambient light and sound. The sculpture itself is 45 interconnected, electronic neurons that are actively responding to environmental stimuli in a display of light and sound. Constructing the sculpture in such a way that function and form are keenly interconnected, borrows from the sculptural, musical electronics works of Peter Vogel. Great care was taken in the design of the electronics to accurately mimic biological neural behavior. The resulting form of the piece was influenced in part by layering models used in neural computing, and by Fibonacci based branching found in natural systems. AANN explores the notion of interactivity with electronics by making physical the abstract processes being used by modern computer scientists to solve complex problems in pattern recognition.
The science of robotics seeks to study, mimic and recreate life through the creation of automatons which are ultimately are designed to complete tasks that serve our desires. Here with the creation of AANN, the desire is to explore the possibility of making a thinking thing, one that is allowed to have its own desires. However, in the end what AANN becomes is a sign of the industrial military complex, signifying not only the possibility of the pursuit of such idealistic techno-fetishistic dreams of machine intelligence, but also their very negation through the terminal exploitation of the very life which it seeks to replicate (and eventually replace).
Questions which arose during the course of researching and developing the work branched outwards from the decade old debate about machine intelligence and its potential impacts on society and environment. What is interactivity? What are the preconditions necessary for such interactivity? Does intelligence play a role or is interactivity a generic feature of reality. What is it to think? Is it possible for a machine to think as we do? If it is not yet possible to understand what it is to think and how we humans do it, what is it that drives us to make machines think? Are we too lazy to think for ourselves? How much does structure factor into the functioning of a network both biological and artificial? What are the implications of accepting a networked model of understanding? What is the total impact of technology on society and on the biosphere which supports it? Is it possible for a technological work to affect enough positive change to offset the potential social and environmental damage wrought in its history of development and application? Can technology exist without economies of scale, and if not, can those economies of scale be maintained in an ecologically sustainable manner?"
via Fantadrom Immacula by Fantadrom "This composition is from a project I'm currently working on that consists of ambient electronica that's more or less in the vein of Warp's early Artificial Intelligence series. The string/ choral pad type sound was produced with a Roland HS-60 (which is just a Juno-106 with built in speakers) with liberal amounts of one of my homemade spring reverbs mixed in. The running melody that begins around the 20 second mark was produced with a Roland JX-10 with some Yamaha R1000 reverb mixed in with one the voices. The bass line was made with a Mono/Poly using a patch in unison mode with only two oscillators, each outputting a triangle wave (the triangle waves output by the Mono/Poly's oscillators are really well suited to deep sub-bass sounds, and the snappy envelopes allow you to make a tight and surprisingly modern bass sound). The percussion in the left channel was produced with an MFB-522 and the right side is from the trusty old TR-606. The kick drum in the center is also from the 522. The percussion sounds are all treated with varying amounts of spring reverb. Everything was sequenced with an Atari 1040STe running Notator (essentially proto-Logic), and was recorded live, mixed, and mastered on a Korg D3200." See Fantadrom for more.
"Version 2.1 is here! Our song here shows off new 2.1 features including Audiobus's FX slot, new FREE FX (Equalizer & Compressor), ability to rearrange FX flow, and SPAWN - Magellan's artificial intelligence preset creator! All Magellan sounds in this video were created with SPAWN.
Check out our website for more info: http://www.yonac.com
Magellan on iTunes: Magellan - Yonac Inc."
Explorer 3 - 64 Presets for Magellan
Published on Feb 3, 2013 sunsineaudio·12 videos
"Sunsine Audio is proud to announce our third set of 64 new presets for Magellan from Yonac Inc. Explorer 3 utilizes full XY pad and Mod Wheel support for all presets, enabling easy and interesting variation in sound and texture. Contains basses, leads, pads, keys, and arpeggiation sequences.
*Compatible with Magellan for iPad and Magellan Jr for iPhone. Requires iOS 5.1 or later.*
Moogfest 2016 Talent Announcement with Reggie Watts
Published on Dec 8, 2015 Moogfest
"Headlining performances include Gary Numan playing a three night residency of his trailblazing early albums, a two-night residency by GZA, ODESZA, Laurie Anderson, Oneohtrix Point Never, Suzanne Ciani, Blood Orange, and Sun Ra Arkestra; with keynote presentations by transhumanist activist and pharma tycoon Dr. Martine Rothblatt, and computer scientist Jaron Lanier, a pioneer in the field of virtual reality.
More than one hundred other acts are already confirmed to perform, while the conference program continues to develop in partnership with a range of esteemed universities, innovative businesses, and art/technology organizations. Program partners include MIT Media Lab, Google, Duke University, Georgia Institute of Technology, The New Museum’s New Inc., IDEO, Gray Area, and the EyeO Festival.
For the first time ever, Moogfest will take place in Durham, NC. Moogfest activates seventeen venues, throughout the walkable downtown core, from intimate galleries to grand theatres, including a free outdoor stage with participatory, all-ages programming. Durham promises to be an ideal setting for Moogfest: a city uniquely blending diversity, authenticity, world class innovation, and culture, with a long history of great music.
Program highlights:
Pioneers in Electronic Music
Electronic music pioneer Gary Numan will perform his first three albums (Replicas, The Pleasure Principle, and Telekon) over three consecutive nights in three different venues. Musical experimentalist Laurie Anderson weaves stories and song in her solo performance, “The Language of the Future” and then returns to the stage the next day to hosts a daytime conversation.
Future Pop
Headlining talent also charts a zig-zagging course across today’s synthesizer infused pop landscape, from the vibrant electronic duo ODESZA, to the future soul of Blood Orange (playing in North Carolina for the first time), a return of utopian rockers YACHT, and even the comic stylings of Reggie Watts.
Experimentalists
Immersive noise and minimalist sonic-scapes from some of today’s most progressive experimental artists, including sunn O))), Ben Frost, Tim Hecker, Silver Apples, Oneohtrix Point Never, Quintron & Miss Pussycat, Olivia Block, Alessandro Cortini, and Lotic.
Ambient Music Innovators
A rich program of sustained tones and cascading moods led by Daniel Lanois, Brian Eno’s prolific Grammy winning protege, Suzanne Ciani, and the UK’s originators of ambient house The Orb.
Hip-Hop
GZA leads Moogfest’s strongest ever hip-hop and rap lineup, supported by a roster of emerging talent including Lunice, Tory Lanez, Denzel Curry, Dr. Dre protege King Mez, and Well$.
The Future of Creativity
Futurist philosophers set the tone for a mind-expanding conference. Keynotes by Dr. Martine Rothblatt, author, entrepreneur, transhumanist, inventor of satellite radio, and Jaron Lanier, a computer scientist and composer who has pioneered the field of virtual reality. Other visionaries include sound explorer Onyx Ashanti and his 'exo-voice' sonic prosthesis, Tod Machover from MIT Media LAB presenting his work in HyperInstruments, and Gil Weinberg and The Robotic Musicianship Group at Georgia Tech performing with Shimon, an improvising robotic marimba player that uses artificial intelligence.
Orchestral Ensembles
The intergalactic voyagers of Sun Ra Arkestra channel the cosmic philosopher himself. Arthur Russell’s Instrumentals ensemble, making their US debut. Floating Points’ live project veers fluidly from warm electronic to jazz to sonic space rhythms.
"Foundations of Computer Music Overview ($72us new, 700 pages+)
This survey chronicles the major advances in computer music that have changed the way music is composed, performed, and recorded. It contains many of the classic, seminal articles in the field (most of which are now out of print) in revised and updated versions. Computer music pioneers, digital audio specialists, and highly knowledgeable practitioners have contributed to the book. Thirty-six articles written in the 1970s and 1980s cover sound synthesis techniques, synthesizer hardware and engineering, software systems for music, and perception and digital signal processing. The editors have provided extensive summaries for each section.
Curtis Roads is editor of Computer Music Journal. John Strawn is a Research Associate at the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA) at Stanford University.
The Music Machine Overview ($70us new, 700+ pages)
Since its inception in 1976, Computer Music Journal has led the field as the essential resource for musicians, composers, scientists, engineers, and computer enthusiasts interested in contemporary electronic music and computer-generated sound.
In The Music Machine, Curtis Roads brings together 53 classic articles published in Computer Music Journal between 1980 and 1985, providing a cohesive survey of the major developments in computer music and in the related technology during the last decade. The book includes interviews with major figures in the field and articles devoted to composition, artificial intelligence, and the popular Music Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI). Roads has written an overview of each of the book's seven parts, highlighting the major topics and placing the various articles in a thematic and historical context."
Playlist:
Beatformer | All-In-One Beat Sculpting Plug-In by accusonus
Thavius Beck: A Quick Way to Improve Your Drums and Beats Using Beatformer
Thavius Beck: Comparing Beatformer to Ableton Live's Drum Buss
Press Release:
MAY 29, 2018 - Accusonus Inc, developers of music software tools based on artificial intelligence technology and makers of the critically-acclaimed beat-making plug-in Regroover announce the immediate release of Beatformer. Beatformer is an all-in-one beat sculpting plug-in for the modern beat maker. Beatformer allows users to effortlessly shape their beats, without compromising their character and musicality. You can use Beatformer in every beat track, either you want transparent or extreme sound manipulation. The plugin has four intuitive controls (Boom, Punch, Squash and Air) that offer powerful Digital Signal Processing in a delicate design. With more than a dozen high-quality algorithms under the hood, Beatformer opens up a wide range of musical beat shaping possibilities.
“In accusonus, we believe that as technology is evolving beat making must become more intuitive and inspiring. Music creation is all about creativity and when our users are “in the zone”, they need fast workflows.” says Alex Tsilfidis, CEO of accusonus. “With Beatformer we offer advanced technology in an intuitive user interface. This allows us to facilitate the fast workflows of our users but at the same time to preserve character and musicality. We think of Beatformer as the perfect companion to Regroover, our flagship drum loop un-mixing plugin”
Use Beatformer to:
● Glue your drum mix together
● Bring energy into overprocessed loops
● Easily enhance your beat’s dynamics
● Add colour and personal character to your beats
● Add substance to thin sounds
● Instantly transform the sound of your beats
Price and Availability
Beatformer (AU, VST, AAX 64-bit Mac & VST, AAX 64-bit Win) is immediately available at in intro price $79 (Reg: $99).
"W.A. Production promotes updated InstaChord 2 MIDI processing plug-in as chord creation and sequencing tool taking music-making to next level
PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC: W.A. Production, producers crafting creative plug-ins to help anyone achieve studio- quality processing speedily and easily, is proud to announce availability of the InstaChord 2 MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) processing plug-in — initially inspired by how chords are played on a guitar and applying that technique to experience the same feeling from a MIDI controller keyboard and DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) without memorising chord shapes and holding down all the notes to make the chords ring true, then taking the concept to the next level of music-making with notable new features as a chord creation and sequencing tool — as of July 28…
"This video, recorded in 1997, demonstrates an early proof of concept prototype I put together for a novelty entertainment product I called the Singing Candle, or CandleSpeaker (please observe copyrights). The candle flame sings the following melodies:
1. Strolling Through the Park One Day
2. Shave and a Haircut
3. Mexican Hat Dance
4. Camptown Races
5. The Star Spangled Banner
6. Jingle Bells
This is basically fire modulated with a high voltage audio signal, similar to the techniques used to create a plasma tweeter or plasma speaker using a tesla coil or CRT flyback transformer. There is no speaker- the sound comes from the rapid air pressure disturbances in the candle flame itself, controlled by a high voltage current modulated with an audio signal and passing through the fire plasma.
The final product was going to sing with a human voice via amplitude modulated ultrasonic carrier, and not with the cheesy squarewave oscillator signal used in this video. You won't see this in stores anytime soon, however, as the project never really got off the ground.
But here I am talking to a candle flame and it's kind of funny and fascinating. Hope you think so too.
BTW, The accent in my voice is fake- I did it just for fun. You know how it is, when you're goofing off at home all alone?
Recorded at Batchelor Pad Heaven in 1997. Davis, CA.
If you enjoy piano music please see my other videos- playing the piano is my other hobby ;)
Keywords: Musical tesla coil. Fire dancing, Fire Performance, Electronics, Electronic hobby, Analog Electronic Music, Oscillations, Modulations, Singing Fire. DIY Household Hacker. Imaginary Candle Friend. Pixilated Plasma. Fire Fairy. Fire Faerie, Faeries. Gothic Music. Nursery Rhyme Music. High Voltage Arc Experiment, ghost, hardware hacker, electronics hacking, EVP, electronic voice phenomena phenomenon, artificial intelligence, A.I., mysterious, mystery, teh hax."
Here is an interesting program in via Novel Insight Software. In short it uses artificial intelligence to pick from all available parameters in creating a three new parameter. The three act as macro controls for the parameters selected and they can change over time. One of the thing that makes the Yamaha DX-200 and the newer Reface DX are the macro controls allowing you to morph multiple FM parameters at the same time. And of course there's the macro knob on the Yamaha MODX series.
The following is what Novel Insight Software had to say about the software:
"We have been developing a new (still beta) software which makes it easier to find new sounds from VST synths. (Novel Insight Hypercube VST).
The freeware software uses machine learning to analyze presets and reduces the number of parameters to three making it easier to find new sounds. Currently VST2 plugins are supported.
The algorithms start from a random starting points so the results are a bit different everytime parameters are calculated, especially when there are no large number of presets available (machine learning methods require large amount of data and typically the number of presets are only in hundreds meaning the results depend on a random starting points).
Software is also quite slow on laptops, it can take 10 minutes or hours to calculate parameter reduction for a single VST instrument. I’m developing GPU acceleration which should speed up calculations significantly."
"Hypercube VST is a parameter reducer plugin for VST2 instruments. It reduces the number of synthesizer/effect parameters to just three (3) which makes it easier to find new sounds than changing 100+ parameters that may be available through the normal user interface.
In order to to do parameter reduction a VST module must have roughly more presets of good instruments/effects than there are synthesizer parameters. The existing good presets are used to find "three dimensional space of good sounds", which can be then explored by using only three parameters: X, Y and Z.
Hypercube VST currently supports only 64bit VST2 modules. Support of 64bit VST3 instruments is planned in future releases. This software requires 64bit Windows 10 (earlier versions not tested) and 64bit Java (plugin generator user interface).
License
Hypercube VST is free to use (freeware) but closed source."
"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 Works
The 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".
Details
The 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"
"This machine uses artificial intelligence to paint its own body of work and to make its own decisions. While doing so, it listens to its environment and considers what it hears as input into the painting process. In the absence of someone or something else making sound in its presence, the machine, like many artists, listens to itself. More info: http://bengrosser.com/projects/interactive-robotic-painting-machine/"
"Testing out the World’s First AI Generative Sampler Plugin called 'Mace' by @tensorpunkaudio . AI-trained models generate one-shot sounds, Infinitely. MACE is a generative sampler. Instead of sampling audio, it utilizes the power of machine learning and artificial intelligence to generate new samples as defined by the categorized model’s"
"This is an incredible opportunity to purchase a rare piece of history.
According to synthmuseum.com, "This unique machine [Triadex Muse] is regarded by some as the first digital musical instrument. Designed by Edward Fredkin and Marvin Minsky at MIT, the Muse is an algorithmic music generator."
Engadget writes "[The Triadex Muse] had impeccable geek credentials. It was designed by two MIT professors, Marvin Minsky and Edward Fredkin. At the time, Minsky was moonlighting on the set of 2001 A Space Odyssey, teaching Stanley Kubrick about Artificial Intelligence as he created Hal."
"The Muse even had an even rarer accessory, the Light Show, which flashed coloured lights in time to the music... Only 280 units were ever manufactured. Unlike vintage analog synths, a Muse won't generate a fat bassline for a hip hop record, but they are very collectable."
This particular Tridex Muse is in good condition. There is a small scuff mark on the stainless steel front near the Muse logo. A control toggle switch is imperfect and loose, and will not stay in the 'down' position. Besides these issues, the wood is in superb condition, as are the stainless steel face and sides. The sound works perfectly as does the light show.
SPECS: Serial number: 00731-113. AC 115-125v. 60 CPS. Model: Muse 01"
"The Triadex Muse is the first digital musical instrument ever made. The Muse is a music composer machine or digital synthesizer and melody composer, involving early logic modules in a unique circuit that allows the possibility of 14 trillion musical note combinations.
It was made in 1972 by Triadex Inc., Brookline, Mass. It was designed by Edward Fredkin and Marvin Minsky at MIT. The first Muse was designed by MIT graduates Edward Fredkin and Marvin Minsky in the late 1960’s. Minsky was on the set of “2001 A Space Odyssey”, and taught Stanley Kubrick about Artificial Intelligence as he created Hal.
The Muse is an algorithmic music generator that uses digital logic circuits to produce a sequence of notes (through a 4-inch built-in speaker or external speaker) based on the settings of various controls on the front panel: four small sliders that control Volume, Tempo, Pitch, and Fine Pitch. The switches to either side 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). A rest can be substituted for the lowest note by flipping a toggle switch.
The exact logic behind the composition engine is rather technical, and not exactly intuitive. The tempo clock can be slaved to that of another Muse, allowing for multi-part compositions. These connections are on the underside (see photo).
It is not known for certain how many were made, but they are considered extremely rare. Estimate stated by Tom Whitwell, of the now defunct blog spot, Music Thing, was that only 280 were made.
The Muse is the subject of U. S. Patent 3610801. For years, the Muse was a featured exhibit at the Museum of Science, Boston. The signage explained the device's algorithmic (and deterministic) approach to the creation of its seemingly-random music. Far from being random, its preset "song" played continuously -- and was even given a name, "Museum Musings," by the staff."
