Tama Techstar TS 306 Analog Drum Synthesizer Demonstration

video upload by Present Moment Music Project

"Video description of the Tama Techstar TS306 analog drum synthesizer. This is a vintage '80's unit with a host of character and control that makes it still an interesting and creative piece of gear in a modern electronic music setup. And you can buy this exact unit only on Reverb.com ;-)"

Novation Peak and Summit Patches by Lightbath

via @WeAreNovation

"Our latest patches’ update features composer, improviser and educator @lightbath with his ambient Baby Steps pack. Styled by planting musical seeds that through improvisation, develop and grow into pieces that unfold in the present moment. Access here >>>"

"Composer, improviser, and educator Bryan Noll explores time and space with his musical project, Lightbath. Taking inspiration from Brian Eno's view of composers as gardeners, Noll plants musical seeds with his synthesizers and, through improvisation, guides their development and growth into pieces that unfold in the present moment.

Noll developed his sound and process as Lightbath by making YouTube videos showing the physical act of coaxing music out of modular synthesizers. As Pitchfork puts it: “Once you have submitted to these videos, it can be hard to pull yourself away. The artfully unpretentious demonstrations… occupy a strange, sui-generis niche: Featuring balmy sounds, blinking LEDs, and low-key set-dressing, they are part performance, part tech tutorial, and part audio-visual wallpaper.”

Lightbath has releases on RVNG Intl and Seil Records as well as the self-released ‘Selected Public Works’ series which features remastered versions of the pieces on his YouTube channel.

The 33 zones in this patch bank were created on Peak and feature the use of Mod Wheel and Aftertouch, as well as the Animate buttons for deeper expressive control."

New Analog Mafia RC-808 from Roland's "Mid-O Series" Developers and the "Failed" Roland TR-808

Published on Aug 8, 2019 藤本健

Update: demo above spotted and sent in via Soviet Space Child.

This post is a bit of a doozy so bear with me. :)

First we have a new software model of the TR-808 from the original developers of the 808:

"The RC-808 'Re-Create the 808' emulates the original TR-808 sound with analog manner synthesis. As the name implies, it is with respect to the original 808 sounds which is a criterion for sound synthesis as a vintage. Starting from this criterion, explore the multiverse of sounds, stretch out your vectors, to find out new criterion of your own. Yes, it can take you to the new sonic worlds that are completely different and yet so close and familiar to you.
Hence it is not a drum machine but is a drum synthesizer. No samples nor effects processing are being used, just genuine synthesis only, all in analog manner.

The sound source employs DCO which is in this case Down Chirp Oscillator, combined with a noise source that outputs various kinds of noises including metallic noises. There is also a infinite point wave shaper, a variable filter bank, infinite point envelope generators etc. With maximum 8 partials per voice, it allows sound designing in subtractive synthesis manner which is familiar to all and yet still with vast space beckoning to be discovered.
Thanks to this flexible architecture, all instruments can have Open and Close variations just like Hi-Hats or cymbal choke performance. Coupled with piano-roll sequencer utility this brings new expressions with gate time programming, that you don’t see on a drum sequencer..."

You can download the Windows version here. A Mac version is coming.

Second, the following is some info on the people behind the RC-808 (pictured above) via Vector808:

"We the Analog Mafia, lead by Tadao Kikumoto, is the original R&D staffs who developed the Mid-O Series from Roland Corporation. We would like to express full gratitude and respect to all the people who were in Roland, and supported us at that time.

In above photo, from left to right, we the Analog Mafia are:
Jun-ichi Kadoya: Roland 1977 - 1983, Mid-O Series software / hardware engineer, still is a programmer
Hisanori Matsuoka: Roland 1979 - 1995, Mid-O Series software / hardware engineer, still is an engineer
Kyokazu Fujiwara: Roland 1978 - 1981, Mid-O Series sound source, now a general manager of a software maker
Tadao Kikumoto: Roland 1977 - 2009, Mid-O and V-Series R&D, now Silent Street Music concept maker and promotion
Yoshiro O-e: Roland 1978 - 1988, System-700 and Mid-O Series R&D, now operating a chemical company

Also are:
Hiro Nakamura: Roland 1975 - 2000, CR-68, CR-78, TR-808 sound sources, engineer
Atsushi Hoshiai: Roland 1982 - present, sampling for TR-909, engineer

We all are still analog manias ;)

Because we are independent from Roland Corporation, they nor we can not answer to any kind of inquiries about us and our deliverables including this website. Thank you so much for your understanding and cooperation for everything.

Tadao Kikumoto is currently also working busy on another equally innovative project, called SSM - Silent Street Music. It is multi-channel concurrent streaming and listening technology that allows zapping through multiple music or lecture sources instantly. Join us on its exclusive introduction website (at the moment the website is only in Japanese language)"

Third, vector808 has a fascinating historical account covering the development of the Roland TR-808 starting with the x0x series, or as the original Roland developers referred to them, "The Mid-O" series. The following are three excerpts followed by a link to the full article. Note how they perceived the TR-808 was a failure compared to the LinnDrum in the second excerpt.

One:

"The Beginning
In 1983, a number of instruments were released with MIDI, the standard that I was involved in. After the tough times with all the difficulties of development, Roland launched the TR-909 the successor model of TR-808. Yamaha made debut of the ground breaking DX7, a serious digital synthesizer and again with MIDI. It was the opening of the new chapter in the electronic musical instruments, the dawn of full digital synthesis.

Roland then was still a new emerging enterprise, and did not have enough resources to pursue digital technology. To combat the situation, the Fundamental Research and Development Department was established."

Two:

"To meet the low target price, I employed oscillation technique of pulse wave modulating the simple T-network bandpass filter. By short circuiting the resistors in the T-type network for the certain initial duration with transistors, it was possible to raise the frequency. This allowed us to enforce the attack sound compared with conventional rhythm boxes.

But the initial reputation of the 808 was nothing but crippled as it was compared with the Linn products. Furthermore, the sound had insufficient impact or punch at the beginning, which resulted to have pronounced fundamental frequency 60 Hz. But then again, it was this prominent fundamental which attracted the attention of later time hip-hop and EDM artists, and they gave a name to it as “Deep Decay”. This led to the rediscovery of Mid-O Series. The long decay sound was made possible by decay parameter that I added to show at least as a sign or as an evidence of the 808 being a synthesizer. Even inside the company this was regarded as going too far, but later it became one of vital identities of the 808.“

Three:

"If you liken it in the picture art world, the TR-808 sounds are simple line drawings and illustrations so to speak. It puts more weight on showing essence simply rather than realistic photography. The traditional painting of Japan known as Ukiyo-e is a pictorial method and manner that is primarily made of outlines derived from specification of printing and paints. This manner has its own limits, and hence is a vector of criterion. Katsushika-Hokusai, famous for his Mr Fuji pictures, created The Great Wave off Kanagawa（神奈川南沖浪浦 Kanagawa Minami Oki Nami Ura）. In that piece of work, he threw off the photographic details into abstraction that boldly enhanced the great waves by outlines, and made contrast with a pointed Mt Fuji. This manner derived from its own limits is something impossible with realistic paintings that put priorities on details.
The inventor of the bass drum must have done trial and errors like enlarging the diameter or making the membrane thicker to produce fat low sound. Large portion of the beater strike energy to the skin however must have been consumed by uneven fractional vibration or parasite vibrations, resulting unwanted muddy sound. Also, the drummer spends a long time doing a lot of work on damping with blankets and else in order to suppress the unnecessary resonance with the body or with other drums. But once adequately used, this dirt will become important part of the sound, its identity, reality, and criterion.

The TR-808 bass drum was without the reality of the drums but was like an enhanced great wave depicted in the Hokusai’s picture. It is with abstraction of the details, but then again, also with dynamic and ideal low sound. It lacks with the attack impact and the release decay of sampling drum reality, but the artists chose its ideality."

You can find the full article here: https://vector808.jimdofree.com/home/episodes-of-the-mid-o-series/.

P.S. Not sure if the brand is Analog Mafia, vector808 or both. Giving this post both labels below.

Moogfest 2016 Durham NC (with Drew & Amanda)

Published on May 26, 2016 drew& amanda

"The videos in this playlist encompass our entire 4 day VIP Moogfest Experience including our 3-night stay @ Aloft Hotels, the shows and seminars we attended, and the many friends we met along the way. This was a fabulous moment in time and we will definitely be there next year! ENJOY!"

Playlist:
1. Moog Pop Up Factory Tour @ Moogfest 2016 Durham NC
2. VIP Toast on the Rooftop @ The Durham Hotel - Moogfest 2016 Durham NC
3. Our VIP stay @ Aloft Hotel Moogfest 2016
4. The Future of Drumming- Sensory Percussion Full Seminar - Moogfest 2016 -Sunhouse with Greg Fox
5. Odesza from the VIP Rooftop with a 200 mm lens - Moogfest 2016 Durham NC
6. Switchboard Synthesizers with Antenes @ Moogfest 2016 Durham NC

7. Interactive Beach Ball Synthesizer by IDEO @ Moogfest 2016 - Durham NC
"IDEO's Interactive sound Installation featuring a playful interface to manipulate sounds collected across Moogfest at The Cage at The American Tobacco Campus Moogfest 2016 Durham NC"

8. The Global Synthesizer Project @ Moogfest 2016 Durham NC
"The Global Synthesizer Project is a life-size multi-player interactive electronic instrument that synthesizes environmental sounds from around the world by Yuri Suzuki @ The Moog Pop Up Factory Power Plant Gallery @ The American Tobacco Campus @ Moogfest 2016 in Durham NC

Sound-art designer Yuri Suzuki and Moog Music proudly present "The Global Synthesizer Project," an interactive electronic musical instrument installation where users synthesize environmental sounds from around the world. Utilizing an archive of atmospheric field recordings from diverse geographies, The Global Synthesizer Project empowers users to create new sonic environments through the manipulation of a diverse collection of source materials."

An Interview with Barry Schrader

Hi everyone! As you know Barry Schrader will be giving his farewell concert at CalArts on September 26. The following is the beginning of my interview with him. I opted to post the questions and answers as they come in.  New QAs will get a new post so you do not miss them and they will be added to this post so we have one central post for the full interview. This should make it easier for all of us to consume in our busy lives, and it will allow you to send in any questions that may come to mind during the interview process.  If you have anything you'd like to ask Barry, feel free to send it in to matrixsynth@gmail.com.  This is a rare opportunity for us to get insight on a significant bit of synthesizer history, specifically with early Buchla systems, and I'd like to thank Barry for this opportunity. Thank you Barry!

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Bleep's Guide to Electronic Music

This one in via Scott, via Bleep: "Bleep's guide to Electronic Music is a 55 track compilation charting the historical emergence of electronic music by looking at landmark tracks from the 1930s up to present day.

Our aim with this selection of music is to show the length and breadth of the medium, providing a snapshot of the genres forms and styles, and the development of the artform. Whilst there are omissions and compromises that we have had to make, we hope that we achieve our aims and we do some justice to the variety of music that we love.

This compilation developed out of a project to create a Facebook timeline charting the development of electronic music from the late 19th Century until now."

For reference check out 120 Years of Electronic Music

The collection begins with Olivier Messiaen's Oraison from 1937 performed on Ondes Martenot & Theremin (you can find the original full track previously posted here and a beautiful cover on Buchla 200e and Haken Continuum from the late Richard Lainhart here):

"Originally composed by Olivier Messiaen, this beautiful and contemplative piece of music is a monumental moment in electronic music. Argued to be the first piece of purely electronic music written expressly for live performance on the Ondes Martenot, an instrument closely related to the Theremin."

The collection ends with James Blake's CMYK"

"At just 21 years old, London producer, James Blake releases on newly relaunched R&S Records.

At its core 'CMYK' is forged from a myriad of 90's R&B samples (Aaliyah, Kelis) their voices mangled, barely recognisable and thrown into a red-eyed fire of DSP and hours spent in the waveforms."

The full track listing:

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BLUE ZTVCO DRY DEMO & Surrounding Controversy

YouTube Uploaded by bluelantern320 on Jan 3, 2012

Update 10/4/2013: I heard from Ian Fritz and the controversy is over. Blue Lantern no longer offers the ZTVCO. That said, BL posts will resume.

This one, which seems to be a reoccurring theme with Blue Lantern, comes with a good dose of controversy. You might recall from a few years ago BL got into a bit of heat selling MIDIBox SIDs on eBay. MIDIBox explicitly forbids the commercial resale of MIDIBox SIDs. Blue Lantern stopped and went into producing affordable eurorack based modules and systems.

This latest controversy surrounds the source of design for the new BLUE ZTVCO. You might recall from the comments in this previous post, the design of that prototype module appeared to be a copy of Ian Fritz's Teezer (TZFM Saw VCO debuted Sep'08) design. Ian Fritz's modules are available via The Bride Chamber and Elby Designs.

In short:

1. Is the BLUE ZTVCO based on Ian Fritz's design?
2. If so, to what extent?
3. If so, is it legal?
4. If so, is it fair and does it matter?

The answer to 1 and 2 will not be known until someone gets a hand on the ZTVCO and reverse engineers it. I asked BL if he would be willing to provide the schematics to put the issue to rest and he replied no. He said people can reverse engineer it when it it's available and he is sure someone will. The answer to 3 is quite possibly so. There is currently a good thread on the subject on the electro-music.com forum here. The answer to 4 depends on you. My personal opinion is that it is not fair and it definitely does matter. Whether legal or not, I view it as stealing. These designs do not come out of thin air. They take time and talent and sometimes years to produce. You will see some insight on this in regards to Ian's Teezer design from him directly below. When someone makes their designs available, credit should be given.

The following is a response from Blue Lantern in regards to the claims made against him. The most important thing to read out of his points below is "3. This is not a clone, this vco is a beast in it's own cage."

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