Black Corporation Kijimi SN 1209 w/ Original Box

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this listing

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EMS Synthi AKS w/ Digitana Synthi Matrix Interface

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"Rare EMS Synthi AKS: A Unique Piece of Synth History

These synths are almost impossible to come by and hold a significant piece of electronic music history within their quirky exterior.

This one's been taken care of, and despite a small crack on the shell (which you can check out in the photos), it's seriously in fine fettle - always ready to add that certain something to your music that only a Synthi can.

And it's not just the Synthi itself - this rarity also comes with a Digitana Synthi Matrix Interface. An impressive device that cranks up the gear's flexibility, letting you delve further into soundscapes unique to the Synthi universe.

Forget mass-produced, vanilla synths. The EMS Synthi AKS is anything but ordinary. So, if you're in the market for a unique, hard-to-come-by piece of synth history, then this could be the one for you. Drop a line if you're interested - I'm sure this won't hang about for long!"

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ANALOG SOVIET SYNTHESIZER. FORMANTA EMS-01

video upload by Alexander Obukhov

"Formanta EMS-01 is a historical artifact in the world of electronic music. This analog synthesizer, created in the Soviet Union, embodies the craftsmanship of engineers and sonic explorers of its time. It represents an amazing blend of creative possibilities and unique sonic heritage.

The EMS-01 possesses an unusual, sometimes unpredictable sonic character that has become the hallmark of this synthesizer. This platform, although crafted over half a century ago, still captivates musicians with its unique capabilities and sonic versatility.

EMS-01 is not just a musical instrument. It's a fragment of history captured in analog circuits and keys. Its sonic capabilities have no parallels in modern synthesizers, making it a collector's item for any music enthusiast or aficionado of electronic music."

Buchla Touché (1980) – Hybrid Analog Keyboard Instrument

The following was sent in by Anastasia Chernysheva, a Ph.D. student at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

"In 1979, Donald Buchla invited experimental composer and his friend, David Rosenboom to collaborate on the design of a new, keyboard instrument with digital sound generation and hybrid, computer-controlled, analog outputs. The result was the Touché, released in the spring of 1980.

Among particular traits of the instrument are:
• flexibility in use – highly programmable, (64 programmable function parameters available), Touché offers a library of “instrument” structures that could be stored as “presets”;
• responsiveness – a user of Touché would enjoy a broad ability to program multiple stimuli and response structures in performance;
• non-linear waveshaping – Touché permits to produce an enormous range of sound with efficient means of control, i.e. using a small number of knobs

The guiding idea of the instrument design was to optimize it for live performance. The hybrid, digital-analog nature of Touché assumes the following.
• On the digital side: a sound-generating engine produced a wide range of timbre of sound possibilities with non-linear wave shaping techniques.
• On the analog side: a programmable analog circuit called Multiple Arbitrary Function Generator (MARF) enabled extensive control of all sound synthesis parameters.

Rosenboom’s recordings Future Travel (1981) and Daytime Viewing (1983) offer extensive exposure to some particular sound worlds created with the Touché. Other than being used for these recordings and in the recent release by Richard Smith a.k.a. Shusta Cults, (the current owner of Rosenboom’s Touché), the instrument barely may be heard in any other recording. Only 4 instruments exist today but just one of them is in the functional condition.

To learn more about the history and design of the instrument check out the lecture about Buchla Touché given at University of Illinois (2022). Technical parameters of the instrument may be found in the brochure for the instrument. Download the PDF here."

Circuits and Fingers – Composer-Performer Convergence in Electronic Instrument Designs, Oct 5th
video upload by Illinois Music

"Guest lecture at EMS Forum: Circuits and Fingers – Composer-Performer Convergence in Electronic Instrument Designs, Oct 5th

With the director of Experimental Music Studios – Eli Fieldsteel.

Learn more: https://davidrosenboom.com/miller-res..."

Also see Brainwave Music with Buchla 200 at Western Front.

XILS-lab Releases Ring’X Virtual Effects

Press release follows.

XILS-lab releases Ring’X representing latest addition to lengthening line of virtual effects as inspiring and musical multi-effect plug-in par excellence


GRENOBLE, FRANCE: audio software company XILS-lab is proud to release Ring’X — readily representing the latest addition to its lengthening line of virtual effects as an inspiring and musical multi-effect plug-in par excellence — as of September 28…

Duly developed as an inspiring and musical multi-effect plug-in for seriously satisfying anyone’s needs, Ring’X is certainly worthy of the oft- overused French phrase par excellence — literally translated into English as ‘by excellence’ — as evidenced by its feature-packed GUI (Graphical User Interface) that is as easy on the eye as it is easy to use.

Ultimately, it is anchored around a six-slot so-called ‘Effect Ring’ that allows anyone to insert the effects they need in the order they want, choosing from a selection of deeply-modifiable classic analogue effect emulations: ANALOG FILTER — modelled from the CMS 3320 chip, used in the exciting-sounding (early-Eighties-era) Elka Synthex subtractive synthesis-based polytimbral powerhouse (much loved by the likes of famous French electronic music pioneer Jean-Michel Jarre, who still uses it to this day to create the distinctive sound of his onstage laser harp), providing five (LP24 — 24db Low-Pass, LP12 — 12db Low-Pass, HP12 —12db High-Pass, BP12 — 12db Band-Pass, or BP6 — 6db Band-Pass) self- oscillating filter types; ANALOG 18db FILTER — modelling the specific sound and behaviour of an 18db self-oscillating filter from the breakthrough British EMS VCS3, which made musical history upon its introduction in 1969 by being the first commercially portable synthesiser available anywhere in the world, thanks to its innovative modular matrix-based patchboard dispensing with the telephone exchange-like cabling of other (much larger) modular systems in favour of making space-saving connections with (removable) coloured pegs; CHORUS (BUCKET BRIGADE DELAY); DELAY — stereo delay that copies the input signal to the left and right channel; DISTORTION; PARAMETRIC EQ — a three-band affair with each band type selectable from six standard filter types; PHASER; and REVERB — with three (L — Large, M — Medium, and S — Small) algorithms. Each effect provides four MODULATION points with a SOURCE and DESTINATION menu associated with an AMOUNT knob.

Standard STEP and specific LOC locator sequencers for modulating effects are also available — the loop goes through a defined number of steps and each time the internal clock is fired the next step is triggered, in the case of the former, while the latter is designed to be synchronised to the DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) with the loop being synchronised to the DAW bar (or a multiple of the bar).

But that’s not all. Another area well worth highlighting here features four input followers; a TRANSIENT tracker ‘module’ — detects the transients present in the input sound, each transient triggering a simple envelope without attack and release controlled by the RELEASE knob; S- DETECTION ‘module’ — detects sibilance present in the input sound, and also useful for separating high-frequency parts from those with more middle and bass frequencies; GATE ‘module’ — removes all the parts from the input sound that are below a specified threshold; and a STEREO SPACE ‘module’ — powerful stereo processing that allows users to dynamically position their audio signal into a true stereo space.

By being so flexible in both operation and resulting effects, it stands to reason, therefore, that Ring’X should come complete with a raft of presets. All are accessible via an integrated (single-window) Preset Manager, making it easy to find the right patch in seconds, manage presets, sound banks, and create custom tags. That being said, then, inspiring and musical multi-effects are only a click away, but those wishing to dig deeper to seriously satisfy their needs are always free to do just that! After all, as the latest addition to XILS-lab’s lengthening line of virtual effects, Ring’X is, indeed, an inspiring and musical multi-effect plug-in par excellence — in the literal sense of those (French- originating) words.

Who better, then, to put Ring’X in its rightful place than the Frenchman primarily responsible for bringing it into existence — namely, XILS-lab CEO Xavier Oudin (credited in the multi-effect plug-in in question’s user manual with: Concept of Ring’X and original UI design; Digital Signal Processing and plug-in coding; [and] the graphical user interface). “For a number of years, customers have been regularly asking me to create an effect featuring filters extracted from our synthesizers,” he begins, before adding: “This idea grew into providing a sort of Swiss army knife-style tool capable of sculpting audio with modulation fully independent of its content, and also able to create any kind of de-esser and transient shaper with far more possibilities than standard such effects. Eventually, Ring’X was born.”


Ring’X is available to purchase as an iLok-protected virtual effect plug-in (installable in up to two independent locations) at an introductory promo price of only €69.00 EUR until October 31, 2023 — rising thereafter to an MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price) of €179.00 EUR — directly from XILS-lab via its dedicated webpage, which also includes more in-depth information and several must-see video demonstrations, here: https://www.xils-lab.com/products/ringx-p-172.html#

A time-limited full version of Ring’X can be requested for pre-purchase evaluation purposes here: https://www.xils-lab.com/products/ringx-p-172/download.html#AskDemo

Ring’X is downloadable in 64-bit AAX (native)-, AU-, VST2.4-, and VST3-compatible formats for macOS (10.9+) and 64-bit AAX (native)-, VST2.4-, and VST3-compatible formats for Windows (7/8/10) directly from XILS-lab.

The Best Modular Synth Of The Year // Erica Synths SYNTRX II?

video upload by Miles Away

"Review, sound demo and tutorial/walkthrough of the Erica Synths SYNTRX 2, a modern modular synthesizer inspired by the EMS Synthi. Learn synth history and listen to how versatile SYNTRX is, from heavy noise techno to beautiful ambient jams!

Stream my new song:
https://stream.milesawayofficial.com/...


Buy my custom synth patches:
https://shop.milesawayofficial.com/co...

0:00 - intro jam and what is SYNTRX 2?
1:15 - synth history of the EMS Synthi
4:22 - jam 1: heavy midtempo techno
5:59 - experimental noise sound demos
7:55 - jam 2: lush analog retrowave
9:24 - patching tutorial and how it works
18:26 - review with pros and cons
20:02 - jam 3: ambient tape outro"

EMS Synthi AKS

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"Excellent condition EMS Synthi AKS Analog Synthesizer. Includes KS keyboard, keyboard cable, and power cable. Includes all matrix pins.

The EMS Synthi AKS is a legendary instrument with an illustrious history. First manufactured in 1972 by EMS in Putney, southwest London, the Synthi A was basically a portable version of EMS's famous VCS3 synthesizer, and the KS keyboard (an unplayable thirty-note touchplate) was added to make the Synthi AKS."

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LudoWic - Creating dark textures

video upload by ludoWic music

More LudoWic:
https://www.ludowic.com
https://wicrecordings.lnk.to/ludowic

Trautonium, Minimoog, & EMS SYNTHI & SYNTHI E. Note the SYNTHI E is a white model also seen here, not the standard orange yellow as seen in other posts. You can find additional LudoWic SYNTHI posts here. See this post on EMS founder Peter Zinovieff's passing for some history on EMS.

You can find additional posts featuring the Trautonium here. So much synth history can be found deep in the archives of the site.

This one is in via Soviet Space Child.

ACE TONE CANARY S-3 One of the few remaining units on the planet

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

This appears to be the same one listed back in September. You can find a small handful of posts mentioning the Canary here. "One of the very few remaining Ace Tone Canary S-3 on the planet. Despite being a 60 years old machine, this unit works like a charm and it's in spectacular cosmetic conditions -- it looks much better than the unit exhibited at the Roland Museum, actually.

History Designed and built by Ikutaro Kakehashi (founder of Ace Tone, Roland and Boss) in 1962 during the Pre-Roland era, the Ace Tone Canary S-3 is an early monophonic synthesizer inspired by the Clavioline, a forerunner to the analog synthesizer invented in 1947, but implementing several technical improvements and revisions that make it a unique instrument. In 1964, Ikutaro Kakehashi decided to take the Canary S-3 along to the NAMM show in Chicago but, despite receiving interest, he did not receive any distribution deals. So the Canary S-3 ended up being distributed in Japan only and quickly became a rare instrument even at that time.

Sound When you listen to this machine, the reason of that unsuccessful mission at NAMM quickly stands out: the sound of the Canary S-3 had nothing to do with 60's music, it was not a simulation of classical instruments. The Canary S-3 sound was quite agressive, warm and extremely rich in armonics, totally in line with nowadays electronic music standards and so far away from the 60's vibes. It's pure electricity generated by military-grade germanium transistor oscillators and filters, a machine that can easily be used as main/only instrument in modern music productions.

Germanium Instead of using a vacuum tube oscillator as the Clavioline, the Canary S-3 implements a solid state circuitry totally based on germanium transistors. Widely implemented in vintage guitar fuzzboxes and amplification and exceptionally in synthesizer circuitry (such as the VCA section of the EMS VCS3/Synthi A), these transistors have a warmth and a granulity as pleasant as the tube sound, without being the same. The sonic grain of germanium is generally a bit rougher than the tube grain, and radically less flat and plain than classic silicon transistors. -- As far as I know the Canary S-3 is the only synthesizer ever built using germanium transistors as sound generators.

Architecture The Canary S-3 can be organized in 3 main sections: Sound Generator - Tone Color - Controls. The Sound Generator features 4 parallel octave dividers that output super fat saw waveforms in 4 different octaves (Bass - Tenor - Alto - Soprano) ranging from F0 to F4. Then the resulting waveform is passed through a germanium filter bank that separates the input signal into 5 components, each one carrying a frequency sub-band of the original signal. The 5 bands (obtained using HP and LP filters) are controlled by 5 combinable switches under the Tone Control section (1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5). The mix of the 4 Sound Generators and the 5 Tone Colors delivers a total of 496 different settings/sounds ranging from fat basses to rich organ and raw lead sounds. In addition to the main sounds the Canary S-3 features also two noise generators controlled by two unusual momentary push buttons designed to perform abstract rhythms in real time. The sounds can be modified using the knobs and the bizarre knee lever designed to perform volume variations in real time. The Control Section includes also two knobs for (pitch) Vibrato Speed and Depth, the global Tuning knob (+/- 2 semitones) and a master Volume knob used also tu on/off the instrument. Lastly there is the Rhythm Volume knob to set the volume of the two noises.

The Ace Tone Canary S-3 is undoubtedly a one-of-a-kind instrument, an amazing piece of retro tecnology, an avant-garde machine born six decades ago that still has something exclusive and unique to say."

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TMP-03 Vintage Synth TV Series from Benge

video upload by zack dagoba

Additional Vintage Synth TV episodes by Benge

"The Memetune Programme Episode 03

00:00 Opening Titles
00:35 Introduction
01:31 Switched On - Polysynths Part Two
19:38 Synthesiser Club - Roland SH101, VCS3, 100M and Moog Modular
22:03 Commercial Break
23:42 Patching Today - ARP2500
38:43 Video Lab - Video Feedback
41:45 Outro/Coming Up Next Time


////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Third episode in the new six part series of programmes from Benge made at his Memetune Electronic Music Studio

The series explores his passion for vintage synthesiser instruments and studio gear and how he uses it on his productions and collaborations

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It is divided into the following sections:

SWITCHED ON - Featuring in-depth discussions about the history and development of the synthesiser over the years, including demonstrations and feature guides of many classic and iconic instruments

SYNTHESISER CLUB - A short musical demonstration of a synthesiser classic or three

PATCHING TODAY - A deep-dive into vintage modular systems and how to set up a patch on them, starting from scratch

VIDEO LAB - A look at old video equipment and how to create experimental visuals

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

In THIS episode:

SWITCHED ON POLYSYNTHS (PART TWO) - Continuing the history of Polysynths, from paraphonic instruments (EMS Polysynthi) through hybrid Polys (Polymoog, Korg PS3100) to polyphonic classics of the 70s and into the 80s (Yamaha CS80, ARP/Rhodes Chroma, Sequential T8, Roland Jupiter 6)

SYNTHESISER CLUB - Roland Sh101 sequencing the EMS VCS3, Roland 100M and Moog Modular 3C

PATCHING TODAY - on a vintage ARP 2500

VIDEO LAB - Self-generating abstract images using simple video feedback

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Referenced in this episode:

Twenty Systems album by Benge
https://open.spotify.com/album/28u6Te...

Fader album: https://townsendmusic.store/products/...

The Dreamer by BENGE"

TMP-02 Vintage Synth TV Series from Benge

video upload by zack dagoba

Additional Vintage Synth TV episodes by Benge

"The Memetune Programme Episode 02

00:00 Opening Titles
00:35 Introduction
01:48 Switched On - Polysynths Part One
11:51 Synthesiser Club - EMS Polysynthi & AKS
13:59 Commercial Break
16:10 Patching Today - Buchla 200
29:18 Video Lab - Chromakey
34:53 Outro/Coming Up Next Time

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Second episode in the new six part series of programmes from Benge made at his Memetune Electronic Music Studio

The series explores his passion for vintage synthesiser instruments and studio gear and how he uses it on his productions and collaborations

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It is divided into the following sections:

SWITCHED ON - Featuring in-depth discussions about the history and development of the synthesiser over the years, including demonstrations and feature guides of many classic and iconic instruments

SYNTHESISER CLUB - A short musical demonstration of a synthesiser classic or two

PATCHING TODAY - A deep-dive into vintage modular systems and how to set up a patch on them, starting from scratch

VIDEO LAB - A look at old video equipment and how to create experimental visuals

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

In THIS episode:

SWITCHED ON POLYSYNTHS (PART ONE) - A brief history of Polysynths, with the Oberheim Four Voice

SYNTHESISER CLUB - EMS Polysynthi and Double AKS (AKA 'The Crystal Machine')

PATCHING TODAY - Buchla 200 Modular synthesiser (cloned)

VIDEO LAB - Video Switchers and Chromakeying

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Video referenced in this episode:

The Dreamer by BENGE [posted here]

LINKS:
Benge's Studio Blog: http://myblogitsfullofstars.blogspot.com
Memetune Studio Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/memetunestudio
Benge on Bandcamp: https://zackdagoba.bandcamp.com

Oblong album: https://townsendmusic.store/product/5...

Fader album: https://townsendmusic.store/products/...

Stephen Mallinder Um Dada album: https://www.daisrecords.com/products/...

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The MemeTune Programme Credits:
Everything in this video was created by B D Edwards (Benge)
All music, design, writing, filming, editing and production completed at Memetune Studios, UK, 2022"

zack dagoba Vintage Synth TV

TMP-01 Vintage Synth TV Series from Benge

video upload by zack dagoba

Additional Vintage Synth TV episodes by Benge

00:00 Opening Titles
00:33 Introduction
01:32 Switched On Monosynths
17:58 Synthesiser Club
19:43 Commercial Break
21:51 Patching Today
32:15 Video Lab
35:02 Outro/Coming Up Next Time

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

First in a new six part series of programmes from Benge made at his Memetune Electronic Music Studio

The series explores his passion for vintage synthesiser instruments and studio gear and how he uses it on his productions and collaborations

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It is divided into the following sections:

SWITCHED ON - Featuring in-depth discussions about the history and development of the synthesiser over the years, including demonstrations and feature guides of many classic and iconic instruments

SYNTHESISER CLUB - A short musical demonstration of a synthesiser classic or two

PATCHING TODAY - A deep-dive into vintage modular systems and how to set up a patch on them, starting from scratch

VIDEO LAB - A look at old video equipment and how I create visuals for my music

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

In THIS episode:

SWITCHED ON MONOSYNTHS - A brief history of Monosynths, with the Minimoog, ARP Odyssey, Roland SH101, SH5, Korg 800DS, Yamaha CS40M, Elka Soloist, EMS VCS3, Buchla Music Easel, and various related sequencers: Moog 960, ARP 1601, EMS TKS

SYNTHESISER CLUB - ARP / Rhodes Chroma, ARP 2500

PATCHING TODAY - Emu Series 2000 Modular synthesiser

VIDEO LAB - Brief introduction to the lab, Panasonic WJ-MX50, Sony Camera, Grass Valley Indigo vision mixer

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

LINKS:
Benge's Studio Blog: http://myblogitsfullofstars.blogspot.com
Memetune Studio Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/memetunestudio
Benge on Bandcamp: https://zackdagoba.bandcamp.com

Oblong album: https://townsendmusic.store/product/5...

Stephen Mallinder Um Dada album: https://www.daisrecords.com/products/...

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The MemeTune Programme Credits:
Everything in this video was created by B D Edwards (Benge)
All music, design, writing, filming and production completed at Memetune Studios, UK, 2022

zack dagoba Vintage Synth TV

Ian Helliwell's Tone Generation

[Note: I'm not seeing how to skip episodes in the player above aside from sliding the progress bar to the end to get to the next one.]

You might remember Ian Helliwell mentioned in previous posts on the site here, including his book Tape Leaders. Atomic Shadow wrote in to let us know about his 34-part history of electronic music titled Tone Generation [player above/episode list below], as well has his work on SoundCloud.

The following is a short blurb from his website, http://www.ianhelliwell.co.uk:

"Leaving school and full time education aged 16 armed with six O-levels, Ian is a self-taught and self-funded multi-media artist, working in music, film, animation, analogue electronics, instrument building, collage, installations, live performance, light show projection, graphic design, writing and film programming.

Ian coined the term ‘creative soldering’ to best define his ‘intuitive electronics’ approach, and since the 1990s he has designed and built a unique range of electronic tone generating machines – Hellitrons and Hellisizers – which he uses to realise his compositions."

"The Tone Generation is Ian's audio series looking at the early period of electronic music history, focussing on experimental tracks mostly drawn from his CD and record collection.

TG 34 - Louis & Bebe Barron
TG 33 - Cybernetic Serendipity
TG 32 - Electronics in Space
TG 31 - Synthetic Sound
TG 30 - Beaver & Krause
TG 29 - Electronics in Rock 2
TG 28 - Electronics in Rock 1
TG 27 - Edinburgh Festival Concert 1961
TG 26 - Electronic Odyssey 1967
TG 25 - QEH Concert 1968
TG 24 - Analogue Synthesizers
TG 23 - Electronics for Feature Films
TG 22 - Moog
TG 21 - Buchla
TG 20 - Electronics and Voice
TG 19 - Women in Electronics
TG 18 - Computer Music
TG 17 - EMS
TG 16 - Electronics for Expos
TG 15 - Electronic Music Authors
TG 14 - Electronics for Dance
TG 13 - Electronics in Jazz
TG 12 - The RCA Synthesizer
TG 11 - Expo 58
TG 10 - EM Worldwide
TG 9 - Canada
TG 8 - USA
TG 7 - Soviet Union & E. Bloc
TG 6 - Scandanavia
TG 5 - Holland & Belgium
TG 4 - Italy
TG 3 - Germany
TG 2 - France
TG 1 ..."

Bob Moog Fondation 2022 - 2023 18 Month Calendar

via Signal Sounds, available here

The Bob Moog Fondation is a charitable organisation, based in Anaheim, North Carolina, just a few streets away from the current Moog factory. It acts both as a archive for Bob's work over the years, a museum to show the timeline of his inventions (and more general synth developement) and an educational resource for schools providing hands on experience for children and adults.

Imgaine you had to do all those things? It's pretty certain you'd quickly lose track of what day it is, what week it is or even what month it is (signs of recognition and enthusiastic ndoding from fellow COVID brain fog peepz at the back of the crowd)?

What you would need in that case is.....a calendar! Obviously you can get calendars with amazing inspritation quotes, beautifull sunsets and cute animals but what if you could get an unbelievalbe nerdy synth related calander featuring 18 of the world's most influential synth designers? That would be pretty freakin' cool, no?

"We are proud to announce the release of our epic 2022 Synthesizer Pioneers 18-month calendar, which honors 18 innovators in the field of synthesis from the past 60 years. This is the fifth calendar released by the Foundation focusing on the rich history of Bob Moog’s legacy and the web of innovation in synthesis to which he was connected.

This calendar is the first to bring to the fore the historic achievements of synthesizer pioneers from all over the world. It features:

Harry Olsen and Herbert Belar (RCA)
Harald Bode
Raymond Scott
Bob Moog
Don Buchla
Peter Zinovieff (EMS)
Alan R. Pearlman (ARP)
Ikutaro Kakehashi (Roland)
Fumio Mieda (KORG)
Tom Oberheim
Dave Smith
Roger Linn
Wolfgang Palm (PPG)
Dave Rossum
Peter Vogel and Kim Ryrie (Fairlight)
Ray Kurzweil
Felix Visser (Synton)
Makoto Fukuda (Casio)
Many of the pioneers have contributed historic photos of themselves, with their hallmark inventions from their private archives. Also included within the calendar are scores of dates of particular historic importance provided by the pioneers. A brief narrative is included with each photo.

The 18-month calendar also weaves together connections between Bob Moog and many of the featured pioneers. His relationships with them ranged from inspiration to friends to colleagues to business associates. Secondary photos on many of the pages highlight that connection, showing Bob with his fellow pioneers.

The 18-month calendar is printed on #80 stock paper, making the images suitable for framing after the year is over!

This is the first time any of the Moog Foundation's products have been availabe outside of the USA so we're pretty happy to be able to bring it to you, and a portion of the profits are re-invested in the Bob Moog Foundation so it's a win/win situation.

The calander runs from Jan 2022 until May 2023 (and before you ask, we have no idea why it's an 18 month calendar...maybe they're just relaly indecisive and couldn't cut the list of synth pioneers down from 18 to 12?) and is available right now, right here.

TAPE LEADERS - Book Review & Flipthrough | Early British Music Composers & EMS Synthesizers

video upload by synth4ever

"Tape Leaders book review & flipthrough. Tape Leaders is a richly illustrated A-Z compendium featuring over 100 composers active with tape and electronics in the analogue era.

Containing information never previously uncovered, Tape Leaders shines a fresh light on many sound experimenters unacknowledged in the history of British electronic music. It also covers EMS synthesizers such as the VSC3, Synthi and others as well as BBC Radiophonic studio.

Get your copy of Tape Leaders here: https://velocitypress.uk/product/tape...

----

Tape Leaders: A Compendium Of Early British Electronic Music Composers is an indispensable reference guide for anyone interested in electronic sound and its origins in the UK. The book compiles information on practically everyone active with experimental electronics and tape recording across the country to reveal the untold stories and hidden history of early British electronic music.

With an individual entry for each composer, it covers everyone from famous names like William Burroughs, Brian Eno and Joe Meek to the ultra-obscure such as Roy Cooper, Donald Henshilwood and Edgar Vetter.

There are sections for EMS and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and amateurs, groups and ensembles that experimented with electronics, including The Beatles, Hawkwind and White Noise.

Author Ian Helliwell draws on his experience and extensive research into electronic music. After six years and dozens of interviews, he has amassed information never before brought to light on this fascinating subject.

With a specially compiled 15 track CD of mainly unreleased early British tape and synthesizer works (exclusively available to the Velocity Press shop), this is an essential book for anyone interested in electronic music history during the 1950s and 60s.

This hardback book is 22.7cm x 17.7cm, and the 224 pages are printed and bound on heavyweight 130gsm paper. You can grab a copy at

----------

TIMECODES

00:00 - Intro & Overview

00:50 - Electronic Music Composers A-Z
12:07 - Experimental Amateurs
13:20 - Electronic Music Groups
15:31 - EMS (Electronic Music Studios)
16:32 - BBC Radiophonic Workshop
17:25 - Tape Leaders CD Liner Notes
17:41 - Info, Credits & Index

19:02 - Conclusion & Final Thoughts"

Tape Leaders: A Compendium Of Early British Electronic Music Composers Gets an Update

You might remember Tape Leaders A Compendium Of Early British Electronic Music Composers posted back in 2017. It is now available with some updates.

via Velocity Press where you can find it:

Tape Leaders: A Compendium Of Early British Electronic Music Composers is a richly illustrated A-Z compendium featuring over 100 composers active with tape and electronics in the analogue era. Containing information never previously uncovered, it shines a fresh light on many sound experimenters unacknowledged in the history of British electronic music.

With an individual entry for each composer, it covers everyone from famous names like William Burroughs, Brian Eno and Joe Meek to the ultra-obscure such as Roy Cooper, Donald Henshilwood and Edgar Vetter. There are sections for EMS and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and amateurs, groups and ensembles that experimented with electronics, including The Beatles, Hawkwind and White Noise.

First published by Sound On Sound Magazine in 2016, this is the first time it’s been available outside their shop and this new edition has been extensively revised and updated. The hardback book is 22.7cm x 17.7cm landscape, and the 224 pages are printed and bound on heavyweight 130gsm paper. With a specially compiled 15 track CD of mainly unreleased early British tape and synthesizer works (exclusively available to the Velocity Press shop and free with all pre-orders), this is an essential book for anyone interested in electronic music history during the 1950s and 60s.

Ian Helliwell: "Years before investigating the work of FC Judd for the documentary Practical Electronica, it was evident there was so much early British electronic music that had never been properly researched. The idea of a book examining this formative period began to crystallize during work on the film, as interesting facts were being uncovered that fed into a much broader-based history than has ever been available. A compendium to cover not just the acknowledged figures, but also those that never get a mention, was the objective so that famous names sit alongside the unknowns, and the reader gets a sense of the vast amount of electronic music activity that was going on, which has since been ignored or forgotten about.

“The graphic design was another important consideration and has been something of a labour of love to evoke the era of tape recorders, tone generators and analogue synthesizers. Many of the photos and images have come directly from the featured composers or their families, and form an eye-catching array of illustrations to support and enhance the text."

EMS Founder Peter Zinovieff Has Passed Away

Update: Image of Peter Zinovieff (previously in via Brian Kehew).

"Circa 1975: A photo from the Frankfurt Music Fair

Peter Zinovieff in the EMS synthesizer booth.

They are featuring the rare SYNTHI P model, just announced on the left side and stand. Underneath the board listing EMS musical artists is a SYNTHI HI-FLI effects unit is barely seen. Another unusual/prototype model is next to the Hi-Fli."


Peter Zinovieff and Electronic Music Studios video upload by JeffreyPlaide


Peter Zinovieff: Synth Pioneer video upload by Sound On Sound magazine Jul 21, 2016


Peter Zinovieff talks about modern musical interfaces video upload by Expressive E Jan 6, 2016


Peter Zinovieff feature uploaded by Erica Synths on Nov 23, 2020. This was the latest video to feature Peter Zinovieff that I am aware of.


Peter Zinovieff interview 2015 video upload by 香港電子音樂社 Hong Kong Electronic Music Society Jun 30, 2015


Dr Peter Zinovieff intro & performance excerpt - Deliaphonic 2017 video upload by Deliaphonic Aug 29, 2018

And a few perspectives from others:

Bright Sparks Behind The Scenes - The Brits video by GForce Software published Feb 16, 2021

Cosmic Tape Music Club Podcast hosted by The Galaxy Electric - E1 Peter Zinovieff

video by The Galaxy Electric published Jan 27, 2021

Peter Zinovieff Electronic Calendar

video by Mark Jenkins published Dec 9, 2019 - Electronic Calendar available through this post.

You can find a history of posts mentioning Peter Zinovieff here.

via The Guardian

"Peter Zinovieff, a hugely influential figure in British music whose early synthesisers helped to change the sound of pop, has died aged 88. He had suffered a fall at home earlier this month.

With its marketing slogan 'think of a sound – now make it', his company Electronic Music Studios (EMS) was one of the first to bring synthesisers out of studios and to the public. With products such as the portable VCS3 and Synthi A, EMS customers – including David Bowie, Kraftwerk, the Who, Tangerine Dream and Pink Floyd – were often taught to use the instruments by Zinovieff.

In 1967 he collaborated with Paul McCartney on Carnival of Light, a performance of a 14-minute avant garde composition created between Beatles sessions for Penny Lane that has never been released.

He was also a respected composer of his own work, including early experiments with AI composition and sampling – he claimed to have invented the latter technique." You can read the full post here.

via Wikipedia:

"Peter Zinovieff (26 January 1933 – 23 June 2021) was a British engineer and composer, whose EMS company made the VCS3 synthesizer in the late 1960s. The synthesizer was used by many early progressive rock bands such as Pink Floyd[3] and White Noise, and Krautrock groups[4] as well as more pop-oriented artists, including Todd Rundgren and David Bowie. In later life he worked primarily as a composer of electronic music.

Zinovieff was born on 26 January 1933;[5] his parents, Leo Zinovieff and Sofka, née Princess Sophia Dolgorouky, were both Russian aristocrats, who met in London after their families had emigrated to escape the Russian Revolution and soon divorced.[6] During World War II he and his brother Ian lived with their grandparents in Guildford and then with their father in Sussex. He attended Guildford Royal Grammar School, Gordonstoun School and Oxford University, where he earned a doctorate in geology.[7][8]

Zinovieff's work followed research at Bell Labs by Max Mathews and Jean-Claude Risset, and an MIT thesis (1963) by David Alan Luce.[9] In 1966–67, Zinovieff, Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson ran Unit Delta Plus, an organisation to create and promote electronic music. It was based in the studio Zinovieff had built, in a shed at his house in Putney. (The house is near the Thames, and the studio was later partially destroyed by a flood).[10][11] EMS grew out of MUSYS, which was a performance controller operating as an analogue-digital hybrid.[12] It was a synthesiser system which Zinovieff developed with the help of David Cockerell and Peter Grogono, and used two DEC PDP-8 minicomputers and a piano keyboard.[13] Unit Delta Plus ran a concert of electronic music at the Watermill Theatre in 1966, with a light show. In early 1967 they performed in concerts at The Roundhouse, at which the Carnival of Light was also played; they split up later in 1967.[11] Paul McCartney had visited the studio, but Zinovieff had little interest in popular music.[14]

In 1968, part of the studio was recreated at Connaught Hall, for a performance of pieces by Justin Connolly and David Lumsdaine.[15] At the IFIP congress that year, the composition ZASP by Zinovieff with Alan Sutcliffe took second prize in a contest, behind a piece by Iannis Xenakis.[16]

In 1969, Zinovieff sought financing through an ad in The Times but received only one response, £50 on the mistaken premise it was the price of a synthesiser. Instead he formed EMS with Cockerell and Tristram Cary.[17] At the end of the 1960s, EMS Ltd. was one of four companies offering commercial synthesizers, the others being ARP, Buchla, and Moog.[18] In the 1970s Zinovieff became interested in the video synthesizer developed by Robert Monkhouse, and EMS produced it as the Spectron.[19]

Jon Lord of Deep Purple described Zinovieff as "a mad professor type": "I was ushered into his workshop and he was in there talking to a computer, trying to get it to answer back".[20] Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco, in their history of the synthesizer revolution, see him rather as aristocratically averse to "trade".[21]

Zinovieff wrote the libretto for Harrison Birtwistle's opera The Mask of Orpheus,[22] and also the words for Nenia: The Death of Orpheus (1970).[23] The section Tristan's Folly in Tristan (1975) by Hans Werner Henze included a tape by Zinovieff."

Update:

Peter Zinovieff: A Tribute by CatSynth TV

video upload by CatSynth TV

"We look back at the life and work of Peter Zinovieff, who passed away last week at the age of 88. His work at Electronic Music Studios (EMS) was a major influence on musicians of the 1970s and beyond. At EMS, he co-created the well-known and coveted VCS3 and Synthi series. But he was also a composer in his own right, working on pioneering electronic music in the 1960s and returning to active composition in the 2010s with several collaborations with artists in other media and exploring massive sound spatialization.

Additional background music provided via the Arturia Synthi V as a tribute."

You can find additional posts featuring Peter Zinovieff here.

Is This the First Portable Synthesizer? | Astonishing History of Synthesizers Ep. 4

video by Reverb

"How is this early design still so unknown compared to the Minimoog? And how on Earth did it later become a Moog product? Read more on Reverb.

Featuring music by Daniel Birch.

More tales from The Astonishing History of Synthesizers"

Note the EMS VCS 3 beat the Minimoog by one year. It was released in 1969. See The First synth to post for more. Be sure to check out the comments at the botto of the post there as well.

Analogue Solutions Announces Colossus #4

I almost skipped posting this as the only news here is there's a 4th production run of the Colossus. I guess it's interesting knowing how many are out there. What's also interesting is I always assumed the Colossus was either built in a limited initial run, or it was built per order only. This is a mammoth endeaver and each one costs 25,000 GBP which comes out to $35,000 US. It is $4500 less than this little Sennheiser VSM201 Vocoder!

Note, the images in this post appear to be stock. You can find demos of the Colossus in previous posts here.

Press release follows:
""Analogue Solutions announces forthcoming fourth run of Colossus supersized synth that trips back to the future of analogue

KINGSWINFORD, UK: following a showstopping showcase during its introduction at SynthFest UK 2019 in Sheffield, British boutique electronic instruments innovator Analogue Solutions is proud to announce a forthcoming fourth run of Colossus — its supersized synth that trips back to the future of analogue, albeit symbolising so much more than a powerful analogue ‘workstation’ with no fewer than 12 VCOs (Voltage-Controlled Oscillators) beating at its monumental musical heart, rather representing art, architecture, and superlative studio furniture at its hand-built best by taking its design cues from the colossal classic that is the EMS Synthi 100, although no Synthi circuit was cloned or copied in making the destined-to-be-classic Colossus fit for a new generation of high-flying owners — as of February 15…

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Synthesizer Evolution: From Analogue to Digital (And Back) - Book Review + Flip Through

synth4ever

Synthesizer Evolution: From Analogue to Digital (And Back) is also available on Amazon here.

"Ciat-Lonbarde

Synthesizer Evolution: From Analogue to Digital (And Back) book review & book flip through. Synthesizer Evolution is a recently published book covering every major synth, drum machine and sampler from 1963-1995. Each instrument is hand drawn and includes vital statistics and quirky facts.

Synth Evolution is published by Velocity Press (https://velocitypress.uk) and written & illustrated by Oli Freke (https://www.synthevolution.net), a London-based musician, artist and author with a life-long passion for analogue synthesizers and electronic music.

Synthesizer Evolution: From Analogue to Digital (And Back) provides us with an in-depth look at synthesizer history over the decades and covers a variety of vintage synthesizers including analog synths, digital synths, modular synths, wavetable synths, FM synths, additive synths and more.

Join me for a narrated book flip through highlighting various synths and concluding with a brief book review at the end. Hope you enjoy and feel free to grab a copy of Synth Evolution if you like it.

--------------------
TIMECODES
--------------------
00:00 - Intro

► SYNTHESIZERS
01:01 - 360 Systems, Access Music (Virus), Ace Tone
01:46 - Akai (AX80, AX60)
02:43 - Arp Instruments (2500, 2600)
03:44 - Behringer
04:07 - Buchla modulars
04:22 - Casio (Casiotone, CZ series, HT series)

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