Synthesizers

Ambient Chaos at Spectrum: Schuyler Tsuda, Amar Chaudhary, John Dunlop, RMA Trio

Today we look back at the November 26 Ambient-Chaos night at Spectrum in New York. I was happy to once again perform there, and hear some of what the local experimental-music scene has to offer.

The performance itself, the New York debut of my feminine persona, went quite well as was very well received. It was anchored by rhythmic elements on the Dave Smith Evolver, overlaid with iPad synths, the garrahand drum, sketch box, and a miniature subset of my analog modular system.

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[Photo by Painter Jung Nam Lee at Spectrum Manhattan, New York Nov 26, 2013]

Performing at Spectrum is always a great experience, sonically as well as visually. Lighting and shading was part of the design of my set and worked perfectly with the ever changing light patterns in the space. I was also happy with the narrative structure within the music. You can see and hear the full set in the following video:


Performance at Spectrum, November 26, 2013 from CatSynth on Vimeo.

I was preceded on the program by Schuyler Tsuda, who performed a set featuring his sonic sculptures. In a space lit only by candles on stage, he struck, bowed and scraped a variety of sonic objects. There were long ambient metallic sounds punctuated by shorter percussive events. The overall effect was eerie and sometimes a bit anxious, but also immersive and inviting. It is difficult to capture in a still photograph, so here is a video clip:


Schuyler Tsuda from CatSynth on Vimeo.

The third set featured John Dunlap on guitar and vocals as part of a duo that also included saxophone and electronics.


John Dunlap from CatSynth on Vimeo.

Their playing was loud and frenetic, and quite a contrast to both my set and Tsuda’s. Dunlap also incorporated throat singing into his performance.

RMA Trio
[Photo by Painter Jung Nam Lee at Spectrum Manhattan, New York Nov 26, 2013]

The final set brought together the RMA Trio along with a guest vocalist/actor to read excerpts from an upcoming play.

The text was in German, and if I understood correctly (which is doubtful) it was based on Hamlet. There was a variety in the instrumental pieces, including both percussive and harmonic piano, drums and guitar effects.

Overall, it was a great show, and a decent turnout considering that it took place in the middle of a nasty rainstorm. Thanks as always to Robert L. Pepper (PAS) for hosting this series, and to Glenn Cornett for making Spectrum a destination for musicians and sound artists in New York.

ERICA MODULAR TEASER “ROCKET SCIENCE” BY $KODEK

Via matrixsynth. Spot the cats.

“Erica Synths teaser ‘Rocket Science’ by team rider $KODEK.
Gear: MPC1000, Erica Synths DIY modules (hexinverter.net MIDI2CV, TH4046 VCO, Yusynth APR VCF, Erica Synths double VCA, MFOS dual AR generator, Erica Synths mixer, Yusynth Output module with mods), Korg Volca beats (clap and hi-hat).
Staring: LUSIS the Cat
http://www.ericasynths.lv
https://soundcloud.com/girts-ozolins-2
http://4444.debilas.net/”

via Imants Dexys on The MATRIXSYNTH Lounge

HELLA KITTY Free Sample Library

From DarkSideoftheTune on SoundCloud. Submitted by Shawn Shirey via our Facebook page

A Howling Free Sample Library from Dark Side of the Tune

Hella Kitty is a 39 sound library containing cat sounds that were altered with a vocoder to create robotic and ethereal sound design options.

Source synthesizers include:

Arturia Minibrute
Moog Slim Phatty
Doepfer Dark Energy

As always, if you like these sounds, please consider stopping by the shop and checking out the other libraries for purchase at www.darksideofthetune.com

Free Library: docs.google.com/file/d/0BzLbZ1FMX…/edit?usp=sharing

I have of course downloaded this one 🙂

Robotspeak Modular Synth Meet

Last weekend, Robotspeak in San Francisco hosted a modular synth meet, with several manufacturers of synth modules on hand along with collectors and enthusiasts.

Eric Barbour of Metasonix was on hand, demonstrating his distinctive yellow tube-based modules, including a new spring reverb still in a pre-production phase.

Metasonix modular synth

I had the opportunity to try these out for myself. I particularly had fun with R-54 VCF, which I may have to get as a companion for my R-53.

AC at modular synth meetup
[Photo by Edward Sharp.]

Another favorite, Make Noise, was also present. I was particularly impressed with the Phonogene – I had heard it before, but this demonstration made the power of the module more apparent.

Make Noise modular synth

I also finally saw and understood what the Wogglebug module does.

Pittsburgh Modular’s offerings were more down-to-earth, workhorse modules. They make an entire basic range of oscillators, filters and modulators that can be obtained separately or in very accessible pre-packaged units like this one.

20131026-IMG_9176

The Pittsburg Modular demo was quite extensive, spanning several interconnected cases.

In the back room, there was a Buchla modular synth being demonstrated. It is a thing of beauty.

Buchla modular synth

In an interesting twist, the owners of the Buchla and the adjacent Arp 2600 decided to hook them up together. You can hear a little bit of the result in this video:

While Dave Smith does not build modulars, he is a San Francisco institution in the synth world, and was represented at the synth meet. We even got a sneak preview of the upcoming tabletop version of the Prophet 12.

Dave Smith Prophet 12 synth

It had the same luscious sound as the keyboard version, though in my opinion the QuNexus keyboard does not do it justice. This is probably a bias a trained keyboardist.

In all, it was a fun afternoon at what I have decided is one of the “most dangerous stores in San Francisco”.