Exclusive! Returning to our regular programming of geeky stories
that appeal to a tiny fraction of the population (PowerBook G5 rumors?
What was it, sweeps week?) and ill-conceived puns (see above), I bring
you: MetaSynth 4.
MetaSynth
is a graphic sound design and music creation environment that lets you
paint with sound, using color imagery for high-quality synthesis,
filtering, and effects. Creator Eric Wenger is beloved by Mac fans for
giving us the ground-breaking (excuse the pun) 3D landscape app Bryce.
If you haven't heard of MetaSynth, it's probably because the program
has been languishing in a Mac OS 9-only version for years.
No more. I've seen screens and other details from an upcoming upgrade,
and while U&I made me promise not to say more, I will tell you the
new version will bring Mac OS X support and will keep pace with modern
music software. It should again give Mac users the ability to create
wild soundscapes and far-out rhythmic loops that sound like no other.
It's great that, in the world of mega-corporate developers, individual
developers are still making software art. (U&I is basically two
people — Edward couldn't talk long because he was busy writing
documentation for this release)
Stay tuned; I'll finally be able to talk details soon.