How do you know analog and patch cords are really back? It’s the return of the patch book. The beloved SOMA PULSAR•23 just got an 80-odd-page tome full of patches for this unique “organismic” instrument, from community members and friends of SOMA.
Music
Bandcamp’s workers in the USA are unionizing
Music Tech Web March 16, 2023
ReBoard transforms melodic playing in Ableton Live with Samchillian layout
You’ve got piano keyboards, you’ve got various grids. But whole new worlds of melodic playing and rapid-fire melodies become possible when you go relative. ReBoard does just that, and it makes even playing from your QWERTY keyboard “awesomely simple” — and enjoyable.
Bandcamp Tempo Adjust adds a DJ-style tempo slider – and, soon, beat detection
Calling Bandcamp addicts who DJ: this clever browser extension adds a DJ-style tempo slider to Bandcamp’s Web interface. It’s already feature-packed, with more coming, and a great way to preview tempo changes before you buy.
Expressive E’s Osmose gestural keyboard instrument arrives, with artist backing
It’s a keyboard, with elements of a hammer-style action. But it’s also gestural, with per-note articulations. And now, it’s more than just a preorder concept. Expressive E’s Osmose is here, complete with artist backing from Paris to LA to Chennai India, Jean-Michel Jarre to Flying Lotus to AR Rahman.
Click Tracker is free and open source cue maker – now with interactive display, pedals
Going on the grid is way more interesting when you compose the grid. Click Tracker, João Pais’ free and open-source click track generation for tons of platforms (even Max and Pd), keeps getting more functionality.
Roland made an egg-shaped alien piano with flying drone speakers for its 50th anniversary
It’s just the piano for Ten Forward or the recreation deck of Heart of Gold. It’s made of a single piece of molded Japanese oak. It’s paired with floating drone speakers for real immersive sound. (You read that right. Flying drones.) It’s the instrument money can’t buy: Roland’s 50th Anniversary Concept Piano.
NVIDIA’s 3D vision is collaboration, jam sessions, remixes, AI-generated materials
There’s a new way for AI and 3D. Instead of just feeding us a more automated version of what we now have, it starts to make immersive graphics production more like music production – complete with live jamming with others. NVIDIA’s offerings still lean heavily toward specialized use, but it’s fascinating to watch that playful thread woven into their announcements.
Someone recreated the Star Wars theme entirely in Logic Pro and sample libraries
It’s exactly as you might expect: sample libraries are at the point of being able to convincingly recreate entire symphony orchestras, close to original recordings. Composer Simon Passmore has done that with Star Wars and Apple’s Logic Pro.
Resolutions: The music from 2022 that stayed with us and kept us coming back
Everyone else might sign up for a gym or make some self-improvement lists. Music lovers reorganize their playlists – and what a joy to do so. So resident music lover David Abravanel is back and joins your dear edito. It’s a look back at music from 2022 that we can’t stop playing right into 2023.
At Black-led Willie Mae camp, music tech exploration starts at age 5 – interview
Black-led, female-led, New York-based Willie Mae Rock Camp is providing inspiration to female and gender nonbinary musicians. Executive director LaFrae Sci talks to us about how it works – and it begins with breathing with a drum machine.