What good is music and music technology in moments of crisis and trauma? Beirut Synthesizer Center co-founders talk about just that – and how much it has meant to those not specializing in music as well as those who do. Now as this project grows, they’ve also had a chance to learn how to make projects effective and sustainable – lessons worth sharing in your part of the world, too.

From Yogyakarta, Indonesia comes a glitchy, powerful delay effect unlike any other. It’s a stompbox with an earthquake setting. And it’s a special collaboration – between Yogya’s engineer of sound and mayhem Andreas Siagian aka squaresolid and instrument builder and musician Wukir Suryadi of the band Senyawa.

CTM Festival in Berlin remains one of the more adventurous international music festivals on the European scene – but in case you aren’t here to enjoy it, there are more ways than ever to take it in online, for free. Of course, I’m biased – things with three-letter acronyms the first of which is ‘C’ and the last of which is ‘M’ always warm my heart. (What do you mean, it’s confusing? Bah.)

CTM Festival is here, rescheduled to May, so with it another collaborative performance laboratory – MusicMakers Hacklab. I find myself revisiting the ideas of former co-host Tad Ermitaño and “animistic technology,” perhaps now as essential a time as ever.

It’s the sound and expression of a modular synth, but you can mix it with guitar sounds and play it with the guitar techniques you already know. Here’s the latest no-extra-cost addition to MOD Devices do-it-all mobile effects boxes.

Ableton Live’s improvisatory clip- and device-based interface make the software feel like it could be as natural for visuals as it is for sound. But EboSuite 2.0’s plug-ins – some 54 of them – are the first that make the “V” side as complete as “A.”

The legendary Greek composer and electronic musician Vangelis Papathanassiou is the latest of a generation to leave us in 2022.

The OB-X8 was live in action at Berlin’s Superbooth – one big highlight was getting to see Dave Smith, Marcus Ryle, and team. But more sounds are coming out, as well.

It’s spring, it’s Superbooth – modular is in the air this May. So you’ve got your modular, and you’re an Ableton Live user – now’s a great time to revisit how to use the two together effectively.

At the beginning of May, The MIDI Association quietly announced MPE 1.1. What’s new? Absolutely nothing. It’s the same spec. So why the new version number? They listened to your questions, issues, and feedback, and made the whole document easier to read, understand, and implement. And that might be better than any new feature.