All signs indicate that Vista could be a great OS for musicians, from overhauled audio drivers to robust 64-bit computing support and overall improvements in stability, performance, and usability. Microsoft tells CDM they can let us in on further details early in March. Now the bad news: Microsoft seems to be making a marketing decision […]

Ah, “undocumented features.” Here’s my least favorite MIDI and audio “feature” in Windows: since Windows 2000, the operating system imposes an arbitrary limit of ten 32-bit audio (wave) and MIDI device drivers on the system. These are actually 10 driver entries in the Registry, so you don’t have to have 10 USB keyboards to hit […]

While on the subject of physical computing, you can’t get much more physical than the pulse from a human body. pixelcrypt has created a piece that synthesizes music using human pulse. Two participants can collaborate on the music by regulating their pulse; the sonic feedback means this interactive art piece also doubles as an excellent […]

At first, I thought FretPet was a virtual fret interface with MIDI output to your favorite soft synths. And so it is. But closer inspection reveals a lot more. This Mac tool, newly available for OS X with an expanded feature set, is a unique way of exploring pitch and chords. If you know nothing […]

Usually, if you sample George Clinton, you wind up in court. A circuit court decision in fall 2004 ruled that an unlicensed George Clinton sample was illegal regardless of context, length, or recognizability in a decision so sweeping even the record industry opposes it. (See my article below; the details are quite complex.) For once, […]

Bored with MIDI keyboards and ready to build something new? Here are some of the latest resources for using basic sensors to create new interfaces for music and other applications, aka “physical computing”: Interactive Architecture Tutorials: Ruairi Glynn’s superb blog on interactive tech has added an extensive section of links to tutorials and resources on […]

As we reported last month, Moog Music is expected to announce new hardware at the Musikmesse show in Frankfurt, Germany. The suspense is apparently driving people nuts, reports Music thing. So, in a market where we generally don’t get the silly Photoshop mockups that, imaginary Mac gear and cellphones get, we suddenly have (tongue-in-cheek) ideas […]

They just won’t learn. Phonic proudly tells us: “The all new Phonic MixPod gives every Disc Jockey what they require: a way to stream their iPod’s music directly into a quality, no-hassle 2-channel DJ mixer.” The MixPod shares the fundamental shortcomings of Numark’s slicker-looking but equally flawed iDJ. Because of the limitations of the iPod, […]

It’s two, two, two times the nostalgia, as Warhol shills for TDK analog cassette tapes: Warhol Japandering for Cassettes [Dailymotion video, via] I love his trademark wooden speech as he struggles through the Japanese. Remember a world in which you could advertise for cassette tapes? Sigh. At least Japan is still hip, jamming on marimbas […]

After avoiding a brief brush with death last May, the massive soft synth package Wusikstation now hits version 3, the second update in less than a year. Wusikstation Version 3 (production information and preorder) There’s a gig of new sounds in the HQ Acoustic Collection with more on the way, plus lots of advanced new […]