Expressive E Osmose meets Elastic OSC; playing with MPE

There’s something magical about playing sounds with polyphonic expression. It means translating sound ideas directly to your hands and improvising live, rather than having to go back and edit those ideas in later or take your hands off the keyboard to turn a knob. Here’s a look at playing the presets I made for Elastic OSC using Expressive E’s excellent Osmose keyboard.

Elastic OSC, Plaits-derived poly, is now a macOS and Windows plug-in, too

Elastic OSC expands on Émilie Gillet’s 24 original open-source Plaits oscillator models, adding 8-voice polyphony, expression (MPE), a modulation engine, and Elastic effects. And if that sounds like something you wish you had in your computer DAW and not just Android and iOS, now you’re in luck.

Peter Kirn - May 6, 2026

Next-gen MPE: Expressive E adds smarter control, $999 MIDI keyboard

Expressive E is making its expressive, multi-dimensional keyboards more accessible, with 49- and 61-key controller Osmose options starting at $/€999. And across the full range, the company’s sound ecosystem is expanding with updated software, including the new Ctrl-e platform for sound. That means it’s easier to afford and get started with these unique MPE keyboards, and you’ll more quickly find ready-to-play sounds.

Peter Kirn - April 29, 2026

Play together with Ableton Live, pt. 1: playing in tune

Peter Kirn - March 31, 2026

Elastic OSC, Plaits as an instrument app, now supports Android, MPE

Peter Kirn - March 26, 2026

Bitwig Studio 6 is out of beta, and the “workflow update” is worth the wait

Peter Kirn - March 11, 2026

Absynth creator Brian Clevinger on synths, emotions, and “weird-ass ideas”

Peter Kirn - December 9, 2025

Waldorf’s Protein: soul of Microwave in an 8-voice wavetable synth, €329

Peter Kirn - November 27, 2025

Live 12.3 final is here: what’s new that isn’t Splice or stems

Peter Kirn - November 25, 2025