Cook every day: read Suzanne Ciani’s 1976 Buchla Cookbook, for free

In 1976, Suzanne Ciani reported back to the USA’s National Endowment for the Arts with a report on her compositions, in the form of a modular cookbook. Now you can read her notes and follow along using entirely free software, complete with sound examples. I love overusing the cookbook metaphor, maybe just because food is […]

Nuclear test equipment inspired this new Eurorack module

Boxcar averagers, used in vintage nuclear test equipment, inspired the latest creation from AI Synthesis. What you get is the AI250 BXR: it’s an oscillator, a voltage generator, and an audio mangler all in one. And it’s a pathway into DIY modules, even on tight budgets.

Peter Kirn - September 2, 2026

Vintage Max patches revived: free downloads, Leafcutter John and Suren

Suren Seneviratne (My Panda Shall Fly) has been painstakingly cataloging lost software, oldschool patches, and retro musical practices, reviving old machines and software and breathing new life into them. But now, we get some classic Max patches, remade for the current era of Max patches. Download them for free, and listen in as Suren interviews Leafcutter John and John interviews Suren.

Peter Kirn - July 31, 2026

Last call on these summer sales on gear and software

Peter Kirn - July 27, 2026

With audio and VST3 support, Isadora is now a complete interactive canvas

Peter Kirn - July 14, 2026

Turn Ableton Push 3 into a single expressive percussive surface, free

Peter Kirn - June 15, 2026

Free: 4ms VCV Rack ROMplers put gobs of drums under voltage control

Peter Kirn - May 19, 2026

This free tool lets you create interactive, live graphic scores in Ableton Live

Peter Kirn - May 15, 2026

Link Audio, now in Max, Pd, VCV Rack, TouchDesigner, oF, and plug-ins, free

Peter Kirn - May 3, 2026