Unfortunately, today is the last day of podcasting for the Art + Music + Technology podcast. Health issues have gotten in the way, and it would be impossible to continue.

You can read the transcription of this article, as well as finding some interesting writing on my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/posts/66445163

Thank you for being such a great group of friends and supporters during this long series of music 

Oh yeah! I’ve been working on getting this interview for a while. It combines modular synths (love ‘em), compositional techniques, an extremely busy schedule – and even using the voice as an instrument! The time that I got to spend with Martha Bahr (Panic Girl) was more than amazing – it was transforming for me. The way that Martha approaches her work is going to be helpful to anyone making electronic music.

So I just spilt the beans on a few of the topic we covered, but we were all over the place. And we got along like old friends – even though I don’t think we’d ever met. Martha is super-easy to talk to, and leads a very interesting life, so doing this interview was like falling out of a tree.

I don’t need to talk this one up much – truly one of my favorite interviews ever. Dig in!

Oh, and you can check out her new album here: https://iuwerecords.bandcamp.com/album/washed-ashore

Transcription available at http://www.darwingrosse.com/AMT/transcript-0380.html

Exclusive extra content on the Patron page: https://www.patreon.com/darwingrosse

I’ve long been interested in sound design and post-production work, so when I got the opportunity to interview Peter Albrechtsen and David Barber, I jumped at the chance. Peter and David worked on the movie The Killing Of Two Lovers (by Robert Machoian), which is rather unique because it has no traditional musical score; all of the sound in the movie is a combination of location sound, foley and designed sounds, carefully mixed into a minimalist-but-complex soundscape.

In our discussion, we learn about how this kind of work was developed, how Peter and David worked together to pull it off, and the lengths taken to perfect the sound of the movie. We also learn about each of their backgrounds, as well as explore the future work they are planning. And, as a bonus, we get to learn about how post-production works in a fast-paced, highly collaborative environment.

You can find The Killing Of Two Lovers on streaming services, and I strongly suggest you checking it out. It’s a wonderful experience, and will open your mind to new ways of considering movie sound.

Enjoy!

Transcription available at http://www.darwingrosse.com/AMT/transcript-0371.html

Exclusive extra content on the Patron page: https://www.patreon.com/darwingrosse

I've known Stefan Brunner for some time - going back to some of the early Cycling '74 company meetings (I somehow remember him laying out a figure-8 bike path in an alleyway in SF...), but I've never really cornered him on his artistic work. This last February, we found ourselves in a restaurant, and I poked him to explain a little more about his artwork. He started revealing, and I was stunned - I knew he was an active artist, but didn't realize how deeply he was embedded into the thing. From Arto Lindsay to large orchestras to a duet with a mad turntablist, he was multi-disciplinary to the extreme.

And he is also a killer developer - both of deep C++ code as well as a variety of devices in Max for Live. All of this reveals itself in his work, which tends to simultaneously be abstract and deep, and which is always exploring the edges of the medium. His work with Pedro Lopes as The Hour Of The Wolf is a great example: just when you think it is totally non-representational, Stefan will peel off a beautiful guitar riff to center your mind. And that's just one manifestation of his work; whether it is coding, working on installations, working on compositions or performing, there's a grounding in the world along with the flights of impressionism.

You can check out more of Stefan's work at https://stb.klingt.org/, The Hour Of The Wolf at the link above, and his work (along with Timm Ringewaldt) as Audiokolor at http://audiokolor.org/. Enjoy!

Fans of VCV Rack and Voltage Modular will be all over the name VULT, but it's also making its name known for both hardware modular gear as well as nifty DSP trickery. Created by Leonardo Laguna Ruiz, Vult produces some of the best virtual modules I've tried, and is branching out into hardware modules and even DSP programming languages. And, of course, this amazing body of work is coming from an equally amazing guy.

Leonardo is one of those pan-continental, pan-discipline people that will make you love the modern world. Leveraging a love of recording technology with an education in electrical engineering, he is one of those guys that thinks in differential equations. His passion is in modeling, and his work shows it: the filters, oscillators and other devices that he's created are fabulous examples of math-in-audio at its best.

In our chat, we talk about the modules, the language, hardware developments and Leonardo's beginning story. The whole thing is inspiring, and it'll make you want to crack those books again. Enjoy!

In the introduction of the podcast, I mention the opportunity to support Paul Birken's upcoming 'zine release. If you are interested, you can check out the first edition here, find out more on Facebook, or touch base with him at tonewrecker@gmail.com. Support the 'zine cause!

I first knew Doug Lynner's work as the editor/publisher of Synapse Magazine, an electronic music magazine before most people even knew that was a thing. Doug laid the groundwork for magazine-as-history in our cultural world, and took the opportunity to leverage his position and location (L.A.) to get a lot of great interviews over the magazines short-ish lifetime.

I have a couple of listener requests to have a chat with Doug, which caused me to do a little background work. My God - what a career. Between his CalArts education, the magazine work, his bands and his long history with Serge systems (including being an artist/demo dude for Serge himself), he was clearly a touchpoint for the things that interest all of us.

He continues full-force, doing one-on-one teaching, producing a weekly live performance radio show on KZSU (https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/bloopandquack) and releasing new work based on his Modular Tonalism system. All of it is intriguing, and after listening to this chat, I'm sure you are going to want to learn more.

Check out all of Doug's work at https://www.neatnetnoise.com/, or at his bandcamp site (https://douglynner.bandcamp.com/). Enjoy!

Marco Petracca owns many names, but my favorite is HHNOI - his artist name for his work with composition using modular synths. Marco has made some careful choices about how he approaches musical development, how he chooses his tools and how he separates his recording work from his live performance. The result is a satisfying combination of well-crafted songform and beautiful sound design.

I first ran across HHNOI as I became fascinated with the Modularfield label, and was really pleased when Markus (from Modularfield) opened the door for a discussion with Marco. We got along great - it was clear that we had shared a lot of experiences: living through the tumult of recording format changes, watching analog come, then go, then come back again, and struggling with synchronization among all these systems. So we have a lot to talk about.

You can check out Marco's work at his Modularfield page, on the HHNOI site, or on his Soundcloud page. This was a fun discussion for me, and I hope it is a great listen for you, too. Enjoy!

I've known Wes Milholen for a while - I first met him as he was working on some of his first replacement faceplates. He was part of the Denver/Boulder modular scene, and we spent time at meetups and performances. I always found his crisp and clean designs to my liking, and found him to be a thoughtful developer and talented performer.

He's gone on to do a lot more stuff: module development, more panel designs, and even design work for VCV rack. As you'll hear in this interview, he views design work to be his calling, and it shows in everything that he touches.

We had a great talk - some reminiscing, some product history talk, and a lot of discussion about the world of modular synthesis. Wes has his finger on the pulse of that world, and has some good insight on where things came from and where they are going.

Check out his work at https://grayscale.info/, https://1979.ws/ and https://vcvrack.com/. He's also hanging around mose social media sites and Muffwiggler's forum.

Enjoy!

Let's face it - we didn't get into sound design in order to hang out with a bunch of strangers. We tend to be an insular community, and can barely look beyond our shoes to interact with one another.

But the Internet can change all of that, right? Well, maybe - but social media interaction isn't necessarily any easier for meeting people than house parties are. Along comes Holly Vernon with a smart prospect: create a network of connections that can be used to help us find each other, introduce ourselves in a safe way, and build up connects when and where we need them.

I happened to hear Holly talk at Synthplex, and found the proposal quite interesting. It can be as simple as posting social media content with the #exsoso hashtag, or you can add your name to the database and use that database to draw people into performances, workshops or whatever you happen to be doing in a new area.

Pulled together from Holly's experience finding people to meet, this is a growing opportunity for people interested in breaking out of their shells and finding collaborators, performers or performance locations. You can learn more about the Experimental Sound Society at exsoso.com, or search for the #exsoso tag on various social media platforms.

Enjoy!

Back in Podcast 38, we talked to Jim Coker - the developer behind Numerology and the company Five12. Well, it's been five years, and a lot has happened since then. I met up with Jim at Synthplex, and got a quick catch-up; I also realized that we needed to have another interview, because things have gotten very real for him since we last talked!

It's all about hardware, baby. In this case, that would be the Vector Sequencer: a no-holds-barred sequencer for Eurorack systems that brings much of the sequencing power of Numerology into the Eurorack world. This device provides many of my favorite features into its 3u height, so you can expect that I wanted to know how that could happen.

As always, Jim was willing to share - and to be patient as I marveled at what he pulled off. This sequencer is significant enough to occupy the center of a decent studio (much like Numerology itself), and bring the step sequencing game to a new level of awesome.

You can learn more about both Numerology and the Vector Sequencer at five12.com

Enjoy!

I've been a fan of Modularfield's recordings ever since I first ran into them. Featuring well-known releases by Ann Annie and HHNOI, the label has a strong identity - but it doesn't overwhelm the artists. Thus, you have variety, but a unified approach, and the whole works out quite well. With a new release by An On Bast, I realized it was time to check in with Markus - and he agreed to do a podcast.

We talked a lot about the curation process that he and Stefan Liehr employ in maintaining the high level of quality (and, as Markus put it, "timelessness"), as well as the details of hand-making cassette covers, finding new artists and making compelling artwork. It's a great insight into the thinking involved in running and maintaining a label - something I've always been curious about.

I'm a fan of Modularfield (obvioiusly...), and suggest that you check out their releases at https://modularfield.io/. Some of my favorites include all the Ann Annie releases, An On Bast's "Summer Camp Experiment", HHNOI's whole catalog and Reverbal Sign's "Silent Fog". But, of course, your choices may be way different than mine. Check it out, and enjoy the work!

Dan Goldstein has been living his dream for 20 years. He started off with Sonic Foundry - back in the golden days - creating the future of audio software from scratch. He went on to be a main developer of Mixcraft, and has recently been involved in the release of Cherry Audio's Voltage Modular synth software. It's a powerhouse, and you can tell that Dan is really excited about it.

We took the opportunity to roll through some of his history, and I learned a lot about Sonic Foundry's world. But I also got a chance to see the trajectory of a guy - in Dan - that knew what he loved, and spent a lot of effort pursuing it. You hear it in his voice; despite the fact that he's been doing it for 20 years, he sounds as excited as a teen with his first car.

It was cool to talk to Dan about history, but also about his current work on Voltage Modular. If you are interested in playing around with a new kind of virtual modular, you should check it out - it's breaking some new ground, and is a blast to play with. You can check it out at https://cherryaudio.com/

Enjoy!

It's pretty hard to avoid gear lust when you see 1010 Music's work in action. Originally launched as the Bitbox, the touchscreen, high-function module has spawned a number of implementations, including the Synthbox, Fxbox, Toolbox and - most recently - the standalone Blockbox. I've been in awe of this system since it was first released, and I'm glad to have the chance to talk with the creator - Aaron Higgins.

Based out of LA, Aaron and his spouse have 1010 humming. By focusing on a specific setup (a touch-based interface on a fully-digital module base), they have been creating some eye-popping modules for sample playback, digital synthesis, realtime sequencing and even laser pattern generation. You have to see some of these things to believe them, but in general you can say that 1010 is pushing the envelope of what we think a module can do.

In our talk, we discuss the development of the platform, the differences in the devices, and Aaron's inspiration and design aesthetic. We also peek at his background as a developer, and look into the future of standalone hardware creation.

I got a chance to see the 1010 Blackbox in action at Synthplex, and am so glad that he took the opportunity to have a chat. If you want to see more about their hardware offerings, check out their website: https://1010music.com/

Enjoy!

Part of my history is attending and teaching at University of Denver in the Emerging Digital Practices program. One of the professors in this department is Chris Coleman, and he was a fascinating person to be around – he was always digging into new technologies, checking out both software and hardware opportunities, and inspiring people to try things outside their comfort zone.

In our discussion, we dive into microprocessors, open source software, physical vs. digital concerns and NFT’s. And, of course, we dig into Chris’ background to find out more about what makes him the artist – and professor – that he is.

I really appreciate this discussion because we are able to dig into some technical issues (like NFT minting) that I needed to learn about, and Chris is sharing-first when it comes to everything. I’m sure you’ll get that from this interview!

You can check out DU’s EDP program here: https://liberalarts.du.edu/emergent-digital-practices

Enjoy!

Transcription available at http://www.darwingrosse.com/AMT/transcript-0370.html

Exclusive extra content on the Patron page: https://www.patreon.com/darwingrosse

There are voices in our lives that are always welcome. One of those, for me, is Marc Weidenbaum. Marc has a long history of writing about things that I (and, I'm guessing, we) care about, and has been one of those people that consistently opens doors of musical understanding for me.

As the editor and chief bottle-washer of https://disquiet.com/, he uses his words to explore music and sound in a way that I find inspiring. As the 'stimulant' behind the Disquiet Junto, he is also prompting musicians to produce work based on an idea - using suggestions that aren't always specific, but can often lead artists to do things that are a little out of the ordinary.

In our chat, we talk about everything from Marc's background working at Pulse, to his own musical practice, and also a lot about the inspiration and details behind the Junto. We also get to hear about the breadth of work that Marc pursues, and how he pulls it all together.

Super inspiring, and a call-to-action to boot! Enjoy!

I'm a sucker for a great book, and especially a great series. I also like knowing about books that will help people become better Max programmers. That combination comes into play with Maurizio Giri and Alessandro Cipriani's "Electronic Music and Sound Design" a (so far) two book series that explores Max/MSP programming through electronic music technique.

But Maurizio is into more than that: an active composition teacher, he exercises his electronic music muscles by creating pro-level Max for Live devices and iOS apps under the name Amazing Noises. The Amazing Noises Outer Space device is one of my favorite beyond-reverb plug-ins, and those apps feature some of the most intuitive user interfaces seen in audio development.

In this chat, Maurizio and I talk about the development of both books and applications from the standpoint of a traditional composition professor, and also discuss the way that modern (and often computer-enhanced) classical music is managed today. We get some great insight into a great mind, and get to see how all these things get created.

Enjoy!

Talk about wired in! Cassie Tarakajian is keyed into a lot of my favorite projects, from the Miraweb project, to p5.js, to the Node for Max project that was part of Max 8 - tons of favorites there. But a key part of this is that it is all focused on the intersection of the web and artwork - a place this isn't always comfortable.

In our chat, we talk about the history of fun on the web, how having a ubiquitous art canvas can be both liberating and unnerving, and ways to make art-coding available to whomever wants it. We also talk about the importance of open source software, and the effect that changing technologies and mobile platforms have on web-based development.

You can learn more about Cassie's work by checking out her website: https://cassietarakajian.com/, the p5.js site (https://p5js.org/) and Cycling '74's Max 8 page (https://cycling74.com/products/max-features). She's super-active in other areas of web-based art tech, so you are bound to run into her work wherever you happen to go.

And she's also going to be teaching a workshop at the Cycling '74 Expo at the end of April - all about Node for Max. Swing by if you get a chance.

Enjoy!

If you know synths and movie scoring, you know Michael Lehmann Boddicker's work. He's one of those people that I've always followed - his work is impeccable, and always on-point. He's involved in a new conference - Synthplex - and I took the time to have a quick chat with him about it.

This conference seems like a combination of Superbooth, AES, TED talks and a music festival. There is a lot going on, a lot of industry focus, but it is specific to business-to-customer activity, so there will be a lot of information useful for anyone that can walk in the door. If you want to see a list of the performers, speakers or exhibitors, you can check out the site:

www.synthplex.com

I'm going to be there - if you will be, drop me a line and we can try to meet up. Enjoy!

(Oh, and I'm going to get Michael to have a regular podcast chat soon - I promise!)

Note: Mattijs and Hidde are part of the group of presenters at Cycling '74's Expo, which will be running from April 26-28, 2019. Ticket prices are about to go up, so if you are thinking about going, sign up now!

Showsync is one of those software pieces I've been hearing about for a while. Under development - and active use in show - for many years, it is now available for commercial purchase. With some high-profile users (and show) using the software, it was interesting to me to learn more about the people behind this software.

Mattijs and Hidde have been active members of the Max community for some time, and their work has taken advantage of the Max for Live connection to create a tightly integrated video solution for live shows. But rather than creating a 'reactive' system, Showsync provides all of the functionality of a timeline development system for 'composing' video content that can be synced to performance.

As we hear in this discussion, this changes the way you can consider video use in live performance. No longer do the musicians have to slave to the video - instead, the video work can sync to the performance, and the video artist can literally be a part of the band!

It's an exciting way to approach video production, and a cool way to imagine linking video to music performance in an organic way. I'm looking forward to learning more about this system (they well be doing demos and workshops at Expo '74), and trying my hand at a different way of providing live performance video.

You can check out their work at showsync.info. Enjoy!

Now that the podcast has been running for five years, I'm seeing that some of our earlier interviews have been doing great new things - and so have I. We've settled on a format that brings out great questions, but I didn't quite have my ideas in order 'back then', so some of the details were missing. Time to rectify that!

Dan Nigrin (episode #2!) is one of my favorite people in the music tech world - primarily because he only does what he wants. He has an incredibly important day-gig, so music and music tech is there for him when he wants to relax. And how does he relax? He creates crazy sequencers and decodes old tape and sysex dump specs.

From the MC-202 (which has been coming up a lot lately...), through the Oberheim DSX and now to the Ensoniq Fizmo, Dan takes on the improbably projects in the same way that some people take on the New York Times Crossword. He's into it, spends countless hours, and takes great pride in cracking the codes along the way.

In our chat, we get into his background, how he got pulled into music and synthesizers - and programming. We also dig into some of the details of his work and ideas he has for the future. All-in-all, a great catch-up with a great cat.

Enjoy!

Alessandro Cortini should be well-known to most of the people that listen to this podcast. From his work with Nine Inch Nails, to his modular-fueled solo work, and to his inspirational videos and interviews, Alessandro is on the mainline of music tech. But he's also decades behind (in a good way...) because of his love of Don Buchla's designs and instruments. I know of no other person that is so obsessed with Buchla equipment - and making music with it.

In our chat, we talk about the variety of ways that he interacts with his instruments, his interests in modulars that are more than gear collections, and the way that great gear inspires him to make the music he loves. We also talk about a few of his specific releases, and how they (sometimes inadvertently) come into being. Of course, I also get to ask about his cassette 4-track interests (another thing we share) - and how he finds unique ways of using one.

I loved doing this interview; Alessandro was pretty hyped on coffee, so he was on fire! I hope that you enjoy listening to this - and are as inspired as I was.

Cheers!

Sometimes I get in a mood - you know? The last thing I need is a screeching industrial band or ear-piercing experimental trip. Sometimes I need to relax - and sometimes that means laid back, bossa-infused electronic tracks.

When I go on that trip, tracks occasionally jump out for me - and one artist kept coming up: Michael E. It had a relaxed feel that was right for the genre, but small details kept cropping up: inventive arrangements, nice (real) instrumental support - and a lot of work. I checked out some of his bio material, and was shocked by the number of releases he's produced. Michael is hyper-productive, and I wanted to learn more.

I reached out to Michael E and he was up for an interview; it was going to be different from the typical fare, but it turned out to be equally interesting. Michael's background, production planning and collaborations all informed my understanding of how he does his work, and it was great to talk to someone that was dedicated to making a career in music-making - without falling into the YouTube Stardom black hole.

Enjoy, and check out Michael E's work next time you need to relax! 

During a recent Cycling '74 retreat, I was helping out with some sticky support issues - and I ran across a really cool thing. A guy with a Gen issue was asking about some deep details - and was talking about sharing the info on his blog. I checked out his blog, and my eyes popped out: it was amazing. I had to know more, and that led me to discussions with Martin Russ.

Once I saw the name, I knew who I was talking with. The author of the book "Sound Synthesis and Sampling", a column-jockey for Sound on Sound magazine and an adept Max for Live programmer, I was excited to learn more. And so, this podcast!

Martin does something that few people do: he shows his patches. Not only does he show them, but he describes them in detail, and talks about his thinking while he was digging into the details. This is the kind of introspection you don't often see in Max programmers, and I found his blog (http://blog.synthesizerwriter.com/) to be a great location for interesting details on MFL programming.

It turns out that Martin has a long history of electronics, writing, music, synthesis and coding. When you listen to the podcast, you'll be a little floored at his background. It's also interesting to hear about his perspectives on the current state of gear, and what he thinks is the most exciting thing in the audio universe (it might surprise you...).

Enjoy the chat, check out his writing and his Max for Live devices (available on maxforlive.com) and learn a bunch more about Martin. Cheers!

Dr. Kate Sicchio is hard at work redefining what it means to be a media artist. Deeply embedded in the dance world (she identifies as a choreographer), she has been working with dance-oriented electronics and coding, and has extended that into the live-coding music and visuals world as well. Her work ranges from code-and-body critique to algorave gathering organizer - and seems to get it all right!

Starting off as a serious dancer, Kate also was drawn to web programming, and soon found a way to combine the two disciplines into a singular practice. This led to work with live-coding, wearable sensor and motor development and is even now moving toward custom language development. If you are interested, you really need to check out her website (http://blog.sicchio.com/) and Vimeo videos (https://vimeo.com/user5717715).

Dr. Sicchio will be one of the presenters at the Cycling '74 Expo, to be held in April 2019 at MASS MoCA. You can find out more about the Expo here: https://cycling74.com/expo

Enjoy!

When Andrew Pask pointed me toward Plan 9 (and made an initial introduction), I couldn’t really tell what I was getting into. The soundtrack work was very interesting, and their recent releases mapped out a compelling set of skills. But then I checked out Modwheel – which is their sample library company – and started to connect the dots: Really unique sound design and instrument design led to quirky soundtrack work, which led to crazy sample libraries, which leads to even more sound design work.

An organic circle of life!

Speaking with Steve Roche and David Donaldson open the door to understanding how Plan 9 got started, how they developed their interesting and unique sound (can you believe that The Flying Nun makes an appearance?), and how they create a creative working atmosphere that puts them in a position to constantly make great work. Their ‘systemic’ approach to building a work life is an inspiration, and has got me paying attention to these Wellington natives.

Check out https://www.plan9.co.nz and https://www.modwheel.co.nz to see their work in action.

Enjoy!

Transcription available at http://www.darwingrosse.com/AMT/transcript-0369.html

Exclusive extra content on the Patron page: https://www.patreon.com/darwingrosse

My first view of Erik Emil Eskildsen's work was at the urging of Markus Reuter; he pointed to Erik's work and said "Hey, this might be a cool guy for you to talk to!". The further I dug in, the more interesting work I found: touch guitar, heavy effect pedal action, then the YouTube "Modular + Pedals" channel - and then his most recent release (The Forest of Unending Warmth). I found it all interesting, and we set up a time to have a chat. Very glad that I did!

Erik is super open about his process, and we dug into his work, my preconceptions about how he does it - and the reality of how he actually does it! It was cool to hear about someone that treats systems as a composition, and that considers that system setup as critical to the composition process. Very instructive to me, and it has inspired me to think differently about that work.

You can check out Erik's work on his bandcamp page: https://eeeskildsen.bandcamp.com/music. You can also learn more about his work on him artist website (http://www.eeeskildsen.com/) and that Modular + Pedals YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCk2dijCIj0oEB6LKrM-jZpQ). But take the time to dip into Erik's work - you'll be glad you did.

Enjoy!

As a young(er) dude wrapping my head around music technology, there was one person that was consistently inspiring to me: Larry Fast. From his work as Synergy (which you can learn about here: http://synergy-emusic.com), or as a backing musician with Peter Gabriel, or doing composition and sound design across the industry, Fast's work was always pushing my ideas of what synths could do. So it was an amazing opportunity when I was introduced to Larry - and got a chance to record this chat with him.

Larry has never not been busy, and that remains the case: he's been working on a documentary (Saving the Great Swamp), creating archives from his Synergy work and putting together the material for a new release. This in combination with working with the Thomas Edison National Historic Park, and is deeply involved in historic preservation information.

Preparing for this interview got me diving back into the Synergy catalog, and I was reminded how much some of those albums (particularly Cords, Audion, Computer Experiments) lit my mind up with alternatives to the easily-patched voicings and preset sounds. I owe him a lot for that, and I hope you enjoy this discussion with Larry Fast.

It's always great to get into something before it happens. In this case, Ellison Wolf, proprietor of Zorx Electronics, is planning the launch of a new magazine - Waveform magazine. This is going to be a free print magazine that focuses on the gear, players and makers of synthesizers, modular gear and great music.

I first heard of this on my Facebook feed, and quickly signed up for the upcoming first issue. But I also wanted to talk to Ellison about his preparations for this release, and how he thought he would succeed in a world where print magazines seem to be shrinking - fast!

This looks like an interesting development; if it sounds like something you'd be into, you can sign up on the Waveform site: https://www.waveformmagazine.com. You can also check out Ellison's Zorx work at https://www.zorxelectronics.com/, and his musical collaboration under the name Secretary (https://www.secretaryband.com/).

Enjoy! 

Deantoni Parks is one of those percussionists that other percussionists talk about. They pass video links, performance notes and bandcamp sites to each other, because his work is pretty shocking. Rather than take a Neil Peart-style hit-all-the-drum approach to advance drumming, he instead chose to pursue - and even exceed - the kinds of drumming we normally think of coming out of machines and digital editors.

Starting his drum work at age 2, he has been pushing himself for almost four decades, and the result is jaw-dropping. Equally at home with a full or abbreviated kit (with sampler-keyboard), Deantoni produces work that is start-of-the-art. Then you will read that all of it was performed live, and you *have* to see it.

You can find out more about Deantoni on his Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/deantoniparks/), or check out his Technoself releases on the bandcamp page (https://deantoni.bandcamp.com/). But dig into this - it will pay back great dividends.

Enjoy!

In last week's episode, we just scratched the surface of Eric's role in creating the maker's world we now occupy. So I called him back and we immediately did a second interview to fill in some of the gaps: what were the early days like, how did he actually get the stuff built, why the move to Pittsburgh. This continues the fascinating journey of Eric Singer, and helps us to further appreciate the way he helped shape the electronic music future.

I think it is especially important to consider what was happening during the early 2000's, when computer technology was moving forward so rapidly, and the financial marketplace was in post-internet-boom chaos. Eric kept cranking out the work, teaching dozens of people how to manage their art through the process of hardware and software production, and eventually leading to something as overwhelming as the Orchestrion Project. 

Again, if you haven't yet checked out Eric's work, you should: http://www.singerbots.com/

Enjoy!

I'm pretty sure you know Eric Singer's work. Some of his most well-known work includes Pat Metheny's 'The Orchestrion Project', but he's been doing robotic musical instruments for a long time. I remember the first time I saw a video of Eric work - it was the reveal for the Guitarbot, and it was jaw-dropping at the time.

Eric was a maker before there was such a thing, and was doing cool robots when robots weren't part of artistic practice. He was learning machining, embedded coding and electronic design when those phrases were more industrial 'work' than creative 'play'. And he ended up paving the way for all of us.

You can check out his current work at his http://www.singerbots.com/ site.

In this interview, we start the discussion with him about his background, some of his work with Pat (and others), and the process of coming up-to-speed on gear he had never considered part of the 'practice'. We ran out of time long before we ran out of topics, but we'll continue the chat next week.

Enjoy!

Carl-Mikael Björk's Cabinet of Curiosities is one of the most fun channels on YouTube. From walk-throughs of his writing process to Elektron check-ins or Max visual demos, Carl is out front on a lot of things we are digging. He has a unique video style which, combined with stunning video quality, makes it a favorite for me - and for me to recommend to others.

I got a chance to hang out with Carl in LA at the Loop conference, and we had a great time talking about everything from music releases to video camera selection. I was happy to also be able to book a chat with him for the podcast, and we had a great chat - this one is one you get to hear!

If you haven't already, check out Carl-Mikael's Cabinet of Curiosities here on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLejlP7lr3PFX8Rrz1nN69Q

He's also easy to find on Facebook, Instagram and elsewhere. He's also got a great Patreon offering. You can find about all of it at his main Cabinet site:

http://cabcurio.com/

Enjoy!

I enjoy having an opportunity to interview my friends - just because the 'interview' process is actually different from a friendly chat, and I end up learning things that I never knew from 'just talking'. Richard has been a friend forever - probably since we were sitting on crates at the NYC AES show, waiting for the forklift drivers (and we waited forever because we weren't willing to bribe anyone...).

Richard is an amazing fount of knowledge, from classical music pedagogy to DSP programming technique - and all of the things he knows are driven from personal interest. He pursues his interests with vigor, and that's what made me want to have this discussion.

From his time at IRCAM, through his time at Cycling '74 and now with his work at Hanyang University, Richard brings depth and honor to the rugged sport of serious music. I hope you enjoy this talk, and please check out his work at http://www.richarddudas.com/ (My favorite piece is Prelude No. 2 for Clarinet and Computer, FWIW). 

Enjoy!

Back in episode 66, I first chatted with Bert Schiettecatte - who, along with partner Celine, has been making the Percussa brand of music interfaces purr for the last decade-and-a-half. When we talked to them back then, they were about to run with a Kickstarter for their SSP Eurorack module; now, it's a success - and has spawned a new progeny. The Micro SSP has its own kickstarter (http://kck.st/2FB69kg), and looks to be a smaller and more affordable way for anyone to get into the SSP ecosystem.

As with our earlier conversation, talking with Bert is pretty easy - he's got his hands in every part of the development of the device, and is willing to talk about it all! I enjoy talking with him because he tends to downplay the amount of work he's done, but is also realistic about the amount of work it took to accomplish the result. He's killing it with this module, but he's been killing it all along with the development of Percussa interface devices.

I hope you enjoy this 'cast - it's a revelation to hear about the SSP design process, and will hopefully inspire you to dig in a little more. Check out Percussa at https://www.percussa.com, and take a good look at the amazing designs they are producing.

Cheers!

When your resume begins with Disney, runs through Teddy Ruxpin and includes World of Warcraft, Diablo III and Starcraft II, you probably don't even need a resume at all! Russell Brower has had a hand in many of the pieces of the entertainment world that you've interacted with, and has had the opportunity to work in sound design, sound editing, composition and sound team leadership. But for all of that, he's a laid back guy that loves storytelling - something found in conversation, and in all his music.

Our chat was kicked off by Paul Schreiber, but we quickly came to realize that we spoke each other's language; as a result, this isn't a typical "Hey, you know, WOW - that was cool." kind of interview. Instead, we talked about how one learns from the masters, how storytelling involves both active and reactive work, and the kind of opportunities that occur because of generations growing up immersed in your work (i.e., you get to conduct an orchestra in Beijing!).

I had the good luck of meeting with Russell for some face time in LA during Loop week, and that was just as great as this discussion - if not better. I feel like I've made a new friend, and I hope you'll feel that way too.

Enjoy!

One of the big surprises of the late 2010’s was the acquisition of Buchla and Associates by someone local to me: Eric Fox of Foxtone Music. I’d heard of Foxtone, but never visited, and never expected something like this to happen in good ‘ol Minneapolis. But sure enough, Buchla was now based out of the Twin Cities.

While I’m not a Buchla user, I’ve always been fascinated by Don Buchla’s work, and I was interested in this new iteration of Buchla – especially given the recent announcement of the official Tiptop 200-series modules, along with the revamp of the Easel that was shown at Superbooth. There was no time like now to reach out to Eric for a chat.

Our discussion is pretty interesting: from his start as a punk guitarist, to his entre into music retailing, and finally landing on synthesizers as his ticket, Eric hasn’t ever taken the easy road. But through perseverance, and a willingness to be “that irritating guy”, he has created a place – not only in music retailing, but in synthesizer history.

See what Eric is up to by checking out the Buchla website: https://buchla.com/

Enjoy!

Transcription available at http://www.darwingrosse.com/AMT/transcript-0368.html

Exclusive extra content on the Patron page: https://www.patreon.com/darwingrosse

It all started with a discussion at Cycling '74 about getting content for the most recent release. We needed some multichannel audio, and someone mentioned that Garth Paine was doing work with mulitchannel audio. We contacted him, and he was able to help - but the story wasn't complete. I started looking into his other work, and I kept on getting intrigued. Work with dancers. Work with instruments and I've never heard of. I needed to know more!

Garth was happy to dial in from his current work with IRCAM, and we ended up chatting about everything from cellphone audio to festival curation. Oh, and about the Karlax, whatever the hell that is!

You can find out a lot more about Garth and his work at http://www.activatedspace.com/. He also has some music available on his Bandcamp page: https://garthpaine.com/

This was a great chat, and I'm already looking forward to the next time I get a chance to meet with him. Enjoy the podcast!

I've been wanted to do a podcast focus on software modular video synthesis; doing that made one person's name stick in my head: Kevin Kripper. Kevin is the developer behind the Vsynth package for Max, which provides a mind-melting set of objects/modules that are perfect for all kinds of bizarre visual work. But it comes from a musician-ly place, so it feels very comfortable to anyone with a modular synth (or music tech) background. Hugely interesting.

In our chat, we not only talk about Vsynth and his development, but also a little bit about his corner of the world. Kevin is based out of Buenos Aires, and it is interesting to hear how many of the things he encounters are different - and some are the same - as things we all run into. Galleries, festivals, grants and commissions, gear costs, art communities, we cover all of them (at least a little).

You can check out Kevin's work at his YouTube video page (https://www.youtube.com/user/kevinkatet/videos), or via his Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/vsynth74). I'm a big fan (as you'll be able to tell in the 'cast), and I hope you'll give Vsynth a try.

Enjoy!

Note: This is a heavily-edited version of our discussion. If you want to hear (most of) the whole discussion, which lasts about 1:30, you can download it here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/artmusictech/podcast_250_PSchreiber-Long.mp3)

For the 250th episode, I decided to go back to the interview that helped put this podcast on the map. Episode 13 featured Paul Schreiber, and we discussed everything from the kickoff of his business to the importance of Eurorack. The interview took of (thanks to Synthtopia's coverage and social media), and the podcast was off and running.

In this chat, we get into his latest devices, which are much more ambitious undertakings. We also learn about his experiences with Kickstarter, his upcoming book project, and get his read on the world of gaming. There's no end of fun when talking with Paul; you'll hear me howling with laughter in the background.

If you aren't familiar with Synthesis Technology - where have you been? Check out their latest work here: http://www.synthtech.com/

Finally, I want to thank everyone that helped me get to episode 250. Most important are my vocal supporters: Synthtopia.com, my Facebook friends, and Twitter followers. The sharing that I've received from everyone has been amazing. I also want to that my employer(s): Cycling '74 and (by extension) Ableton. They've provided me with a great career, and put me in touch with some amazing people. Finally, thanks to you for continuing to listen - without that, what would be the point?

One of the more influential people in my adult life has been Trace Reddell: he was a professor in the Media program at University of Denver when I was there, and he opened my head to thinking about music, sound and video in a new way. His Expanded Cinema class rewired my brain for visuals, and his Technicians of Space series helped my understand the connection between many different kinds of musical production.

In this chat, we dive into his explorations into sci-fi sound - going way deeper than the typical "The Barrons did it..." approach. Whether you are talking about the musical scores developed by Vangelis, or the sound of a character that helps it seem alien - all of these sounds are subject to review and understanding.

This was a great talk with an academic that is also a friend. I hope that you enjoy listening to our chat. Cheers!

I have to admit that I don't know many people that would self-classify as a "punk PhD", but Shawn Trail is that. From a background of punk, hip hop and jazz, and through his electroacoustic and computer music studies, Shawn carries his edge with him throughout his travels. And those travels have been pretty extensive, taking him to Africa to study percussion, on the road with Pat Metheny (supporting the touring Orchestrion Project) and into many studios for production work.

Shawn has a deep interest in robots, and many of our recent (offline) discussions have been about the way that machines can extend the facility of a great musician. But he is also passionate about computers and music, considering the laptop as the 'most prevalent folk instrument of our time'. You can probably understand why we get along!

Follow our chat as we discuss his background, his work with Metheny, and his vision for the future (and how it ties into the past). And check out his work at http://shawntrail.co/

Enjoy!

If you follow my Instagram, Facebook or Twitter feed, you know that I'm a monome fan. Brian Crabtree and Kelli Cain have created company that consistently nails both the functionality and the design factors that draw me in - and that seems to be the case with a lot of people. They not make great products, but they tend to drive the industry in new directions.

Recently, monome put out a new device that has really captured my attention: the norns. This is a standalone computing device, based off of Raspberry Pi technology, but fine-tuned for music making, creative coding and all-around media art fun. I was very excited to talk to Brian about the development - and actuality - of the norns device.

But there's another change in the world since our last discussion (200 episodes ago - podcast #47): the popularity of the lines community. Lines (llllllll.co). It was just starting when we last talked, now it is one of my favorite online hangouts. Whether talking about code, music or books, this community is loaded with interesting, engaged and damned-smart people.

All of this is available thanks to the monome team. Thanks to them, and I hope that you enjoy our discussion. Cheers!

There aren't many corners of the programming globe that I haven't visited, but Swift programming is something I've not explored. When Matthew Fecher reached out to me about the AudioKit project, I was a little chagrined that I had not worked with it before. As I dug into it, I was even more amazed - this framework provides easy access to many tools and strategies, and it's hard to imagine that I'd not taken it for a drive.

The project first came on my radar as a talking point by people that were frustrated with iOS audio programs and wanted to hack their own. But as I read more, I realized that is was a viable tool for MacOS programming as well. I was anxious to chat with these folks, and Aure and Matthew were kind enough to oblige.

We talk about all kinds of stuff: making end-user applications, developer-facing code libraries, becoming a DSP programmer, becoming an audio fanatic while growing up in farm country, and the influence of KISS on us all. Does that sound like a broad enough conversation? It was so much fun - you'll hear it in the interview.

You can learn more about AudioKit at their site:

https://audiokitpro.com/

You can also find their iOS applications on the App Store (names are AudioKit Synth One and AudioKit FM Player). The community is a rich one, and worth considering if audio/music programming is (or is going to be) your thing.

Enjoy!

Thanks to Splice for their support of this podcast. You can help out the podcast by checking out our special link to their system, and or by using our code (MUSICARTTECH) to get a free month trial of their sample library offering. Help us out, and check out the cool collaboration tools that Splice provides!

From the second I saw the Akemie's Castle module, I knew I'd want to talk to its developer, Matthew Allum. What a module - and what a name! I knew there had to be stories about what was going on. I've also notices that almost every case I'm seeing has a Pamela's Workout module. Matthew let me try out a few modules, and now I understand why these are so ubiquitous: it has so much functionality (presented in such a clear fashion) that it has become central to my patches. So now it all makes sense.

Talking with Matthew was a breeze - he's into his work, but he's also thoughtful about how he works, and the ideas that turn into his modules. He's got a lot of new work coming out, but he's also working on improving existing devices - and making modules for himself and his friends, too.

If you haven't checked out the ALM/Busy Circuits range yet, you can do so at Matthew's web site: http://busycircuits.com/. This was a fun chat - enjoy!

Thanks to Splice for their support of this podcast. You can help out the podcast by checking out our special link to their system, and or by using our code (MUSICARTTECH) to get a free month trial of their sample library offering. Help us out, and check out the cool collaboration tools that Splice provides!

I was at a SEAMUS conference last year and was intrigued by a presentation about an organization called SPLICE - and institute/ensemble/festival combo that attempts to inject electronic music and technologies into the context of music performance and composition. It's a great way of introducing one context into another, and it features some of the most dynamic people in music academia that I've met.

Christopher Biggs is at the heart of the SPLICE organization, and he took some time out of his schedule to fill me in on their activities, and their approach to making a year-round project that extends the festival/institute efforts. We also talked a bit about technology and music education, and how music academics fit within the realm of modern music-making.

I'm looking forward to learning more about SPLICE, and getting a chance to hear the ensemble next time I might have a chance. I'm also interested in how this can change the way that electro-acoustic music composition can be embraced by the broader music community.

Enjoy!

Thanks to Splice for their support of this podcast. You can help out the podcast by checking out our special link to their system, and or by using our code (MUSICARTTECH) to get a free month trial of their sample library offering. Help us out, and check out the cool collaboration tools that Splice provides!

There are many people that we've heard about through the history of electronic music device development: David Smith, Roger Linn, Ikutaru Kakehashi and others. But there are many people that are less heralded - but still critical to the game. Denis Labrecque is one of those people: as a marketer/developer/designer, he was involved in the music industry well before MIDI made its mark, continuing through the MIDI/computer age, and continuing now into more compact and focused hybrid devices. Denis has gotten a chance to see it all.

In our chat, we mostly focus on Denis' history within the industry, starting with Star Instruments (designers of the Synare), to Passport Designs (which started off working on Apple II computers, but quickly jumped on the MIDI wagon), to Emu and then Analog Devices. He has always worked a bit in the background, but anyone that has been at a tradeshow will probably have bumped into him over the years. He has worked on many of the things that make our musical world possible, and it was amazing to hear his stories of those efforts.

Enjoy this wild ride through the MI industry roller coaster, and take some time to learn more about the people that made - and sometimes broke! - the world we inhabit.

Thanks to Splice for their support of this podcast. You can help out the podcast by checking out our special link to their system, and or by using our code (MUSICARTTECH) to get a free month trial of their sample library offering. Help us out, and check out the cool collaboration tools that Splice provides!

Well, we welcome Mike Metlay back to the podcast. It’s been a while, and a lot has changed for Mike since our last discussion (episode 69!), and we find him in his new venture: as the editor-in-chief at Bjooks. If you are paying any attention to the world of electronic music, you’ll know that Bjooks just released a new book, entitled Synth Gems 1. Mike had a big hand in this release, and we quiz him about it in this interview.

During our chat, we learn about the Bjooks publishing process, how they came up with the idea for this book, and how it was executed. This is a surprisingly complex thing, since their goal was to emphasize the beauty of synths, so it required top-notch images as well as noteworthy text. The story behind this (and the people that helped create it) is fascinating.

Take a ride with us to learn more about the creation of the Bjook book, and learn more about it at https://bjooks.com/.

Enjoy!

Transcription available at http://www.darwingrosse.com/AMT/transcript-0367.html

Exclusive extra content on the Patron page: https://www.patreon.com/darwingrosse

When I first ran across Craig Colorusso's work, it was in a very familiar situation - a place I recognized from my occasional teaching stints down in Colorado Springs. Looking into it, it was not only a nice piece of work in a familiar location, but it turns out to be a sound sculpture, with equal focus on both the sculpture and the sound of it. I had to learn more!

It turns out that the Colorado Springs installation (called the Moon Pod) is a recent creation from sound/sculpture artist Colorusso, and I was really intrigued. I've had a chance to do some work with outdoor sonic artwork, and it is definitely not an easy road. Reviewing his earlier work, I saw solar-powered speaker systems, sonically-activated swings and so much more, with everything having a signature sound (generally derived from guitar tones) created to be long-form pieces.

Talking to Craig was just as interesting as reviewing his pieces. From his history as a guitarist, time in a butoh dance company and his current work as a composer writing pieces for sculpture, he's put together a fantastic art practice - and a fantastic life, too. He's a down-to-earth guy that loves to work, and to create great things.

You can check out Craig's work on his site: www.craigcolorusso.com, and listen to short-form versions of his tracks on Spotify, Apple Music and other services. Enjoy!

Thanks to Splice for their support of this podcast. You can help out the podcast by checking out our special link to their system, and or by using our code (MUSICARTTECH) to get a free month trial of their sample library offering. Help us out, and check out the cool collaboration tools that Splice provides!

If you are into electronic/computer music, you already know the name of this week's guest. From the Computer Music Tutorial, through Microsound and his latest book (Composing Electronic Music: A New Aesthetic), he has been pushing the envelope for all of us, bringing spacialization, granular synthesis and complex timing systems from the realm of the theoretical into everyday studio use. But he is far more than a technological cool-hunter; he's an active composer, and is just about to release a new DVD in collaboration with Brian O'Reilly.

In this chat, we get to hear how Curtis went from band-kid to music researcher, and we also talk about how he goes about making the music that he produces. Since he works with such intricate sound elements, you can imagine that it is painstaking work.  Well, his description doesn't disappoint, but his use of tools - and perspectives on what makes a great composition - might surprise you.

This was, as hoped, an eye-opening experience for me, and a great way to learn more about both Curtis and his work. You can find out a lot more about him from his updated website at https://www.curtisroads.net, and by checking out his books and recordings.

Thanks to Splice for their support of this podcast. You can help out the podcast by checking out our special link to their system, and or by using our code (MUSICARTTECH) to get a free month trial of their sample library offering. Help us out, and check out the cool collaboration tools that Splice provides!

I first ran across the North Coast Modular Collective by following member Bill van Loo's Facebook page, and seeing him doing more and more interesting work. The message that first introduced the collective caught me by surprise, but also reminded me of what a cool place Ann Arbor (Michigan) is - and how it seems to be a growing field for all sorts of interesting stuff. So I decided that we could talk to a couple of the collective's group, and find out what's going on and what's going to come.

In this discussion, we talk about the creation of a collective (a group of musicians/builders in a field of individualists...), the things they do together, and the projects they are doing as a group. These range from public meetups and workshops to private week-long hangouts, and it sounds like a great way to build a community based on conversation and friendship. 

I'm captivated by this idea, and I hope you will be too. This is an idea that deserves to be spread about - and I think that the North Coast people have a recipe for something powerful and interesting. I hope you think so too!