Darren's posts with tag: keyboard
I've been spending these whole week finalizing the composition for my piece in 0501. From a C major piece it went to a G major piece and finally settling down on an A major piece. At first I wanted some key changes somewhere... but I thought I'll just keep it simple. Very simple concept, very direct layering... I hope it works with my piece in 0501. The track is "unfinished"... the piano is a mock up (as I am playing live, and much more variations than this version)... I am still thinking whether I should layer somemore analogue synth sounds... Not sure yet. So far this entire piece was done on my KORG Triton ST88... The track is unmastered and mixed badly. I wanted to cut it out to have a listen, let it settle in on me before I make any more changes tomorrow and do a mix down and mastering proper. So the entire mix and dynamics of this demo is quite inconsistent and ... erm... bad, especially for the drums. Forgive me. For the time being...    
| | OK, my guitar is in rehearsals so I can't use it to test the PODxt Live. So I used the Roland SH101 instead.
DEMO: [SH101]PODxtLive
Not a song but just a demo of what the PODxt Live can do to a sound. What you hear is a product of 4 tracks recorded using Roland SH101 with a square + saw wave sorta synth going on in C major. 3 tracks hold either C or G notes in different ranges while 1 track holds a C7 chord arpegiated. The effect used on the PODxt is a harmonic flange with effects. There's some filtering going on on the SH101 but minimal... What you hear is unprocessed after recording. Just SH101 through PODxt into my lap-top and mixed.
Just got this second hand off from a nice dude. I must say this is a heavy stomp, build like a tank. Controls are straight forward and interface is great. It allows you to design your own "effects chain" and the silver knobs allow you to have control over the tone of the output... It's my first impression from using it straight out without reading a manual. I can't wait to use it with my guitar and see what it can do... I don't suppose it will be revolutionary, but I am sure it will come in handy. |
| | Ok, so what happen when someone who doesn't know how to play the guitar and picked up an electric guitar for the first time and wanted to cut a track for an upcoming production? THIS:
W.K.W Dream[reject] (song number 7)
Supposed to have piano playing live on top, so this is like a backing track during performance. Yep, wanted to compose a track for Wong Kah Wai's Dream, TFP's production during arts festival. But after this track was done, I am having second thoughts so tentatively I've rejected this track myself. I am still a dummy when comes to guitar at the end of the day. Well, and I felt the song was inappropriate in a way. We'll see after tomorrow's meeting and hear what TC have to say to this.
Anyway, what's done is done, take it as an experience. It is afterall my first attempt on a guitar with no prior knowledge or training. Basically, I played by ear and loop it through EH2880 and RC20... effected through VF1 and ZebraVCF for different takes... kinda composed on the fly. For the synth parts, it was added in subtley and builds over time (JUNO106, AX60 and Radias). My favourite will have to be the SH101 (in about 03:43 and went on)... basically wanted to keep it as "acoustic" as it can be despite everything being electronic (well, analogue mostly)... have fun listening. Don't kill me if I've played the guitar really badly... It's my first time :P
Instrumentation:
Frigging brandless humbucker
Roland SH101
Roland JUNO106
KORG Radias
AKAI AX60
Looper: EH2880; BOSS RC20
Effects: BOSS VF-1; ZebraVCF
Omitted: Thingamagoop; Effector13 Synth Mangler |
| | Via Vintage Synth Explorer:
"The AX-60 is among some of the last true analog polysynths of the mid-eighties. It was Akai's answer to the hugely successful Roland Juno series and Yamaha's new digital DX-series. The AX-60 is a programmable six-voice synth with a nice LFO, lowpass VCF filter, envelope sections, and more. An eight-voice version, the AX-80, was already available.
Programming this synth is easy using dedicated sliders, knobs and/or buttons for its parameters. It also has a useful noise generator and some other cool functions that include auto-tuning, chorus, a multi-mode arpeggiator and a keyboard that can be split into two key-zones, making it somewhat bi-timbral. All six voices can be stacked in unison mode for a powerful and thick lead sound. Its features and sound make the AX-60 a worthy alternative to Roland's Juno 106. The AX-60 may have been used by Bjork."
This baby sounded old school... basic presets that sounded unexciting (not really phat) but a few gems within. Once you start screwing with the preset sounds with the VCO, LFO and VCF... the synth comes alive... the filters are not too bad at all... ranging from "woody" to "bubbly"... I can see this coming to use in some of my shows... and that's great! :)
Ignore the flowers if you must... my mom bought it for me for Chinese New Year... LOL! |
| | These are pictures taken whilst I compose and design for the play "Everything But The Brain" for Action Theatre. Now showing at the Esplanade Theatre. Here's the demo of three songs which I've picked out to upload (click on the title of the songs to listen):
EVER AFTER
This track, by approach was really simple. I mic'ed up a Hungarian Zither (CITERA) using a contact microphone and it's being fed into the KORG Radias audio in. Using a vocoder preset, I have made it to trigger a synth note (D flat) with a moderate attack and a long release. So everytime I plug a note, it will trigger the synth note. The signal is also routed through it's internal effects with delay and reverb. Another contact microphone was employed to sample the Citera with a BOSS RC-20 and the playback is reversed... This track was recorded live with me improvising on the Citera. (I have no idea how to play it so I just did what I think sound right) You can find a picture of the Citera below...
BEDTIME STORIES
A Plogue Bidule composition using a patch I've designed. The group has a couple of sequencers that triggers the risset bells and sine tones, which was passed through a rebuilder and some effects. Crytal Synths were employed for the generation of the glassy ambient. KORG Radias was used for a base drone...
EINSTEIN'S BRAIN
An abstract of the 10 minute long piece. The piano was from KORG Triton ST88. An improvisation based on the scenic mood was recorded and then reversed and picthed down to underlay the original recording. Another Plogue Bidule patch was designed to sound scape subtley underneath this track...
DISCLAIMER: There are pictures of other synths which was employed for the composition and design of other songs and sounds but I did not include the demo here... It's sad to see the way they treated my music in production... director's call, so what to do :/ |
| | Yummy... From unboxing to setting and hooking up. This synth looks swanky, with wooden side panels (narrow though). The KORG RADIAS... I shot it up and started noodling through its presets (NEAT! But did not like the self plugging vocoder presets of reading "RADIAS"). I am impressed by the versatility. The oscillators are quite flexible, which pretty much says for first impressions: It's a versatile VA synths. The dual filters look the part, but it's not as cut-through as I hope it to be. Rather conservative I must say. This synth, on first impression, sounded warm but hardly phat enough. Well, naturally. In anycase, I shall spend more time with this baby and in time write a short user review.
Due to job commitment, I don't think I will be cutting a demo song on it so soon. But will do so once I have time to noodle on it. Actually, I even thought the adapter looks cool. With an on/off button to it. The sliding frame for the module is simply too cool as well. Man, I can be real shallow. :P |
| |
