#Music technology

[chasedbybuildings]

Hitachi DA-P100. Illustration by Akira Terasawa.

[astrangehourofrecoil]

Alan on Depeche Mode’s sound and sampling process:

With a Depeche Mode song, the first thing we decide upon is atmosphere. After that, we might add sampled sounds. They could be anything—pebbles in a can or industrial noises using oil cans, skips, concrete… All the technology we use is computer-based, but our interest is in what you can do with that, not how it works. There’s no reason to be scared of computer technology. People blame technology for musical sterility, but that’s rubbish. It comes down to ideas.

[anal0gue]

that contrabass clarinet is about the same height as me 😂

[pebblesthedrag]

Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh my drum lesson is canceled

here's something I just started working on in my music tech class- it's supposed to be about someone having a dream and then waking up to his regular adult life, worried about work and such, but ultimately giving into daydreams about how adventurous his life really could be

[yawningjorin]

Pickup Winder mark 1, initial design

First design iteration of my pickup winder pretty much done. I think I'm going to go back to simplify a bit. Want to reduce the amount of unique screw types, make no partial holes through the material so that it can be laser cut or made thinner, and make it so that I don't need a slotted axle.

If this design becomes anything decent, I'll definitely open source it to the extent possible. The idea for the mark 1 is to be an MVP to get me up and winding, though I'm not going to half-arse it. It'll be very manual and similar to existing DIY solutions, but hopefully well designed.

For mark 2 I'd like a micro controller to automate more, a stepper to automatically guide the wire; a thingy to keep track of the exact length of wire used (instead of just counting rotations), a way to keep track of wire tension if possible. It'll be a lot.

[sjwallin]

After spending the past six years honing my lectures for my undergraduate upper-division-GE college course, “History of Technology in Music”, I’ve decided to make these lectures available to everyone in the form of a weekly podcast!

New episode every Thursday — Enjoy! ^_^

Find all the links to various platforms and the RSS feed here:

[grrl-operator]

Music Technology - Dec 1992

[yellowmanula]

Dear Friends,

On November 29th-30th, the Aggregate, Electroacoustic Music Festival will take place in Berlin. This event merges tradition with electronic music, as through the use of MIDI, artists metaphorically awaken the spirit of the machine slumbering within the organ. Therefore, the festival features artists deeply connected to movements such as algorave—a type of event where the artist writes code in real-time, generating music—and electroacoustic traditions.

The festival’s approach to the relationship between musician and instrument is retro-futuristic, drawing from the ideas of electroacoustic avant-garde figures like Kotoński, Schaeffer, Varèse, Stockhausen, and many others. However, it raises new questions about how computer-controlled instrumental music, with its virtuosity, transcends the boundaries of perception in highly compressed musical events. It explores the intersections between electronic and acoustic music, objective interpretation, and the effects of mechanically precise performance.

Curators: gamut inc

Check the events: https://de.ra.co/events/1993705

[melodiso]

Simplify music theory. Create original music. The Melodiso method is fun, easy, and effective. Sign up for free!

[ai-revolution]

Artificial Intelligence Revolutionizes the Music World: The Case of "Neural Notes Revolution"

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming our world, permeating sectors from healthcare to industry, education to transportation. This technology, which aims to replicate and surpass human cognitive abilities, promises to revolutionize the way we live and work.

The applications of AI are numerous and ever-expanding: from medical diagnosis to autonomous driving, data analysis to content creation. A particularly intriguing field is music, where AI is demonstrating remarkable potential.

Recently, there has been much discussion about AI-based music generation platforms like "Suno" and "Udio," accused of violating numerous artists' copyrights to train their algorithms. These controversies highlight the complex ethical and legal issues that AI raises in the artistic field.

In this context, the Italian project "Neural Notes Revolution" emerges, demonstrating how, with the aid of AI programs, the study of algorithms suitable for targeted generation of musical styles, voices, song structures, and with adequate post-processing, it's possible to produce musical pieces of any genre and style, in any language, in relatively short timeframes.

The project also leverages other generative AI platforms such as OpenAI's ChatGPT (Microsoft group, of which Elon Musk was a co-founder), Anthropic's Claude AI, and Google's Gemini. These technologies allow for the generation of texts, both original and based on precise or imaginative prompts, in numerous languages, even using expressions typical of specific localities and dialects.

However, "Neural Notes Revolution" still faces some challenges. The results provided by ChatBOTs require careful verification, and in the music field, generation platforms have significant limitations. In particular, "Suno" and "Udio" lack a precise and rigorous syntax that allows for accurate results. Often, the outcomes are even opposite to those desired, forcing a trial-and-error approach. One of the major limitations is the near-total impossibility of having clear style changes within the same song.

Expected future developments include the ability to modify produced songs in a targeted manner. It would be useful to have separate files for the vocal part, the musical backing, and the lyrics in subtitle format. Moreover, there's hope to be able to modify individual parts of text or music, and above all, to have a correct and rigorously respected syntax for the song structure and use of styles.

The use of these platforms raises several issues. On one hand, they offer new creative possibilities and democratize music production. On the other, they raise concerns about copyright, artistic authenticity, and the future of work in the music industry.

In conclusion, while giving space to creativity, we are still far from competing with the styles, voices, and tones of artists of all time. However, in defense of the "new artists" of the AI era, it must be recognized that creativity and skill are still necessary to produce musical pieces of a certain depth. This is particularly relevant in a modern musical landscape that often offers music devoid of artistic and cultural significance. AI in music thus represents both a challenge and an opportunity, requiring a balance between technological innovation and preservation of human artistic expression.

[dumbgirlgamedev]

Finally got a pair!

Got myself a pair of HD600s from my local CEX for not a huge amount of money and they sound gorgeous! Really happy with them and they're in such good condition for second hand headphones

[stuffydollband]

Hey, any of you nerds know stuff about computers and microphones (probably both, not either)? I’m tryin to set up a aokeo ak-80 and my computer just won’t seem to acknowledge it exists.

Important details:

I have the whole phantom power box thing set up

Phantom power box’s power source is usb from my laptop

The output is an xlr to 3.5mm that’s plugged into my laptop’s audio jack

I would absolutely love to not spend any more money

Thank you besties 😘

[dianagivenchitech]

Get to know what music for bars and pubs you should play to create an awesome atmosphere, encourage desired customer behaviors, and drive sales.✅

[anal0gue]

jez mixing on 35mm

[hiding-all-the-bodies]

"We have enough knowledge here to be dangerous now" -- My Music Technology Professor, seconds after teaching us the basics of Adobe Premiere Pro

[discovery-of-self-chapter-1]

Within the Field of music technology, what has my interest is the skills and techniques that many experienced or even non-experienced performers, composers, sound engineers, DJs, or record producers have to manipulate sounds into the songs they hear in their heads. Many believe that music is simple to make, simple to understand and that everyone can do it…well they are wrong to an extent. On the surface level, I agree that anyone can make music, especially with the resources we have online in this day in age such as YouTube, SoundCloud, and many more but after you write that song to a beat you found on YouTube or wherever, what is your next step? Surely you won’t make it far by posting your music like that and I’m sure that you hear things that you want to fix or tweak but you don’t know how to go about it because you can’t install auto-tune to your natural voice God gave you. The point I’m trying to make is that those who know similar or the exact techniques and skills even a speck of it can take their music/craft to new heights with a unique sound that could be considered timeless, inspiring, impactful, or flat-out just extraordinary. These skills and techniques vary as well: things like reverb, delay, doubler, how to properly use an EQ, and many others. As I mentioned above some of these basic skills or techniques can take your music to new heights or make your time making music a struggle you never knew existed, for example, if your track sounds muddy, nasally, and dry, how would you tackle this obstacle? Yes, you could go to YouTube and look for “tutorials” but the information could be so vague or confusing that you might not want to even keep going. But within the field of music technology you get to learn about those same issues and get to develop not only a solution but a new found understanding of that skill or technique that is needed(in shorter words you learn how to use those tools and create a stable foundation that many new music creators lack).