E MOD •-11111- LAR!v!usic: sysTE Musician's Tape Notes Page *1 The original intention in presenting this cassette tape mas to allow those mho had no access to a Serge synthesizer the opportanitc to hear its qualities f flit* I fit MIMI- qualities that just cannot be described by words in the * THE MUSICIAN'S TAPES Data Sheets. Since all of our sales are direct (me SIDE I (36:451 don't sell our instruments throagh local retail PI* ffilifilitiliftWitifl stores), it sosetimes is difficult for a person to evaluate the serits of such a sophisticated susical znstrusent. Since 1974 the Serge Synthesizer System You want, maybe, something a little intense diatonic? has presented a certain appeal to the artist and - 5?-11aFferBurt. musician because it has featares like no other (September 25, 1982), section from electronic instrasent. In the tradition of the "STUDIES (1982) for Synthesizer'. classical studio synthesizer found in *any electronic Scarlet Aardvark Tapes. (2:04) susic studios, recording studios and universities, the Serge synthesizer uses patchcords to connect the *15 step sequence tuned to Ptolosy's Intense Diatonic.- various modules to produce the electronic sounds, but a just intonation C Major scale. Changing rhythsic it ases sanf unique designs for signal processing and sampling routines result in harmonies. Tigre: controlling patterns of sound (susic, when the traditional VCO-VCA-VCF patches. pattern's right). Keyboard controlled synthesizers are nom 'This piece is aide up of 17 sections, each 2 tinutes everywhere. These instrusents borrowed a few standard long. Each section was made on a combined 'patches' frog the sodular synthesizer and built them Serge-Driscoll-Aardvark synthesizer, and each uses around an organ-type keyboard. Nhile the widespread use different tuning, Umbria, and rhythmic ideas. Each of these instruments has made the electronic section was made in real time, or some multiple of real synthesizer a little more familiar, there Zr still a time, and was made using various automated and vast rage of possibilities that cannot be covered by interactively perforted processes. No traditional these dedicated, though sophisticated, instruments, it keyboard was used in making the piece and often the ic collar to hear the words YCF, UCA, Veil in music only performing done was to start and stop Lite process stores, but the Nave Multiplier, the Analog Shift in motion. The sections are formally more complex than Register, and Dual Universal Slope Generator, after the •onolithic blocks of sound one usually associates years of use, are still relatively unknown module with such processes, however, and it was one of the concepts to the average synthesist. The desonstrations aims of the piece to give each section a fairly planned for this tape were to have sade these functions intricate formal structure while still using these sore well known, and possibly, would have shown their processes. My prime aim in making the piece was to usefulness to a group of sasicians for the first tise. stretch my use of the synthesizer into areas I knew This tape was to have been in tso sections. One were possible, butwhich I had not yet explored. These section was to have esployed the standard announcer explorations will hopefully serve as the basis for some proclaiting '..and this is the sound of the Nave future work. Multiplier', then a short desonstration of sose of the sounds available with the device. In conjunction with "Technical concerns catapulted this piece into being, these short aural desonstrations of sany of our unique and if parts of it swing, that swing is probably a modules, we requested short musical sections fros those by-product of the intense delight 1 felt in exploring using oar equiptent. Ne ended ap receiving so sach these materials for the first time.....(the) pieces can task covering so Bay different styles, that it was be listened to in many different ways, and the delights quite difficult to select a fem short exasples from so available in any one way of listening do not such good Mk. It mas finally realized that the necessarily cancel out or sake inferior the delights entire point we mere trying to get across was covered made available by listening in other ways. I siaply quite explicitly in the susic subsitted for this tape. ask you to listen, and if the piece makes you curious After all, the synthesizer only generates sound, it enough to start any exploration of your own, it will does not (as sole would have you believe) synthesize have been lore than successful.' D4S2C. The susician is the one who best desonstrates the potential of the instratent, so me are quite excited to be able to present to you this incredible saspling of susic by those who use the Serge Nodular Synthesizer Systes. Here are the Musician's Tapes, Esso Commercial by Broadscore. (c) • FIRCHTT-Fraser and Elizabeth Myers POB 2252 Darrel Johansen Beverly Hills, CA 90213 Serge Nodular Nay 1983 572 Haight Street • San Francisco CA 94117 • (415) 621-6898 SEE? E MODULAR MUSIC SYS •—•■••■•••••••■ —m.----••■•-•■•■••—••■•••••-•••••••••••mmeimmessemp....m.....•••• ■■ ••••sio.- ---•_. Musician's Tape Notes Page #2 #5 by Michael Elliot. (2:03) 15502 SE 25th Bellevue, WA 98007 Untitled (excerpt) by Earl Howard. (6:001 'A drug rhytha exercise, after attending a Blackfoot festival. When hearing the drums, ay wife said all that was aissing was the coyotes.... '...Several of these pieces began as exercises...1 included thea anyway, due to the pleasant surprise of Big Maaa by Rick Blanchard. Rubber Logic Sniper discovering sole ausical value in what began as an 12:44T's ROB 205 exercise or iaprovisations t the latter being an area (c) 1962 that is largely unexplored in 'studio' synthesizers, Volcano, CA 95689. and an area in which the Serge system excel's... ' Suburban areal Music by Scot greshateLancaster. (2:14) Killer Didieridoo by Todd Barton. Casio key5oar8 Foiessed through Serge synthesizer. 71:253 -7cT"TPTe Todd Barton 1982 c/o Oregon Shakespearean Festival Association 'Did you ever dreas you were in a shopping mall and PUB LW didn't have your pants on?' Ashland, OR 97520 Scot is currently technical director at the Center for Contemporary Music at Mills College and actively 'Al! of the sounds were created on a stall 'standard' composing and performing throughout the F Bay Area. systes...(this cut was) produced without aulti-tracking, i.e. these are all pure, single-event Serge sounds... Many of these pieces appear in the Official Entry by David Stilley. (4:31) upcosing pilot of the National Science Fiction Radio Piece- Eamaissioned by Cabrillo College Music Festival. Theater out of Los Angeles.' Todd Barton is an active Coaposer and is the Music Aurorator(excerpt) by Roger Powell. Director of the Oregon Shakespearean Festival Cybersound Music Association. (2:07) Rhinebeat Research Poe 328 Rhinebeck, NY 12572 Personnel: Piano and Serge Synthesizer - Roger Powell He is Come by Planetary Peace. Guitar - Andrea Cairo ROB 1573 Engineer - Paul Antonell Taos, NM 87571 'Except for Piano and Electronic Guitar, all sounds 'When we do our recordings, our approach is to blend were created on the Serge Modular Synthesizer, and together electronic, acoustic, and vocals... We went recorded at 30 ips without noise reduction on an AMPEX back to our original tapes and extracted those I6-track deck. Outboard processing included a LEXICON instrumental backups and accompaniments to songs which Prise The, AKG BX-10 Reverberator, and (very little) were done exclusively with the Serge. Many of these equalization provided within the APSI mixing board songs used acoustic instruments as well in the creation todules. No other equipaent was used to take this of the instrusental aspect of a song, and these too recording - a testimonial to the versatility of the were eliainated. So, the sounds... are completely Serge Systea. Several tracks were synchronized during Serge system created. overdubbing by using basic •odules in the Serge to • first generate a clock signal of periodic, 'All the rhythms in the songs are seven beats per tempo-aultiple tone bursts which were then read back measure and are made autoaatically in realtite (not off the tape by the Slope Generator module and sultistracked) by DS (Dual Slope Generator) clicks converted to clock pulses used to drive the tequencer thru keyboard voltage controlled VCR's (Variable and envelope generators. The Touch Keyboard Sequencer VC Filters).' was used to trigger other noneautosated sounds. The Wave Multiplier •odule and the unique Serge filters were used often and *art, I believe / audio characteristics that are unachievable on other systems, Sciagnce '82 by David Vosh with Jack Deckard. ( 4: 08) especially in the area of non-linear waveshaping 6300 Goldenrod Court techniques. Upper Marlboro, ND 20772 'Although no computers were used in the taped excerpt, frequently -use an APPLE Ii with ay own coaposition 'On this piece we used objects sondie generated by both language, TEXTURE, to control aultiple synthesizer Serge's with the addition of a few twittering voices during the development and realization of background notes done with a Casio N-10.' synthesizer-based pieces.' Roger Powell's solo recordings include two albums of synthesizer music: COSMIC FURNACE, Atlantic Records (1973 release), and AIR POCKET, Bearsville Records (1980 release). He has recorded and toured with the band UTOPIA for the past nine years and worked with David Bowie during his 1978 world tour. 572 Haight Street San Franctsco CA 94117 (415) 621-6898 ne Qv IS ER I 41=111b..- S •••••011111, - SYSTE S I Musician's Tape Notes — Page #3 Santur Ora (excerpt free live performance) by Ivan • #############Iffillit Taiiipnin714:12) I THE MUSICIAN'S TAPES SIDE 2 (37:07) 'Santur Opera is without text, without singers and ##########4#•1f####### played entirely on the Santur ta Persian zither) and realized with the aid of an electronic synthesizer built by Mr.