Reaktor 6 Primary “Krell Music” Generator (Sci-Fi Ambient Music)

by SimonPosted on No Comments

Using Reaktor 6 Primary to create some generative Sci Fi music inspired by Todd Barton’s “Krell Music” patch on the Buchla Synthesizer.

As I mentioned last week, in my regular journeys across the internet, I came across the concept of a “Krell Music” patch–a self-generating patch created by Todd Barton, inspired by Bebe and Louis Barron‘s soundtrack to the 1956 film “Forbidden Planet.” The Barrons’ soundtrack to the film is amazing, and a bit beyond what I can get into here (see links below). Barton’s Buchla patch tries to capture some of the dynamic timbres of that score.

My oversimplification of the idea is this: a note has an amplitude envelope–attack and release–and when that amplitude envelope ends it triggers the next envelope. At the same time, that trigger selects a new (likely different) attack and decay time, as well as a new pitch and timbre for the next note. So we create a continuous series of musical tones, each distinct from the one before it. So let’s make that in Reaktor 6 Primary.

Making a “Krell Music” Patch in Pure Data (Generative Sci-Fi Music)

by SimonPosted on One Comment

Putting together a music (muzak?) generator in Pd inspired by Todd Barton’s self-generating patch on the Buchla Synthesizer.

In my regular journeys across the internet, I came across the concept of a “Krell Music” patch–a self-generating patch created by Todd Barton, inspired by Bebe and Louis Barron’s soundtrack to the 1956 film “Forbidden Planet.” The Barrons’ soundtrack to the film is amazing, and a bit beyond what I can get into here (see links below). Barton’s Buchla patch tries to capture some of the dynamic timbres of that score.

My oversimplification of the idea is this: a note has an amplitude envelope–attack and release–and when that amplitude envelope ends it triggers the next envelope. At the same time, that trigger selects a new (likely different) attack and decay time, as well as a new pitch and timbre for the next note. So we create a continuous series of musical tones, each distinct from the one before it.

Making a Wavefolder in Reaktor 6 Primary

by SimonPosted on No Comments

In this week’s video, we make a wavefolder in Reaktor, slowly adding features, and testing out some different types of waveforms.

It’s not terribly effective to filter sine waves, since they only consist of a single frequency, but, using a wavefolder, we can add harmonics, and create a rich, customizable sound.

Wavefolding is distortion of a waveform where, when the input amplitude exceeds a threshold, it becomes inverted. This adds harmonics to the sound (specifically odd harmonics), and, by controlling the amount of fold, we can modulate these in real time.

Subaudio, DC Offset, and How they Affect Your Digital Sound

by SimonPosted on No Comments

Subaudio are sounds below the range of human hearing–below about 20 Hz. While we can’t hear these sounds, they can make their way into our audio files in various ways and cause some issues for us. Understanding these issues can help us make decisions in tracking, mixing, and mastering to ensure clean bass sounds and the highest possible fidelity in our recordings.

Making Binaural Beats in Pure Data (Brainwave Entrainment)

by SimonPosted on No Comments

Talking about binaural beats, claims about their ability to entrain brainwaves, and walking through how easy they are to make yourself in Pure Data.

In binaural beats, two pitches with slightly different frequencies are played, one in each ear, supposedly creating a vibration at the difference tone inside your head, which can be used to entrain your brainwaves to help you relax, get you high, or even affect your behavior. The science isn’t there, but that doesn’t mean we can’t embrace binaural beats as a musical aesthetic, using Pd to make a fun, free “healing music generator.”

…just as long as we use our critical thinking and our ability to find credible resources.

Please TRUST YOUR DOCTOR (not the internet, including my videos) when making your medical decisions.

Synth Tip: Don’t Filter Sine Waves

by SimonPosted on No Comments

Since sine waves are made up of only a single frequency, it’s not usually particularly effective to filter them.

Several of my students sent me Reaktor ensembles with filtered sine waves, so I wanted to quickly talk through why they’re not really the most effective thing to filter. I go through things in Native Instruments Reaktor, but the concept is applicable in whatever synthesis environment you’re working in–Pd, Max/MSP, Kyma, etc.

Bluetooth Audio Transmission

by SimonPosted on No Comments

A quick overview of the transmission of digital audio over Bluetooth for wireless headphones and smart speakers.

Since sending audio over Bluetooth is a digital transmission of audio, it’s good for us to understand what conversions are taking place in the journey from our devices to our ears. Thinking about the sample rate, bit depth, and different aspects of compression can help us make good choices about to support the fidelity of our audio chain.

Databending a 360 Video with a Hex Editor

by SimonPosted on No Comments

Tutorial on using a hex editor (Hex Fiend) to mess up a 360 video in one easy step.

Spectral Evolver  and I are starting the initial work to put together another series of databent videos, this time working with 360 videos and ambisonic audio. These files are BIG, so some of this experimentation might take a little while, but, in the short term, a super-easy way to get some glitches fast is to just find-and-replace some numbers in a hex editor.

Pure Data Algorithmic Chiptunes (Pd to ArduinoBoy to Game Boy)

by SimonPosted on No Comments

Pd running MIDI to an ArduinoBoy controlling a Game Boy running trash80’s mGB software to generate triumphant RPG music in real time.

This simple(-ish) Pure Data patch generates four channels of MIDI, corresponding with the four channels of the Game Boy’s sound: two pulse waves (channels 1&2), a triangle wave (channel 3), and noise (channel 4).

The arpeggio on pulse channel 2 is just a simple sequencer, with some “echos” created with [pipe] objects. The “drums” are created by a sequencer triggering random notes on a sequence too.

The remaining channels are slightly more sophisticated. First, we select a rhythm for each measure, then trigger notes on pulse channel 1 at that rhythm. There are only five notes (from a hemitonic pentatonic scale), and each note has two or three possible harmony notes, to be played by the triangle channel.