MUSIC 227: EXAM 2
Max Mathews (1926 - 2011)
"Father of Computer Music", continued to develop Music N (the program) throughout the 1960s, Music I - the first computer music language (1957)
Frankie Knuckles and The Warehouse
"The Godfather of House Music", Grew up in the South Bronx, worked w/ Larry Levan in NYC before moving to Chicago, Main DJ at "The Warehouse" until 1982
Jesse Saunders
"the originator of House music", Chicago DJ, headlined major clubs, opened club, "The Playground" (1982), set up 1st house record label, 1st house artist signed to major label, 1st house DJ to enter the Billboard music charts, released 1st House single, "On and On."
Larry Levan
(the resident DJ of NY Paradise Garage) knew Mancuso of the Loft and Siano of the Gallery, experimented with drum machines and synthesizers in his productions and live sets, created a subwoofer "Larry's Horn" with engineer Richard Long
Donna Summer and Giorgio Moroder "I Feel Love" (1977)
1st disco hit to have a completely synthesized accompaniment, signaled the end of the disco era and usher in the beginning of synthpop, techno and house
The sample rate and bit depth of a CD (compact disc) are:
44.1 kHz and 16 bits
When you playback a digital audio file through loudspeakers, which of the following do you need to use?
A Digital to Analog converter
NY Paradise Garage
A discotheque (1977 - 1987) Larry Levan (the resident DJ)
Voltage-Controlled amplifier (VCA)
Adjusts the loudness of a signal in proportion to a control voltage input. The Lower the voltage, the lower the amplitude.
Envelopes, Envelope generator (ENV, EG)
An envelope generator produces a control voltage that rises and falls once, according to a voltage command.
Tom Moulton
An influential producer who pioneered the disco sound in the early 70's with his innovations
Encoding
Analog to Digital Convertor (ADC) takes "snapshots" of electrical signals.
Fill in the blank: Richard D. James is also known as ___________.
Aphex Twin
Bell Labs & Max Mathews
At Bell Labs in NJ in 1957, Mathews created the first sound generating computer program, called... Music, pioneered early Fourier analysis using prototype analog-digital converter in 60s
What instrument did Morton Subotnick play in his album "Silver Apples of the Moon"?
Buchla Music Box
Disco ceased, but was reborn in the mid 1980s as . . .
Chicago House and Detroit Techno
The music genre called "house music" was born in . . .
Chicago, baby!
What is the drummer's name whose play has been sampled extensively by DJs and other artists such as Public Enemy and Coldcut?
Clyde Stubblefield
Jesse Saunders, "On and On" (1984)
Co-written w/ Vince Lawrence, a producer, 1st House single, Roland TR-808, TB-303, Korg Poly-61 (hybrid polyphonic synthesizer)
Filters
Commonvarieties:lowpass(LPF),highpass(HPF), band pass (BP), notch
Sequencing
Could be used to generate patterns of notes or programmed changes in amplification, filter, mixing, modulation
Rhythmicon (1930 - 1931)
Created by Léon Theremin, First Rhythm machine, Commissioned by Henry Cowell, Also known as Polyrhythmophone, Uses discs, light, and electric photoreceptors
Morton Subotnick (1933 —) "Silver Apples of the Moon" (1967)
Created entirely with the Buchla 100 Synthesizer that he helped develop with Donald Buchla, first full-length album of electronic music.
ADSR
Created keyboard and ribbon controller, accommodating with musicians/ composers' requests.
Max Mathews, "Numerology" (1960)
Created with MusicIII program language, digitally generating sounds, used IBM 7090, a general-purpose computer, to demonstrate the various capabilities of the program. has vibratos, tremolos, envelopes, polyphonic, and dynamic changes
Acid House Innovators Inluded:
DJ Pierre (Phuture), Larry Heard (Mr. Fingers), and Marshall Jefferson.
The four stages of envelope generation are commonly known as ADSR. Choose the stage of which fits the description below. (Holmes' book Chapter 7): The second stage of a sound as defined by the time it takes for the signal to go from its peak amplitude to its sustain amplitude.
Decay
Derrick May The "Innovator"
Derrick May, "Strings of Life" (1987)
Analog is continuous
Digital is discrete
Decoding
Digital to Analog Convertor (DAC) converts numbers into electrical signals.
Disco Demolition Night
Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park in Chicago, (July 12, 1979) Radio DJ Steve Dahl, anti-disco, blew up disco records
After Disco Demolition Night . . .
Disco labels started to drop artists or disappear entirely, in July 1979, top six records on the US music charts were disco. By Sept 22, none remained (movement continued. It went back underground → house music)
The Warehouse
Discotheque that opened in 1976/1977 by Robert Williams, initially called "US Studio", later became the Warehouse by adopting the nickname by the dancers, big nightlife scene, In 1982, admission doubled, drove away OG crowd, as well as Frankie Knuckles, the DJ.
Fill in the blank: Yamaha DX7 uses a synthesis called ____________ of which creates rich sound palettes by using efficient algorithms.
FM synthesis
In the album Switched-On Bach, Wendy Carlos played a polyphonic Moog Synthesizer.
False
True or False: According to Siva Vaidhyanathan, a media professor, it is much more expensive to cover a song entirely than to take a three-second sample of somebody's song.
False
True or false: House and techno music emerged as independent music styles, and they have no connection with Disco music whatsoever.
False
Synthesizer Functions: Processors: modify a signal
Filters, envelope generators (ADSR), effects
Yamaha DX7 (1983)
First commercially successful digital synthesizer, Uses FM synthesis technique patented by John Chowning, 16-key polyphonic keyboard, moderately priced, programmable and affordable
Who was the House DJ that is considered to be Godfather of House music?
Frankie Knuckles
Hip-hop often revitalized musicians' careers by sampling their old records. Who is the artist whose records were commercially unavailable at the time of sampling, but hip-hop producers sampled his/their music and, as a result, reintroduced him/them to the world?
George Clinton
Fill in the Blank: __________ music contains sonic artifacts that are normally considered to be errors and failures.
Glitch
Donald Buchla (1937 - 2016)
In 1964, Buchla, an engineer w/ musical background, approached by the San Francisco Tape Music Center to build a customized synthesizer for their studio. (The Buchla 100)
Modular Synthesizers
Independent modules connected by patch cables, logarithmic 1-volt-per-octave pitch control, separate pulse triggering signals, typically run on 5 volts, oscillator's lowest pitch: 0, highest: 5V, the lowest volume 0, loudest 5, etc. (Buchla may use a different standard), (at least initially) monophonic
What does IDM of which we learned in the lecture stand for?
Intelligent Dance Music
In the song "Never Can Say Goodbye" produced by Tom Moulton, what kind of manipulation was applied to Gloria Gaynor's voice?
It was pitch-shifted
Marshall Jefferson
Jefferson was a postal worker, bought equipment including keyboard, TB-303 drum machine, and amp, 1st to include piano in house music.
Disco and the Underground (1954 - 1968)
Joining of marginalized communities (gay community, black community, hispanic communities/diaspora, women's liberation) under the tenets of inclusion, freedom of expression and liberation
The Belleville Three
Juan Atkins, Derrick May, & Kevin Saunderson are often referred to as this - all attended Belleville High School, considered pioneers of techno genre
Fill in the blank: The first wave of Techno artists were ____________________________.
Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson, Derrick May
Fill in the blank: ___________________ created the first computer music language called Music I.
Max Mathews
Robert Moog (1934 - 2005)
Moog built his voltage-controlled synthesizers with Herbert Deutsch, an electronic music composer and professor at Hofstra University.
Voltage-Controlled Synthesizers
Moog, ARP, Buchla, EMS
Frankie Knuckles remix of Jamie Principle's song, "Your Love"
OG song by Jamie Principle (1985) was on tape and never commercially released, produced/remixed by Frankie Knuckles in 1987
Noise Generators
Often the simplest module on the machine. There may be a choice of white or pink noise.
Frankie Knuckles After The Warehouse
Opened his own club the Power Plant in 1982, In early 80's, disco was fading, he started mixing disco records with a drum machines and spacey, drawn out lines., style spread to NYC by the mid 80's, Edits/mix were recorded on tape.
Synthesizer Functions: Sources: produce or generate a signal
Oscillators, noise generators, recorded sounds, live sounds
Envelope
Pattern of loudness of a sound, the way sound begins, continues, and ends
Wendy Carlos Switched-On-Bach (1968)
Performed by Wendy Carlos on monophonic synthesizer, Recorded on an 8-track tape recorder, one of first classical albums to go platinum, Three Grammy awards, brought the sound of the Moog synthesizer to the masses.
Synthesizer Functions: Controllers: control the behavior of another function (module)
Physical input devices: keyboard, joystick, pedal Automated controls: sequencer, LFO
Characteristics of Disco Music
Powerful vocal lines, Driving pulse, Around 120 BPM, Funk-influenced syncopated bass line, sound is filled out with orchestration, keyboards and guitar, utilizes longer forms for dancing
Radiohead, "Idioteque" (2000)
Radiohead sampled Paul Lansky's "Mild und Leise" (1973) in their song "Idioteque" on Kid A (2000).
Chic, "Good Times" (1979)
Sampled by many artists including: The Sugarhill Gang, Grandmaster Flash
Two Parameters of Digital Encoding: Sample Rate (Time domain), Bit Depth (Amplitude domain)
Sampling Rate and Bit Depth work together to determine the resolution and accuracy of the digital representation.
Nicky Siano and The Gallery
Siano (great beatmatcher), created the Gallery in a warehouse, located in SoHo first and moved to downtown Manhattan, 1973 - 1977, Calvin Klein, Bowie, Mick Jagger, etc. visited the Gallery
Voltage Contolled Oscillators (VCO)
Sine, pulse, triangle, sawtooth waves
Bette Midler, "Wild Beneath My Wings" (1983)
Song written by Jeff Silbar and Larry Henley
Tina Turner, "Wild Beneath My Wings" (1983)
Song written by Jeff Silbar and Larry Henley
the "discotheque"
Spaces organized around the playback of recorded music by a DJ
Who made this statement in the film? "As a creative tool (like) for someone to use a sample of an existing piece of music for their music, I think it's an extraordinary lazy artistic choice. It's much easier to take something already awesome and play it again with your name on it."
Steve Albini
Wendy Carlos (1939 —)
Studied Music and Physics atBrown University, Masters in Music Composition at Columbia, with Ussachevsky, Met Robert Moog in NewYork, became one of his first customers, providing feedback for development of Moog Synthesizer
David Mancuso and The Loft
The Loft: location for 1st underground dance party organized by Mancuso in 1970, called "Love Saves the Day", Lower E Side, NYC, Invite only, Audiophile, Mancuso, party organizer and DJ, preferred playing songs in their entirety
Gloria Gaynor, "Never Can Say Goodbye (1974)" Produced by Tom Moulton
The album Never Can Say Goodbye had no break between songs, became popular at dance clubs, song was first released in 1971 by the Jackson 5, with lead singer Michael Jackson (age 12).
Stonewall Riots of 1969
The gay community in New York responded to a police raid of a gay bar marked the beginning of the gay rights movement (gay rights activism, Pride)
Moog and Buchla created the first commercially available voltage-controlled synthesizers.
The modular design allowed each unit to be custom made and reconfigurable. The modules are connected using patch cords.
Disco
The music genre that established within this social setting 1969 - 1979 (Tim Lawrence's definition)
Moog 960 Sequential Controller (1968)
Three rows of eight potentiometers, each sends out a fixed voltage. A control voltage "clock" controls speed, bottom row positions for "play," "skip," or "loop."
Nyquist Theorem
To well represent a signal, the sampling rate should be at least twice the highest frequency contained in the signal. The highest frequency we can accurately record is half the sampling rate, in other words, at least two points per period must be sampled.
True or False: A drum machine is a sequencer.
True
True or false: A voltage-controlled oscillator can use a voltage input to control its pitch.
True
True or false: Early voltage-controlled analog synthesizers such as Buchla 100 used vacuum tubes to amplify its electronically generated sound.
True
Nyquist Theorem: To well represent a signal, the sampling rate should be at least ______ times the highest frequency contained in the signal.
Two
Black MIDI
a music genre consisting of compositions that uses MIDI files to create a song remix containing a large number of notes, typically in thousands or millions
Four-on-the-floor
a rhythm pattern with the bass drum (kick drum) on every beat (1, 2, 3, 4) in 4/4 time without any accent. Commonly used in disco and electronic dance music.
Slip-cueing
a turntable-based DJ technique which consists of holding a record still while the platter rotates underneath the slipmat and releasing it at the right moment
Portamento / Glide
adds a sliding pitch transition between notes that are played consecutively.
Giorgio Moroder
an Italian producer, keyboardist and composer who developed the electronic disco sound.
Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer (1980)
analog Drum Machine, TR stands for transistor rhythm, sixteen sounds; 32 programmable steps -deep kick drum sounds, hand claps sounds, around $1,200
One of the characteristics you do not often find in synthpop music is the use of _______________ .
atonality
Disco Demolition Night happened in a _______________ .
baseball stadium
Fill in the blank: The __________ is measured in bits, and the ___________ is measured in hertz (Hz) in digital audio.
bit-depth, sample rate
Disco
born in downtown NYC, clubs formed in abandoned warehouses and lofts, it was underground, but it was inclusive, dancer-focused, DJs played obscure tracks, not mainstream music, sensory experience: immersive lighting, quality sound systems
Chicago House Music
borrowed disco's percussion, musicians added synthesizer basslines, electronic drums, electronic effects, samples from funk and pop, & vocals using reverb and delay, balanced live instruments & singing w/ electronics, "inclusive" influenced by synthpop, rock, reggae, new wave, punk, & industrial, made for dancing.
the first "breakdown" or "disco break" section (created by Tom Moulton)
breaking down the arrangement by stripping away vocals and solo instruments until only the drums or rhythm section was left.
Pop Music
can be commodified/sold, reference/familiarity, catchy hooks, singability, predictable structure - emphasis on production, emphasis on image
Juan Atkins The "Originator"
coined term "Techno", did DJ sets with his friend Derrick May, calling themselves Deep Space, (1981) Juan Atkins & Richard Davis (aka "3070") formed Cybotron w/ science fiction, P-Funk, &Kraftwerk ideas
Granular synthesis
combining very short sonic events called 'grains' to generate complex textures
Additive synthesis
complex tones can be created by the summation, or addition, of simpler tones(organs, Telharmonium, Max Mathews, Bell Labs)
Paul Lansky, "Mild Und Leise" (1973)
composed using IBM mainframe computer with 1 MB of memory, uses FM synthesis
Laurie Spiegel, "Patchwork" (1977)
composed with GROOVE
Lejaren Hiller and Leonard Isaacson "Illiac Suite for String Quartet" (1957)
computer-aided composition, ILLIAC computer at University of Illinois, wrote a computer program to generate sequences of data — parameters such as pitches of a musical score.
Computer Music:
computer-aided composition, computer as performer, hybrid systems
Francis Grasso (1949 - 2001)
credited with developing a mixing technique called "slip-cueing"
FM synthesis
developed by John Chowning in the early 1970s
Max Mathews created GROOVE system (Generated Real-time Output Operations on Voltage-controlled Equipment) 1968, with Richard Moore
digital-analog hybrid system, digital computer could save the data of programming, digital-to-analog converters (DAC), a 24-note keyboard (on/off), four rotary knobs, a rotary joystick.
John Chowning, "Stria" (1977)
early experiment of FM synthesis, based on the naturally occurring inharmonic ratios between carrier signals and modulators, used the Golden Mean (1.618) as the basic unit of calculation
Kevin Saunderson The "Elevator"
established himself as an eclectic techno producer, incorporated house and disco elements into his music, quickly achieved success, hits introduced Europeans to his brand of techno; hard-edged electronic sounds w/ soulful melodies
Saturday Night Fever, 1977
film starring John Travolta, marked the height of the disco era - and the beginning of its decline, sound track by the Bee Gees
The San Francisco Tape Music Center
formed as a cooperative studio in 1962, pooling together tape-composition resources of composers from the San Francisco Conservatory: Morton Subotnick, Pauline Oliveros, Ramon Sender, & Terry Riley among others.
Depeche Mode "Just Can't Get Enough" (1981)
formed in 1980 in the UK, with Martin Gore and Vince Clarke sharing songwriting credits, and Dave Gahan on vocals, Clarke left the group in 1983 to pursue electro-pop sound, → formed Erasure, song was on UK chart for ten weeks
Phuture, "Acid Tracks" 1987
formed in 1985 by Spanky, DJ Pierre and Herb J, in Chicago, allegedly 1st acid house record, influenced techno, trance, and other electric dance music, style spread widely throughout UK/Europe, features Roland TB-303
Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO), "Computer Game" (1978)
formed in Japan, among 1st to use RolandTR-808 drum machine, inspired by computer culture, game culture, hugely popular uses Korg PS-3300 analog synthesizer
Fill in the blank: According to Mark J. Butler, a rhythm pattern with the bass drum (kick drum) on every beat (1, 2, 3, 4) in 4/4 time without any accent is called (a)__________, and the (b)___________ often comes on beat 2 and 4.
four-on-the-floor, snare drum
Robert Williams
from NY, opened The Warehouse, attended dance parties at the Loft and the Gallery, inspired by David Mancuso
Gary Numan (Tubeway Army ) "Are Friends Electric?" (1979)
from the album Replicas, #1 song for 4weeks on UK charts, established a new mood for synthpop- deadpan performance, darker, and gloomy, influence from Kraftwerk, Bowie
Fill in the blank: Iannis Xenakis is one of the composers who suggested _____________ as a computer music technique for producing complex sounds.
granular synthesis
Acid House
has a repetitive, hypnotic, trance- like style, w/ samples or spoken lines preferred to sung lyrics, developed (1987) w/ Chicago DJs experimenting w/ the Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer & sequencer
Transistors were ...
important to the development of voltage controlled systems.
New Order "Blue Monday" (1983)
incorporates elements of electronic dance music, disco, and krautrock, highly sampled & covered, Oberheim DMX( a digital drum machine), Moog, and homemade sequencer
Synthpop
influence from David Bowie, Kraftwerk, disco (esp Moroder), characterized by repetitive melodic fragments, mechanistic, overtly/celebrated synthesized instrumentation
Giorgio Moroder, "From Here to Eternity" (1977)
influential on the development of future electronic dance forms, especially house and techno, four-on-the-floor kick drum, off beat open high-hat patterns, string pads would become staples of the genres.
Yamaha DX7 (1980)
is a digital synthesizer uses FM synthesis technique.
The Warehouse→House
local record store Importes, Etc. in Chicago started labeling music played at the Warehouse as "heard at the Warehouse", later shortened to "house".
Fill in the blank: According to Jeff Chang, Solesides Records Co-Founder, the time digital sampling started appearing in hip-hop was the _______________.
mid 80s - 1986 and 1987
Frankie Knuckles and remixing
moved back to NYC in 1990, continued in underground club scene, putting out several albums, was in demand as a "remixer", working w/ tracks by Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross, Diana Ross, Toni Braxton (1997) won a Grammy for "Remixer of the Year."
Sample Rate
number of samples (snapshots) of audio carried per second, measured in Hz or kHz (one kHz being 1,000 Hz) A sample rate of 44.1 kHz means that a sound is sampled 44,100 times per second.
Detroit Techno
originated as an offshoot of house music, focused on idea of harmony between man & machine, combined different genres, metallic clicks, spoken words, robotic voices & repetitive hooks, themes about future, robots, science fiction.
Marshall Jefferson, "Move Your Body (The House Music Anthem)" (1986)
paid with his own money to have it printed by Trax Records in Chicago, Ron Hardy, the DJ at the Muzic Box played the song and got popular.
Different types of modules in a modular synthesizer are often connected by using ____________.
patch cables
The MIDI Revolution (1983) MIDI - Musical Instrument Digital Interface
proposed in 1981 by engineer Dave Smith of Sequential Circuits, an industry standard to (connecting and controlling synthesizers, linking computers to synthesizers)
MIDI THRU jack
provides a direct copy of data coming into the MIDI IN jack, providing the ability to "daisy chain" several instruments and devices together.
MIDI IN port
receives incoming MIDI messages.
Why is slip-cueing useful?
record accelerates to the right speed almost immediately, without waiting for the heavy platter to start up
Roland TB-303 Bass Line Synthesizer
released in 1982, was commercial failure & was only in production for 18 months. In late 1980's inexpensive, repurposed to create Acid, upper knobs could change the timbre on repeating patter
Bit Depth
represents how accurate amplitude measurements are when sampled, the higher the bit depth, the more data will be captured to more accurately re-create the sound
Fill in the blank: In Jamaica, _________ play records, and __________ toast.
selectors, deejays
What are the partials/harmonics that appear when a modulator signal in FM synthesis becomes at an audio rate?
sidebands
"disco mixes"/"megamixes" (created by Tom Moulton)
sides with multiple songs blended together into one long set, — longer, more danceable tracks.
Subtractive synthesis
sound sculpting—start with noise (many frequencies) or harmonically rich sound, and then filter them
Levels (amplitude)
stored as numbers, and stored as bits (binary).
Synthesis
the ability to use the fundamental building blocks of sound to construct new sounds
Frequency Modulation (FM Synthesis)
the frequency of a simple waveform (carrier wave) is modulated by another frequency (modulator wave)(John Chowning)
Donna Summer
the most popular female disco "diva," who's 1975 "Love to Love You Baby" became a huge hit (despite being 17 minutes long).
The Robots, the single from their 1978 album The Man-Machine advanced the band's philosophy about the role of technology in culture:
to become one with technology, "sound chemists", instrument they collectively played was "the studio".
MIDI OUT port
transmits actions of the keyboard to other keyboards or a computer.
The Buchla 100
used voltage control & featured the first sequencer, had programmable plates instead of keyboard
Chic (American band)
was one of the most successful disco bands of all time, "Le Freak" was a massive hit, formed by guitarist Nile Rodgers in 1976
Vibrato
when the modulating frequency is less than 30 Hz
Laurie Spiegel (1945 —)
worked with Max Mathews at Bell Labs, pioneered hybrid digital/analog composition methods, composed using GROOVE, experimented with early computer animation
Gloria Gaynor, "I Will Survive" (1978)
written by Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris, won Grammy for "Best Disco Track" 1980, previously her tracks were pitch-shifted to make her voice higher
