Control the GMS Via Ableton Live

Posted on September 7, 2010 by John CS Keston

Currently I am busy preparing for the Ostracon show at the In / Out Festival of Digital Performance that is coming up on September 17 and 18 in New York (we are playing on the Saturday the 18th at 9:30pm). Part of my preparation involves minimizing my setup for ease of transport. For one thing, I am not bringing my Korg MS2000 as a controller for the GMS, as I have done for other performances. However, because I’m projecting the live video source, I cannot use the on-screen controls in the GMS.

My first idea to solve this problem was to share a single Korg nanoKONTROL between Ableton Live and the GMS. Unfortunately this approach was not practical because it would require some major reconfigurations as well as recompiling the GMS with a set of new external MIDI controls. My next idea was to route the MIDI control and program changes to the GMS via MIDI clips in Ableton’s session view. This worked immediately and I knew I was on the right track. The only problem was that there seemed to be a MIDI signal feedback loop when using the same bus for output and external control in the GMS. I solved this problem by creating a second IAC bus for the external control and using the first bus for the MIDI output. Finally I configured a combination of keyboard controls and Korg Nano buttons to trigger the clips in Ableton that, in turn, trigger the specific functions in the GMS. Voilà!

The flexibility of Ableton never ceases to amaze me. I had never used session clips to send MIDI program and control change messages to an external device, let alone, independent software running simultaneously. Nor had I ever needed to do this in the past. Yet the thought occurred to me, I wonder if Ableton can do this? It turns out that it can. Thanks to Ableton this solution has saved me many hours of redundant and tedious programming, and well as making my setup more streamlined and efficient for upcoming performances. How have Ableton’s capabilities surprised you?

Cappuccino Synth Video Via CDM

Posted on August 26, 2010 by John CS Keston

Cappuccino Synth from Gijs on Vimeo.

I first saw this on Create Digital Music a few days ago, and although I think most ACB readers keep well abreast of what’s up on CDM, I’ve watched this several times now and think it deserves a re-post here. For more about this video visit the original post.

Experimental guitarists have been doing similar things like holding power tools or more recently, mobile phones, up to their pickups to generate interesting sounds. Here’s a video I shot of Siamese Bug a duet of Tim Glenn on drums with contact mics, and Jeremy Ylvisaker on prepared guitar.

Siamese Bug Video

Experimental Music Mondays with Ten72, Ostracon, Terr the Om, and Davis-Glenn-Keston

Posted on August 24, 2010 by John CS Keston

The Experimental Music Mondays series at the Kitty Cat Klub concludes this Monday, August 30 with a familiar lineup and newcomer Ten72 (Nils Westdal). Regulars Ostracon (John Keston and Graham O’Brien) and Terr the Om (Nathan Brende) are playing as well as my new unnamed trio Davis-Glenn-Keston. It is shaping up to be a fun and delightful evening of experimental music. Music will start by 9:30pm and go until 1:00am. Entry is free. Stop by and let us know what you think of this event.

This is the last chance to experience this series. For now there are no plans to continue the night at another venue, but depending on Monday’s turnout it may be taken under consideration. Thanks to all the people who have helped support this event, including Tom Rimarcik, Ryan Olcott, Graham O’Brien, and Nathan Brende, not to mention all the patrons who appreciated the work presented by the artists involved.

The Phattest Sound to Size Ratio Ever?

Posted on August 20, 2010 by John CS Keston

Within my realm of experience, the phattest sound to size ratio ever has been achieved by the much-hyped Korg Monotron. I received the Monotron in the mail yesterday and was shocked by it’s puny dimensions. Barely larger than a typical smart phone, the Monotron looks like a prop for a Barbie I Can Be a Rock Star set. Putting my judgmental feelings aside, I plugged it into my mixer and was even more shocked by the huge, rich, thick, and chunky tones produced. On the box it says “True analog synthesis satisfaction” and I cannot argue with that statement. Here’s a quick demonstration of the sound quality and depth of the oscillators (one VCO and one LFO). Please listen with proper monitors or headphones. Laptop speakers will not do this justice. Does anything else come close to this as far as the size to sound ratio is concerned? Please add your thoughts below.

Monotron Demo

Ostracon Debut Limited Run on Cassette

Posted on August 16, 2010 by John CS Keston

Ostracon and Unearthed Music have decided to release the Ostracon debut on cassette tape for promos and a short run for sale at shows and online. The as-yet-untitled release includes around 47 minutes of instrumental duets between myself on electronics (mostly layers of melodies produced by the GMS) and Graham O’Brien on drums. We recorded in the historically preserved Studio A of the former Flyte Tyme studios of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis fame. I’ll have more details soon, but expect the cassette to be available by the middle of September just before our performance at the In / Out Festival of Digital Performance in New York City.

The immediate response I get from most of the people I have told is, why cassette? I have to admit to being heavily laden with nostalgia for this format. As a kid (and into adulthood), I taped jam sessions, records and CDs constantly, especially my own LP collection. I was acutely aware of how quickly the quality of vinyl records could degrade. Cassettes are small enough to fit in your pocket, or bring a dozen of them on a road trip. You can throw one out a window, pop it in the deck and provided it didn’t get run over by a truck it will sound the same. I melted records in hot car interiors, had them scratched and broken by myself, friends, or siblings, and wore them out from over playing. Now I realize that tape in the long term is even more ephemeral than vinyl. So, again, why release a modern recording on cassette tape?

Since making the decision I have noticed that it’s not as rare of an idea as I thought. There is definitely a movement back toward this barely antiquated format. I don’t have any meaningful reasons for choosing tape, but I know that I’m not the only one to have nostalgia for it. This might be a good excuse for others to get out their cassette player of choice and listen to some old favorites they haven’t digitized yet. Remember packing your tape before recording, or tightening the reel with a pencil? I’ll probably throw in a card with a download code for those without a cassette deck, but what are your thoughts? Would you love to get you hands on a cassette of new music, or would you seek out a downloadable alternative?