Computer Music May 2022

“Luckily the first synth really did come out in ’62” In what you could call a case of ‘the dog wagging the synth’s mod wheel’, we came up with the name of our cover feature – 60 Years Of The Synth – well before checking the actual facts. But luckily, we then discovered that, yes the first synth proper, really did come out in 1962. Phew. Of course, there are many arguments that it came out earlier, but we also have those covered with an introductory feature on synth and electronic music on page 14 that goes back further – a lot further – to pre-electricity times to find out about some very early manipulators of sound. But, really, we know that most people talk ‘synths’ in electronic and keyboard terms…

Spring is most definitely in the air, and what better way to kick off this most uplifting of seasons than an uplifting update. Cubase of course needs no introduction, and its decades of service to the music production community are well documented. Given its awesome feature set, Steinberg could probably keep Cubase ticking over, making tweaks here and there. But recently they’ve actually set themselves a pretty demanding release timetable, issuing new version updates with reassuring regularity, listening to user requests and supersizing this already big-hitting application into the creative powerhouse its users deserve. When we get a new version of a major DAW, all eyes are inevitably on the headline features, and with two new audio plugins, a new instrument and new metering modules, Cubase 12 certainly looks like a…

01 New licensing system (Pro, Artist, Elements) It was a long time coming, but Steinberg have finally binned their dongle-based eLicensor system and replaced it with Steinberg Licensing. Available on new versions of their software, you just sign in with your Steinberg ID to activate a device and you’re good to go. What’s more, and this we really like, you can activate up to three devices at once. 02 MIDI remote integration (Pro, Artist, Elements) Hardware controller integration has really improved with preset scripts and automatic detection for some devices. It’s also easy to design mappings from scratch, creating buttons, knobs and faders and arranging them in a grid-based layout. With that sorted, you can use the Mapping Assistant to connect hardware controls. 03 Verve Felt Piano (Pro, Artist) This is a brand new VST…

EQ: just two letters, but a whole world of possibilities and potential problems, so we took you through the basics in May 2012 ( 177). We also asked which format you should release your music in, and noted that the CD – and possibly even the very concept of the ‘album’ – could be on the way out. What goes around comes around, though, and we’ve recently heard talk of the inevitable ‘CD revival’ (in your face, vinyl!). No format stays dead long. “The question on everyone’s lips: which sample rate do you use?” We also told you about Audiobus, a new technology that enabled you to connect up iOS music-making apps and use them together in a project. It’s still around, though the rise of Apple’s own AUv3 plugin standard has certainly…

Where do you begin a history of electronic music and the synthesiser? The popular and somewhat easy view is that the two are entwined, that electronic music started with the invention of the synthesiser and its use in the 60s and 70s. And indeed, that’s why we’ve chosen 1962 – 60 years ago – as the year from which things kicked off. But actually the synthetic manipulation of sound, and the machines that did it can be traced back further. Much further. In fact, both experimentation with sound and some weird and wonderful sonic manipulators go back hundreds of years. OK, the fun really started when people started recording and releasing the results a few decades back – not to mention making accurate records of the machines that they created…

The 1920s Theremin is a unique device in electronic music making, not so much used to create sounds, but perform them. OK, its eerie tone is a bit of a one-off, but it has claimed its part in music history – particularly in early sci-fi and Beach Boys tunes – largely down to this rather atmospheric tone and the way it is produced. A performer can alter the pitch and volume of the sound merely by moving their hand up and down and further away from the device. The story behind its invention and popularity is like something out of a film, and deserves its own book. As fascinating as it is, though, this story runs on a different course to that of the synth (almost, in fact, in a…