Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/3/84; site teddy.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!harvard!talcott!panda!teddy!mjn From: mjn@teddy.UUCP Newsgroups: net.music.synth Subject: Synthesizer Controlers: A New One? Message-ID: <1586@teddy.UUCP> Date: Tue, 5-Nov-85 09:27:04 EST Article-I.D.: teddy.1586 Posted: Tue Nov 5 09:27:04 1985 Date-Received: Fri, 8-Nov-85 06:39:13 EST Distribution: net Organization: GenRad, Inc., Concord, Mass. Lines: 38 I've been doing some thinking lately on non-keyboard controllers for music synthesis (no doubt a common musing for some of you as well). I've seen or tried such things as capacitance strips, PPC controls, breath controllers, pedals, joysticks, etc. Another common control device is to put a pickup on another instrument, such as guitar, drums, etc. I had an intresting thought on another instrument to try as a controler, which seems quite natural to me. Many years ago (1930's ?) there was an instrument developed called the theramin. This device sensed the position of the musician's hands in relation to probe sets. These are usually set at right angles to eachother. By moving your hands through the air, one could control a VCO with one hand and a VCA with the other. AHA! This gadget is nothing more than a crude synth in its own right! Now suppose that we take the output of the positions sensors and use them directly as control signals to a modern synthesizer. Better still, convert the output to MIDI, channel selectable, so that it can be integrated into a digital synth setup. What does this give us? A modern theramin. One which can be programmed for voices, one which can be used to control other parameters than merely frequency or amplitude (filtering, harmonic content, feedback, noise, etc). The theramin, once properly learned, can be an expressive instrument. It was used to good effect in many of Led Zeppelin's albums. One last thought. The original theramin used some sort of electromagnetic field to sense hand position (capacitance? radar?). A more modern (and probably cheaper) construction could involve distance or motion sensors similar to the ones marketed by Polaroid. These are often used in robotics to sense obstacles and walls in its path. These are ultrasonic in nature, and may be more accurate that older methods. Anyone have ideas on building such a thing? -- Mark J. Norton {decvax,linus,wjh12,mit-eddie,cbosgd,masscomp}!genrad!panda!mjn mjn@sunspot