Music Columnist and Synthesizer explorer, Robin Vincent, has created a video titled: "25 - Top tips for performing live with Eurorack".

A day or 2 before, he had performed with part of his Eurorack Synthesizer in a local restaurant in England, where he's from. During that performance, he realized several things which he hadn't planned for. So he created this video, in order to pass this valuable information on to others.

Here's the link:
​www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7LFURMEs8Q

Recently, I saw 2 videos of an excellent Drummer. His name is "Aric Improta". Not only is he an accomplished Drummer but I've never seen anyone use more of an acoustic Drumset to produce sound.

The following web page, contains an article and 2 videos. The first video shows his showmanship. The most outstanding part is when he "back-flips" from one Drumset to another!

The second video shows him using every part of his Drum setup for various sounds.

Just thought I'd pass this along.

Here's the link:
www.musicradar.com/news/aric-improtas-guide-to-drumming-showmanship

In June, Sylvia and I traded-in our "Roland System-1m" ($600) for the "Behringer Neutron" ($300). It finally arrived last week.

• The System-1m is a nice-sounding Synth. It also has several Patch Points. However, most of the time when I wanted to create a certain sound or Patch our Eurorack Modular into it, the System-1m just didn't offer the flexibility we needed.
• The Neutron, on the other hand, has 56 Patch Points, which allow for many combinations of Control Voltage signal flow and audio modification.

The digital Oscillators in the System-1m made them very stable and tracked across the keyboard very well. We were pleasantly surprised to find the Neutron's analog Oscillators are also very stable.

There's a very good Review of the Neutron over at SonicState. Here's the link:
sonicstate.com/news/2018/04/05/sonic-lab-behringer-neutron-analog-desktop-semi-modular-review/

Because I learned Synthesizers the "old school" way, with "Patch Charts", I wanted to be sure there was one available. The User's Manual does have a handy Patch Chart on page 27 but I fine-tuned it just a bit for our purposes. I have included it below for anyone to Download.

• A "Patch Chart" is used with Synthesizers which don't offer a "Save" or "Store" for your sound creations. I realize that some Artists simply want the "journey" to be the "sound". That's fine but there may still be times when you'll want to start with a certain "sound foundation" and, without being able to Save a Patch electronically, a "Patch Chart" will come in very handy.

If you've never used a Patch Chart, there are no real "rules" of how to draw-out and explain a Patch. So, for what it's worth, these are a few things I've learned over the years on how to write-out a Patch so you'll understand it years from now:

• When drawing lines where your Patch Cables are to be connected, be sure to use a contrasting ink color. Since the Blank Patch Chart I made has "black" lines, I always use a "red" pen to draw the Cable lines.
• Explain as much as you can and be clear as to "what goes where". Remember, someone else may need to "interpret" your notes or YOU may be wanting to recreate that Patch in the future. You might know exactly how all the knobs, buttons and cables are set but after working with hundreds of Patches and several other Synths, you're going to want a simple layout and instructions on every Patch Chart.
• Be consistent.  Although you may only be dealing with 1 or 2 Patch Cables in the beginning, your Neutron may later become part of a larger system, maybe a Eurorack Modular. So, even though it's easy to draw a straight line from the "LFO Out" to the "OSC1 In", once you start dealing with 10, 20, 50 or more Patch Cables, you'll end-up with random lines on your Patch Chart if you don't think-through "where" those lines are going to be drawn.
• One way to indicate that 2 Patch Cables cross each other, is to draw a rounded "wow". See my examples below:

Music has been a part of the Earth / 3D experience for a VERY long time. It could be said that "Nature" itself was the first "Orchestra"… the first playing of "sounds", which, in turn, activated various Moods, Memories and Actions within the various Beings scattered around this amazing blue ball. Water droplets creating multi-textured Rhythms… The sonic variety of the Wind moving through the Leaves, Caves and other timbre-inspiring objects… all contribute to the character we've all come to know as Nature's songs.
​
When "Humans" began creating Music, they mostly picked-up "Acoustic" or "Synthetic" instruments. Think about it… A non-electric guitar is an "Acoustic" instrument. An electronic Synthesizer is a "Synthetic" instrument. Wind moving through the Leaves of a Tree and Water bubbling in a Brook are "Organic" instruments.

As Music evolved, Humans continued to experiment with various Styles of Music and, for "me", these boil-down to the following groupings (generally speaking):

• Music that's fun to Sing or Whistle to — "Melodic Music"
• Music which makes your body want to move — "Dance Music"
• Music which is fun to Perform — "Participation Music"
• Music which engages your Logical mind — Baroque, Classical and some Contemporary Music
• Music which was created simply by the idea of "look what "I" can do" — "Clever Music"
• Music which is relaxing, soothing. Music which fills the ambient space around us with the comforting feeling of getting into that calm, restful feeling. — "Ambient Music"

As music-gear-technology evolved, Human Society has been gifted with some very powerful, very flexible Music-creation tools. These days, the simple Piano, Flute, Xylophone, Tuba, etc. can produce any type of sound. In fact, electronic Synthesizers can be Patched (setup) so they not only create "Music" without any Human interaction but that "Music" can also evolve (change) over Time AND it can have all the subtleties as though a "Human" were really "playing" it. However, this "ease of Music-creation at our fingertips", means ANYONE can create interesting Music. Today, even the family dog can create a musical masterpiece.

…and this is where our world is today… over-saturated with "Music".  Some "good". Some "not so good". Some of it is "bad", but it makes it to the popular Listening Posts (radio, social media, etc.) Some of it is "absolutely great" but no one ever hears it.

In the "old days", there were "Talent Scouts" — people who would travel the country looking for talented people — Singers, Actors, Musicians, etc. If someone was exceptional, that company would bring them in for an Audition. If they "had what it takes", they were "usually" Signed to a Movie or Record company. If they "mostly" had what it takes, they may still be Signed but would be given some additional training, where they were lacking.

Today, however, the Music Industry is being crushed by the shear number of  "new Songs" they receive every day. According to the information at the link at the bottom of this article, Music-site "Spotify" adds over 20,000 Songs to its Site each day!!! Not "20". Not" 200"… but TWENTY THOUSAND Songs!!! For a Musician or Song-Writer, this is very depressing. As you can see, even the major Record Producers have a difficult time getting their Artist's Songs heard by the masses.

So how does the "little guy" compete? How does ANYONE get their Music into the right places, so it will be "heard" and then, maybe, "purchased"? Although I don't have an answer for this, it's always a good idea to "follow your Heart" because, if you're in the Music business for the "money", you may want to find another career. As you can see, even if you're the next "Elvis" or "Adele", today's society is currently overwhelmed with Music.

FIND YOUR OWN VOICE
Being a Drummer and Synthesist, I do my best to look into new Music-Gear announcements, instrument techniques, etc. I've seen a lot of articles and videos on "how to create "that sound" in your favorite Song" or "how to play like your favorite Artist", etc. At the same time, society tells us that the Musicians and Songs, which "get noticed" or even "go viral" are the ones that "find their own style". So which is it?… Are we expected to sound like everyone else who came before us or are we supposed to follow our own Path?

When I was growing up, hearing those (now) old Rock Classics, I never thought:

• "When I grow-up, I want to sound just like that."

No. Instead, I thought:

• "I'm going to have a Number One Song some day." or
• "I'm going to play in a successful Band some day." or
• "I'm going to be a Musician who's so different, and creates such interesting Songs, that everyone will want to buy my Music."

…but I never imagined that "copying" another Musician or their Songs would be my "goal"… my "pinnacle". I always wanted to create my owns Songs… to tell the world "my" message. To make a statement.

MAKE YOUR POINT AND MOVE ON
So, if you ever get the opportunity of creating a piece of Music, please GIVE IT A VOICE… make it say something. Time and again, when Sylvia and I are in Public Areas we hear Music which is "sonically" (melodically and harmonically) un-interesting AND the Lyrics will usually repeat… for EVER. In our opinion, if your Guitar Lick or Piano improvisation repeats more than 4 times, you're not being creative and you've lost the very short attention span of your Listeners… AND if your Lyrics repeat more then 4 times in a row, then you've lost your message — if your Song ever had one.

• Let's say you and your friends go to a restaurant you've never been to. You place your order and it turns out that the entire experience was WAY over the top. You now have a new "favorite meal" and can't wait to get back there again. You can't stop talking about it.
• Let's say you get a bonus at work and decide to go back to that restaurant for your "favorite meal" every day. By the end of the 10th day, your feeling about that Dish is: "Well, it's ok." (It's no long SO GREAT that you can't live without it.)

So, repeating an element of a Song is similar. Yes, you're trying to make a point with your Lyrics or Performance but you don't have to beat your Listeners over the head with an idea.
There's a Saying:

• "Less is more"

However, this isn't telling you to use fewer words that are "different" from each other. It means select each word carefully and allow each to contribute to the overall listening experience — your message. Think of the Notes you select for your Composition and the Words you choose for your Lyrics as the ingredients of a very tasteful meal… too few "interesting Notes" and your Words won't be supported by the Music. Too many repeated Words will sour the taste of that great Guitar or Piano solo we just heard.

LET THE MUSIC GUIDE YOU
I'm not saying you shouldn't play "Cover Tunes". Sometimes it can feel good to Perform a Song which was created by someone else. It can stir some good memories inside you or help you, as a Musician, make a little more money.

So what I'm saying is… listen to the Music. As you're sculpting your Song, listen carefully to what "IT" wants and needs… and pay attention to your own Feelings and Memories, as your Song comes to life. Allow your Song to guide you. If you want to test this, the next time you create a Song, make two of them. With the first one, listen to the Song and let it influence which Words, Notes, Rhythms and Textures you sprinkle into it… and keep your Logical Mind out of it. With the 2nd Song, let your Logical / Clever Mind loose. When both Songs are finished, play them for your family and friends. Don't tell them how you created them. You may even tell them "someone else" created them. Just to get their honest reactions.

Here's the link to the Spotify statistics:
https://expandedramblings.com/index.php/spotify-statistics/

• Note: So you, the Reader, won't be frustrated after reading this, what I discovered (below) didn't work. I'm simply explaining the details of what I went through, in order to find an "alternative", hopefully "better", Music Scale… but I didn't.

I had been thinking about Alternative Tunings for Music for several weeks. I even did a lot of research to see if any of the current Eurorack, Modular Synthesizer Modules would allow me to actually pick my own "Frequencies".

• There are lots of Oscillators and Sequencers, which allow you to "manually" set their "Frequencies" but getting them to produce those same exact Frequencies every time, is not something I found while doing my research.
• Yes, there are Modules called: "Quantizers", which will align every Pitch, Voltage and MIDI Note, coming into it, to the closest "Note" in its Scale. However, in "my" research, "most" force you into selecting from a list of Pitches which aren't broken down smaller than quarter-tones.
• I only discovered 2 Quantizers which allow you to select your own Frequencies but they seemed to be a bit difficult to program. One is the "Disting Mk4" ($189), by "Expert Sleepers", and the other is the "µTune" ($299), by "Tubbutec".

Several weeks ago, I was thinking about the "A equals 440Hz" (Cycles-Per-Second, Frequency) and that some say "A" should really be set to 432-Hz.

As I was looking at those numbers, I noticed that they are "8" numbers apart from each other. Since I used to do some very basic programming, a few decades ago, my mind instantly thought there might be something to that relationship…

• Since "Society" has been lied to in so many different aspects of this "Reality", what if those "liars" knew the core Frequency for Music should be "448Hz" and, in order to mislead everyone, moved the number "down" 8 Cycles-Per-Second (making it "432"), to throw us off track, instead of "up" 8 Cycles where it should be (making it "448")?

From there, I did something "thinking" and some "math" and settled on the number "32". Computers are based on multiples of "2", which are "zeros" and "ones". Home computers in the early 80s had 8-bit Processors, which is a multiple of "2". I settled on "32" because "2", "4", "8" and "16" Cycles were too close to each other for my note-building exercise. 32 seemed to be the smallest number of Cycles-Per-Second which the Human ear could distinguish a difference in Pitch AND it would take-up an entire Music Keyboard, just to have at least 2 "Octaves".

I left "A" at 448, as a starting point. I then "added" 32, to find higher Notes or "subtracted" 32, to find lower Notes. This gave me these Frequencies:

• 128, 160, 192, 224, 256, 288, 320, 352, 384, 416, 448, 480, 512

Since I couldn't find any "easy-to-use" Synthesizer Modules, which would allow me to enter the "Frequencies" I wanted, I did some testing. A few days ago, I used "Audacity" (audio manipulation software) to produce those 13-Tones. I was going to load them into Apple's "GarageBand" software, in order to move them around and stretch them, just to see if this new "Scale" would sound good… or not.

That quickly became a bit complicated so I stopped.

Today, Sylvia reminded me that our Korg Krome Keyboard offers Tunings and Scale creation. So I checked the Manual and turned it ON. It was a bit tricky and did take me a few hours but I was able to set those Frequencies.

• The "tricky" part was that I had to use "Audacity" to play each Pitch in a loop, while I found the closest "key" on the Keyboard to that particular Pitch. Then I adjusted its "Semitone" setting until they sounded the same.
• When I was done, that "Scale" was spread across 2, standard Octaves on the Keyboard and used both the "black" and "white" keys but not all of them were next to each other.
• I marked them with small pieces of Post-It Notes, so I could see which "physical" keys were part of that "Scale". I even recorded a low-to-high "run" of Notes into the Krome, in order to hear it played back smoothly at different Tempos.
• I then tested this "Scale's" Chord capability. It was difficult listening to the "run" of Notes, because they weren't too pleasing, but the Chord possibilities were even worse. I found 3, maybe 4 combinations of Notes which sounded "ok" together.

So, other than "I just wasn't happy with what I was hearing", I began to wonder… "why"? Is it because those are simply Frequencies which work against each other or is it that my brain is programmed to identify certain sound combinations as "good" and others as "bad"?

Here's the link to the "Disting Mk4":
https://www.modulargrid.net/e/expert-sleepers-disting-mk4

Here's the link to the "µTune":
https://www.modulargrid.net/e/tubbutec-µtune-

Here's the link to the "Audacity" software:
https://www.audacityteam.org

In doing my 1st calculations, I took used the "Note-to-Frequency" Chart on this page:
https://pages.mtu.edu/~suits/notefreqs.html

I then plugged those numbers into the Frequency-Semitone calculator on this page:
http://www.sengpielaudio.com/calculator-centsratio.htm
​

Behringer has been making audio equipment and electronic musical instruments for many years. The few pieces of information Sylvia and I had heard about them was mostly from some of their unhappy customers, who let their complaints be known on various Forums.

Around 2015 or so, company Owner, Uli Behringer, commented about Moog's extremely high prices and said he could manufacture and sell similar Synthesizers for around $300.
​

• This was at a Time when Moog's "lower-priced" Synthesizers were Retailing for around $1,500. (Of course, these contained "Keyboards".)

Later, Behringer's Synthesizers, which were "copies" of popular Synths decades before, would become known as "Clones". The first "Clone" Behringer made was of Moog's famous "Mini Moog Model D". Granted it didn't have a Keyboard but it IS currently selling for $299! A few months later, Moog decided to release something "new". So they created the "Mini Moog Model D" and placed a Retail price of $3,500 on it!!!
​

• The original "Mini Moog" was released in the early 70s. I was still in High School but, after hearing it's awesome sounds on various Rock recordings, I just had to have one. So I saved all my money and bought a brand new Mini Moog from the local music store… for $1,495!!!

The new Mini Moog does have a Keyboard and, although Moog added "MIDI" (digital technology, which the Behringer "Model D" also has), they added a few Patch Points (interconnection Jacks) for Control Voltage and other benefits when working with other Synthesizers. (The Behringer version also has MIDI and several Patch Points.)

• Although Moog recreated the "Model D", they did add a few improvements. So, in order to save everyone a lot of confusion, why didn't the call this new version the "Model D+" or "Model D Plus"?

Since that first Behringer Synth, they have created their very own, not "Cloned", Synthesizer called the "Deepmind 12". This one does have a Keyboard, has MANY more features than Moog's Mini Moog and Retails for just $1,000!!!
​

• Behringer has also stated that they have assigned several of their Engineering Teams to Clone many more of music history's popular Synthesizers.

Several years ago, Behringer began building a new Factory in China. The manufacturing building will be about 3-MILLION SQUARE FEET in size!!!

A new, "Behringer original" Synthesizer which has been talked about since it was "leaked" in January 2018, is called: "Neutron". Although it doesn't have a Keyboard, it does have a very flexible set of features, a great sound and will Retail for $299!!! I told Sylvia, the Neutron needs to be on our Music Gear List.

• About 8-months ago, I was working with our "incomplete" Modular Synthesizer and wanted to create a sound that was in my mind. the Function I needed was inside our "Roland System-1m" Synthesizer ($600) but it didn't offer any way to access it from another Synth. So I told Sylvia "The System-1m isn't as flexible as we need it to be. So we should trade it in at our local Guitar Center store and get something else." That "something else" is the "Neutron".

Here's a link to an article on the new Behringer Factory:
www.synthanatomy.com/2018/03/music-tribe-city-get-an-insight-factory-behringer.html

Here's an older article, which provides a few more details:
www.prosoundnetwork.com/business/music-group-city-moves-forward

Here's a link to a very good Review (video) of the Neutron:
www.synthtopia.com/content/2018/04/05/behringer-neutron-analog-semi-modular-synthesizer-review/

• On that web page, I was surprised by some of the Comments. Everyone had something good to say about the Neutron (and Behringer). There were even 2 or 3 people who said, in the past, they would not buy anything from Behringer… but were now considering purchasing this amazing Synth.

The Review (in the link above) of the Neutron was done by Nick Batt of "SonicState". If you're not familiar with "SonicState", here's the direct link to their website:
www.sonicstate.com
​

Here's another Plexiglass item that Sylvia and I created a few months ago.

This "Drumstick Painting Box" started out as an Earring Display. A company was throwing it out, so we told them we could make something out of it.

"Plexiglass" / "Acrylic" is a very different type of material to work with. Whether it's "thin", as with the material on this Display Case, or "thick" like the pieces we used in our main shelving unit, this stuff is just not what I'm used to. Granted, I'm not very handy with "Power Tools" and barely know how to create things with "Hand Tools" but this clear plastic doesn't behave like "Wood" or "Metal". (Not that I know what I'm doing with those materials either.)

• If you cut Plexiglass / Acrylic too fast, it will melt. Even if you use a "Scoring Tool" to hand-score (etch) into a sheet, in order to "cut" it, dragging the Scoring Tool too quickly across its surface will cause the plastic shavings to become very hot and actually "stick" or "bond" to the metal part of that Tool.
• Sawing or Drilling into Plexiglass too slowly will cause it to crack, splinter and shatter.
• If you're using a standard Drill Bit, you really do need to start with a very narrow diameter Bit and work your way up to the size you ultimately need. I've found that the best Drill Bits are not the standard "spiral" type. Instead, use the "flattened-V" shaped Bits.
• Using "Acetone", you can actually "bond" 2 pieces of Plexiglass together. This is how I added the back edge to the UltraNova's dust cover.
• Acetone will also "un-bond" 2 pieces of Plexiglass from each other. However, this is not a perfect science. In my experience, one or both pieces may simply break in the process.

Below, are some photos of a "Drumstick Painting Box" that we created…

For this project, Sylvia and I used another Retail Display item — a chrome stand. I don't know its original purpose but it's heavy enough to be a Drumstick Holder, it's adjustable and it's chrome.

The "tray", holding the Drumsticks, was some type of "L-shaped", display shelf, which we modified slightly.

I want to share this because I couldn't find a solution to this problem online and thought others would like to know about it…

Quite a while ago, we purchased a "Tama Speed Cobra", single, Bass Drum pedal for my electronic drumset. Earlier this year, the felt pad on its Beater Head (see image on "left" below) had come unglued. In my opinion, this happened because of "poor design". I had positioned the felt pad so its point was making contact with the rubber, electronic, Bass Drum pad but there must have been enough "angled stress", while playing, to cause it to slide up and break-away from the glue holding it in place.

I never noticed when the felt pad initially came off. One day, though, I happened to look down and noticed that the hard-plastic Beater Head was now making direct contact with the rubber pad. This was not good. The rubber in that area was now indented and the hardness of the plastic and force of my playing could have damaged the Piezo Sensor inside the pad. It didn't but it could have.

Although I could have glued the felt pad back on, Sylvia and I thought it would simply detach itself again. So we decided to buy a replacement Beater. We bought the "Tama CB90F" (see image on "right" below).

​This replacement Beater is sold just as you see it in this image:

• Shaft,
• Balancing Weight,
• Beater Head, etc.

I simply removed the old Beater and installed the new one.

Within a few minutes of playing, I noticed that the Beater Head had pivoted up — forcing its felt pad to no longer make contact with the drum pad. So I rotated the Beater Head back into position and played the pedal while watching the new Beater. Within just a few stokes, I saw the Beater Head turn upwards again. I tightened everything but this continued to happen.

I went online, to see if anyone else had this same problem and how they fixed it. Lots of people had the same issue but I could not find anyone who successfully solved this problem.

I then got out the old Beater and removed the Beater Head. I immediately noticed that the cylinder, which holds the Beater Head is "knurled" — there are "X" patterns etched into it. I then looked at the same portion of the new Beater and saw that it was shiny-smooth. It's no wonder why the new Beater Head won't stay in position. There's nothing for it to grip to.

So I swapped-out the Beater shafts… placing the "old" shaft on the "new" Beater. This solved the problem.

Here's the link to their product page:
​www.tama.com/usa/products/hardware/accessories/pedal/index.html

Earlier this year, I had Posted several images and a video of the Synthesizer shelf Sylvia and I had created out of Plexiglass. Since then, I modified it a bit:

• I pulled its back panel in about 2-inches, in order to leave room for the cables to drop down between the back panel and the wall behind it.
• In looking for a way to see the contents of this shelf but also have those items protected from dust, we decided to use a sheet of "Storm Door Screen". The "width" was about 2-inches short but we used it anyway. Although we do have a sheet of Plexiglass that we could have used as a front cover for this shelf, at 3/8ths-inch thick, it would have meant taking off and putting on a 20-to-30-pound sheet each time we wanted to access those Synthesizers. So now, we simply and quickly roll-up the screen and it can tuck-away in the top-back part of this shelf. (Another modification I made after uploading those previous images.)
• Although this 3/8ths-inch-thick Plexiglass is very strong, the top and middle shelves had so much weight on them those shelves were sagging a bit. So back to Lowe's (hardware store) where we purchased 2, "U"-shaped, aluminum bars. I cut them to the width we need and simply placed them over the front-edge of those shelves. They still sage a tiny bit but they're now supported with a metal strip.

Since we still had more Plexiglass, and because we like the look of "clear" shelves and stands for our Synthesizers, Sylvia and I created a few more stands and dust covers a couple of months ago.

Here's a Slideshow of the photos showing the various shelves, stands and dust covers Sylvia and I made out of Plexiglass…