Interactive/historical museum exhibition

[UrielsHarp]

Hello all,

This looks like like a really good forum to get the advice I need. I'm working on the redevelopment of the Polytechnic Museum in Moscow. One gallery is going to be looking at Synthetic music. This includes a historical account of electronic music, interactves that allow people to understand how they work in a basic way and the other ones to allow people to play with synth sounds in a creative way. This is a permanent exhibitions so will be all properly made with screen based and robust physical interactives as well as historic objects (we have a number of Soviet Synths like the Polyvoks but we need to make it an international display)

so my questions to the forum are and please feel free to suggest for one or more than one of these:
1) What are the most interesting things to get across to a general public audience about the history of synths. What key steps/case-studies/synths would you choose to tell the story of the history
2) Can you imagine or have seen any interactives that allow people to learn about synths? what would the key things to communicate and are there any creative possibilities for taking those basic ideas and making them fun and accessible?
3) Other stories or areas of electronic music we could include
4)Contacts of people who are involved in creating the above

Look forward to any ideas!

Cheers

[Voltor07]

so my questions to the forum are and please feel free to suggest for one or more than one of these:
1) What are the most interesting things to get across to a general public audience about the history of synths. What key steps/case-studies/synths would you choose to tell the story of the history

A Moog modular is a must-have. Robert Moog invented the modular, at the same time as Buchla, so a Buchla 100 would also be a must-have for the museum. An ARP 2500 or 2600 would be a good choice to have, as well as the first "portable" synth, the Minimoog. Might want to include vintage Korgs, Yamahas, and Rolands to represent Japan's contributions to analog synthesis.

2) Can you imagine or have seen any interactives that allow people to learn about synths? what would the key things to communicate and are there any creative possibilities for taking those basic ideas and making them fun and accessible?

What better interactive display than a vintage analog synthesizer? Perhaps an automated voice explaining what each knob does and how it affects the sound, then letting the visitors to shape a sound themselves.

3) Other stories or areas of electronic music we could include

A list of musicians and bands who extensvely used synthesizers in their recordings, and maybe some interviews with early synth adopters. Also, interviews with more modern synth players explaining why they chose to use synthesizers, as opposed to more "traditional" instruments in their music.

[EricK]

Hello,
What a nice idea.
Take a look at the Bob Moog Foundation. They have a similar plan to educate and inspire using very similar methods that you describe. There may even be some sort of a potential for a partnership between you, who knows. Look them up.
Also, what better way to garner national pride than with the works of Lev Sergeyevich Termen? I haven't met anyone that I exposed to the Theremin that wasn't fascinated with it and didn't want to try to play it. This is one of the methods that the Moog Foundation uses in their interactive displays. Even if it is not a traditional theremin, just a theremin-like controller that is controlling via midi, various visual images would be a treat. The whole hands-off approach really piques curiosity. Perhaps the Moscow Conservatory of music would be willing to help donate a piece or provide you with informaiton if you haven't already contacted them.

I would also check out the documentary "I dream of wires". They have a DVD that will ship in June. It is about modular synths and electronic music and has an hour long prologue covering the history of synthesizers. idreamofwires.org is their website with a 12 minute trailer for the "Hardcore Edition", a 4 hour synthfest for the diehard fans of modulars.

There are also plenty of software emulations of these classic synths which go a long way to expose people to the interface....even though the mention of software offends some purists. The techniques are the same. Understanding the software translates to the hardware and vice versa.

There is also the book Analog Days by Trevor Pinch that is supposed to be a good resource.

Good luck and welcome to the forum. Please keep us posted with the progress.


Eric

[Trigger]

These are all really good ideas, especially Eric's IMHO. However, will the museum be dealing solely with synthesizers, or is the goal to encompass all electronic music?
If so, you need to look beyond Moog and Buchla. In addition, composers/technicians like Stockhausen, Cage, and Ussachevsky all contributed to electronic music years before what we call synthesizers appeared--open reel tape machines, vari-speed oscillators, filter sets (EQ), Musique Concrete, etc. For instance, Ussachevsky had Moog modules in his lab, but not so much in the pre-packaged systems we all recognize today. Even though these guys are long gone, Rod of Atomic Shadow is doing an amazing job not only of preserving the vibe of those days, but also taking things further with the improved technology:

http://www.atomicshadow.com

As far as being interactive, an old sine wave generator or a 2-track open reel tape machine will be a lot cheaper than a Moog modular. And for the unattainable gear, there's always YouTube.

Hope this helped.

[museslave]

Also: Electronic Music started long before even those guys. You're going to have to head back to at least 1906.

[muksys]

Of course, not to forget the first "poly" synth, the Novachord. Me wants!

I had an idea along these same lines. I had seen Bodyworks when it first began and I had thought to do an exhibit that would span the birth of synthesizers (as museslave mentioned, as far back as lineage can be traced). Aside from the obvious display of synths in a sequential order, I thought it would be fun to have a basic "modular" synth for people to play with, but, instead of cords, use large patch points, like a plastic stick with a metal tip that can be inserted into various holes and pots beside them to tweak. They all connect to logical modular patch points, but in a "science museum" type display. Or a "Theremin" Room where a bunch of oscillators/filters/LFO's are connected to metal plated walls and as people walk through the sound is constantly evolving as they move about the room. Even go as far as displaying Circuit Bent devices and have circuit boards out for people to touch so they can hear the changes as they run their fingers across the circuit. I felt that as much hands-on would be needed to keep it interesting.

I would also think it would be interesting to see if there is video available of the sounds for, say, Star Wars being created. Seeing the 2600 making R2-D2 noises, etc. I know my son love's it when he is watching a Star Wars movie and I'll make R2-D2 sounds with a synth as he's watching.

Anyway, I like your idea. Good luck!

[EricK]

There used to be a nice timeline called "120 years of electronic music" but I don't think it exists anymore. There may be mirrors somewhere.

[muksys]

There used to be a nice timeline called "120 years of electronic music" but I don't think it exists anymore. There may be mirrors somewhere.

I used to love that website! At any rate, here is a PDF of the timeline.

[Vsyevolod]

The '120 Years of Electronic Music' is not recent. Bob Moog is last seen running a company called Big Briar...

Stephen




.

[muksys]

The '120 Years of Electronic Music' is not recent. Bob Moog is last seen running a company called Big Briar...

Nerd Fact: Big Briar was started in 1977 and produced Theremin's.

Most if not all info regarding syntesizers from 1990 to present are very readily available on the interwebs. I believe the idea behind the timeline is gather all relevant info into 1 coherent document for a time when info was more scattered and nomadic.

[Kenneth]

Other than synthesizers, I think it is important to include a good amount of material covering Musique Concrete, which is a precursor to modern electronic music (specificaly sample-based music). If you are unfamiliar, Musique Concrete heavily employs found sounds in recordings and performances, and a lot of it was produced solely by the manipulation of tape. This style of early electroacoustic music arose during the 1940s. Pierre Schaeffer is the one to research in that area, a lot of his work has been uploaded to Youtube so you shouldn't have a hard time accessing it. Some of this stuff is a little out there and not so easy to digest, but you kind of just have to try to wrap your head around it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9pOq8u6 ... 38lZ6KfQ6K

[Trigger]

There used to be a nice timeline called "120 years of electronic music" but I don't think it exists anymore. There may be mirrors somewhere.

I used to love that website! At any rate, here is a PDF of the timeline.

A great resource. But if they list the Fairlight, where's the Synclavier??

[museslave]

Actually, the first polyphonic synthesizer was the Telharmonium.

The first all-electronic polyphonic keyboard may have been a design described by Lee De Forest in 1915: The Audion Piano.

One of the first all-electronic polyphonic synthesis keyboards had to be Harald Bode's "Warbo Formant Organ" in 1937. It was NOT divide-down, and had an ingenious system which gave it four-note polyphony.

The Hammond Novachord was the first all-electronic (well, I guess the LFO was electro-mechanical) divide-down "synthesizer."

There really are a lot of electronic devices which have been completely forgotten... especially all of the optical keyboards of the 30s and 40s.

Lastly, Big Briar was started in 1979. Bob was still working for the original Moog Music in 1977.

[muksys]

Marc, your passion is always inspiring. Although, according to the Bob Moog Timeline on the moogmusic site says Big Briar was founded in 77. Typically, I'd trust your word. Could it be a misprint?

[museslave]

Marc, your passion is always inspiring. Although, according to the Bob Moog Timeline on the moogmusic site says Big Briar was founded in 77. Typically, I'd trust your word. Could it be a misprint?

Well, that is what they say.

However, I work for the Bob Moog Foundation, and knowing this stuff is my job.