Rick Wakeman sounds

[smeee8]

Hey im new to the forum,
I am only a youngen and NEW to this topic:
( i have just recently bought a Mini Mood d model)
I have always liked yes since about the age of 8 and im now 17 (yes i no im young to like them but meh) and something that has always grabbed me is the sound of Rick Wakemans effects on his Mini Mood d model he uses on the live Yes album on 1973 YESSONGS. On the album there is exerpts from The 6 Wives of King Henry the 8th, now what i basically want to know is how does he get the sound on his moog?? Like what i am getting at is what effects does he use and how can i make them?? or get them?? i think one of the effects is something SAW, ah well its the same effect he uses in Siberian Khatru and And You and I etc. any help appreciated!!! excuse me if i didnt make sense lol. Cheers Beau

[IGGY]

yessongs has some sound effects that were triggered by the mellotron and i believe another audio device sitting next to it.
for instance, all of the bomb sounds at the end of "excerpts" were just taped effects. his minimoog programming is nothing special, it's his intricate scales and arpeggios that wow the audience. i will see him in 2 weeks live at the tower theatre... he should have his voyager with him.

[smeee8]

Yeah i saw Rick about 1 months ago (The Full Circle Tour) and his voyager was sounding better than ever, although i think there is nothing better than using a real melletron on stage other than his Korgs but dont get me wrong korg are great and i love the sound but melletrons kick it for me by far. Cheers.
p.s any one know why he didnt use a melletrom for the Full Circle Tour or was it just unlucky he didnt use it at the gig i saw him at

[moogman5]

If you want to make Wakeman sounds, then hit the books. Go to your local library and take out a few books on analog (subtractive) synthesis and synthesizers. This will help you greatly in understanding what all those knobs and switches do. Then listen to classical music and 70's prog. rock and try to emulate the solo instruments with your model d.
I've talked with Rick about the mellotron issue. He says he's never been a fan of the mellotron and if he had modern technology back in the 70's he probably wouldn't of used them except for one or two songs. I personally think Rick is crazy, the Korg and Roland string sounds (and even the tron samples) can't hold a candle to the real thing and I should know I've got a real mellotron aswell. The real mellotron sounds even better than a real live string section in some cases (not all, but some). I can see where using a real tron onstage today would be a real headache, but if you've got the bucks and roadies...you owe it to your fans!
Rick says he's got a new bank of Minimoog programs coming out soon for the Moog voyager! Can't wait to try those out!
The Voyager rules! I've got both a model d (a really good one) and a new Voyager PSE and they're both amazing in their own right. (especially now with the new OS 1.5 update! Thanks Dr. Moog!

[MoogieMark]

If you want a really cheap good simulation of the mellotron try G-media's M-tron!

[IGGY]

the voyager presets - anne bolyn, aragon, topographic,... etc... are a good starting point. they even sound more authentic than rick's do.
wakeman uses that GEM keyboard which sounds GREAT for the church organ sounds in AWAKEN. i think if he had a mind to, he would stock it with mellotron sounds.. it has like 300 voice polyphony or something.
i own a yamaha ex5 and i have alot of 'tron samples that sound excellent.

[barboncillo]

Hello. As far as I know, Rick's Mini on the "Excerpts..." does not have any external fx on it (not even a mild reverb!) As someone above said it's just the sheer virtousity of Rick's and the raw sound of the Minimoog what makes that solo so appealing (God, that's the very piece of music that made me want to buy myself a Model D! Try tuning the three oscillators in the same octave range, all three of them set in square waves with 1/4 glide (but you'll have to manipulate the glide later, quite rapidly, by the way for doing the long- short portamento changes of the "Catherine Howard" section. Perhaps, this might also help:
http://www.keyboardmag.com/gear/1183/tu ... unds/27954
http://www.harmonycentral.com/forum/for ... 18/344634-

Good luck,
Cheers

[bernard]

I like to confirm what you're writing, barboncillo, it was Ricks pure virtuosity, what made the sound.

Back in 74 when I, as a young pupil, discovered YES, I heard that rumours about Rick's using a "SYNTHESIZER (!!)" and I thought every sound effect like the bombs, the alarms, even the wood noises and raindrops in Close To The Edge were made by this incredible thing. Later I was a little disappointed, when I become aware, these sounds came all from tape - nevertheless, it never reduced my love to the music of YES.

However, the sounds Rick used on the Fragile Tour were just simple in contrast to the nasty detuned sounds he used in "Journey ..." (I never was familiar with). He used 2 Minis and didn't change its sound the most time. One example, where he did, was of course the already mentioned Slide changes in his solo, he rapidly made portamento and oktave settings and back, two times, as one can see and hear in the movie Yessongs.

In 2003 and 2004 I saw YES four times live and you could imagine, I was eager to hear the differences between the Mini and the Voyager which he had both on stage. Used only for sololines, he played all the old originals on the Mini and just a few soli in younger pieces on the Voyager. And - sorry guys - the Voyager did not have that balls.

cheers,
Bernard

[Vsyevolod]

Wow, 12 year old thread gets zombie-fied...



Stephen




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