Re-creating Organic Instruments with the Voyager

[kk]

Dear Moog friends ,

It give's me great pleasure to write you this message and will apprecite it if anyone could reply...

I have heard so much about the Voyager and purchased it..I didn't just purchase the Voyager for hype sake but I have always wanted a true analogue module just like the Minimoog to have keep for the rest of my life..becos I have come to understand the power behind a true analogue synthesizer like the Minimoog..incidentally the Voyager was realesed..then I bought it..since the Minimoog was scarce to get...

Creatin' great sound effects and one-shot samples [to be used as instruments] isn't much of a problem with the Voyager [jsut like I'll do with my subtractor synth from my Reason software or Akai s2000 sampler] but my MAJOR problem is creatin' realistic and pure organic instruments from my Voyager..instruments like..Electric Pianos, Brass, Strings, Electric Bass Guitars, Flutes e.t.c..

Another major problem is having a GREATER understanding of what waveforms to use or the combination of waveforms to use on my Voyager.

Anybody with any useful information on creation of any organic instrument should please give me some tips...and also any one with useful information on how to combine waveforms or what waveforms to use and also frequencies [fq] or frequency combinations would solve alot of problems for me. Thank you friends.

Regards,
Balogun'kk'Kolade.

PS: Anyone who has an idea of any book that can help should please send me a hyperlink or website address to the page..please and please I dont mean any book that scratches on the subject.. what 'Analogue Synthesis' means..I have that already....I mean books/artciles that discusses the technicalities of re-creatin' real instruments with Analogue Synthesizers ...thank you very much

[monads]

What's going on kk? Let me tell you, alot of people always wonder which waveforms to start with when trying to synthesize a particular instrument. It can be difficult if you don't first know the make-up characteristics of that particular sound. And re-creating acoustic instruments on an analog subtractive synth can prove to be an academic exercise. Some of the best articles I've read are the "Synth Secrets" on SoundonSound.com Check out the link below. Read/study them all and you'll have a better deeper understanding. I have some books/articles on Subtractive synthesis and I was searching for the same thing you describe.

http://www.soundonsound.com/search?page ... Summary=No

You might want to also read the "Synth School" articles on the same site (just do a search).

[SirZebrathe9th]

i was like you looking for an original minimoog or micromoog since i was like twelve. then i decided to just get the voyager when i had the money for it, no tuning problems , full midi, patch storing and the cool touch screen.

you can get something that might sound close to a natural instrument aka(acoustic)...
that is if you use your imagination. and put it in with a few other pseudo acoustic instuments in the mix like wendy carlos. this is an electronic intrument for elecktronic noises, it does this extremely well and with a lot of distinction. IMO youd be better off with a sample of a real instrument in your computer, if your going for acoustic, thats what i do, i know still it wouldnt be the most ideal but thats what sampling keyboards are for like the asr 10 or the the 5 grand hartman neuron and even then...

...its kinda like if you got a virtual analog synth like the virus, and wanted to try to come up with some analog sounding sounds, you might get close, but'll you'll never sound like real life analog, like the voyager, thats why you got it....

you copped one of the best keyboards around and it does what it does like no one else. you always hear reviews, like, it kinda sounds like a minimoog, or it doesnt sound as a fat as minimoog. or dont get it to sound like a minimoog. know what im saying....

thats not to say you couldnt do it. if you played with your voyager for a while you might be suprised at what you would get and how close it gets to acoustic, or maybe not. i think it would be all in very very subtle knob adjustments. the best thing for and acoustic sounding patch is to use a real acoustic instrument. i know i didnt really answer your question, typed too much and got severely off topic but i hope i helped like 1 percent out of a 100.

about that book or website id like to know and im sure others on this board like boeing might like to know about something like that.


zebra

[sir_dss]

but my MAJOR problem is creatin' realistic and pure organic instruments from my Voyager..instruments like..Electric Pianos, Brass, Strings, Electric Bass Guitars, Flutes e.t.c..


This is what got us all into trouble years ago...

Back in the late 70's early 80's companys trying to make keyboards that make "natural acoustic" sounds.

It's a syntheisizer...syntheisize...synthetic...get it?

Buy a microphone, some field recording medium, then become friends with people who play the instruments you are trying to emulate.

[monads]

I'm actually very fortunate and own a Virus C Indigo II. It came with a tutorial on "Programming Analogue Synths" by Howard Scarr. I believe you can download it from the Access website. It pertains to the Virus but some might find the info useful. It helped me understand alot of techniques and tricks.

And I agree with zebra. It best to start with a sample or the real thing. Nonetheless it's fun to try and re-create them.

[Boeing 737-400]

If you wanted to make string sounds, you would have been better off with a string synth. I personally will be checking all those links later to learn a bit more.

[BSharp101]

The dilemma in creating acoustic sounds may be in how you define organic.
Generally, when keyplayers program synths they take one of two paths:

a) They assume that because the instrument is electronic, the sounds must be, or,

b) The musician directly imitates an acoustic instrument.

A third path (usually least taken) is to create sounds with natural properties of acoustic instruments that are not based on actual existing instruments.
You end up with a patch that sounds natural and organic, yet not imitative.
If I may point you to a few recordings to illustrate the point. Jazz-fusion keyboardist Josef Zawinul, formerly of Weather Report, happens to be one
of the few programmers whose synth sounds are organic in this way.
Several classic Weather Report cds are:

Black Market- also 1st appearance of the late Jaco Pastorious (bass) with
with the band. Check solo on "Herandnu" & "Elegant People"

Tale Spinnin- excellent

8:30- live recording (check out "Badia" and "Brown Street")

Mysterious Traveller

On most of the recordings, Zawinul's solo instrument is a pair of Arp 2600s
yet the approach to analog programming is applicable to any synth. Its a difficult method of sound creation as you have to learn what properties make acoustic instruments natural and apply them, using the analog synths parameters without being imitative of the instruments themselves.
A few books that have some useful articles that may point you in the right direction is:

Secrets of Analog & Digital Synthesis by Steve De Furia

Synthesizer Technique II- compiled from editors of Keyboard Magazine (ISBN 0-88188-290-9)

Regards

[Kevin Bowden]

With an analogue keyboard such as the Voyager all you will achieve are approximations of real instruments - depends on how realistic you want to sound (although if realism is your ultimate goal then the Voyager won't do it for you).

The previously mentioned SoS articles are a good primer for the recreation of (some) real world instruments with analogue synths but might possibly not allow you to get the realism you desire.

Better perhaps to aim at getting your audience into accepting 'approximations' - some synthesised sounds (IMHO) allow a better interpretation of the source music.

I live with a trumpet and cello player (albeit 8 and 10 years old) - even with my Korg MOSS board I couldn't hope to capture the nuances of their instruments !

[donato]

I think some of you may be missing the point (or maybe I am). I think it's very interesting to have "fake" or "electronic" sounding trumpets, flutes, violins, etc. You don't have to have the real thing to have a great sound. In many cases, I'd rather hear the "fake" emulation of acoustic than the acoustic itself because of the twist the synthesizer puts on it.

[SirZebrathe9th]

yea that stuff is cool.