Two Bald Blokes And A Buchla - Vince Clarke, Blood Orange & Savages Learn About a Special Synth
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 ส.ค. 2024
- In this video I'm talking to Reed Hays, a master of the mighty Buchla Modular Synthesizer. Don Buchla, who recently passed away, designed a unique and beautiful sounding Modular synth that Reed has been working with for twenty-plus years and I hoped to to learn, with Reed’s help and demonstration, how the friggin’ thing works.
-Vince Clarke
Vince Clarke is a synthpop pioneer and legend. With his groups Depeche Mode, Yaz and Erasure, he’s sold tens of millions of records and changed the face of pop music.
Clarke recently started VeryRecords, and one of his first signings is Reed and Caroline, whose gorgeous Buchla and Singing dropped October 14. Reed Hays is a master of the Buchla synthesizer; he decided to go to Oberlin College solely because they owned one, and used to hide in a harp case until the school closed so that he could play the synth all night long. He went on to a career writing music for television and film, including co-composing the themes for NFL, MLB, NASCAR and NHL on Fox. And he always used the Buchla as a primary instrument.
Vince and Reed recently sat down in the latter’s East Village studio for what Vince promised would be an “EXTREMELY geeky” lesson on the Buchla from Reed, coupled with a short performance. The guys set up an iPhone to film it, and with an audience consisting of myself, Blood Orange and half of the band Savages, the guys jumped in and discussed the life and times of the recently deceased Don Buchla, his namesake modular synthesizer, and so much more.
If you enjoy this talk, make sure to catch Reed and Caroline’s free show at Piano’s in New York City on November 7, where Reed will be playing this Buchla live.
- Elia Einhorn, Talkhouse Podcast Producer
As a synthesist for almost 50 years now, this was beyond marvellous, truly riveting, thank you.
Kudos! The best one-stop unfolding of Don Buchla's design concepts, techniques and approach! Thank you Reed!
Excellent interview that finally helped me understand Don Buchla and his instruments. Thanks Vince!
Those Buchlas always reminds me of an electronic project lab kit I use to play with as a kid in the 80's.
Those ones with tiny springs you would connect some pieces of cables in order to get a summer tone.
I am 2 years late to this analogue party, but thank you for causing that flashback!! I made a radio transmitter with two of those kits and was delighted to receive a "Whoever this is get off the police frequency" reply to my "is anybody there"? message one Saturday morning (it worked) all whilst my dad played Oxygene over and over again in the living-room below... (he liked it loud so he could hear it at the top of the garden) which dates the whole thing. Best wishes
Although Buchla was a musician, he was not into Electronic Music until Morton Subotnick started sharing his ideas with Buchla and had him electronic modules that could be used to make electronic music. Without Morton, it is extremely doubtful that there would have been a Buchla synth. Subotnick, not Buchla, was the one into music concrete where he spliced pieces of tape toether to create sequences. Subotnick was the inspiration behind Buchla and the first Buchla synth was built to Morton's specifications (at lelast to an extent). He encouraged Buchla to build a device that would produce sequences He inspired Buchla to build devices such as the Envelope Follower, the voltage controlled oscillator, etc. in order to help Morton advance electronic music. In the beginning they were very much a team.
Fascinating fellow. No wonder Vince signed them on. The Buchla is a work of art. Really enjoy all the tracks of Reed and Caroline. Hopefully their albums are released in vinyl.
Nice interview. The Buchla systems are so amazing and mysterious. It's always fun for me to hear people trying to explain the magic of these things. A rather enjoyable chapter into the land of Buchla, thanks for this fine interview.
Wonderful performance at the end! Don Buchla was a true genius!
That is THE Vince Clarke, isn't he?
Always in the Background, but he is a mastermind!
Almost. You can see them all at the very last minute. :)
Would have been nice to have seen an up-close view of the modules while they were talking about them.
That's how a modular should be used: to make interesting music. Sounds amazing.
Fascinating! I took an electronic music course in college decades ago. We were fortunate to have a Buchla. They are insanely powerful, and sadly, insanely complex. But if you master one of them, the possibilities are endless.
11:49 This feature is Tool's polyrhythmic wet dream. It would be cool to hear it on their next album - coming soon to you, in 2035. ;)
Very cool background on Don Buchla!Very interesting history !
Don did produce and sold a very small number of units with black and white keyboards on custom order.
This “West Coast” synthesis is really quite fascinating. I grew up on the (European) additive synthesis that Vince describes at the beginning. I think I’d like to give Buchla a try! 👍
very informative... this guy really knows the deep end of buchla
Thank the world for these two guys. .. great stuff
the concentrict circle idea reminds me of an interview with Terry Riley talking about the early circular sheet music he produced at teh request of John Cage, Each ring was the same motif but in different lengths, so that patterns emerged. I find it interesting that Don's last item was rooted in a forward way of thinking that stretches back to where they all were when they started, but was uniquely Dons and very advanced.
Some modules were originally impregnated with LSD which did alot to the sound. He forgot to mention that. I think it was put onto the source of uncertainty. From my memory, i forgot where i read about it, it was something like a stamp pad attached to the module or it was even a module itself. A whole mental modular in a Buchla system. :)
The red panel :) They mention it in the documentary about modular synthesizers called 'I Dream of Wires'
Fantastic. Thank you for posting!
Ace.
mylarmelodies Dig, indeed! 😎👍
only better....
This is gold.
24:40 Man, the thing sounds amazing!
i don't have the first clue about synths,this would be like my ultimate nightmare synth.
awesome synth(s) i have to add though.
Amazing stuff. Thanks
Bravo!! - thank you
Love this vid and story. I realize that I'm an east coast synth dude.
2:53 best sound ever!!!
Very informative! Thank you!
Best Buchla "documentary"? on Tube
Awesome video, thanks for that.
Great talk!
Fantastic!
great camera work!
im sure vince is already trying to buy one
Vince already got a Buchla 100 :)
Question for Reed: at around 23:30, you mentioned that one of the modules has around 200 CMOS chips. Do you stock spare integrated circuits in case there are failures? Some of the older ICs (but probably not the CMOS logic) are getting hard to find!
Great! Interested to know what the quantizer is.
Nice!
I think i'm gonna get into buchla synthesizers before i get into eurorack
Buchla is the Ferrari of modular. Very expensive though.
Bob Moog was also a physicist
Hello, cann anyone explain how to use a 225h & 226h Buchla module properly " in action" and any example of its capabilities? there´s no any information rather than those three raw pages of the "Allegedly Manual "; i think they should show a bit more how to use their products since its not an easy thing and its a bit more complex than most eurorack´s. ANy comment is highly appreciated. (^_^)v. BTW: unfortunately are Buchla h Series modules the ones that are not very well explained or described in action.
I’m gonna nerd out here but One of these bad boys (plus of course somebody who knows how to play it) could solve just ONE of the many things wrong with the modern day tv show Doctor Who. I am talking of course about the sound track. I feel that a constant hum in the background with weird bleeps and blips would suit a show like Doctor Who far more than a full blown BBC orchestra blaring out at you all the time. It would be far more atmospheric and ... well ! Science fictioney...
I can't even afford to buy that many Pomona patch cords right now.
WHAT STATION DID YOUR DAD DO HIS SHOW., JUST WONDERING..ALSO DO YOU HAVE ANY MUSIC ONLINE?
Who are these guys 😻😻😻
*If Vince and Reid put their heads together they would make a bum*
Man I wish I was bald....
That can be arranged.
I'll swap you a SH201 for it?!
KINDLE - Sorry. He already swapped it for my Casio VL-Tone. Looks fantastic in my bedroom. Haven’t managed to get a sound out of it yet. 😢
the source of uncertainty !! i'm intrigued!!! WUSB.fm NY - if you care to discuss.. Please drop me a line!! WAXX TRAXX TO THE MAXX...
well...they don't play it and don't show the modules. nice. now we don't know how it sounds or how it looks like. this is innovation.
so..you dont need a NASA course to play this...ehmm.. this? xD
This guys sounds like (and even kinda looks like) Steve Jobs!