The Cat Crept In
Why has The Amen break become one of the most sampled pieces of music in audio production
A bit of background The Amen Break is a 6- to 7.2-second drum solo performed by Gregory Sylvester G is for Gill, an...
The Katzenklavier – A piano made out of Cats
This is Nuts When I was doing some research for this blog I came across the Katzenklavier. It's like something out of...
Precursors to Audio Sampling
Audio Manipulation The practice of audio sampling has long roots in various experimental methods. Here are some...
The EMS Musys -The first Digital Sampler
Background The demand for electronic musical instruments had been growing steadily throughout the 1960s as musicians...
From the Chamberlin to the Mellotron
Background Based on the Chamberlin The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard. It was...
Before the sampler there was the Chamberlin
Background The Chamberlin is a unique keyboard instrument that has been around since the 50s. It was invented in...
The Oval 1972, I’m falling in love with open air rock concerts
The Melody Maker Oval concert 1972 Two months after my first open Air concert I was back for more. I was very much...
The Roland TB 303
Background The Roland TB 303 was a sequencer and synthesizer designed by Tadao Kikumoto and manufactured by the Roland...
How the Roland TB 303 came to influence Dance music and Rave culture
Background The Roland TB 303 was designed by Tadao Kikumoto and manufactured by the Roland Corporation (Japan). It was...
The Atari ST. My first music-making machine
A groundbreaking computer for music-making. When it came to digital audio production It’s fair to say that the Atari...
My first open-air Rock festival or how…….
My first open-air Rock festival or how to spend a weekend in a small tent with three fellow long hairs and survive. I...
Genesis and Foxtrot. The beginnings of my love affair with Prog Rock
The first Prog Rock band that I fell in love with was Genesis. My taste was widening, moving away from chart-based...