Kyma gives voice to Tarantino’s “Hateful Eight” Blizzard

 Film, Film Score, Interview, Release, Sound Design, Sound for picture  Comments Off on Kyma gives voice to Tarantino’s “Hateful Eight” Blizzard
Feb 132016
 


Audio engineer Jennifer Walden provides a fascinating analysis of the sound design in Quentin Tarantino’s Hateful Eight in a recent issue of Randi Altman’s postPerspective.

Tarantino is “truly an aural enthusiast and very much a sculptor of his cinema through the use of sound and music,” according to his longtime supervising sound editor, Wylie Stateman, who continues,

Sound is a major contributor to Quentin’s films and often the secret sauce that makes the meal just gel and come together as a coherent recognizable work…

Wylie Stateman, Supervising Sound Editor on Hateful Eight

 

Audio is very different from the other filmmaking aspects… Audio is very mysterious — a force that is just truly present in the moment. It’s just a vibration in the room. It’s something that the audience experiences but can’t see and can’t touch. It’s a different kind of art form, and as an audio artist I love working for Quentin because he is so particular and he values the contribution that sound makes to the experience of watching his film.

Sylvain Lasseur created & performed the voice of the blizzard

Tarantino is fascinated with the sounds of the actors’ voices and he wanted the ninth adversary in the film, the blizzard, to have its own character and its own unique ‘voice’. For that challenge, Stateman and co-supervising sound editor Harry Cohen called in sound designer Sylvain Lasseur. Sylvain brought in his Continuum fingerboard and Kyma / Pacarana system and set to work creating the voice of the blizzard.

Using Kyma and the Continuum, Lasseur was able to perform multiple layers of wind sounds to picture. They built the blizzard literally one gust, one whistle and one whisp at a time, designing the wind to complement the dialog and the picture editing in a unique way. According to Stateman, using Kyma, Lasseur was able to create an “instrument” on which he could perform the voice of the blizzard.

The first step was to create a guide track based around the dialog; then they modeled other sounds around that guide track. Stateman describes how they composed the sound design in an almost musical way:

So let’s say we have a base sound of a blizzard, we could then, very selectively, model wind wisps or rumbles or anything else against it. The Kyma would shape the other samples in time relative to the control track. Once we have them all modeled against each other we can start to pull them apart a little bit so that each element can have its own dynamic moment. It becomes more like a parade and you hear the low, the mid and the high — not on top of each other but offset from each other. The artistry comes in turning samples into instruments.

The importance of sound to Tarantino is evident in the fact that Lasseur ended up spending four months creating the instruments in Kyma and another four months performing and shaping the voice of the blizzard around the dialog and visuals.

For more insights on the sound for Hateful Eight, check out Jennifer Walden’s full article: Wyle Stateman Talks Sound Editing on ‘The Hateful Eight’

Roland Kuit invites you to join a Kyma bicycle tour

 Album, Release, Sound Design  Comments Off on Roland Kuit invites you to join a Kyma bicycle tour
Feb 112016
 

Roland Kuit Bi-Cycle 3

Roland Emile Kuit’s 2CD Bi – sonic is now available at Donemus, the Dutch Contemporary Music publishing house and features Kyma-processed bicycle sounds.

On CD1:

  1. The Impossible Bicycle compilation
  2. Atomic Wheeled Vehicle Compilation

Tour de Force, or how to de-construct a bicycle into sine- and cosine waves? Real-time spectral analysis, FFT, IFFT, spectral blurring, phase and frequency shifts of bicycle sounds are constructing a three dimensional sonic world whereby different algorithms produce a trajectory as a journey in stages.

On CD2:

  • 99 Re-Cycle Sound Objects

Now it’s your turn! With the sounds on CD2, you can compose your own bicycle pieces using Kyma 7! Re-create Bicycle Music or create new Sound Art and upload your creations to: http://soundcloud.com/bicycle-soundart
2CD_Bi-Sonic_Roland_Emile_Kuit

Kyma 7 support for LinnStrument and MPE

 Controllers & Instruments, Release, Software  Comments Off on Kyma 7 support for LinnStrument and MPE
Oct 212015
 

Kyma 7 now offers plug-and-play support for Roger Linn Design’s LinnStrument and other MPE-enabled MIDI instruments. Kyma automatically puts the LinnStrument into MPE mode when you connect it via USB-MIDI or MIDI 5-pin DIN (or via your computer, using Delora Software’s Kyma Connect). Once connected, any keyboard-controlled Sound in Kyma automatically sets the polyphony and responds to the LinnStrument — no extra controllers are needed, and you don’t have to select a special mode on the LinnStrument — so you just plug it in, and play.

What is MPE?

Traditional MIDI note events have two dimensions — pitch and velocity — neither of which can be altered directly with the fingers once the key has gone down. But musicians performing with live electronics are driving the demand for new electronic instruments — instruments whose touch, reliability, sensitivity, and responsiveness can begin to approach those of traditional acoustic instruments.

Over the last 10-15 years, more and more instrument makers have sought to incorporate continuous control over pitch and velocity and to add a third dimension of continuous control: timbre. One of the earliest entries in this new category was the Continuum fingerboard from Haken Audio (which has had plug-and-play support in Kyma since 2001). More recently, Madrona Labs (Soundplane), Eigenlabs (Eigenharp), ROLI (Seaboard), and Roger Linn Design (LinnStrument) have been offering “keyboard-like” instruments that provide three dimensions of expressive, continuous control per finger.

But how is it possible to send these three-dimensional continuous polyphonic MIDI notes to a sound engine? Haken Audio first used a FireWire protocol before switching over to a proprietary, optimized MIDI protocol. Symbolic Sound and Madrona Labs used Open Sound Control (OSC) for Kyma Control and Soundplane, respectively. But the growing proliferation of new instruments and proprietary protocols was threatening to become a nightmare for soft-and-hardware synthesizer makers to support.

Enter software developer Geert Bevin who, in January of this year, started working with key industry professionals on a new, more expressive MIDI specification called MPE: Multidimensional Polyphonic Expression. The new MPE standard has already been implemented on Roger Linn Design’s LinnStrument, the Madrona Labs Soundplane, the ROLI Rise Seaboard, and several other instrument makers are currently in the process of adding an MPE-mode to their instruments.

With MPE, the music industry now has a standard protocol for communicating between expressive controllers and the sound hardware and software capable of sonically expressing the subtlety, responsiveness, and live interaction offered by these controllers.

Kyma — Interactive, responsive, and live

Kyma, with its legendary audio quality, vast synthesis codebase and deep access to detailed parameter control, is the ideal sound engine to pair with these new, more responsive controller interfaces for live expressive performance, and Symbolic Sound has a long history of working with instrument makers to provide tight, seamless integration and bi-directional communication between these new instruments and Kyma.

In addition to its graphical signal flow editor, file editors, and Sound Library, Kyma 7 also provides several environments in which you can create an instrument where the synthesis, processing, parameter-mapping, and even the mode of interaction can evolve over time during a performance:

  • In the Multigrid (displayed on the iPad during the video), you can switch instantly between sources, effects, and combinations of the two with no interruption in the audio signal. Perform live, inspired in the moment, with infinite combinatorial possibilities.
  • In the Kyma 7 Timeline you can slow down or stop the progression of time to synchronize your performance with other performers, with key events, or with features extracted from an audio signal during your performance.
  • Using the Tool you can create a state machine where input conditions trigger the evaluation of blocks of code (for example, the game-of-life displayed on the LinnStrument during the closing credits of the video is being controlled by a Tool).
  • Kyma also provides a realtime parameter language called Capytalk where you can make parameters depend on one another or control subsets of parameters algorithmically.
  • It’s easy to add a new parameter control, simply type in the desired controller name preceded by an exclamation point — a control is automatically created for you, and it even generates its own widget in a Virtual Control Surface which can be remapped to external controllers (through MIDI, 14-bit MIDI, or OSC). This makes it easy to augment your live MPE controllers with other MIDI and OSC controllers or with tablet controller apps.

More information

Multidimensional Polyphonic Expression (MPE)
expressiveness.org

LinnStrument
rogerlinndesign.com

Kyma 7
symbolicsound.com

A little night music

 Concert, Event, Film, Film Score, Sound for picture  Comments Off on A little night music
Oct 022015
 

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A Little Night Music is an evening of Visualized Music—films composed to music (rather than music composed for films) featuring videos by Roxanne Rea in collaboration with composers Bill Rea, Debra Kaye, and the owner of Kyma system serial number 1: Dick Robinson!

Sycamore Place Gallery

120 Sycamore Place
Decatur GA 30030

October 10, 2015
at 8:30 p.m.

Suggested Donation $15

Stanley Cowell @ Smoke NYC

 Album, Concert, Event, Release  Comments Off on Stanley Cowell @ Smoke NYC
Oct 022015
 

Described by the New York Times as “A pianist of deep authority and resolute purpose”, Stanley Cowell will be in New York City this weekend with his quartet (Bruce Williams [saxophone & flute], Stanley Cowell [piano], Jay Anderson [bass], Victor Lewis [drums]) for a 3-day gig/CD release party at the Smoke jazz and supper club, 1-4 October 2015.

Cowell is also featured in the October issue of Jazz Times Magazine where he also describes how he uses Kyma in live performance and was just interviewed on WKCR radio).

If you’re in New York, be sure to check out his Smoke debut so you’ll be able to hear (among other things) Cowell using Kyma to do live harmonization of the piano. At 7, 9 and 10:30 p.m., Smoke, 2751 Broadway, at 106th Street, 212-864-6662, smokejazz.com.

According to the Smoke web site,

Smoking is not permitted at the club, or at any venue in NYC for that matter. But the music will be smokin’ for sure.

Nanophonic Similarities

 Album, Release  Comments Off on Nanophonic Similarities
Jul 062015
 

What happens when you combine two unique and individualistic instruments (the Buchla 200 and Kyma) and one individualistic, experimental composer, fearlessly following the dictates of a bright and restless curiosity (Roland Kuit)?

Kuit’s new album, Nanophonic Similarities, is refreshingly raw and experimental.  It’s pure sound and the thrill of discovery!

Buchla 200 audio is used as a starting point, then algorithmically scrambled, granulated to create a new sono-language and rendered to the quadraphonic 24 bit Super Audio format.

Listen and order Nanophonic Similarities from the Donemus site.

Roland Emile Kuit = nanophonic similarities

Spectral eye of the Kyma guy

 Blog, Sample Library, Sound Design, Web site  Comments Off on Spectral eye of the Kyma guy
Jun 232015
 

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Gustav Scholda, a.k.a. kymaguy, has just released an extensive set of spectral processing modules, sharing them with the Kyma community! The modules are free with an option to donate through PayPal if you’d like to support further development.

With names like FormantShifter, FractalNoise, PartialDerange, SpectralCentroid and many others, the Scholda modules are encapsulations of signal flows designed to analyze and process the output of live or recorded Kyma spectral sources.

Gustav is also available for private consulting, coaching, and custom module design to help you customize your own spectral processing ideas in Kyma.  In fact, he’s already posted the first of a series of tutorials on how to use his spectral modules: PitchShifting/Bending using the Product1 Module

NeverEngine Labsâ„¢ For Kyma Seven

 Blog, Release, Seminar, Sound Design, Web site  Comments Off on NeverEngine Labsâ„¢ For Kyma Seven
Jun 192015
 

Build your Kyma 7 mastery and increase your sources of creative inspiration by subscribing to NeverEngine Labs, Cristian Vogel‘s newly launched subscription service offering tools, resources, private instruction, and consulting opportunities designed to help enhance your Kyma 7 productivity and creativity.

NeverEngine Labs offers several “Labs”, each one focused on a different area of the Kyma 7 universe. The Labs are designed to inspire you with creative ideas for music composition and sound design as well expand your knowledge of the power and capabilities of the new Kyma 7.

These Labs are not fixed in function or design (like plug-ins or presets); instead, as a participant, you are encouraged to deconstruct and recombine the Sounds and their inner elements. Help is provided through live communication channels where you, Cristian and fellow subscribers can discuss the content of each Lab and receive regular updates with notes. Subscribing to a NeverEngine Lab is an invitation to engage in listening, curiosity and experimentation, all at your own pace!

Find out how Cristian can help you, your band, or your in-house team get the most from your Kyma system with custom-made workflows and designs.

To find out more about the labs and upcoming announcements, visit NeverEngine Labs.

Nov 232014
 

Tune in your shortwave radio and establish a comm link; Transmission Apparatus is Unidentified Sound Object’s new recombinant construction kit for creating a broad range of communication sounds, from real to “alien” broadcasting signals. The library contains more than 2 GB of data, delivered in 373 files of unique sound material, including radio samples, unintelligible voices and Kyma-synthesized noises.  Here’s an audio demo! 

Unidentified Sound Object is an independent sound effects libraries publisher offering high resolution sound effects and virtual instruments for film, games and music creations, launched by Matteo Milani in 2011. All of the audio files have been loudness-normalized, based on the recommendations of the European Broadcast Union, and embedded with metadata for detailed and accurate searches in your software asset management.

Becoming Polyphonic: Review of Cristian Vogel’s New Album

 Album, Release  Comments Off on Becoming Polyphonic: Review of Cristian Vogel’s New Album
Nov 172014
 

Ready to be transmogrified at the micro-cellular-level? Premised on the proposition “that we are what we hear,” Cristian Vogel’s new album Polyphonic Beings seeks to expose each of our cells to musical qualities that will effect the deepest possible transformations.

Cristian once again employs Kyma to achieve his signature far-afield timbral explorations, surprising tricky silences, and trance-inducing slow timbre morphs. Eminently danceable, Polyphonic Beings transports you through the imaginary landscapes depicted in the cover art and deposits you safely in the serenely peaceful state evoked by the Society of Hands.

  1. Exclusion Waves: The pilgrimage begins with pink noise waves breaking gently onto an indigo shore, with vocal-chants enfolded in the noise.
  2. Mccaw’s ghost: Slow and easy, runs out of steam punk at the end
  3. How many grapes went into that wine: Here, Vogel is in his element: pitchy cross-synth rhythms and his signature metric modulations paired with crazy pitch unwindings! Trance-inducing vocalesque timbres ride rhythmic spirals and a sudden break leaves you catching your breath to a humorous chorus of squeegee “la-la-las” that morph into synths.
  4. Lost in the chase: Lovely liquidy sounds like hitting an open-mouth tube (or modal filters?) establish an ostinato  pattern that change every 8 bars until a gorgeous smooth disintegration into gentle noise & silence.  But wait, there’s more!  An over-the-top metallic plate reverb with metallic hits finishes out the track.
  5. La Banshee 109: (or is it LA Banshee?) Sounds of metal rigging wiggling in a stiff breeze and trying hard to settle into a groove.  It finally settles into a liquid pattern as reverse attack brass-like timbres create a heart beat pulse which evolves into conga-like plucky patterns with unstable frequency swoops.  Once again a lovely dissolve and disintegration.
  6. Forest Gifts: One thing about the forest is, it’s full of insects!  A delightful buzzy buggy intro blurs and then comes into focus as a fast groove of buzzy shakers with an overlay of creatures encoded into the northern lights and luxurious harmonic sweeps. Filtered noise, like distant boat horns, peacefully resolves into a misty forest dawn with delicate violin tremolo.
  7. Society of hands: Exquisite slow machine room gradually morphing into an icy wind rattling the vents, against slow delicate piano chords with reversals gradually working their way from high to low. Landing in a raspy Japanese vocal and peaceful filtery suspensions.  You’re left feeling serene and elevated.

Order online and then get your tickets for the 22 November launch party in Berlin. (with Vogel and SØS on the bill, prepare yourself for a transformative experience).

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