Stephen Golovnin - Clavier, Wind Controller.
Norm Sohl - Clavier, Wind Controller, Theremin.
This is an ongoing improvisatory project between Stephen Golovnin and Norm Sohl. These pieces came from recordings we made during the course of each evening session. Later on they were examined, and those sections found to be worthy were placed under the microscope and gently coaxed into shape. No overdubbing or multitracking additional parts took place in the making of this music.
Clavier with Kurzweil Ribbon Controller, and Theremin With Q-Tron+, harmonizer and delay. The Repeater again creates a luscious bed of sound.
Clavier and Wind Controller both utilizing Cello type patches. The Repeater creates a bed of sound that can be freely improvised over and added to. Varied amounts of reverb offer a sense of movement from place to place as the piece unfolds.
Clavier and Wind Controller. As usual, the Middle of the Middle is a difficult place to surmount. This piece, coming as it did in the middle of the recording session, exemplifies this age old wisdom well.
Clavier and Wind Controller. The final piece of the evening, no outboard processors were used. Halfway through, the Wind Controller switches to sparse drum sounds.
The Gear and the process
Stephen uses a Kurzweil PC2X as his main keyboard. This includes the ribbon controller and 5 pedals (2 volume type and 3 piano type). Additional sounds are produced by the Emu XL-7 containing the following ROM’s: Xlead, World, Proteus 1/2/3, and Composer. Each patch change on the Kurzweil opens up a complementary patch on the Emu. Sometimes this is a similar patch, as in one type of electric piano matched with another similar electric piano. Other times a contrasting patch is used, such as an electric piano matched with a plucked string instrument. These two sounds combine together to sound as one instrument with the attack of a plucked string and the body of an electric piano. Additionally, the Roland MT-100 (which is just an MT-32 with a sequencer attached) is used for its Recorder sound.
For wind synthesis, he uses a Yamaha WX-5 and WX-7 wind controller. Sound modules include the Yamaha VL-70m (Virtual Acoustic Emulator), the Yamaha TX81Z (similar to the original DX-7), and the Yamaha MU-100R (A VL-7 with an extra sound engine and a vocal harmonizer).
The sound modifiers include several of the modules made by Electrix: the Mo-FX, which includes distortion, flanging, tremolo, and delay, the Filter Factory which is a two pole stereo filter or 4 pole mono filter (analog), the Warp Factory which is a vocoder, and the Repeater which is a digital 4-track looper. Additionally, the Digitech Time Machine is used as a mono delay line with vibrato pitch shifting.
Norm uses a Big Briar (Moog) Etherwave Theremin, and Yamaha WX-11 and WX-5 Wind Controllers. The Theremin is run through the TC Helicon Quintet and the WX’s drive the Yamaha VL-70m sound module. Also put into recent service is the Kawai K5000w Additive Synthesis keyboard. The WX, the keyboard, and the Theremin are then run through a TC Electronics M300 for delays and reverb as well as looping, and then on to a Rolls line mixer before being sent to the main mixer.
The Yamaha WX-5, WX-7, and WX-11 wind controllers are used along with the Yamaha VL-70m sound module. The VL-70m is a radical departure from all other synthesizer sound modules because it creates a digital waveform based on acoustical principles of actual wind and string instruments. In conjunction with a Wind Controller (which is basically an electronic saxophone), it can call forth some amazing sounds. Each of these sounds can be modulated in real time, in ways that previously were only possible on an acoustic instrument.
All instruments are then mixed through a Mackie 3204 line mixer, with auxiliary sends feeding the sound modifying modules. The mix is then sent through an RNC compressor and finally through a BBC Sonic Maximizer before being sent to the computer for recording via Adobe Audition 1.5 software. All pieces were recorded in real time as a stereo mix and then later edited in Audition. This means that the balance between the instruments and effects needed to be perfect during the recording as it could not be adjusted later on in the editing process.
For CD orders or any questions, please contact Stephen: (Vsyevolod at Yahoo dot com).
By choice no copyright.