Thomas Brett
-
Keywords: Version 1.0
(Photo: J.S. Bach’s sketch for the first prelude of The Well-Tempered Clavier) Version 1.0 of a track feels the most unsettled because you don’t know where you’re going with it yet; it’s still too new. What is this musical thing? This state of feeling is exemplified by improvising. When you improvise you’re making it up… Continue reading
-
Database: A.G. Cook On Synthesis With An Inherent Musical Goal
“I was just toying around with an ultra basic [Native Instruments] Lazerbass patch. It can be what sounds sort of FM [synthesis]-y, but you can add too many beating layers to it and end up with this kind of pretty atonal sound. Because that’s on a dial, you’ve got something harmonic on one side and… Continue reading
-
Resonant Thoughts: Martin Wolf’s “The Crisis Of Democratic Capitalism” (2023)
“The legitimacy of any system always depends on performance. In the end, people will cease to trust a system that does not work for them.” “The rise of demagogic nationalism and authoritarianism in high-income democracies—the core of today’s political crisis—can be attributed in significant part to…economic failures. The problem is not just the economic failures… Continue reading
-
Keywords: Vibe
(Photo: Khashayar Kouchpeydeh) Short for vibration, vibe poetically describes music’s most intangible yet palpable quality: its feeling. Vibe is how music feels over time, how its vibrations sustain a mood, conjure an aura, and keep an affect aloft like smoke billowing on a windless day. Describing a music’s vibe is difficult and requires assigning a… Continue reading
-
Database: Max Cooper On Parameter Spaces
“The Prophet-6 is my most used synth. It’s just got a nice balance of not trying to do too much, but doing enough to be flexible. The parameter space it covers is high proportion beautiful. Any synth, you’ve got a bunch of parameters with continuous values. If you’ve got 50 parameters, you’ve got a 50… Continue reading
-
Resonant Thoughts: Robert M. Persig’s “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” (1974)
“The test of the machine is the satisfaction it gives you. There isn’t any other test. If the machine produces tranquillity it’s right. If it disturbs you it’s wrong until either the machine or your mind is changed. The test of the machine’s always your own mind. There isn’t any other test.” “The craftsman isn’t… Continue reading
brettworks 