@peterkirn

Musician, creative technologist, visualist, and editor of @cdmblogs ...

 Berlin, Germany
peterkirn.bandcamp.com
Joined July 2007
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  • Followers12.2K
1.2KMedia
Bethlehem is a moving creation of shared space for artists divided by occupation and colonialization. Transcendent hearing this in its final form.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogs18h
On the sublime BETHLEHEM بيت لحم, walls in time and space fall. cdm.link/bethlehem-album/

On the sublime BETHLEHEM بيت لحم, walls in time and space fall - CDM Create Digital Music

The exquisite collaboration of Lawrence Sammour, Sary Moussa, and Abed Kobeissy, Bethlehem, is released this month. And it has become a rich sanctuary, a shared space that refuses erasure or fragme...

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Having been along for this ride since the days I was publishing onto CompuServe as a kid — this. (Well Mac users remember MSIE more fondly but even so!)
Dave Winer
@davewiner22h
I remember how revolutionary the first web was, but then a series of tech companies took it over and “had their way” with it. The first was Netscape and they added JavaScript to steal the thunder from “Sun” (a long story). Then Microsoft crushed Netscape by cutting off their air supply, and they piled up all kinds of nasty insecure features with predictable results, they made the web a paradise of viruses, making it largely unusable until Firefox replaced Microsoft, and their web was nicer, and smaller and they left out the viruses. Google came along and quickly replaced it with Chrome and all was good for a while, until they decided it was just another corporate platform like Android and threw out all the early sites, so boring, they couldn’t be hacked or make billions of dollars, and now what used to be the web is all but gone. What’s next? It’s time for The Big Undo. 😀
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Quite enjoying this one. Okay, at some point we need to do a proper KORG / GForce shootout but -- for now, only GForce has the Axxe, technically, and it's free!
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 23
Free Friday: GForce’s superb Axxess instrument is free through the end of November. cdm.link/gforce-freebies/

Free Friday: GForce's superb Axxess instrument is free until December - CDM Create Digital Music

GForce has updated their site, branding, and pricing (now with both lifetime licenses and subscription options). And there are two freebies, time-limited through the end of November: a Mellotron M400...

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I've had enough of screens for today, so here is a thing with no screen -- or power, even. Rather clever!
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 21
The world is your modular: Mulch Box, an all-jacks patch bay and multiplier. cdm.link/mulch-box-patch-bay…
It's a pink box all covered in jacks, on a metal rusty bridge or something, with some trees in the back.

ALT It's a pink box all covered in jacks, on a metal rusty bridge or something, with some trees in the back.

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Ooh, this one was fun. This is more than a minor update; it brings a bunch of things together, and there's room for growth. A reminder of why hardware tuned with circuits and code still exists as a unified instrument.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 20
Arturia's new MiniFreak 49 synth is tactile, exploration-friendly -- tested. cdm.link/arturia-minifreak-4… @ArturiaOfficial thanks, we're thoroughly enjoying this!
Keyboard at an angle, showing light-up LED grid of XYZ Touch Matrix.

ALT Keyboard at an angle, showing light-up LED grid of XYZ Touch Matrix.

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"Downsize the studio," they said. Okay, says I! Kawaiiiiii.... (oh and that n/vision is really interesting looking -- finally, bizarro-world Roland vintage from an alternate universe!)
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 20
Baby Roland is back: Boutique JUPITER-8, n/vision wavetable synths. Kawaii, @RolandGlobal ! The news: cdm.link/roland-boutique-jup…
Mini 25-key keyboards from Roland -- a vintage JUPITER-8 remake (JUPITER-08) and a new white-and-baby-blue n/vision wavetable synth, vintage that never was.

ALT Mini 25-key keyboards from Roland -- a vintage JUPITER-8 remake (JUPITER-08) and a new white-and-baby-blue n/vision wavetable synth, vintage that never was.

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It was a privilege to talk to Abed and a critical story. I hope we can spread this one and show some support -- even paying for electricity is a challenge.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 18
Abed Eyad is making beats in Gaza: interview, call for support. cdm.link/abed-eyad-gaza-inte… Abed is cooking beats -- and surviving. Let's spread the word about his story and send support as Palestinian producers in Gaza work to build their own sound, even in the rubble.
Three stills from a beatmaking video featuring Abed with his PC laptop, perched over the rubble of his family home.

ALT Three stills from a beatmaking video featuring Abed with his PC laptop, perched over the rubble of his family home.

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Hell, yes. Let's see how the myth of Drexciya extends under Lake Ontario, and no, I know no other name for that body of water.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 16
The myth of Drexciya is coming to the @TorontoBiennial -- with a playlist from Cornelius you should be listening to right now. cdm.link/drexciya-toronto/
Inside the exhibition, with artwork squares, deep purple-blue lighting, and listneing stations. Photo: Rebecca Tisdelle-Macias

ALT Inside the exhibition, with artwork squares, deep purple-blue lighting, and listneing stations. Photo: Rebecca Tisdelle-Macias

Inside the exhibition, with a wall of covers and two eyes looking out.. Photo: Rebecca Tisdelle-Macias

ALT Inside the exhibition, with a wall of covers and two eyes looking out.. Photo: Rebecca Tisdelle-Macias

Inside the exhibition, with a wall of covers and two eyes looking out.. Photo: Rebecca Tisdelle-Macias

ALT Inside the exhibition, with a wall of covers and two eyes looking out.. Photo: Rebecca Tisdelle-Macias

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Sure, I could be covering the five hundred AI-generated firmwares that launched in the past 24 hours, but instead I'm covering this, including a conspiracy theory about a giant pigeon taking out the teenage engineering livestream.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 15
teenage engineering op-xy added a drum synth, sound shaping, more, in exciting synth news from the company that just told us it had stopped all synth news: cdm.link/teenage-engineering… Looks great, actually (seriously @jugendingenieur )
op-xy synth, all black and gray and with a black and white display but otherwise looking a lot like an OP-1.

ALT op-xy synth, all black and gray and with a black and white display but otherwise looking a lot like an OP-1.

a drumline envelope, with some stepped randomization in the sustain cycle!

ALT a drumline envelope, with some stepped randomization in the sustain cycle!

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The view from Raouché... This is just an exceptional record. Talk a little about Bana's approach to the modular synthesizer in relation to other sound and instruments.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 14
"The ancient future is a place. It is the meeting point between the light piercing through the dark, fragmented state of our present reality." Bana Haffar (Modular on the Spot, Beirut Synthesizer Center) with one to put on repeat: cdm.link/bana-haffar-ancient…
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It's a somewhat simple thing, but even as everything gets more expensive, high-end audio interfaces are suddenly budget-priced. So I'll be looking at several of these. Universal Audio has been doing some good things with Volt -- updated this month.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 13
UA Volt Gen 2, Max: built-in dynamics and preamp tone, displays, more in updates from @UAudio -- explained: cdm.link/ua-volt-gen-2-max/
UA VOLT 4P MAX viewed from an angle, circular display with LED meter, big knob, buttons, headphone jacks, guitar ins.

ALT UA VOLT 4P MAX viewed from an angle, circular display with LED meter, big knob, buttons, headphone jacks, guitar ins.

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Whatever you're doing, slow down and listen to the sound of Beads for 10 minutes -- it'll cure 'ya.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 12
Beads, last of the Mutable Instruments modules, is now open source: A gorgeous "granular synthesizer," processor and oscillator both. h/t @synthanatomy Why this matters now: cdm.link/beads-is-now-open-s…
Image of the original Beads "texture synthesizer" Eurorack module, with various knobs and color-coded parameters.

ALT Image of the original Beads "texture synthesizer" Eurorack module, with various knobs and color-coded parameters.

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I’ve got a CV that’s better than this / But you don’t remember at all / As we get older and stop making synths / You won’t find me waiting long ...
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 9
teenage engineering might quit synths, but parody can't quit them cdm.link/end-of-teenage-synt… (we still love you @jugendingenieur ! actually this requires David Byrne...)
Parody image of Sven Teshaiser, "Designer @ Teenage Engineering" pointing to his synths. PARODY -- and some folks will recognize Hainbach's studio in the shot

ALT Parody image of Sven Teshaiser, "Designer @ Teenage Engineering" pointing to his synths. PARODY -- and some folks will recognize Hainbach's studio in the shot

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Loved everything about this story. I don't know how to advertise music writing, like -- you don't need to know the artist. Maybe it's even better if you don't. This comes with ideas about philosophy and a reading list.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 8
"The butterfly stands as a potent symbol of the transformation between consciousness and matter, the metamorphosis of spirit and flesh." cdm.link/33emybw-amalgamate-… Interview with 33EMYBW on Amalgamate, metamorphosis, and insect philosophy.
A vibrant, gold-and-red human-catterpillar-butterfly hybrid bursts out of a splash of gold, turquoise and red patterning, large antennae, and great proboscis and eyes. Cover image of the album, artwork by Jingxin Wang.

ALT A vibrant, gold-and-red human-catterpillar-butterfly hybrid bursts out of a splash of gold, turquoise and red patterning, large antennae, and great proboscis and eyes. Cover image of the album, artwork by Jingxin Wang.

33EMYBW stands, pants with a kind of scales and top wrapped in fur, leaning against a rock outcropping. Photo: Di Wei.

ALT 33EMYBW stands, pants with a kind of scales and top wrapped in fur, leaning against a rock outcropping. Photo: Di Wei.

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I've been busy lately exploring this and constructing a soundbank to share. The Grainferno engine applied to a unique effect with powerful drawing and sound-tweaking tools.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 6
Time-bending, granular-powered HyperWarp from @BabyAudio: hands-on guide, free sound pack download.. cdm.link/hyperwarp-hands-on-… Making sounds like...
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The perspective we could all use right now. Showed this to my synthesis class and it struck them, so time to share it with you all, too.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 6
"For people": watch what Herbie Hancock had to say about technology in 1984. cdm.link/watch-what-herbie-h…
2-up: from the 1984 documentary on Herbie Hancock, Herbie in the studio playing a Rhodes Chroma synth as Quincy Jones looks on; Herbie points to a Fairlight CMI screen as he shows it to Quincy.

ALT 2-up: from the 1984 documentary on Herbie Hancock, Herbie in the studio playing a Rhodes Chroma synth as Quincy Jones looks on; Herbie points to a Fairlight CMI screen as he shows it to Quincy.

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I don't know about everybody else, but tech lately has put me in a supremely bad mood -- with gooood reason. Then along comes Randy with a $200 used ThinkPad running Linux and his amazing software for expressing yourself in sound. And that's what it's all about.
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 4
West Coast, with penguins: Aaltoverb on Linux; Aalto 2 coming soon. @madronalabs with some very good news indeed; why it's cool: cdm.link/aalto2-aaltoverb-li… Also, ThinkPads and fun Japanese ads featuring Donald Fagen to put you in a good mood.
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Pd's free tools for messing with signal have a big update coming soon, with features like a set of snake~ objects that split, sum, and pick signals (think cable snakes, sound folks).
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 2
Pure Data (Pd) 0.57 inbound, enduring free software for tinkering with sound: cdm.link/pd-0-57-inbound/ ...plus more happening in ELSE world, and if you hadn't discovered microtonal sequencing and Pd in VCV Rack, we got you. Mac, Windows, Linux.
Pd patch running in a Mac window, help files for pd pick. Text explanation: [snake~ pick] combines specific channels of a multichannel signal into a new multichannel signal. A list of channels is given as arguments, via the "channels" message or the right input. If no list of channels is given, it forwards the original input. Changing the channel list updates the DSP graph.

ALT Pd patch running in a Mac window, help files for pd pick. Text explanation: [snake~ pick] combines specific channels of a multichannel signal into a new multichannel signal. A list of channels is given as arguments, via the "channels" message or the right input. If no list of channels is given, it forwards the original input. Changing the channel list updates the DSP graph.

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Okay, hear me out: Sweetwater could make a pop-up music production software store, styled like a vintage mall EB or Babbage's, and we'd all drive out to Fort Wayne to see it. (Listen, if you need to waste money on terrible ideas, HIRE ME)
cdmblogs
@cdmblogsOct 2
Updated the FLpad story with store links and noticed that, apart from being the only ones with stock, @SweetwaterSound offers a bundle with the *boxed software*. (FLpads have 6 months' sub free, but yeah!) More physical releases, please? ;) cdm.link/flpad-8x8-grid-come…

FLpad 8x8 grid comes to FL Studio - can you add a grid to a speedrun? - CDM Create Digital Music

The Novation Launchpad grid has its original lineage in Ableton Live integration. But it's now come to the land of Fruity Loops. FLpad is available in both a standard, velocity-sensitive model and an...

cdm.link
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