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Learning Synths

learningsynths.ableton.com

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Re: Learning Synths

#141

Post by NikolaNovak »

anigbrowl wrote: post #112
NikolaNovak wrote: post #17

Question: All of "learn synths" tutorials I've managed to dig up are really "sound creation" tutorials. I have not found a good tutorial or paid online class on how to _play_ synths. Is taking a traditional piano course the best way to do so? Observationally, the play style seems quite different, even if some basics are the same. Most practically, I see synths typically played with right hand, left hand is on the mod…

It depends. What sort of music are you into? If you like funk and want to play weedly weedly bass sounds, you buy a Moog monosynth and you're set. If you want to play trance or dance styles then you figure out arpeggiators and sequencers and get to know the synth architecture so well that you can program it on the fly, because many styles of music are about taking a simple repeating motif and redoing it in different…

Thanks!

My first love is guitar, and I've been playing it (badly;) for decades. But I've just discovered synthesizers, got increasingly hyper excited, and it seems I can really really nerd out about them. Historically on the electronic side I've enjoyed Depeche Mode, some Daft Punk, and a mix & variety of other stuff; but I've just found synthwave, such as Kavinsky, and am somewhat in love:). I've been geeking out for a few weeks, love the deep warbles and hard tones of the bass monophonic analogues, piercing leads of some others, and the rich pads of some of the digital polyphonics.

To start with I bought a Roland Gaia; I know it doesn't get a lot of love, BUT... compared to UltraNovas and such, it has no menu diving - I have all these wonderful sliders and knobs to learn with and really understand what's going on. I've developed intuitive understanding of ADSR and other basic concepts like modulating LFO with it way better and faster than I imagine I would with a book - so if I outgrow it one day, it'll still have been a wortwhile purchase:).

Also played a bit with an old old USB Midi keyboard I had and Caustic software, and have access to Casio CTK-6250 regular electronic keyboard as needed.

Basically, I've discovered a fertile new ground and am looking to deep dive :).

But as I said - there's tons of reviews and suggestions on equipment out there; a fair amount of courses (good or bad) on how to create sound; but far less on how to learn to play synth in any kind of accelerated, non-traditional/classical way. As per my other post to fellow commenter - I find I can "play" piano/synth just from my guitar experience enough to have fun and run some chord progressions etc; and fear that first "two years" worth of classical piano would not substantially advance me in the direction I want to move. Perhaps I'm wrong... we'll see! :)

Re: Learning Synths

#142

Post by Roboprog »

wesleyfsmith wrote: post #135
NikolaNovak wrote: post #17

Question: All of "learn synths" tutorials I've managed to dig up are really "sound creation" tutorials. I have not found a good tutorial or paid online class on how to _play_ synths. Is taking a traditional piano course the best way to do so? Observationally, the play style seems quite different, even if some basics are the same. Most practically, I see synths typically played with right hand, left hand is on the mod…

You might want to check out the roli seaboard, I have one and it's great for playing synths. A bit pricey but I enjoy it a lot. I got it because I was tired of making music through a UI and wanted to 'feel' it more like I do on the guitar. I would also say any MIDI compatible keyboard is a good fit too, try to get something that has a pitch wheel though. The wheel will let you "bend" your sound and add some expressiv…

The Seaboard block is a little cheaper, but it’s mini key size. Nice to have in a backpack, though.

I just wish Roli made an iOS config utility.

Re: Learning Synths

#144

Post by timc3 »

habosa wrote: post #127

I am someone who loves music in all its forms (especially live music) but I have struggled to ever learn to play music. I don't have much natural rhythm, I have a bad ear, and I wasn't the best student when I took guitar lessons. Recently I have gotten into synthesizers and electronic instruments in general and WOW. Suddenly music clicks for me. I think as an engineer there is something very appealing about deconstru…

While you can get along fine just playing around, if you are still at it after a couple of years learning music theory is very worth while. Its also something that someone with engineering skills should be able to pick up.

Re: Learning Synths

#145

Post by timc3 »

rhizome wrote: post #123
Aromasin wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or go a step further and build them yourself. You get to keep the house, but you won't be able to make much use of it because every available space is taken up with a random assortment of wires, op-amps, resistors and capacitors. DIY synth making will take up every bit of spare time you think you have left, and then some. Your hands will become a puzzle of soldering iron scars, and you'll slowly lose your hearing fro…

Spending all of your free time soldering is not the same as making music.

Which is why i have been purchasing my modular instead of building it.. so far.

Secondhand market is great for Eurorack

Re: Learning Synths

#146

Post by bnferguson »

munificent wrote: post #95
louthy wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or go modular. Just be prepared to remortgage your house a year later. Seriously addictive [1] https://imgur.com/a/chegsO5 (my setup)

Non-snarky question: how much music do you finish ? Every time I think about getting more into synths, I worry that I'll just end up endlessly noodling and never actually complete any songs. Years ago, I bought a copy of Reason and had tons of fun playing with it, but eventually I realized that after every session, I was rarely any closer to having a completed work I could share with others.

This question comes up a lot with synths and especially hardware and Eurorack gear.

For me not being focused on finishing anything is what got me back into playing music (and eventually performing live sets).

Previously there was so much pressure to produce end results I couldn't even get started and lost all joy in the process. At some point I got some hardware to just play with and never really looked up how to save anything (was a Drumbrute, Meeblip and I borrowed a Beatstep). Was making odd acid tracks and silly sketches on my kitchen table every night that I'd lose as soon as I turned it all off. It was oddly freeing, and really fun.

A year later I was playing out gigs ranging from 20 mins to 3 hours. And one could even argue that I've still not finished any songs despite hours of recordings and performance as it's mostly improvisational.

Now I'm happily back in the noodling around and having fun stage again and loving it (though about to switch gears again).

Anyway - just figured I'd weigh in as there's often a lot of pressure to finish or record things when just playing around or building weird synths is in and of itself a really really fun (if expensive) hobby and maybe someone needs to hear that. :)

(also perfectly fine if your focus is on complete songs, of course)

Re: Learning Synths

#147

Post by gameoflife »

bbx wrote: post #5

The best resource I've ever seen for learning synthesis is Syntorial: https://www.syntorial.com/ It teaches you step by step all the aspects of a synth engine: oscillators, wave shapes, amplitude, filters, modulation, unison, FM… But most of all it trains your ear, which allows you to replicate the sound in your head and build it from scratch.

+1 to Syntorial. I'd couple it with Serum where it's easy to implement ideas from Syntorial and build on top.

Re: Learning Synths

#148

Post by IAmGraydon »

louthy wrote: post #15
realshowbiz wrote: post #4

Possibly unpopular opinion, but IMO to learn a synth it’s best to start with a simple physical subtractive monosynth. Software synths are often built to model popular hardware instruments in both sound and interface. So learning the basic concepts on a “real” subtractive synth builds a foundation to learn more. Plus a physical synth is far less distracting than a multitasking device. I find it much easier to create,…

Or go modular. Just be prepared to remortgage your house a year later. Seriously addictive [1] https://imgur.com/a/chegsO5 (my setup)

Pretty! I think the Behringer Neutron is a good, inexpensive place to start.

Re: Learning Synths

#149

Post by ssalazar »

jesuslop wrote: post #7

Not directly related, but do you know of recent achievements with a wow factor in the physical modelling synthesis field [1]? Just as some offline rendered 3d scenes are amazing, It'd be nice to have a pure virtual instrument with its string and resonance chamber model, inter-string effects, plucking mechanism, and so on. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physical_modelling_synthesis

Check out Geoshred[1], developed as a collaboration between Jordan Rudess and researchers at Stanford University. Its using a physical model for the guitar as well as audio FX (which tend to be easier to get good sounding than acoustic instruments).

In the domain of pure research, Kurt Werner's work in physical models of 808 circuits is also pretty cool [2].

[1] http://www.moforte.com/

[2] https://ccrma.stanford.edu/~kwerner/

Re: Learning Synths

#150

Post by munificent »

bnferguson wrote: post #146
munificent wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Non-snarky question: how much music do you finish ? Every time I think about getting more into synths, I worry that I'll just end up endlessly noodling and never actually complete any songs. Years ago, I bought a copy of Reason and had tons of fun playing with it, but eventually I realized that after every session, I was rarely any closer to having a completed work I could share with others.

This question comes up a lot with synths and especially hardware and Eurorack gear. For me not being focused on finishing anything is what got me back into playing music (and eventually performing live sets). Previously there was so much pressure to produce end results I couldn't even get started and lost all joy in the process. At some point I got some hardware to just play with and never really looked up how to sav…

This is useful data, thanks.

I'm going through a sort of mini-midlife crisis right now and one of the things I'm thinking about is whether I can make music part of my life again. I used to be in a rock band and it was tons of fun, but I'm in my 40s with kids so the logistics of rehearsing with other people and playing shows at night make that unlikely.

Another path I'm considering is making electronic music. That's mostly what I listen to and I used to tinker with it before I started a band, so I have some experience with synthesizers, beats, etc. It's much more amenable to my life style now because I can do it after the kids go to bed. But also, back then, I had a lot of trouble getting anything done and often ended up feeling disappointed.

It's not enough for me to just noodle with a synth for a few hours. I want something I can share with other people, which implies to me that I need to be able to finish things. So I'm just trying to figure out strategies for that before I drop money on gear only to have it collect dust.

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