TONY TALKS TAPE
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- čas přidán 1. 08. 2024
- Make Noise founder Tony Rolando discusses his history with tape music, sampling, and microsound, which led to the development of the Make Noise Phonogene and Morphagene.
Tony's new album Breakin' Is A Memory will be released on Important Records April 29th:
importantrecords.com/products...
tonyrolando.bandcamp.com/albu...
Check out the music video for "Running Towards An Edge," directed by Elyse Tabet:
• Tony Rolando - Running...
0:00 Intro
1:01 Tony’s first encounters with tape music by John Pfeiffer, Barbara Kolb, and Mario Davidovsky
2:24 “Composing with Tape Recorders” by Terence Dwyer
3:21 The Superba tape machine
4:56 The Mystery of tape music
6:32 The difficulty of making tape music with just one device
7:28 The Casio SK-1
8:48 Tony’s tape music process ca 1995
9:58 Musical Interlude: “I’d Like to Make Communication W/ U”
12:00 The Ensoniq Mirage
13:52 Tony’s Mirage Sample Bank
14:48 The Wall of MIDI
15:32 The Akai S612
17:45 The Wall of MIDI (again)
19:18 Tony’s time in bands
19:57 Getting back into electronic music
21:44 Reaktor
22:39 Granular ensembles and computer struggles
24:38 Another Brick Wall and the feel of instruments
26:18 Other granular software of the time
27:57 Curtis Roads, Josh Kay, Richard Devine
29:09 “Microsound” by Curtis Roads
29:43 Outro
www.makenoisemusic.com - Zábava
Tony you are beautiful person. Thank you for everything you have given us. Peace
All I could afford was a 4-track cassette recorder. Sonic Youth was always a big inspiration to me so everything was feedback effects pedals and playing things backwards. I never was ambitious enough to go much beyond that. Probably drove my mom nuts too. lol
i just love to hear tony talk - so much wisdom. He seems like a really nice fella and his hat is nice
Agreed on all counts! 🎩
Tony Rolando is the final argument for supporting your local library.
Totally felt what Tony felt with Reaktor back in the day. And now I write tutorials/how-to knowledge base articles for NI specifically because of that reason! ;-)
Lovely stories. Can't wait for part 2!
So cool. Love the history. Lookin forward to pt2👍🏻
That story of the sampler reminds me when we put random code with our initials and names into the C64's that where plugged in for customers and watch clueless people hit a key on it to trigger the code. :-D
Nice to hear Tony's story. Interesting about the "walls" - I have long felt there were "walls" that really stopped me getting into music and it was only when i (re)discovered modular systems that I felt the wall went away. Looking forward to part 2 - must get the popcorn out next time.
Thanks for watching!
Same here! It wasn’t until I started experimenting with modular synths that synthesis and sound design started making sense to me.
Epic! Thanks for sharing your journey! I cannot wait to hear the rest. This is inspirational to me as I find my own path.
Cannot wait for Part Two.
this is fantastic! and good goddamn the 'educational' component of Make Noise is really something special...much respect
Thank you! ⚡️
Loved it. Would like to see more story-time videos from the team!
Definitely stay tuned! ⚡️
Always a pleasure listening to Tony talk about his inspirations. Also, sweet Neil Blender mug!
Thanks!
I just watched the video of Tony with Ray Barbee, and the next thing I see is the Neil Blender mug! I want one too!!
That was rad. Thank you for sharing, Tony! Looking forward to the next installment.
Thanks for watching! ⚡️
I need one of those tape machines. I like how sometimes in life items are revealed to you in the physical world that seem to meant for you and help dictate your future. When I lived in Brooklyn 20 years ago I really wanted a Library of Congress tape player. I had a dream about it and the next day I found one on top of a dumpster. I took it home , it didn’t work but somehow intuitively I knew to take the giant led acid battery out of it and it worked. It still works.
Great story!
Great story Tony! Looking forward to part two.
Great interview Tony. Great to know your history!
Great enlightening video, thanks Tony.. looking forward to hear/watch the second part.. and hope to see MORE :)
Thanks for watching!
Great video!! I’m looking forward to part 2 and hopefully more!!
Such an amazing story and history! Thanks! It’s truly fascinating that you are sharing all of this great backstory and history! Can’t wait for the wind half!
Thanks for watching!
Great video and really nice to hear a personal story from Tony. Part 2 please!! 🖤
This was very nice to see. Superb! Thanks!!
I could feasibly listen to tony talk about this forever. If you're ever in Scotland and fancy a pint give me a shout!
Seriously though, got a lot of love for makenoise. They completely changed my way of looking at modular (and by proxy, changed my whole system for the better!)
So glad to hear it!
So enjoyable. Thanks Tony.
Can’t wait for part 2
Great story. I recognize many things Tony's talked about, especially having to work with computers that hit max cpu at critical moments when creating music with a daw early 2000's, struggling with finding connection between yourself and the machine. Getting into modular took away walls and writers blocks, creating an infinite source of inspiration, creativity and direct connection with the instrument. The Morphagene was the first module I've ever bought and I'm still using it in every patch. Looking forward to part 2!
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This is an awesome story/interview. Thank you MakeNoise crew for sharing. I got into synths and modular in the past few years after playing guitar for ever. I have shared similar struggles with midi and computer tools so it is very interesting to hear all this. Keep up the great content and great synths/modules. Make Noise has definitely helped guide my synth journey with awesome gear and information.
Thanks for watching! Glad to hear you are having a good time ⚡️
Holy Fuuu.. Sin Ropas. I loved his "Cranky" Mandolin-Guitar. Have to listen to this again. Feels like music from an other live.
Memory lanes!
Loved hearing this and can't wait for more!
Thanks for watching! ⚡️
i used to love making silly techno mixes and sound collages for my friends growing up; pointing multiple cassette boomboxes at each other. took many years to discover the SDS LiveLoop and the Morphagene--yesterday's forgotten dreams sometimes do come true 💫
Fun times!
Dude, I gotta believe we knew some of the same people or worked with folks in the same circles. You mentioned the Empty Bottle..my band 'the Cold Turkey Obscurity' had a gig booked there and our drummer quit. Don't know if you were there still when I was living & working there in 2000-2001 jamming and setting up shows with Sound Investment. Such a trip hearing you talk about Califone and the Empty Bottle etc...also being from more of a small town in NW Illinois. Great stuff aaaaalllll the way around. Make Noise is one of the most unique and vital musical accomplishments anyone has brought to the world. Thanks. Oh and I've decided I'm gonna get the 0-CTRL first, then Morphagene, then Strega, then the 0-Coast. Gonna take a bit but that's the plan. Rewatched this and realized I already expressed my being tripped out by the stories. My bad. I work for the Department of Redundancy Department sometimes
I was there but some how our paths did not cross.
@@tonyrolando what a great music scene then. Always is some cutting edge stuff going on there in Chicago. Learned a lot. Thanks for the reply, for all the inspiration from your work and for pushing the envelope like you have with Make Noise. My next phase of development in my system will consist purely of Make Noise devices. When I first got into modular, your stuff kinda intimidated me to be honest. I felt like I needed to learn more to use the stuff. I'm ready
It was awesome to hear Josh Kay mentioned. Phoenecia is amazing and "Brownout" is one of my favorite albums of all time. This was a fantastic video, thanks guys
Thanks for watching!
Phoenecia!
@@tonyrolando Yes! Yo Tony! I love that album so much. Really looking forward to pt.2 of this :) P.s. I really dig the new song/video
Looking forward to part two
i still am
Yesss The Founder for the next vidéo !!!
It’s always nice to hear a story about following ideas and realizing things that seem obvious...at least for this one person...and ages later for everybody
Love it. I am not into modular yet and I haven’t every bought anything from you all but these videos make me love your company and what it’s all about and if I do get into modular I know where to go!
I could listen to this guy tell a story all day. ⚡
This was such an awesome video!
perfect for podcast
Oh man this is so good! MORE! 🙏
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that was great, thank you!
Thanks for watching!
Wow amazing talk. I'm sure lots of folks are checking out those 2 records now too.
Are you kidding me!?!?! You guys made a cliffhanger?!?!??! Great story!
There were several things about this video that I can relate to. A lot of Tony’s story is similar to my own, right down to the fact that he’s from central Illinois. His progression into the way he made music is parallel to my own. I would love to have a conversation with Tony and go more in depth on his journey into music. Thank you for posting this.
Thanks for watching!
Really enjoyed this, thank you ❤️
Thanks for watching!
That was great. Very entertaining
Thanks!
Very interesting! thank you much
Thanks for watching!
Great video and Neil Blender mug!
Ha! Caught that too. Skater for life!
my stomach got tied in knot when you were talking about the Mirage. There were so many lifeless soul sucking midi instruments back then. I'd love to have all the hours of my life back that I poured into those devices.
Great to see Reaktor getting some love!
It's a classic ⚡️
Listening to Tony on Why We Bleep as I was first getting into modular and hearing how passionate he is about synthesis inspired me to investigate the Make Noise catalogue. Now have 8 MN modules inc. the Tape Noise & Microsound Machine. Nearly anything you feed into can be something wonderfully weird. I love it.
Happy patching!! ⚡️⚡️
Really interesting subject, thank you Make Noise! Tony's cool as always!
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love it
that was awesome!
Thanks!
So funny story, made a lot of fun to listen to his musical experience! Greetings 🖖☺️
Thanks to Tony for sharing some of his origin story. The small town library vinyl discovery really resonated with me. I came to hear Fripp & Eno (No Pussyfooting) in similar circumstances. I picked it up because the cover photo was so striking but the listening experience blew my mind. I couldn’t comprehend how they made those sounds. Really looking forward to part two and preparing my wallet for the inevitable Morphagene GAS.
Is discovering music at the library a lost art? I (Walker) did a bunch of that too as a kid.
@@MAKEN0ISEMUSIC Sad but true. I fear that discovering anything at the library is becoming a lost art. Around a fifth of all libraries here in the UK the have closed since 2010 due to funding cuts. I guess there are no late fees on the internet though.
Has Part 2 been recorded/posted? If not, bump for more Tony story time.
Tony bringing the Dan Flashes vibes with that excellent shirt.
This was great, brings back some fun memories. :-)
Thanks for checking it Richard! ⚡️🎶⚡️
Josh says hi 👋 😀
Nothing by BBDs all day, all nite.
Great story here. The story of how the interface determines how an instrument is related to by the player.
This hat has me wishing for a Life Aquatic style documentary featuring Tony and Walker as Steve and Ned Zissou type characters. 🦈🐆
😂 “I’ve never seen so many electric jellyfish in all my life!” ⚡️⚡️
STOKED!
This was great.
Is there, or will there be, a part 2?
Dude I had no idea the origins...I fkn LOVE Califone...'Bottles and Bones'...i once covered 'Funeral Singers' and i played the Empty Bottle..check this out..our drummer dropped out and we had the gig booked..so we went to Sound Investment's shop where we worked and recorded all the drum tracks live and played the set with the recorded drum tracks on CD and the next band had their kit set up so we had live recorded drums we played to with an empty drumset set up behind the 2 of us and no drummer. This is circa 2001 or so. I had no idea that Tony was from Springfield. I'm here in Sterling, Illinois...NW Illinois...the Empty Bottle..the Lion's Den...I lived in Chicago on Augusta & Washtenaw off of Cortez...not far from Western. Man dude, the music scene then was so good. It was a Renaissance time for me just learning, growing and developing...NW side and Logan Park...spent a lot of time up off N Milwaukee. Lived a block away from Humboldt Park. No wonder I resonate so strongly with Make Noise. Oh yeah...Shuba's was another cool place we went to see bands. Such a cool scene in Chicago then and I'm sure now. I learned a lot just living and working there trying to make music. Anyway, super cool to hear where Tony's foundations are and what a great video. I'm fkn buying Morphagene next...it's been my most wanted module since I started in modular and I applaud all of you there at Make Noise for all the work and obviously passionate creating there. Hats off to you
That's crazy you recorded the drums and still played the gig! I once saw Ted Leo rock the Empty Bottle with his backing tracks playing off a TEAC 4-track reel to reel machine, but I'd guess that was prepared well in advance. I def. enjoyed some shows at Schuba's too! Oddly, they made a great chilimac too.
@@tonyrolando that would take some prep to do a show with a TEAC. i was so upset our drummer quit that we recorded his parts and did the show nearly out of spite. Turned out ironically funny with the next band's drumset sitting empty while we had pre-recorded live drums going.
@@tonyrolando small world as it turns out
My mom still uses her barely worn upon Tascam Porta 07 for all her multitracking needs. Now and again I’ll have to convince her not to sell it, generally comparing it’s condition to those in the photos for sale
on eBay. Today, I’m collecting Alesis ADAT decks, because they’re much cheaper than the Tascam MX-2424. The big detail of the ADAT that attracts me to what might be remembered in general as a finnicky piece of hardware that often goes catty-wonks without warning, it’s this big detail: they can record DC signals, and with a little modification by adding a few op-amp buffers to its inputs, you have a machine that can easily record laser light shows and modular analog synthesizer performances, and etc! THAT makes the old Alesis ADAT deck a pretty cool piece of gear that is definitely worth the price that is being asked for them recently.
what a cliffhanger!
Stay tuned 😛
This is was super awesome! Really enjoyed story time with Tony. One question, I had heard somewhere probably secondhand but possibly in another interview that Tony had a real thing against overdubbing in recording and had a strong aesthetic preference for “live” real-time recording of electronic music. If that’s not entirely apocryphal or misconstrued, how does he square that with being such a fan of tape music? A relevant parallel is the jazz label ECM where Manfred Eicher has a very strong aesthetic ideology of real time room recording for jazz that they release on the label, however he made the exception for Steve Tibbets because his musical process is intimately tied to the recording and overdubbing technique. Would be cool to hear what Tony has to say about that. Looking forward to the next installment!
There has been two periods in my life where I was incredibly (inscrutably?) opposed to overdubs. At one point back in the late 90's I refused to listen to a record if it seemed like the music was not recorded in real time. I was crushed when I discovered that so many of the records I loved did not comply. It was a ridiculous limitation to place on art and I moved on. Then I came back to it again around 2010 and that resulted in the "no overdubs" restriction placed upon the artist who participated in our Shared System series from Make Noise Records. I am thankful to those artist who humored my request. I do think the restriction served a purpose of those initial 5 Shared System Series records, which was to make the only variable in the 5 different releases, the artist (they all used the exact same synthesizer system to create the music).
@@tonyrolando Thanks for the thoughtful reply Tony. I definitely respect the idea that you can find creative freedom in having some constraints, and the limitless pit of the DAW is certainly one of the problems with that way of making music. There's obviously something special about recording audio in the spirit of "capturing a moment" but there are other ways of approaching the recording process that deliberately abstract from that goal of immediacy and realistic reproduction of a lived present now past. It was interesting to me to think about the tension between your stated preference for immediacy and organic interaction and the inherently more complex temporal dynamics involved in tape collage.
Incredible story! Looking forward for part 2. I love the morphagene. Would need 4 of them! I have an eye on Tasty chips GR1, which is multi timbral (4 voices). Not sure though...The audio input interface of the GR1 seems a bit complicated. Audio source is not direct (some sort of a wall..). Any other suggestions?
Awesome! Now I know if I ever attempt to get a job at Make Noise to bring up White Oaks Mall, 100.5 WYMG, NIL8 and Krekel's and my chances will be exponentially increased.
Teenhood in a nutshell. I'm still jamming my "Last Flash of Pasley Pastel" cassette.
Ahh yes, I hear the echos of it emerging through "Running Toward an Edge" 🤯
I first learned about granular synthesis in (I think it was) Keyboard magazines issue about Csound and Granule. It caught my attention because I was into sound manipulation using the Casio FZ-1 and MIDI with my PC.
Thanks for sharing! Csound is another one that Roads liked a lot 🎶
That was super cool. Now I want a snack.
Lovely stuff. I’ve spent a lot of money on MN stuff and it’s cool to know it’s supporting a guy/vision who’s soul purpose is to help others create. I think we can all relate in some way to the “wall”, it takes some courage to admit the wall is there and then to use your own mind to figure out a better way. Props Tony!
Indeed!! As a longtime MN customer, friend and local (I live about a mile from the Make Noise HQ/factory), I’ll attest you are ALSO supporting a longtime team of incredible employees, each an incredible creative, most of them performing & recording musicians.
But also you are supporting great local causes, including educational.
Here in Asheville we see MN leaders Tony & Kelly give back all the time, they support local businesses and music, they exude humility and gratitude and community. They exude joy for music, fair wages and celebrating the incredible 125+ years of synthesis history.
Bonus nerdy info: as far as I know, MN is the ONLY company that has created a physical tribute to the ORIGINAL full scale synth, the Telharmonium, with their now discontinued, astounding & utterly unique Telharmonic module. (Find one!!)
Sorry to be long-winded, but YES Adrien, your intuition is correct; you are supporting a truly incredible venture.
As always great video, I think Tony is my new modular hero. Great work on the new album Tony. Are you going to divulge how and what you used on it?
thx! I talked a bit about how the record was made on Podular Modcast episode 200 and Ryan Gaston's Signal article www.perfectcircuit.com/signal/breakin-is-a-memory
Thanks Tony
I wish you guys would make a small format drum machine type thing like the Strega and O coast
Memories… a friend and I were making ‘sound on sound’ music in the mid-70s with a pair of battery-operated cassette players, and there are times when I wish I’d explored it further. Making a living got in the way I suppose. And post-punk everything got so chillingly *digital*…
Make Noise- not so much a brand, more an instruction for living.
Making a living should ideally not stop you from making a life. It’s so tough in this culture to survive with your creativity and your wonder intact.
❤️
Please can we have part 2 soon?
It's about time! 😊
Neil Blender coffee mug!!!! Where did you get that?
Rodent got it for me from The Heated Wheel.
tony also always has great shirts
This is true.
I'm having a hard time deciding what to get first...I've wanted to add Make Noise to my system ever since my modular journey began and I'm about ready...buuuut...I'm really stuck...Morphagene? Or Strega? Or perhaps start with a 0-Coast? I'm so stumped. I'm leaning towards Morphagene then Strega...that may be counter-intuitive but Strega and Morphagene just resonate so strongly with what I want to accomplish...although the 0-Coast/0-CTRL combo would give me sounds and capabilities I don't have currently. Suggestions?
tony is a G
PART DEUX PART DEUX PART DEUX
Wow - and i hesitate with the morphagene because i thought its too complicated. (Though i am old enough to know some of the stuff he descibes). Giving it a second thought. Not available anyway at this time.
was there ever part 2?
used. I had the same sound card using Reaktor and the the same results. Cool but not really there. I went to an Akai 1000. However I alway used an editor for sampling, such as Sound Forge.
where is part 2?
This is, ladies and gentlemen, a story of success, a story about how to be successful, and happy, and rich. A whole life dedicated to your passion, at some point we became obsessed with goals and missed the whole trip, dont be like that, be like our good friend Tony.
When's part 2?
Was the music something Tony created? I really liked it.
Yes, the pieces on the Title and End Cards, and the musical interlude, are excerpts from Tony's mid-90s tape pieces.
How did it lead to the phonogene???????
Seems like a very inventive guy. I kept laughing when he named the products he
Southern Illinois? Carbondale?
Awesome stories struggle is real in electronic music I need help with my tempi maths and Rena but Im having a lot of fun with it I a guitar player looper wanted more what a rabid hole Hard too get any help in WV think Im the only one in the area using modular I really appreciate your Chanel Thank You
The Mirage Story, 1st user perspective I’d heard. ✌️
I have to say, I had a Mirage and for me it wasn’t as difficult as many people say. It came with a hex chart which made it easy to figure out values. I mainly used it for factory and 3rd party sample sets which gave me stuff I couldn’t get on or as a supplement to my budget synth set-up such as brass, strings, choirs, voices (doo, doo, da, doo!) and the immortal orchestra hits! But I also made a lot of drum kits. Plugging in a mic and overdriving the input was great for making killer drums from little taps or just by verbalizing. Setting up multi-sample sets was just a matter of keeping track of the start and end values of each sample. The best accessory for the Mirage was something you don’t see any more - a pad of paper and a pencil! 😆 Sure, it was different with a bit of a learning curve but for the price I got a lot out of it.
@@a_nick_t S220 back then -deadQD-Sysex dump/load Performer 🍻
@@dr.feelicks2051 exciting times! 😎👍🏼
Neil Blender : )
I never got why people think hexadecimal is difficult. Its just mixing letters with numbers.
You said a beverage OR popcorn!
Busted! 🍿
Oh TONY WALKER the suspended sonicmation to next instalment of story🤕🤕
As a side issue Tony used Tape Slicing, overdubbing on early experimentations, how would he replicate with Make Noise modules today ie Dr WHO theme that Delia Derbyshire did in 1963 just with Tape Slicing, test equipment, I guess 4 Morphagene and Looped to form song , triggered by offset Signals, only a thought and bit out there but would like your ideas
Also Delia D did a 30 second early Techno track if you Search for created in 1963/4 mins blowingly ahead of her time👍🆒🎶😎🌟🕸⚡️🔱🇬🇧👁🌀
Tony talks about a brown book at some point. Can’t find it😂 someone’s know the title?
What time stamp?
@@MAKEN0ISEMUSIC sadly I don’t know . He talks about “composing with tape recorder” and an other one which has a lot of color bookmarks… that the one I try to find. Did I dream it?😂
I posted a link but it was deleted. The book is: Curtis Roads Microsound
Yes it’s Microsound by Curtis Roads. It will also be discussed more in the followup about Phonogene development, and it’s touched on in the “Bookshelf” video as well: czcams.com/video/ZzDTMw7nzOg/video.html
@@MAKEN0ISEMUSIC thank you very much for your time 🙏🙏