Ed.: Social networking, online sites (this being one of them), Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace … sometimes it seems like all the connections are being done online. Naturally, the Web’s real power is when you can meet all those virtual personalities you’ve gotten to know offline. Far better than getting demo CDs in the mail or listening to someone’s tracks on MySpace: meeting them at a party over a drink and getting their music from them directly.

Such is the genius of Chicago’s Demo Swap. Co-organizer Liz has this wrap-up of what July’s party was like. Non-Chicagoans (heck, fellow New Yorkians), clearly this is a model to be replicated elsewhere. A huge thanks to all of the CDMers who showed up. It was fantastic to meet you, and I hope to see you again soon — ideally with more leisure time to hang out! (I’m in Chicagoland regularly.) I was especially impressed by Karl, who was in Chicago from Austria and was embarking on a cross-country drive across the entire length of Route 66 the following morning. Why is that foreigners appreciate America better than most Americans do?

Here’s how the demo swap went; read closely for some nice music tips and perhaps insight into how to get a demo swap going in your neck of the woods. -PK

Alternative controllers come and go, but some designers lavish attention and craft on their controllers. The Haken Continuum is one we’re likely to revisit over time, because it’s an expressive instrument with continuous control that, for a small but dedicated audience, has proved its musicality. We saw a snapshot of the Continuum alongside the Buchla 200e, courtesy Richard Lainhart’s studio, and some of you were interested. After the jump, check out the Continuum in video action, courtesy GearWire and Jordan Rudess.

Haken Audio Continuum Product Page

In other news: the Continuum, which has a starting price just over US$3000 (really not that bad for a musical instrument, let alone one of this nature) has a new keyboard stand coming, shown above. Whoever just bought that Star Trek-styled apartment, this should fit in nicely.