As we continue physical modeling month, here’s a free piece of software that lets you create music and sound (and visuals) using real-world physics:

pmpd, free external for Pd

Johan Strandell writes:

It’s not physical modeling in the usual sense; pmpd simulates things like friction, acceleration/deacceleration etc.; i.e., more useful for control of parameters rather than synthesis in itself. Some of the examples are really intriguing, but I’ve only scratched the surface on it. An article about it would be great, to see what other people are doing with it.

Consider your challenge accepted. May take me a while, but I’m doing some other work modeling physics, so this could segue nicely. As you can see in the visual below, you can use this to model fluids, matter, particles, and other substances. That could be easily applied to sound synthesis (and they include a number examples) as a way of making control less mechanical and more dynamic and organic. Since environments like GEM run 3D visuals on your graphics card, there’s nothing stopping you from dedicating your graphics card GPU to visual feedback while the CPU plugs away on the sound.

All this month, we’ll be looking at physical modeling and how to harness its deep sonic possibilities with the right tools and techniques. I can’t think of a better place to start than by finally mastering Sculpture, the powerful plug-in included with Apple’s Logic Pro. I’ve gotten a chance to fully review over two hours of video training by composer Steve Horelick, a Logic Pro guru and the composer, among other things, of the music for Reading Rainbow. (I think I can mention that, since he plunks out the tune in one of his Logic tutorials.)

Thanks to the folks at macProVideo.com / Nonlinear Educating, I can offer a discount to CDM readers. Enter coupon code CDM001 for 15% off the Sculpture tutorial, as well as Steve’s Plug-Ins bundle, which explains the fundamentals of “sound and why it sounds that way,” plus the many other plug-ins in Logic. Use this quick; the coupon expires in two weeks.

Logic 205: Synthesis With Sculpture

Logic Plugins Bundle (Logic 103: Sound and Why It Sounds That Way, Logic 202: Logic’s Plug-ins)

If you’re not sold yet, though, here’s the full review. (And no, I’m not getting paid to say any of this — finding good tutorials always makes me excited.)

Max/MSP is a powerful environment for sound synthesis, but while some elements are ready-to-go and let you build sound quickly, there are other common synthesis modules that are missing. Sometimes it’s better to start with some higher-level building blocks and work from there rather than have to build everything from scratch. Enter this fantastic set of free sound objects:

ARGO [Mac/Windows freeware]
List of modules

With 100 modules for sound synthesis, this is a deep collection of sound objects for your Max patching pleasure. It includes granular objects, filters, FFTs, players and recorders, effects, and (my favorite part) an extensive set of oscillators and sound generators, including even some physical modeling elements. These are just the kinds of things I enjoy having in Reaktor but miss in Max/MSP. The set comes with full PDF documentation (bilingual, no less) and a series of example tutorials with practical examples. It even runs on Mac OS 9, so if you’ve got an older machine, you could turn it into an ARGO-based synthesis workstation. I may wind up using this with a class I’m teaching on Max/MSP at Brooklyn College in the fall, so stay tuned for more impressions.

Found via our forums; thanks to creator Gerard Paresys for creating this fantastic free tool and bringing it to our attention. Stop by the forums and say hi, if you’ve got anything like this, or have enjoyed using it.

There’s just not enough time (or money) for all the great plug-ins around. But one of my favorite instrumental plug-ins, one I can’t imagine living without, is the superb Lounge Lizard electric piano from Applied Acoustics. It’s physically modeled, not sampled, and as a result feels more organic than some of its competitors. EP-3 offered some welcome improvements, including a more fleshed-out effects section, more pickups and models, built-in audio recording, and micro-tuning; some users thought it wasn’t a significant upgrade when they first saw it, but upon closer inspection I think you’ll find it a must-upgrade.

I expect a lot of home musicians haven’t gotten to use Lounge Lizard, though, because it costs money — US$225 street for the full-blown program with gobs of presets and customization. That shouldn’t stop you if you play electric pianos all the time, but if you’re on a budget, you’ll appreciate the new US$99 Lounge Lizard Session. The reality is, this is all most users will need: the top four models are there, plus tremolo, drive, multi-effects, and reverb. If you change your mind later, you can upgrade to the full version. Native Instruments and Apple both have terrific electric pianos, and I use both, but Lounge Lizard remains my first stop. I hope Applied Acoustics applies the same model (erm, so to speak) to Ultra Analog and String Studio, because I’m sure that’d widen the audience for those, as well.

So concludes my rave; now go check it out for yourself:

Lounge Lizard Session

This is by far the most exciting free-plug release so far this year. It’s comparable to Reason’s Maelstrom, but allows one to import any .wav files (mono only) into the plug for manipulation.

Audio Demos:
Grain_Demo_1.mp3
Grain_Demo_2.mp3
Grain_Demo_3.mp3
Grain_Demo_4.mp3
Grain_Demo_5.mp3
Grain_Demo_6.mp3
Grain_Demo_7.mp3
Grain_Demo_8.mp3

Direct Downloads of plug + support files:
Grainz_0-1-0.zip
Granular.zip
SKGrains_manual_draft.pdf

Developed by Sknote

Ed: Some really fasinating ideas here: 1 pluck oscillator, physical modeled, plus 2 graintable oscillators, and interaction between the two, plus filters and multi-stage envelopes. Future versions plan an arpeggiator, control matrix, bow model, and other features. The developer has some other interesting plugs, though thanks to Adrian for sorting out the links — site is a bit disorganized. Now go enjoy! -PK

Updates to favorite keyboard soft synths — always a good thing. In addition to looking forward to Native Instruments’ sequel to their B4 organ synth, another modeled-instrument fave is getting a big upgrade soon:

Lounge Lizard EP-3

The current Lounge Lizard is already a joy to play: Applied Acoustics nails the feel and sound of the classic Wurlitzer and Rhodes keyboards. EP-3 upgrades the already-generous preset selection, adds improved and expanded models of different pickups, forks, and dampers, (in addition to those already in EP-2), and adds support for Scala microtuning files. (For those of you wanting to play your Rhodes in Javanese pelog tuning, your day has come!) Also nifty: an integrated audio recorder lets you capture ideas easily.

More realistic sounds are always welcome, but the biggest news here is that Lounge Lizard finally has additional built-in effects. Tremolo, wah, chorus, phaser, delay, reverb, and EQ are all included, as visible in the screen grab. That addresses the major shortfall of the previous version: effects have been expanded from the meager offerings of the previous outing.

The EP-3 should be out any day now. Check out Applied Acoustics’ site above for plenty of details on the meticulous modeling, and watch CDM for a review in December. Looks like this could be a major keyboard favorite.

Cost: US$49 upgrade; US$249 list
Compatibility: Windows VSTi, DX; Mac VST, AU, RTAS

Scoop: CDM has learned that this week Korg will announce a major upgrade to its luxurious flagship musical instrument, the Korg OASYS. The free software upgrade, to be available in December, will enhance the OASYS with support for up to 2 GB of RAM, plus enhanced modulation and navigation. That’s nifty, but here’s the big news: Korg is including a major new physical modeling instrument called the STR-1 Plucked String. With radical sound sculpting abilities, it promises to be sound design heaven — and it’s yet another reason to trade your car for a monthly bus pass so you can get your hands on this thing.

[Updated: Had the wrong record label -- it's not Muti, it's Pretension. Though Pretension is also cool.]

I asked readers to brag about their work, and, wow, does Cynthia Bruyns have amazing things to brag about:

She’s a DJ — check out her mixes

She’s working part-time with Apple’s Interactive Media group

She’s involved with a really cool electronic record label

She’s been busy modeling instruments in 3D

The Vibration Lab is a sophisticated 3D modeling app for the Mac that accurately models percussive sounds. (Digitally-modeled cowbell? Not so far-fetched, after all!) See the project page for audio samples. She presented the work as part of a three-member team at SIGGRAPH and recently completed her Master’s thesis on new instruments. And yes, she’s looking at commercializing the technology.

Still more information:

Lab Notes: Modeling the Sound of Music [Research from Berkeley Engineering]

Vibration Lab Models Music [Daily Californian; though see her site for corrections]

Thanks, Cynthia. Now . . . uh . . . I’ll have whatever coffee you’re having.

There's just something about an echo chamber, magical spaces that have the power to transform sound.

An article in Nature (discussed at collision detection some weeks ago and more recently at aptly-named blog Echo Generation with anecdotal evidence) Mayans may have built the El Castillo
pyramid with specific audio-filtering capabilities. Echoes can sound
like chirping birds and falling rain. The Mayans may have been
performing aural imaging along with visual effects created naturally be
the space.

For modern echo chamber creation, look no further than UK media artist Chris O'Shea's Echo Chamber (via near near future),
where glitchy electronic sounds emerge from a gorgeous 3D soundscape –
enter an audio input with a mic, and a 3D sprite version of it
interracts organically in the virtual space.

To me, though, the more successful of the two sonically and
conceptually is the Mayans. Modern society has some catching up to do.
(Then again, we don't kill people for losing sporting events — lucky for the NY Jets.)

Ever routed audio a few feet to an outboard effects
processor? How about routing your audio all the way to Oberhausen,
Germany?

Thanks to the online Tank-FX
(link in German), you can. A server feeds your audio sample into the
tank and records it with a pair of Rode NT-5s, adding a nice, natural
reverb tail of a few seconds, created by the actual acoustics of this
steam locomotive tank. You can then download the result. (via Dave's Imaginary Sound Space, which has an extended discussion)

Of course, thanks to the magic of convolution, you could get the same
effect with a convolution reverb. You can even design your own impulse
responses, which model acoustical reverbs, using the graphic interface
in Impulse Modeler
(US$39.95, Windows) which was just updated this week. For Mac or PC
users with their own convolution reverb of choice, Voxengo has free impulse response files available for download, too!

But it's nice to go organic every now and then.