issue18

EMUSIC-L Digest                                      Volume 59, Issue 18

This issue's topics:
	
	books (3 messages)
	CSound (3 messages)
	Fw: Chaos Corner V03 N08 (just intonation and equal temperment)
	Grad school question
	Guitar's players
	I need help in chosing a synth... (2 messages)
	i want characteristics desirables of synthetizers (2 messages)
	Looking for SY99 Editor/librarian for PC/Windows
	MIDI KEYBOARD AND MIDI FILES
	Multimedia kits
	New list member with questions.
	Non-linear editing
	Q: tips on writing pop-style music
	Request for Info
	sysex (3 messages)
	vintage elctronic music
	warranty up?

Your EMUSIC-L Digest moderator is Joe McMahon .
You may subscribe to EMUSIC-L by sending mail to listserv@american.edu with 
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University of North Carolina.
Hi everyone,

I'm musician with a BS in Electronic Engineering and I am looking for a excellen
   t  (great) book (s) that explains me everything about:

- MIDI, interfaces and software.
- Sound Synthesis.
- Computer music.
- Synthesizers.

I'm seriously thinking of buying of a sinthesizer, a MIDI and enough software
for my computer.

I want to thank you before hand for your promt response.

Jose Luis Sanchez
E-mail: josel@vms.ucc.okstate.edu"
Oklahoma State University

------------------------------
Date:         Thu, 9 Dec 1993 09:43:56 GMT
From:         Philip Jones 
Subject:      re LOOKING FOR BOOKS

Jose wrote>
I'm musician with a BS in Electronic Engineering and I am looking for a excellen
   t  (great) book (s) that explains me everything about:

- MIDI, interfaces and software.
- Sound Synthesis.
- Computer music.
- Synthesizers.

I'm seriously thinking of buying of a sinthesizer, a MIDI and enough software
for my computer.

I want to thank you before hand for your promt response.

>

Well Joe, before you dive into MIDI, interfaces, software, synthesis etc. you
should know that synthesiser is spelt with a y! How about that for a prompt
response. Thankyou for your thanks

Phil Jones(pj02@ee.ic.ac.uk)

------------------------------
Date:         Mon, 13 Dec 1993 18:04:33 -0600
From:         Chris De Chiara 
Subject:      books

Has anyone read Electroacoustic Music / The First Century by Herbert
Deutsch . Or Introduction to Midi/Synthesis by Matthew Nichol . They are
both published by CPP/Belwin , the advertisement gives no info on either
title, if anyone has read them I'd appreciate it if you could post a review.
Thanks,

Chris De Chiara
chrisd@home.interaccess.com

------------------------------
Date:         Tue, 7 Dec 1993 22:38:39 -0500
From:         THE DIGITAL WITCHDOCTOR 
Subject:      CSound

Hey guys.  I just downloaded csound.  When I tried to run it (on my pc),
it told me that I had a fatal error, and that I had previously installed
software that was not d*** compatible.  (DVIP or somesuch, I don't remember
exactly what).

Has anyone else had this problem?  Is there anything I can do to remedy this?
What exactly is this compatability error?

I have another question for you sampling gurus.  I have seen numerous cd's
advertised claiming to have excellent samples of violins, drums, dying livestock
   etc...  Are these samples on disk as actual sounds that could be heard throug
   h
a cd player, or are they in a .WAV sort of format?

thanks.

Phil Skiba
sps5251@siena.bitnet

------------------------------
Date:         Wed, 8 Dec 1993 08:33:26 +0100
From:         Martin Grecner 
Subject:      Re: CSound

Hi,

    I suppose you are running emm386.exe from your config.sys file.
Remove it, try to use 386MAX instead, if you need loadhigh functionality.
386MAX supports (and now it goes) DPMI :-)


                                        Martin Grecner
                                        martin@elf.stuba.sk
                                        Bratislava
                                        Slovakia

------------------------------
Date:         Wed, 8 Dec 1993 14:13:21 -0500
From:         Dean Keith 
Subject:      Reply to CSound

Phil,

>Hey guys.  I just downloaded csound.  When I tried to run it (on my pc),
>it told me that I had a fatal error, and that I had previously installed
>software that was not d*** compatible.  (DVIP or somesuch, I don't remember
>exactly what).
>
>Has anyone else had this problem?  Is there anything I can do to remedy this?
>What exactly is this compatability error?

If you are running DOS 6.0 or higher, you can re-boot your computer, and when
the screen says "Starting MS DOS" press F5, and your autoexec.bat and
config.sys will be bypassed leaving a clean system for Csound.  If you are
running a lower version of DOS, make a boot-disk (FORMAT A: /S) I think.

>I have another question for you sampling gurus.  I have seen numerous cd's
>advertised claiming to have excellent samples of violins, drums, dying
 livestock
>   etc...  Are these samples on disk as actual sounds that could be heard
 throug
>   h
>a cd player, or are they in a .WAV sort of format?

Unless the CD is marked otherwise, it should be a regular CD, playable on any
normal payer.  You must sample the sounds from the CD manually.

Make sure that you read, to make sure it's not a CD-ROM, or a memory dump
for a spacific sampler.
 ______________________________________________________________________________

                                         Dean Keith
                                         dkeith@tarleton.edu
                                         Tarleton State University
                                         Stephenville, Texas, USA
 ______________________________________________________________________________

------------------------------
Date:         Fri, 3 Dec 1993 12:54:51 -0600
From:         Keith Ostertag 
Subject:      Fw: Chaos Corner V03 N08 (just intonation and equal temperment)

This is a fairly long copy of an ejournal which I though might interest some
folks. The third "article" discusses just intonation and equal temperment.
Enjoy.

-Keith

[I have edited out everything but the emusic-related stuff. - JM]

--------------------------------------------------
Mailbag - Musical Notes - Reprise

It appears that musical note frequencies are an issue that ranks up
there with USGS maps in terms of reader interest.  While Dr. Chaos
received interesting notes from Michael Salmon and Nick Gimbrone on the
topic, the most instructive came from David Karr in Cornell's Computer
Science Department in the area of revision control over occasionally
connected computer networks (Dr. Chaos claims that that sounds like many
of the meetings he attends).  The following is quoted from David's very
interesting note:

  I think what Edward Stuebing means is that "just intonation" is
  different from "equal temperament."

  "Just intonation" is related to the harmonics of a tone, that is, when
  you pluck a string you get not only the fundamental frequency but also
  harmonics which are 2 times, 3 times, 4 times, and higher integer
  multiples of the frequency.  Doubling the frequency (2x) gives you an
  octave, for example, c to c' (low C to middle C on a piano).  The 4x
  harmonic of c is then c'', that is, two octaves higher.

  The frequency ratio 3:2 is a "pure fifth," which in just intonation is
  the ratio between g and c.  So the 3x harmonic of c is g' (an octave
  and a fifth higher) and the 6x harmonic of c is g'' (two octaves and a
  fifth higher).

  In between the 4x and 6x harmonics is the 5x harmonic; the 5:4 ratio
  is a "pure major third," the ratio between e and c.  So the 5x
  harmonic of c is e'' (two octaves and a major third higher).

  So the major triad c-e-g has frequency ratio 1:(5/4):(3/2).  The C
  major scale is constructed by taking this chord (the "tonic"), the
  note c' (the octave above c), and two other major triads: g-b'-d', the
  "dominant," and f-a'-c', the "subdominant," both of which also have
  ratios 1:(5/4):(3/2).  Divide the resulting frequency for d' to obtain
  d, and put it all together, and you get the following frequencies
  relative to c:

   c    1
   d   9/8
   e   5/4
   f   4/3
   g   3/2
   a'  5/3
   b' 15/8
   c'   2

  I think there is some tradition for assigning the frequency 256 Hertz
  to c (the C below middle C) in just intonation, but this makes *all*
  your notes about a semitone flat: a'= 426.667 Hertz instead of 440
  Hertz (the current international standard).  Then again, Mozart's and
  Handel's tuning forks had a'=422 Hertz (see Harvard Concise Dictionary
  of Music, 1978, under "Pitch"), so maybe that's not so bad.

  The problem with just intonation is that if you tune a piano to it,
  some of the whole steps (such as c-d) have 9:8 ratios and some (such
  as d-e) have 10:9 ratios.  Then if you start tuning the black keys
  (sharps and flats) to try to make the musical keys with one, two, or
  three sharps or flats sound right, you end up working yourself into
  a fix where the keys with more sharps or flats sound very strange.
  So, actually, the "tempering" of the musical scale is just a way of
  adjusting just intonation so that all musical keys will be playable
  on a piano.

  The system of equal temperament is one such adjustment, where each
  half-tone is given a ratio of exactly 2(1/12):1.  But there's
  apparently some evidence that other "well-tempered" systems have been
  used, for example by Bach for his Well-Tempered Clavier.

  A possibility for computer-generated music would be to produce notes
  of just intonation when playing in a major key (I don't know quite
  what to do in minor keys or other modes).  Most of the time when you
  start adding or removing sharps or flats from notes, it's for a key
  change of some sort, in which case you simply produce the just
  intonation for the new key.  This should work out for most key
  modulations (if you go all the way around the circle of fifths,
  though, you might run into trouble and have to adjust again).  You'd
  have to do something else for truly chromatic music, of course, since
  not all half steps can be in the ratio (16/15):1, but then there are
  lots of other interesting possibilities you could take advantage of,
  like 19-tone or 31-tone scales or other innovations of modern music
  theorists.

If you are interested in other frequency charts, David Karr recommends
the charts in the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics.  Look in the
Index under "Musical".


------------------------------
Date:         Tue, 7 Dec 1993 02:17:34 -1000
From:         William Grant 
Subject:      Grad school question

Hi Everybody,

I am a composer looking for a grad school
to start immediately on a Master's.

I write interesting music for both
computers and live musicians,
and I am an effective teacher for
novices on the computer.

Am 46 years old, and have been a
working artist in theater or fine arts
for most of my adult life.

3.8 (out of 4) cum, 750 verbal GRE.
Substantial resume of completed
commissions in electro-acoustic music.
Substantial experience teaching computers
to secretaries in law offices and other places.

I goofed on my timing to enter grad school.
It is difficult to get in at mid-year,
but I graduate next week from the U. of Hawai'i.

I want to stay in school, because in that
environment I could continue to spend most
of my time really working on music.

I know it's a long shot, but I thought
maybe there might be a school out there
that happens to need an experienced and
innovative grad student on short notice.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Will

------------------------------
Date:         Wed, 8 Dec 1993 09:56:43 EST
From:         aguiar 
Subject:      Guitar's players

Hi all.
I'm looking for a list of guitar's players. Can you help me?
Thanks in advance.

------------------------------
Date:         Tue, 14 Dec 1993 03:05:24 GMT
From:         Paul Trunfio 
Subject:      I need help in chosing a synth...

Hi folks...

I am new to this group.  I am trying to compose some orchestral works
but find that my current studio setup is woefully inadequate.

My setup consists right now of a MAC IIci 8/80 with Vision 1.43
software, 1 in 3 out general MIDI interface, Yamaha PSR-47 controller,
Yamaha TG-33 (16 part multitimbral 32 note polyphonic synth), a Yamaha
RY10 drum machine, and a Technics tape dec.

I was looking to add either the E-mu Proteus II/Orchestral for about
750...

Though I am willing to spend a bit more for good orchestral sounds...
but not too much more (I'd like to spend under 1000)...

any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated.

Best wishes,

Paul

------------------------------
Date:         Wed, 15 Dec 1993 09:44:43 -0500
From:         Dean Keith 
Subject:      Reply to I need help in chosing a synth...

Paul,

>I was looking to add either the E-mu Proteus II/Orchestral for about
>750...
>
>Though I am willing to spend a bit more for good orchestral sounds...
>but not too much more (I'd like to spend under 1000)...
>
>any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated.

In my opinion, the E-Mu Proteus/XR Orchestral is about the best bang for
the buck.  Try to get the XR version (Expanded RAM) so you can add lotsa
patches of your own.  I've had my Proteus 1/XR since they first came out,
and still have not filled the free sound slots.  Counting the factory sounds
there are 384 patch locations.

The only thing other (newer) rack units have over the Proteus series is
internal effects.  In many cases this is more of a crutch to cover up bad
samples than a great feature.  (has anyone listened to the dry, raw samples
of an M1 --- YUCK!)

A Proteus (Orchestral) and a cheap reverb unit can sound like a full-blown
Orchestra if everything is scored nicely.
 ______________________________________________________________________________

                                         Dean Keith
                                         dkeith@tarleton.edu
                                         Tarleton State University
                                         Stephenville, Texas, USA
 ______________________________________________________________________________

------------------------------
Date:         Tue, 7 Dec 1993 15:56:00 EST
From:         Pedro Hernando Rozo Mora 
Subject:      i want characteristics desirables of synthetizers

I have a yamaha PSR-600
This keyboard can to do sequences in five tracks, can to record in five tracks (
melodies), moreover have one hundred instruments and one hundred rithms; i want
to work with a synthethizer another keyboard what have more instruments ans spec
ial effects.

My PSR-600 have a cost of $1000 dolars in Colombia, i want know other keyboards
(synthetizers or other forms of to work with more instruments) and your aproxima
te cost ?? I want to know if exist a synthetizer which have a cost less than
$1500 dolars.

Thanks
Pedro Rozo
PROZO@iteccol

------------------------------
Date:         Thu, 9 Dec 1993 09:26:05 GMT
From:         Philip Jones 
Subject:      Re : i want characteristics desirables of synthetizers

Pedro wrote >
My PSR-600 have a cost of $1000 dolars in Colombia, i want know other keyboards
(synthetizers or other forms of to work with more instruments) and your aproxima
te cost ?? I want to know if exist a synthetizer which have a cost less than
$1500 dolars.
>

!!!! Does anyone one know the exchange rate of $US to $columbian or Pounds UK to
     $ Columbian. If you do, maybe you could help, then again???

Phil Jones (pj02@ee.ic.ac.uk)

------------------------------
Date:         Thu, 2 Dec 1993 12:31:59 AST
From:         Howard Harawitz 
Subject:      Looking for SY99 Editor/librarian for PC/Windows

Hi All -

I'm looking for a good Windows based editor/librarian for my SY99. In adverts
I see quite a few multipurpose editor librarians which mention facilities for
the SY77 but NOT the SY99. A multipurpose editor/librarian would be useful
because I have also have other equipment.

Thanks
Howard Harawitz
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Howard Harawitz              harawitz@fox.nstn.ns.ca
25 Doyle Street
Bedford, Nova Scotia B4A 1K4
Canada

------------------------------
Date:         Mon, 6 Dec 1993 14:24:45 -0700
From:         Ed Castaneda 
Subject:      MIDI KEYBOARD AND MIDI FILES

Hi:
I am looking for and address where I can get some "MIDI" stuff to run on my PC






















know
know




OOPS
for some direction  from some of you music mensas
Thanks

------------------------------
Date:         Wed, 15 Dec 1993 10:18:26 EST
From:         Keith Maynard - CCC 
Subject:      Multimedia kits

Hi people,

I am in the market for a multimedia upgrade kit. Do any of you have any
preferences for CD-ROM drives and sound cards? Any horror stories?

I have seen a Sony 31A-03 double-spin for ~185.00 and a panasonic 562 for
~200.00 also double-spin.
Does any one have experience with either of these? reliability,performance etc?

I would like the cost of the kit to stay below 500.00 (ouch)
so I'd like to hear from some of the users out there.

Are there any parameters I should examine in helping me to select? eg access
speed and data-throughput. I have read one review on the FUSION-16 upgrade kit
from Mediavision in the Oct 93 Computer Shopper.


Thanks for your assistance.

Keith Maynard

------------------------------
Date:         Mon, 6 Dec 1993 14:44:00 EST
From:         "DRCV06::GRAHAM" 
Subject:      New list member with questions.

I would really like to start by asking about seven hundred questions, but I
will spare both of us.  Is there an FAQ?  The intro to the list mailed to
me after I subscribed mentioned some useful programs and other things that
were available online, but didn't mention if they were available fia ftp
and if so, how to get to them.

I will ask one question now, and probably more later.  Are there any blind
folk on the list?  I am blind and want to make my IBM compatible pc with a
Pro Audio Studio 16 card talk to my Roland piano and D-110.  So far, every
program my wife has read the description of to me is notation based.  I
will have a DECTalk card in my computer to it can speak text on the screen
to me, but I need a good, powerful sequencing program that does NOT use
music notation, since the poor speech synthesizer won't speak it.  Plus, if
it were a DOS based program, that would be even better since the text to
speech programs don't really speak windows very well yet.

Up to this point, I have been using an MMT-8 because it is sort of friendly
to the blind, not very friendly, can't edit, but at least, I can lay down
multiple tracks and let it do some work for me.  My wife got me a Roland
MC-50, but it is impossible to use without seeing it, anyone want it?
[grin]  So, I'm hoping that there is some nice, non-notation based
sequencing software out there for me to use.  All ideas, save for deep
sixing the gear, are highly welcomed.

Thanks for being patient with a new member.  Free beer at my place tonight.

Dan Graham

------------------------------
Date:         Thu, 16 Dec 1993 16:13:00 -0800
From:         Todd S DeWeerd 
Subject:      Non-linear editing

I just bought a Roland Rap-10 sound card. I can record
direct-to-disk with it. Of course I've had some problems
I'd like to discuss with others who have the card. I'm
having problems with the wave-composer in that it will
not play each wave exactly where I place it in the composition.
Anyone have any experience with this card and this problem?

------------------------------
Date:         Wed, 8 Dec 1993 21:27:32 CST
From:         C356HUM 
Subject:      Re: Q: tips on writing pop-style music

In article <00975D95.5C569F00.11276@lp.musc.edu> JOHN ALBERT PINION
 writes:
>I have been wanting to ask this question of those who regularly compose
>on their midi systems.  I have a modest mac-based sequencer system with
>which I can write some pretty groovy loops (I go for a simple catholic-pop
>style).  OK, fine;  but then, I don't know where to go from there for a nice
>bridge, say, or other sections.  I can't seem to retain enough of the first
>part, while adding something different for variety to extend the song out.
>Each section usually comes out like a totally different song.
>
>Maybe I ought to go look at some books on musical theory and song writing,
>but if there are some easy tips you can share, I would very much appreciate
it.
>
>How do you (yes, you, personally) go from a good loop, to a
>whole song thats neither too monotonous or too disconnected?
>Are there some particular tricks that you use?   Some of the
>stuff I've done that I like the best was totally free form, but sequence
>over-dubbed beginning-to-end several times.  But then, that's jazz, not pop
>music.  I like the idea of effeciency of order and structure in
>modern classic pop, and want to do stuff in that style.  So far, the best
>I've got are jammin' grooves, but it takes a _damn_ good 4 measures to make
>a song ('course it's done more and more these days).  There's a lot to
>be said for a quality loop, but then, that's another mail message...
>
>Thanks for sharing your expertese and experience!!
>.
>.

------------------------------
Date:         Tue, 7 Dec 1993 17:47:11 -0600
From:         Kenneth Bain 
Subject:      Re: Request for Info

We are trying to locate a copy of an old music composer program originally
written for a Commodore computer.  We have some music written on that
program that we are trying to unlock.

The program was called MusicWriter by
BankStreet and was apparently developed by Bank Street School of Education
and sold by a company in Northbrook, IL (long since gone out of business)

Also if anyone can suggest other places we might post this inquiry.  Thanks.

Ken Bain, Director
Searle Center for Teaching Excellence
Northwestern University
627 Dartmouth Place
Evanston, IL 60208-4175
Tel: (708) 467-2338
FAX: (708) 467-2273
email:  bainkr@nwu.edu

------------------------------
Date:         Fri, 10 Dec 1993 08:50:54 MET
From:         Schuster Richard 
Subject:      sysex

hi!

could someone please tell me what exactly is SYSEX?

thanx in advance, Ricci!!

**********************************************************
*Richard Schuster                                        *
*University of Innsbruck, Austria                        *
*                                                        *
*network adress:                                         *
*schuste2@sowi-nov.uibk.ac.at                            *
**********************************************************

------------------------------
Date:         Fri, 10 Dec 1993 16:48:55 LCL
From:         Anthony Arviola 
Subject:      Re: sysex

   hi!

   could someone please tell me what exactly is SYSEX?

   thanx in advance, Ricci!!

I'll take a stab at it.

Sysex is System Exclusive information with is generally unique or
exclusive to the musical device or controller.  For example, my K4
can dump its sysex which defines the ADSR settings, the waves that
it uses with each patch, the filters, etc.  This information would
not mean anything to a JV-80.  The way a device knows the information
is for them is that there is a byte which tells the device that a
sysex message will follow.  A vendor id is sent (each vendor has
its own id number or byte), then a device id is sent (each of the
vendor's devices has an id number or byte value).  At this point
the device knows whether the information is for them or not.  If
it is for them, they continue to gather the data.  Generally, a
control string of a few bytes is sent.  For example, the bytes
0A 60 55 or what ever may tell the maching that the data represents
the settings for a single patch and the data should be loaded into that
patch.  Or it could be a request string with says, sent me the data
contained in patch 55.  These things are usually outlined in the
midi device's manual.

Corrections are welcome.

I hope this helped.

Tony

------------------------------
Date:         Mon, 13 Dec 1993 09:36:34 GMT
From:         Philip Jones 
Subject:      Sysex

hi!

   could someone please tell me what exactly is SYSEX?

   thanx in advance, Ricci!!


Basically, SYSEX is any information you want. SysEx is defined by each
 manufacturer, who each have their own identifier which heads the SysEx message.
 What ever
follows that is upto the manufacturer. If you had a toaster that could receive
MIDI you could have a SysEx message to tell it how long to brown the toast and
that would be allowable within the MIDI spec. I think.

So there you go

Phil Jones(pj02@ee.ic.ac.uk)

------------------------------
Date:         Wed, 29 Dec 1993 17:09:29 EST
From:         Saul Smaizys 
Subject:      vintage elctronic music

I'm interested in collecting and trading recordings of classic electronic
music from the 40's thru 70's on disc or tape. I would also like to exchange
information on artists and composers of that era. E-mail to
saxtherpay@aol.com

------------------------------
Date:         Mon, 13 Dec 1993 22:45:58 GMT
From:         ANDY MCDONOUGH 
Subject:      warranty up?

sorry...probably the wrong forum for this, too.

> found in someone's garage. spiders, feathers, the works... The highlight
> was seeing that the date that the circuit board had been assembled was
> written in pencil: 12/2/73 -- exactly 20 years before...

gee! did you remember to send in the registration card?  back in '73 i bet it
wasn't a 90 day warranty either :-)     ...andy

------------------------------
End of the EMUSIC-L Digest
******************************