keybroad magzine

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7 STARTER DIGITAL PIANOS COMPARED

JUNE 2009

A NEWBAY MEDIAP U B L I C A T I O N King Roc

IvoryUprightPianos

iZotopeOzone 4

ArturiaOrigin

Röyksopp

Michael Bearden Rocks the Inauguration

PLAYMGMT “TIME TO PRETEND”MARIAH CAREY “HERO”

EMBRACE YOUR BASSWITH SINE WAVES

TIEMPO LIBREBACH GOES TO CUBA

Eric DanielsShines with MariahRay ChewMasterminds the Neighborhood Ball

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©2009 Yamaha Corporation of America. All rights reserved.www.yamaha.com

Our Commitment — Our Promise

These are diffi cult times for our country. And when the economy is struggling, as it is now, it would be easy for us to fall

into fear and negative thinking and to cut back on the services and support we provide, in order to save a few dollars. But

that’s not the American way, and it has never been part of Sweetwater’s approach.

Thirty years ago, I founded Sweetwater based on one philosophy: to provide my friends and customers with the kind of

service and support that I looked for — but never found — when I was making gear purchases for my own recording

studio. As we celebrate our 30th anniversary as a company this year, I’m proud to say that we have stood by that

commitment, and we will continue to stand by it.

That’s why we’re doing everything we can to move forward in these diffi cult times. You deserve the very best whenever you

make a music or pro audio gear purchase. We’re committed to providing you all of the great extras you’ve come to expect

from us: free shipping, free lifetime technical support, the quality of our award-winning service department, and the

training and effort we put into ensuring that our Sales Engineers are the most knowledgeable and experienced in the

industry.

And we’re not stopping there. We’re adding even more extras to make sure you receive unrivaled value for your gear

purchase dollars, such as our free Total Confi dence CoverageTM warranty to protect the gear you purchase from us,

and our upcoming GearFest Pro Audio and Music Expo — which will be the highlight of our 30th-anniversary

celebration and the must-attend pro audio/music event of the year!

So, despite the economy, we’re going to continue to provide you with the best music and pro audio gear value

available. Our 30-year commitment to our customers, our industry, and the value of music remains unchanged,

and we are optimistic about the future!

I’d like to express our gratitude for your support and your business. We know that without you and your confi dence in us,

we wouldn’t be here. On behalf of the entire company, thank you!

Chuck Surack

President, Sweetwater

f s to faall

“I’d like to express our gratitude for your support and your business. We know that without you and your con� dence in us, we wouldn’t be here.”Chuck SurackPresident of Sweetwater Sound

You Could Buy Your Music Gear Anywhere

(800) 222-4700 • www.sweetwater.com

1 9 7 91 9 7 9 2 0 0 92 0 0 9

FREE Shipping • FREE 2-year Warranty • FREE Tech Support • FREE Professional Advice

Sound ConstructionRoland’s “Piano Component Object Sound Modeling Synthesis” technology recreates the sound-making characteristics of the acoustic piano and all the complex interactions between them.

Vintage PianoThe Vintage piano models give you detailed control over single note tuning, hammer hardness and more, so you can make the V-Piano sound and behave like the most beloved acoustic pianos on the planet.

Vanguard PianoEnter a new dimension of creativity and construct a “dream piano.” Adjust resonances, set up triple strings on every key, tweak voicing individually for each register, and much more.

Grand FeelSure to suit the most demanding pianist, the PHA III Ivory Feel keyboard provides the authentic playing touch and feel of a real acoustic grand, with its “high repetition” action and ability to learn your touch.

The revolutionary new V-Piano® represents a giant leap forward in digital technology. Gone are the tonal and polyphony issues of the past� inside this breakthrough instrument is a “living piano” engine that recreates every nuance of an acoustic piano, and then some. For the first time in a digital keyboard, the V-Piano puts the entire range of the acoustic piano’s sound and natural expression under your fingertips, with no sampling, no looping and no velocity switching.

34 POP Want to play Mariah Carey’s “Hero” — note for note, as her keyboardist Eric Daniels performed itfor the President’s inaugural Neighborhood Ball? Dig into the full transcription here.

36 ROCKLearn the addictive synth riffs that define MGMT’s “Time To Pretend” and play along to the radio blockbuster.

38 JAZZ Cluster chords can add nuance and richness to your piano work. Andy LaVerne shows you how to thicken your voicings tastefully.

PLAY IT!

10 ARTISTSTIEMPO LIBREJEANNE ARLAND PETERSONKING ROCBLACK GOLDUNSIGNED ARTIST OF THE MONTH

ADVICESESSION SENSEICAREER COUNSELORASK MIKE

COMMUNITYCD REVIEWSGO SEETAKE THE KEYBOARD CHALLENGEWEEKEND WARRIOR

JU NE 2009

30

KEYSPACE

20 ALL THE PRESIDENT’S SIDEMENBarack Obama’s inauguration was the most musical in U.S.history, thanks largely to three master keyboardists — Michael Bearden, Ray Chew, and Eric Daniels. Read their stories, tips, and survival strategies here.

30 RÖYKSOPPLearn electro-pop production secrets from the Norse Gods of Synth.

FEATURES

20

NATHAN EASTCONTE NTS

50 6 . 2 0 0 9 K E Y B O A R D

JU NE 2009

40 SOFT SYNTHSMGMT’S “TIME TO PRETEND” SYNTH LEADRecreate the sound that’s dominating the airwaves.

42 DANCE MIXSINE OF THE TIMESLayer in sine waves to beef up your bass lines.

44 PRODUCTIONEFFECTS LOOP BASICS IN PRO TOOLSAn insert isn’t the only way to add effects. Learn how to set up a send-based effects loop here.

DO IT!

LINKS

GEEK OUT

8 FROM THE EDITOR

18 NEW GEAR

70 PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

71 CLASSIFIED ADS

72 Get the scoop on Michael Bearden’s B-3-powered inaugural rig.

ON THE WEB

INAUGURATION ONLINEThe story of those momentous musicaldays in January doesn’t end when youclose the magazine. Head online for moreexclusive stories and advice from Michael,Ray, and Eric.

CREATIVE COMPING WITHDANILO PEREZIn our April ’09 issue, we went deep intoLatin pianist Danilo Perez’s harmoniccomping innovations. Now, Senior EditorMichael Gallant walks you through thelesson on video. Watch it atkeyboardmag.com/play.

@keyboardmag.com

GEAR46 ROUNDUP:

THE STARTER PIANO Seven digital pianos that focus on low cost and portability.

54 ARTURIA ORIGIN

60 IZOTOPE OZONE 4

64 ANALYSIS PLUSYELLOW OVAL CABLES

69 SYNTHOGYIVORY UPRIGHT PIANOS

54

60

Cover photo by Nathan East

NATHAN EAST

6 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

CONTE NTS

GearFest ’09Don’t Miss

The Nation’s BIGGESTPro Audio and Music Expo!

■ Thousands of pieces of gear under gigantic tents■ Exclusive on-site GearFest deals■ Scores of manufacturer exhibits■ GearFest Master Classes (Friday) and dozens of additional workshops and seminars (Saturday)■ All absolutely FREE!

GearFest ’09 Is Bigger and Better Than Ever!You don’t want to miss this one! Join thousands of musicians, engineers, and all-out gear fanatics at GearFest ’09! It’s Sweetwater’s 30th anniversary, and to celebrate, we’ve made this year’s festival bigger than ever. Friday is power packed with in-depth GearFest Master Classes on subjects such as Pro Tools, sound for houses of worship, studio acoustic treatment, and more. Saturday features performances, workshops, and appearances by some of the hottest players and experts in the business — and it’s all FREE! Call your Sales Engineer today or go to sweetwater.com/gearfest to fi nd out more!

1 9 7 91 9 7 9 2 0 0 92 0 0 9

sweetwater.com/gearfest (800) 222-4700

Learn more here:

sweetwater.com/

gearfest

GearFest ’09 Highlights!Friday, June 2612:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Saturday, June 279:00 AM - 5:00 PM

■ Pro Tools Master Classes

■ Miking techniques for houses of worship

■ “Acoustics for the Home Studio” by renowned acoustician Russ Berger

■ “Mixing – The Best of Both Worlds” by mix engineer Fab Dupont (J. Lo, Queen Latifah, etc.)

■ Live performances and appearances by industry legends and experts

■ Workshops on subjects such as wireless mics; desktop music production; and miking techniques for guitar, drums, and vocals

■ ...and a whole lot more!

Imagine that anthropology students fromanother planet have been observing us since,oh, this past January. Their term papers mightbegin something like: “Earthlings are known formusic festivals such as Coachella, South bySouthwest, CMJ, Bonnaroo, and Inauguration.This last one is curious, as the leader of one oftheir largest countries takes office during theintermission.” An understandable confusion —and the exact reason Keyboard was there. PastInaugurations have certainly seen famous actsperform, but this was a whole other level.

As the events showcased on a grand scale,music can bring very different people together.I’ve formed friendships with people wherefisticuffs would have resulted if we were arguingpolitics in a bar instead of gigging in one. Studyafter study has shown that early music educa-tion makes kids more socially adjusted, not tomention better at math and science. And moreof us than not have had a coworker we justcouldn’t stand, then learned they played aninstrument and thought, “Hmm, they can’t be allthat bad.” These examples show music’s powerto solo what makes us the same and pull thefader down on what makes us different. That’swhy if the Other Guy had won and the festivitiesbeen anywhere near this musical, we’d haverushed to cover them, and I’d be writing theexact same editor’s letter right now.

Speaking of togetherness, we’ve moved theLetters page to cyberspace in response to yourfeedback. Go to keyboardmag.com, click on“Forum,” and you’ll find two forums. “The KeyboardCorner” is where you can interact with fellow musi-cians from all over the world. “Keyboard Editors’Office” is exactly what it sounds like, and our digi-tal door is always open to your questions, sugges-tions, compliments, and complaints. You can alsoemail us at the address at right if you prefer privatecorrespondence. If you miss the printed Letterspage, let us know — enough feedback to thateffect, and we’ll bring it back.

Now, in the interest of balanced music cover-age, how about recording a piano CD, Condi?

OUR PARTY? THE ONE WITH LIVE MUSIC

VOL. 35, NO. 6 #399 JUNE 2009

eyboardEXECUTIVE EDITOR: Stephen FortnerSENIOR EDITOR: Michael GallantMANAGING EDITOR: Debbie GreenbergEDITOR AT LARGE: Craig Anderton INTERN: Rajneil Singh

ART DIRECTOR: Patrick WongMUSIC COPYIST: Elizabeth Ledgerwood

GROUP PUBLISHER: Joe [email protected], 770.343.9978ADVERTISING DIRECTOR, WEST COAST &NEW BUSINESS DEV.: Greg Sutton [email protected], 925.425.9967 ADVERTISING DIRECTOR, MIDWEST:Jessica [email protected], 661.255.2719ADVERTISING DIRECTOR, EAST COAST &EUROPE: Grace [email protected], 631.239.1460ADVERTISING DIRECTOR, SOUTHWEST:Albert [email protected], 949.582.2753SPECIALTY SALES ASSOCIATE, NORTH:Allison [email protected], 650.238.0296SPECIALTY SALES ASSOCIATE, SOUTH:Will [email protected], 650.238.0325PRODUCTION MANAGER: Amy Santana

MUSIC PLAYER NETWORKVICE PRESIDENT: John PledgerEDITORIAL DIRECTOR: Michael MolendaSENIOR FINANCIAL ANALYST: Bob JenkinsPRODUCTION DEPARTMENT MANAGER:Beatrice KimDIRECTOR OF SALES OPERATIONS:Lauren GerberWEB DIRECTOR: Max SidmanMOTION GRAPHICS DESIGNER: Tim TsurudaMARKETING COORDINATOR: Rosario PerezMARKETING DESIGNER: Joelle KatcherSYSTEMS ENGINEER: John MenesesASSOCIATE CONSUMER MARKETINGDIRECTOR: Christopher Dyson

NEWBAY MEDIA CORPORATEPRESIDENT & CEO: Steve PalmCHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER: Paul MastronardiVP WEB DEVELOPMENT: Joe FerrickCIRCULATION DIRECTOR: Denise RobbinsHR MANAGER: Ray VollmerIT DIRECTOR: Greg TopfCONTROLLER: Jack Liedke

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Publisher assumes no responsibility for return ofunsolicited manuscripts, photos, or artwork.

KEYBOARD (ISSN 0730-0158) is published monthlyby NewBay Media, LLC 1111 Bayhill Drive, Suite 125,San Bruno, CA 94066. All material published in KEY-BOARD is copyrighted © 2009 by NewBay Media. Allrights reserved. Reproduction of material appearing inKEYBOARD is forbidden without permission. KEY-BOARD is a registered trademark of NewBay Media.Periodicals Postage Paid at San Bruno, CA and atadditional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Sendaddress changes to KEYBOARD P.O. Box 9158,Lowell, MA 01853.

Canada Post: Publications Mail Agreement#40612608. Canada Returns to be sent to BleuchipInternational, P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2.

Stephen FortnerEXECUTIVE EDITOR

FROM TH E E D ITOR

Name: Mike McKnightCurrently: Engineer forMariah Carey.In this issue: Cover story

(page 20), Ask Mike (page 15).Website: mcknightsoundinc.com

Name: Jim AikinOriginally: One of thefounding editors atKeyboard.

Currently: Renowned music technologyguru, electric cellist, and sci-fi author.In this issue: Arturia Origin review(page 54). Website: musicwords.net

Name: David FranzCurrently: Instructor atBerklee College of Music.Book: Producing in the

Home Studio with Pro Tools.In this issue: Pro Tools effects tutorial(page 44).Website: davidfranz.berkleemusicblogs.com

Three contributorsyou should know!

LET’S HEAR FROM YOUContact the [email protected] Magazine 1111 Bayhill Dr., Suite 125San Bruno, CA 94066

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Find us online or join the forums at keyboardmag.com.

8 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

GetVertical.WHAT IVORY DID FOR VIRTUAL GRANDS,IT NOW DOES FOR VIRTUAL UPRIGHTS!Synthogy, the leader in virtual pianos, brings the authentic,emotive sound of Upright Pianos to your Indie Rock, Pop,Crossover, and Vintage tracks.

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ARTISTS, ADV ICE, COM M U N ITYKEYSPACE

Bach is back with a vengeance. Andin the hands of power pianist Jorge Gomezand his Grammy-nominated Cuban timbagroup Tiempo Libre, you can be sure thatthere will be dancing in the streets.

With an all-star cast (including saxo-phonists Paquito D’Rivera and YosvanyTerry) and a cascading collision of musi-cal styles, Gomez and company reinvigo-rate Bach’s repertoire on their new Sonyrelease, Bach In Havana. It’s been thedeft direction of Gomez that has guidedthe group since day one. “We put a lot ofdifferent styles of Cuban music on thisalbum,” Gomez tells me from his home inMiami, as he prepares for the newalbum’s release. “Like danzón, cha-cha-cha, rumba, and guaguancó. But it’s allabout Johann Sebastian Bach’s music —the sonata, the minuet, the prelude — witha Cuban touch.”

The son of a musicologist mother and

a renowned classical pianist father,Gomez grew up with a healthy dose oftraditional Cuban music, intertwined withthe sounds of his father practicing Bachin the family home. Later, Gomez wouldstudy at Cuba’s premier music conserva-tory, the ENA (Escuela Nacional de Arte).“All of us studied classical music in Cubafor 15 years,” he continues. “For me, Bachwas the best of all. I learned so muchfrom him — the rhythm, the harmony, themelody. With him, everything is perfect.Especially with the rhythms on this CD,you see how perfect they are, becauseBach’s music is so mathematical. It’s notlyrical like Chopin or Liszt.”

Gomez would eventually escape Cubain pursuit of personal and musical freedom,traveling at first to Guatemala in 1995,where he worked as an arranger and pro-ducer, and in 2000, to Miami. It was there,in 2001, that he would form Tiempo Libre

with other like-minded Cuban musicianswho had a desire to blend seeminglyopposite musical styles into a sound alltheir own. “At the beginning, we playedonly jazz,” Gomez continues. “Then timba.Then jazz, timba, classical, everything. Wealso do musical theatre too. It’s all the timesomething new.”

With the release of Bach In Havana,Gomez masterfully merges a fierce, seem-ingly limitless piano technique with jazzcolors, classical forms, and Cuban dancefigures. With a mixed bag of sounds likethat, it’s little wonder he’s eager to hit theroad in support of the new album. “I can’twait to see the reaction of people,” hesays. “It’s going to be the first time you’llsee people listening to Bach’s music, andat the same time dancing a conga!” Jon Regen

For more on Jorge and Tiempo Libre, visit tiempolibremusic.com and myspace.com/tiempolibremusic.

TIEMPO LIBREJorge Gomez Brings

Bach to Cuba

CRAC

KERF

ARM

K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 910

Ever been to Tonic, the now-defunct haven of avant-gardemusical brilliance in New York’s East Village? If so, you’ll getElectric Brew in a heartbeat — and wish you could see itselegantly experimental music performed live on that well-trod-den stage. Composer Bob Gluck combines lithe piano play-ing with processed shofar (ram’s horn) and a wide variety ofcomputer-sourced sonics to create an engaging tapestry ofliving sound; the title track reinvents themes from Miles Davis’

“Bitches Brew” with the help of algorithmically-generatedpiano motifs, for example, while “In the Bushes” builds onsamples of speeches given by America’s 43rd President andtriggered by notes of the piano. Electric Brew is a welcomereminder of what magic can happen when rules are not somuch broken, but taken out of the equation completely.Highly recommended. Michael Gallantelectricsongs.com

MOR E ON KEYBOAR DMAG.COM KEYSPACE

Jeanne Peterson is not your everydayoctogenarian. The 87-year-old fierce-fin-gered pianist presides over a Minneapolismusical dynasty that spans three genera-tions, and extends into every conceivablemusical niche. Her late husband Willie wasa much-heralded jazz pianist, and playedorgan for the Minnesota Twins. Sons Ricky(keyboards), Billy (bass), and Paul (guitar)have worked with virtually every powerplayer in the music pantheon, from DavidSanborn and Prince to Steve Miller andBonnie Raitt. Daughters Patty and Linda

are accomplished singers, pianists, andsongwriters as well, and grandchildrenJason, Isaac, and Vanessa play saxophone,drums, and sing, respectively.

Peterson grew up a child prodigy, pick-ing out melodies and chords on the pianoat the early age of three. “My mentors wereOscar Peterson, Art Tatum, and Bud Pow-ell,” Peterson tells me. “And my educationwas listening and copying.” At the age of15, her older brother, saxophonist DonaldPouliot, convinced her to audition for herfirst professional job as a singer. When the

pianist didn’t know one of her selectedsongs, Peterson simply replied, “That’sokay, I’ll play it for myself.” And the rest isMinneapolis musical history.

Peterson would go on to become a sta-ple of the Twin Cities broadcast circuit,anchoring famed radio station WCCO as astaff pianist and singer for 22 years, allwhile simultaneously applying her musicalgifts to a plethora of performance andrecording work. That work continues to gostrong, including recent albums My Calen-dar and Young And Foolish.

Peterson’s marriage to Willie would setin motion a sonic training ground of sorts,with each of her now-acclaimed childrengrowing up immersed in music. “We hadrehearsals in the basement, and there wasalways music going on in the house,” shetells me. “My five kids heard all of this, andthought every household was like that. Thekids would say to their friends, ‘What doesyour dad play?’”

More than 70 years after landing herfirst gig, Peterson continues at full speed,with touring and recording dates bookedwell through this year and beyond. “I’mhappy to say that I am still busy,” she tellsme. What advice can she offer to aspiringmusical hopefuls? “Besides learningchords and reading lead lines, I would saylisten to the great players. My educationwas listening and learning.” Jon Regen

For more on Jeanne Arland Peterson, visit jeannejazz.com.

JEANNE ARLAND PETERSONJazz Matriarch of Minneapolis

Unsigned Artist of the MonthELECTRIC BREW

0 6 . 2 0 0 9 K E Y B O A R D 11

Webpage: myspace.com/blackgoldEarly inspiration: It all started with myfather who is a very talented musician.When I was as young as I can remember, Iused to sit next to him at the piano andsing songs with him. I was so amazed bywhat he could do that I started to beg forpiano lessons when I was five.Most influential records early on: Igrew up listening to a lot of the Beatles,Elton John, and Billy Joel. Those were prob-ably the first records that really taught mehow to play rock music on the piano.Play by ear or sight-read: I can readpretty well, but at this point I learn mostmusic by ear. I find it’s the best way for meto memorize a song. If I just read the musicfrom the page, my brain doesn’t retain allthe changes.Practice regimen: I spend a lot of time

everyday at the piano, but I’d hardly call itpracticing. I spend most of my time justlearning new songs and writing.Songwriting inspiration: Sometimes it’ssomething that happened to me or a closefriend. Other times it comes from a ran-dom stranger on the street who fascinatesme. Inspiration can come at any time, so Itry to just be patient and let it happen. Thereal trick is to nurture it as soon as it1comes. If you put it on hold even for aminute, it can disappear.Touring rig: I’ve been touring with a Wurl-itzer 200A for quite a while now. Unfortu-nately, it’s extremely difficult to keep runningproperly. She can be quite a fickle girl, so Ialso bring a Nord Stage 88 with me in casethe Wurly goes down. The Nord is the clos-est to the real thing that I have been able tofind, and it’s been really reliable.

Gear wish list: I would love to see some-body re-issue the Wurlitzer 200A. They dida pretty great job on the Rhodes re-issue,but I would love to get my hands on abrand new Wurly. Maybe a newly-constructed one would hold up a little bet-ter than the 40-year-old one that I have.Words of wisdom: Just learn to play allthe songs you love and always write music,no matter how much of a beginner you are.Nothing will teach you more than learningfrom your idols. Robbie Gennet


The music: Deep tech and progressive house, with intelligentflourishes of ambient and experimental electronica.Webpage: kingroc.com and mutualsocietymusic.com Favorite gear: First and foremost, my Mac, but I also love myKorg Kaossilator and JazzMutant Lemur.Favorite songs: Bloc Party, “Halo;” Jeff Buckley, “Grace.”Influences: Here’s a sampling of what’s been on my iPod lately:Alif Tree, Alex Smoke, Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, AphexTwin, Bloc Party, Blondie, Bob Marley, Camille, Editors, Feist, JeffBuckley, the Kills, Leftfield, Massive Attack, Michael Jackson, NinaSimone, Pearl Jam, Rage Against The Machine, Red Hot ChiliPeppers, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Sigur Rós, Smashing Pumpkins.Play by ear or sight-read: By ear, mostly. I do have some train-ing in how to read music, but I trust my feelings more than I trustmy training.Newest project: Putting my live show together using elementsof the album songs and also remixes and EP tracks I’ve done.Also, I’m about to work on some new Two Armadillos remixes andoriginal productions.Practice regimen: Work hard during the week and play hardduring the weekend.Words of wisdom: You get what you give, but never give inorder to get. Francis Preve

BLACK GOLDEric Ronick’s Piano Rock

MARTIN DAWSONElectronica with King Roc and Two Armadillos

12 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

KEYSPACE ARTISTS, ADV ICE, COM M U N ITY

Good work, musical or otherwise, canbe scarce these days, so the more thingsyou can do well, the better chance youhave of continuing to make music your soleprofession. Whether you’re a hired gunwho’s a household name, or a sideman orbandleader looking for better exposure,now is the time to get your musical andsocial skills together. They’re not givinggigs away when you open a checkingaccount — you have to earn them one mas-terful step at a time.

1. Know the music. I don’t care if you’re funnier than Chris Rock or have chops for days. Don’t show up to an audition, rehearsal, or gig without knowing the material inside and out.

2. Play it, don’t say it. Leaders hire sidemen for one reason only: to play the hell out of their music. They’ll hear everything they need to know through the notes you play, so let your groove do the talking.

3. Re-musicize yourself.Thinking you know it all is your fast

track to obsolescence. Make this the year to expand your musical palate. Learn a new instrument in addition to your primary axe, update your technical skills, and delve into new musical genres.

4. Dress for success. Research the visual vibe of the artist you’re working with to ensure a stylistic and a musical fit. Looking the part is sometimes just as important as playing it.

5. Positive power. Nothing, not even bad musicianship, is as debilitating as negativity. Make a resolution to exude positive vibes this year. In my own bands,I look for players that elevate the mood aswell as the music. Getting the gig often involves getting a reputation as someone who people want to be around, on and off the concert stage.

6. Ask and you shall receive. Navigating the peaks and valleys of the music business involves a cunning combination of discipline and drive. Some of the most heralded players succeed because they are constantly on the prowl for the next gig. Sometimes that next great gig is just an inquiry away — ask and you just may receive!

Career CounselorSix Tips for Being a Better Sideman

I’ve had a strange month. By the timeyou read this I’ll be a full-time L.A. resident,playing nightly on the new Tonight Showwith Conan O’Brien, and hopefully doingsome interesting gigging and session worklike I’ve been doing here in New York. Forthe last few months, I’ve been in a weirdin-between-the-coasts limbo.

When I call people on the phone, theysay, “How’s L.A.?” or “Aren’t you goneyet?” When I answer the phone it’s like . . .well, nothing — because the phone hasn’tbeen ringing! In a business where perception

is everything, the perception is that I’vealready left New York, ironically, at a pointwhen I’m “unemployed” and could reallyuse a few gigs!

Which got me thinking. How does onemake the phone ring? How am I going tomake the phone ring in a new town? It’s auseful exercise to ask yourself: Why do I getthe calls I get? Is it because of my reputa-tion? Is it because I already have the gig, orbecause I’m a tireless self-promoter?

As I said, perception is everything. If it’syour reputation that gets them calling, then

make sure you live up to it. If you already havethe gig, then own the gig and never rest onyour laurels. Practice, take lessons, and con-stantly raise your standards. And if it’s yourstyle, kick up the social and professional net-working. Are you good with Facebook? Areyou on LinkedIn? Remember, Craigslist isn’tjust for personal ads and selling old gear. Andif you’re a tireless self-promoter, then I saluteyou, because I can’t do that. Keep it up.

People hire people they know, respect,and think they’ll enjoy working with. It alsohelps if they think you’re still in town.

by Jon Regen, recording artist of critically acclaimed album, Let It Go

Session SenseiCross-Country Blues by Scott Healy, keyboardist for The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brian

Jon with his sidemen.

14 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

When Mariah Carey was asked to sing“Hero” at the Neighborhood Ball in Wash-ington, DC, to celebrate the Inauguration ofBarack Obama, I was absolutely thrilled tobe a part of it! Here’s a peek behind thescenes at this presidential affair.

Because we were going to be using ahouse band, most of the usual Mariah Careyband members were not able to come. Wewere able to bring our background singersand Mariah’s usual MD, Eric Daniels. Erichad to transcribe the music for the houseband and chart it out; see page 34 of thisissue to play the exact piano part Ericused. Ray Chew was the MD for the eventitself, and the house band did a great jobwith “Hero” as well as the rest of the starsthey played behind at the Neighborhood Ball.

Of course, security was very tight. Weeach had to send a photo, and copies ofall of our identification, for the SecretService to thoroughly clear us to be in theNeighborhood Ball. Since I was going tobe backstage at the same time as thePresident, I underwent even morescrutiny, and once the show began, Iwasn’t allowed to leave my station untilthe President and Vice President left theball. I was impressed with the profession-alism and skill of the Secret Service. I had

a chance to speak to a couple of them,and made a point of saying, “Take care ofhim, okay?” One of the agents actuallygot a little emotional and told me, “Ofcourse. He’s our President too.” Thatreally got to me.

We had a few hours the day before theshow to rehearse and camera-block withRay and the house band. There were twostages in the room, one for the houseband and various artists, and the otherstage for Stevie Wonder and the otherartists doing “Signed, Sealed, Delivered”— Maroon 5, Jay-Z, and several others.Rehearsal went fine, and then we got inthe vans to go back to our hotel in FallsChurch, Virginia, since everything in townwas booked. The DC police were in theprocess of closing down most of thestreets for the Inauguration, so while thetrip in took 20 minutes, it took almostthree hours to get back out.

On Inauguration day, we were told thatonce we got in the building where we wereplaying, we couldn’t leave; I wasdisappointed not to be able to see theinauguration in person. We did get to thegig in time to watch it all on TV, though.

The show was broadcast on ABC, andthere’s nothing like being on live TV to get

the old nerves going. Thankfully, nothingwent wrong and Mariah was happy. Back-stage, I was about ten feet away from thePresident. What a great night! This wasone of those times when I can’t believe Iactually get paid to do this.

by Mike McKnight, music technology wizard for Mariah Careyand others.

MOR E ON KEYBOAR DMAG.COM KEYSPACE

Ask Mike All levels of questions are welcome and we promise to keep your surname and email confidential.To ask Mike a question, visit mcknightsoundsinc.com.

On page 20, I was honored to writeabout Michael Bearden, keyboardistat the We Are One concert in front ofthe Lincoln Memorial on Martin LutherKing Jr. Day broadcast on HBO; RayChew, musical director at the Neigh-borhood Ball on ABC live; and mygood friend Eric Daniels, Mariah’smusical director who played pianoand transcribed the song “Hero” forthis event. I think you’ll all enjoy theirinsights and advice.

The Neighborhood Ball in Washington, DC, which celebrated the Inauguration of President Obama.

Mike McKnight mans the computers for MariahCarey, backstage at the Neighborhood Ball.

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MELODY GARDOTMY ONE AND ONLY THRILL

Singer, songwriter, andmulti-instrumentalistMelody Gardot madeheadlines in 2007 with therelease of her debut album

Worrisome Heart on Verve. Two years later,she returns with the haunting My One AndOnly Thrill, which masterfully mixes jazz,pop, and Latin textures into a sound all herown. With lush string arrangements by thegifted Vince Mendoza and ace productionby Larry Klein, the album frames Gardot’sgorgeous voice (and stellar songwriting)amidst a varied soundscape that includesBrazilian beats, Sinatra-style strings, andEllington-flavored trumpet interludes. On“The Rain,” she draws you in amidst a bedof piano chords that ring out like a mutedlover’s lament. And on “Your Heart Is As

Black As Night,” she tells the tale of lovegone wrong, while a swirling Hammondorgan echoes her battle cry. Surely to beone of 2009’s most heralded releases,My One And Only Thrill is a sonic thrillindeed. Jon Regen(Verve, vervemusicgroup.com)

JULIE MCKEEWHAT A WOMAN SHOULDN’T DO

This is a vintage keyboardenthusiast’s dream. TheLondon-based singer-songwriter heaps on ahealthy dose of piano,

electric piano, and Hammond organthroughout this 11-song opus to love, loss,and life. McKee has a penchant for grittyWurlitzer grooves — check out infectioustunes like “Nobody’s Farm” and “All AboutYou” to sample her knack for writing memo-rable riffs on the Wurly. Framed by a funk-infused band (featuring Rob Gentry onorgan and Joe Leach on synths), McKeeshines both on uptempo, dancified tracks,and torchy ballads like “Carousel” and “Sum-mer Weather in My Heart.” Whatever it is awoman shouldn’t do, McKee does everythingshe should on this impressive release. Jon Regen(Shrewd Records, shrewdmusic.net)

FRED HERSCHPOCKET ORCHESTRALIVE AT JAZZ STANDARD

Fred Hersch has been qui-etly rewriting the rules ofjazz piano for the last threedecades — so it’s no sur-prise that he does so again

on Live at Jazz Standard, his stellar newquartet recording on the Sunnyside label.

With the hushed touch of a Zen master, andthe guts to frame his poignant piano work ina quartet that trades the traditional basschair for a female vocalist, Hersch shines onthe album’s ten original tracks. “Stuttering,”the sly opener, combines a Monk-esquemelody (performed in perfect unison byHersch, Ralph Alessi on trumpet, and thenimble-voiced Jo Lawry singing), with ametrically modulating drum beat, courtesy ofRichie Barshay. And on “Child’s Song,”Hersch’s plaintive piano is affecting for it’sstark and supple sound. Live at Jazz Stan-dard is another winner in Hersch’s alreadyimpressive recorded catalogue. Jon Regen(Sunnyside, sunnysiderecords.com)

BARNEY MCCALLFLASHBACKS

The latest by Australianexpat keyboardist and com-poser Barney McCall is onewild musical ride. Equalparts jazz, world, and experi-

mental, it mutates the very minute you thinkyou’ve figured it out. “Elequa Dictate,” theopener, ropes you in with the sneaky sound ofRhodes and syncopated horn stabs — thenlets loose on a journey to the center of ’70s-era, Herbie Hancock-inspired fusion. The titletrack is a Pat Metheny Group-meets-free jazzexploration with a shifting, bebop-inspiredmelody. McCall is a fluid improviser, his pianolines effortlessly navigating the rapidly chang-ing chordscape with eloquence and ease.Other standouts include guitarist Ben Mon-der, drummer Henry Cole, and the urgenttenor saxophone work of Billy Harper. Guar-anteed to sound like nothing you’ve heard in along time, Flashbacks is worth the trip. Jon Regen(Extra-Celestial/Scrootable Labs, barneymccall.com)

CDREVIEWS

Take the KEYBOARD CHALLENGEKeyboard Challenge, May ’09Depeche Mode [our cover story in last month’s issue] has done a great job of staying relevant through 29 years of musi-cal shifts. What do you think is the single biggest key to maintaining a successful career that spans decades?

80s-LZ: Short and simple — write good songs. Depeche Mode has always tapped into the latest technology for interesting sounds.Unique and interesting sounds create that instant appeal that gets people’s attention in the short term, but to have staying power, thereis no substitute for a well-written song. Many bands come and go because they rely too heavily on the current fad or latest technology,which eventually becomes obsolete.

For all the answers to this and previous Challenges, visit keyboardmag.com and click on “Forum.”

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MOR E ON KEYBOAR DMAG.COM

Go See

Marcia Ballmarciaball.com

Amanda Palmeramandapalmer.net

Booker T.bookert.com

Black Eyed Peasblackeyedpeas.com

Metricilovemetric.com

Check out these keyboard-heavy acts, on tour this month.

Webpage: touchofclasstx.comDay job: I’m retiring from a 25-year software career to join thelocal college accounting faculty inthe fall. I think accounting, software,and keyboards have a lot in com-mon — logic and orderliness, withsome flashes of creativity. How I got started: As a kid in the’50s, I started with accordion,and tried drums. But I found Icould get gigs playing keys. Inhigh school, I loved Ray Manzarek,bought a Rhodes Piano Bass,and stayed employed by replac-ing two players. I gigged fornearly ten years until burnout setin. I quit for 18 years to raise afamily and get an education. In ’98

I joined a companygarage band as aChristmas party gag. Itrekindled the fire. I builta recording studio in thehouse, started acquir-ing gear, and hookedup with some localmusicians.Band: Temple, Texas-based Touch of Class is a greatcover band playing ’60s and ’70sstandards. The whole band is myage, equally experienced, andalmost impossible to stump. Weplay everything from Iron Butterflyto Patsy Cline. On Sunday morn-ings, my wife and I run a praiseteam at our church.

Influences: The Rascals, theDoors, Three Dog Night, andTower of Power. I also think BruceHornsby is the best.I play because: It’s fun. I wasborn to do this. I’ve beensuccessful in business and aca-demics but still think of myself asa displaced musician. Ed Coury

KIRK FISCHERWEEKEND WARRIOR

“My Yamaha Tyros 2 blows away everyone who hears it,” says Kirk. “It goes to every gig. My RolandVK-7 organ, combined with a Motion Sound KBR-3D rotary speaker amp, is my favorite toy and makesmost gigs. I add the Yamaha P80 for the 88 keys if the stage has room.”

Tower Of Power, Back to Oakland (Warner Bros, Wea)

Weekend warrior Kirk Fischer admires the legendary horn-based soul band Tower of Power. “My favoriteorgan solo of all time is Chester Thompson’s tour de force, ‘Squib Cakes,’ on the album Back to Oaklandfrom 1974,” he says.

KEYSPACE

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N EW G EAR

Want to check out the same press releases that we see about new gear, as soon as we receive them?Go to keyboardmag.com/this-month/latest-news

M-AUDIO STUDIOPHILE DSM3TWO WOOFERS ARE BETTER THAN ONETHE PITCH M-Audio’s highest-end studio monitor, co-developed with sister company Digidesign. THE BIG DEAL Dual“midwoofer” design pumpsout as much bass as a largersingle woofer, while widen-ing the sweet spot in whichyou can hear your mix accu-rately. Onboard DSP con-trols the crossover and tunesthe speaker to the room.WE THINK M-Audio’sdual-woofer EX66 blew usaway in Nov. ’07, so we’reanxious to see if this takesthe idea to the next level.$899.95 each, m-audio.com

NOVATION SL MK. IIPREMIUM CONTROLLERS RELOADEDTHE PITCH Novation checks off the wish list of many aloyal ReMote SL user.THE BIG DEAL Touch-sensitive knobs and fadersmean you don’t need to move a control to see what it does.Backlit buttons. Improved feel and response of drum pads.Automap 3 Pro software instantly maps controls to appsand plug-ins, and lets you use multiple Novation controllers— including the Nocturn and older ReMotes.THE SIZES 25, 49, or 61 keys, plus the keyless Zeromodel, which adds longer faders and a DJ crossfader. $TBA, novationmusic.com

by Stephen Fortner

TC-HELICON VOICETONE SYNTHWE HEAR VOICES. THEY SAY, “PROCESS ME!”THE PITCH The most in-demand, dramatic vocal effects fromtoday’s music, all in one stompbox.THE BIG DEAL HardTune does that pitch-jumping that urbanR&B and Cher’s “Believe” have in common. Massive Band vocoderhandles everything from vintage emulation to highly articulate robotvoices. Voice-controlled synth mode lets you get the robot soundsolely by singing — no keyboard needed!WE THINK Whether you fine these effects to be essential orclichéd, getting them has never been easier — especially live.$395, tc-helicon.com

AKAI MINIAKATOM-SIZED AND POSITIVELY CHARGED

THE PITCH Akai’s drum and sequencing prowessplus Alesis’ virtual analog chops, rolled into a smallbut mighty performance synth.THE BIG DEAL Three oscillators for fat sound.

Eight-way multitimbral. Built-in sequencer with realtimeand MPC-like step modes. Separate rhythm sequencer for

drum sounds. Can process external audio through synth filtersand effects. Vocoder with included gooseneck mic.WE THINK For this price, it looks like a monster.$499.99, akaipro.com

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MIXOSAURUS DAW DRUMS HARD DRIVIN’ DRUMS THE PITCH Ultimate sampled acoustic drums forcomputer-based studios. THE BIG DEAL Mixosaurus sampled a single drum kit,played as if recording a song, for cohesive sound. Huge122GB sample set plus deep Kontakt Player 2 implementationenables ultra-realistic articulations and mixing. Comes on itsown hard drive so there’s no install time.WE THINK The audio demos we’ve heard are extremelyimpressive. $799, mixosaurus.com

BOSE L1 COMPACTMOST PORTABLE BOSE PA YETTHE PITCH The premium sound of the L1 Model II(reviewed Feb. ’08) just got easier to carry — and afford.THE BIG DEAL Subwoofer is integrated into base,unlike larger L1 systems. Can be set up with mid-high speak-ers atop the column or in tighter quarters, collapsed into thebase as shown.WE THINK The ability to leave it in collapsed mode andcarry it one-handed just might make it the ultimatekeyboardist’s gig amp.$999, bose.com/livesound

N EW G EAR

CLAVIA NORD C2PLAY TWO MANUALS, CARRY UNDER ONE ARMTHE PITCH Successor to the ultralight Nord C1 clonewheel organ.THE BIG DEAL Firmer action than C1. Drawbar buttons double as stopsfor new pipe organ sounds. Output routing can send B-3 sounds to the 11-pinLeslie and 1/4" hi-level jacks while all other sounds go out the main stereo pair. Key clicklevel is now adjustable.WE THINK We loved the portability and sound of the C1 (see Keyboard, May ’07), and we can’twait to review the C2.$TBA, nordkeyboards.com

CAKEWALK SONAR V-STUDIO 100V-STUDIO TO GO

THE PITCH Record multitrack audio to a PC using included Sonar VSsoftware, or record in stereo without a computer to the onboard SD card slot.THE BIG DEAL Audio interface/control box has touch-sensitive,motorized 100mm fader and Sonar’s Active Controller technology.Enough inputs for two mics, a guitar, and a stereo keyboard, plus RCA

inputs for an iPod or similar player. Can be a standalone digital mixer with hard-ware-powered EQ, compression, and reverb.

WE THINK This little hybrid is a great way to take the capabilities of the V-Studio 700(reviewed Apr. ’09) on the road — and the price is lower than we expected. $699, sonarvstudio.com

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At the Lincoln Memorial two days before the Inauguration, the Obamas and Bidens (far left) enjoy theWe Are One finale as Beyoncé sings “America the Beautiful” at center stage, with Stevie Wonder onharmonica. At bottom right, Michael Bearden mans Hammond B-3 organ and synths — see page 72 formore on his keyboard rig. Behind Beyoncé are all the stars who performed music or historical readingsat We Are One — visit keyboardmag.com to learn who they all are.

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that the Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States was a truly historic musical event, as well as a political one. Imaginegetting the call to be one of the key musicians. What does it take to prepare for and do a gig of this magnitude? What’s it like tolook out over one keyboard stack at an endless crowd, and over another at the President? How do you accompany one major starafter another, when keeping just one happy is no small feat? How do you reach a level where this could happen to you? Keyboardtalked with three master players who know firsthand: Michael Bearden (page 24), Ray Chew (page 25), and Eric Daniels (page 26).

Name MichaelBearden

Ray Chew

Eric Daniels

Big Break Hired to play with WhitneyHouston in 1990.

Became musical director forAshford and Simpson at age 19.

Became touring keyboardistfor funk legends GrahamCentral Station at age 18.

Past Gigs Sting, Ray Charles, Queen,Aretha Franklin, Rod Stewart,Mary J. Blige, Usher, BrianMcKnight, Lionel Richie, JohnMayer, Liza Minelli, Ricky Mar-tin, Boz Scaggs, ChristinaAguilera, Herbie Hancock.Has been musical director forD’Angelo, Jennifer Lopez,and Madonna.

Donnie Hathaway, RobertaFlack, Melba Moore, DianaRoss, Chaka Khan, SaturdayNight Live band, BET, TheSinging Bee on NBC, MissUniverse pageant, and the2008 Democratic NationalConvention.

Janet Jackson, Boney James,Backstreet Boys, GeorgeDuke, Brandy, TLC, MichaelBolton, Rachelle Ferrelle, TheGap Band, ConFunkShun,Ray Parker Jr., Live 8 in Lon-don, American Idol, Oprah,48th Grammy Awards.

Current Gig Just hired as musical directorfor Michael Jackson.

Musical director and producerat the Apollo Theater.

Keyboardist and musicaldirector for Mariah Carey.

Role at Inauguration

Keyboardist for HBO’s WeAre One concert at the Lincoln Memorial.

Musical director of Neighborhood Ball.

Pianist as Carey sang “Hero”for the First Couple.

Webpage myspace.com/michaelbearden raychew.com ericdanielsmusic.com

Whatever your politics, there’s no denying

Background Check

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As a glance at his credits proves, MichaelBearden was the guy every keyboardistwants to be, even before he got the call toplay in the house band for the pre-inauguralWe Are One concert that aired on HBO.

Tell us about your training and discoveryof music.Michael Bearden: I started playing pianoaround age five and drums not long after. Iattended conservatories and had extensiveclassical instruction coming up, but most ofmy training is on-the-job. Some of my earli-est mentors include Ramsey Lewis, HerbieHancock, and Stevie Wonder, all of whom Imet or worked with while still a teenager.

Growing up on the south side of Chicagowas great. We listened to and played every-thing from the Jackson Five to Curtis Mayfieldto Led Zeppelin to Elton John to the DoobieBrothers — it was all just music to us. I hadno idea I was being trained for the eclecticmix of gigs I would do later in life. How did you get the inaugural gig? For the last seven years or so, I’veperformed at the Kennedy Center Honors. Ialso play the annual “Christmas In Washing-ton” telecast in DC. Those two shows areproduced by George and Michael Stevens.In the green room at “Christmas In Wash-ington,” I happened to ask Michael, “Are youguys doing anything for the Inauguration?”At the time, there were a million rumors, buteverything early on was secretive. Michael

told me to wait by the phone for a few days,but couldn’t say anything more. Turns outhe and George were producing We AreOne. Sure enough, when I got home to L.A.a few days later, I got a call from RobMathes. He said, “Are you sitting down? I’vebeen asked to direct the show at the Lin-coln Memorial. Please tell me you’re avail-able so I can breathe a little easier.” I said,“Absolutely, whatever you need!” What did he look for in hiringmusicians? As for most televised gigs, you need to beable to play any style at a moment’s notice.However, the main and sometimesoverlooked issue is simple: Are you a teamplayer? Are you fun or a drag to be around ina pressure-filled situation? The MD is alreadyunder tremendous pressure to bring manyelements of the show together:arrangements, key changes for differentartists, timings for TV, several choirs, soundfor the broadcast truck, front-of-house sound,lighting cues, gear, egos, entourages, andeverything that goes with a big show. Is reading music mandatory?Yes, for every musician, no way around it. Inmy opinion, though, the biggest commodityis big ears. You have to listen very activelyto everything around you. Even stars getnervous, even top musicians forget, evengood gear malfunctions, and things alwayschange. There are no do-overs in a live situ-ation, so always remember — it’s not the

mistake, it’s the recovery!Did you get charts, or just basic mixesto learn the songs for all the stars youplayed with that day? Rob did most of the arranging and had twogreat copyists/arrangers, Mike Casteel andJamsheid Sharif. We didn’t see any sheetmusic until the first day of rehearsal, whichwas also a day of making pre-recordingsfor the artists and director to work from.This great Pro Tools engineer, DaveO’Donnell, was with us at every moment.All of the songs chosen for this event had acommon theme: America as the unity ofdifferent kinds of people. Since we all knewthese songs, we didn’t have basic mixes tolearn from. We just added our soul toRob’s new arrangement. You and the house band played live,but what about the orchestra? Someof the violinists were wearing gloves. Since something always goes a bit differ-ently than rehearsed, playing live lets usreact more quickly to mistakes. Besides,unless you’re doing shows like Top Of ThePops or Soul Train, playing to a track looksridiculous, and I felt that Obama deservedthe very best show we could give him.

On the other hand, pre-recordingswere necessary for the orchestra. Mostorchestras won’t perform outside if it’sbelow 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Theirinstruments are rare and vintage, the coldaffects the tuning, and insurance doesn’tcover cold-related damage. They wereprovided some futuristic-looking graphiteinstruments to mime what they’drecorded at this big hall at Fort MeyersArmy Base. They recorded and mimedeach arrangement flawlessly!How does it work when you’re in thatkind of cold for that long?Cold isn’t the word — more like Arctic!Bassist Nathan East and guitarists ShaneFontayne and Keith Robinson had it theworst — bare fingers on strings in minus-two-degree wind chill as we rehearsed forcamera blocking. The rest of us could atleast try to play with gloves on. Some hornsfroze up to the point of being unplayable.Bono of U2 told me he’d never been thatcold in his life!

It was an honor to be there, though, sowe got through it. I had the crew installheaters from Target around my rig — a trick Iborrowed from Paul Shaffer. One for the B-3,one for the Leslie, one by my Motif/NeKo

MICHAEL BEARDEN

Presidential Props: Barack Obama greets keyboardist Michael Bearden just afterHBO’s We Are One concert at the Lincoln Memorial. See keyboardmag.com for

an online extra about Michael meeting the President and First Lady.

NATH

AN E

AST

24 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

What was it like to play with . . . James Taylor: A few days before he was to be in DC with us for rehearsal,he had a fall that busted up his left eye pretty badly and required stitches, buthe was determined to be at the Inauguration. He sounded amazing, and he’s aconsummate professional. I don’t think there’s a nicer human being on theplanet than James.Stevie Wonder: After we worked out this syncopated ending for “HigherGround,” Stevie was satisfied, so we started jamming. A few of us had playedwith Stevie before, so we know that he loves to break into Coltrane’s “GiantSteps.” He also treated us to a song nobody ever heard before. We jammedalong as best we could with the amazing changes on this bossa nova-like tunehe was singing. Everyone was trying to figure out which album it was from.Later, we found out he’d just made it up. That kind of stuff is priceless!Herbie Hancock: I was influenced by Herbie from a very young age. I had hisalbum covers taped to my wall. Working with him is akin to an alto sax playerworking with Charlie Parker. Herbie’s influence is more than just musical. He always says that you’re a human being in the worldfirst, and you just happen to play music. Garth Brooks: We rehearsed a medley of three songs, “American Pie,” “Shout,” and “We Shall Be Free,” in a heated tent. Therewas a big choir and the band all packed in there, then Garth comes in with enough energy to heat DC. The way he works is tohave you put yourself into the songs the way you feel them — he dictates nothing. Bruce Springsteen: Bruce originally wanted to add the full band to “The Rising” about mid-song. But as he worked with just thechoir and his acoustic guitar, magic happened. We never rehearsed it or played it onstage, because Bruce loved the version they’dcreated. I don’t know if the producers envisioned this huge show opening with an acoustic/vocal arrangement, but Bruce made asmart move if you ask me. I don’t think he wanted people to see a bunch of A-list “ringers” up there with him instead of the bandthat’s been with him his whole career. Plus, musically, it worked! Michael Bearden

stand to warm the keys and my hands, onefor my feet, and one near the keyboardbench. [See page 72 for a diagram ofMichael’s Inauguration rig. –Ed.] It was stillfreezing. I had to swap out the B-3 onstagefor the one in the tent because the cold putthe tonewheel generator out of tune. Theorchestra got heaters as well, and we hadto add an extra AC circuit just for all theheaters. Thankfully, show day made it intothe upper 30s — it felt like Hawaii! What issues that affect musicianswould you like to see Obama’s

administration address?Quincy Jones has distributed a petition tosend to congress and the President,encouraging the creation of a positioncalled Secretary of Arts and Culture. A lotof countries have something similar, so whynot us? He has the ear of quite a few rep-resentatives and senators, and assuresme something is brewing. [View and signthis petition at petitiononline.com/esnyc/petition.html. –Ed.]If you were in that position, what issuewould you tackle first?

Music and art should be on equal footingwith math, science, reading, and other fun-damentals. It shouldn’t be just some after-school activity for a privileged few. Musiceducation is the main reason I’ve accom-plished everything in my life. If music cantake a kid like me from the south side ofChicago to performing at the Inaugurationof the President, it can do something justas profound for every kid who’s seriousabout making it. I am not special. We justhave to make sure the same opportunitiesare there for all who wish to pursue them.

After the swearing-in, the NeighborhoodBall made history for being open to thepublic, unlike almost every past inauguralgala. As with the We Are One concert,logistics required paring down to a singlehouse band, as opposed to the full bandsof the different headlining artists. RayChew was the lucky guy who got to keepall those stars happy.

How did you get into music?Ray Chew: My formal training came fromevery musical institution in New York City!

[Laughs.] Starting at age five, then La GuardiaHigh School of Music and Art, then ManhattanSchool of Music. I had great mentors such asMerl Saunders and Coleridge-Taylor Perkin-son. When I was a kid, Merl would take mearound to his gigs with Miles Davis and LionelHampton. I even got to sit in with Hamp onvibes! Perk would be around cats like MaxRoach and Dizzy Gillespie. I was “that kid” —always hanging around, waiting to play.As MD, did you get to handpick whowas in the Neighborhood Ball band?I usually decide on all of the people on my

RAY CHEW

Herbie Hancock (left) and Michael Bearden(right) had worked together on Herbie’sCD/DVD of duets, Possibilities.

NATHAN EASTJAYNELL GRAYSON

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team: musicians, arrangers, copyists,assistants, coordinators, and contractors.In this case, the producers and the inaugu-ral staff requested the same personnel I’dpicked for the Democratic Convention,because they liked the results, and every-one had already been cleared by theSecret Service.What qualities did you look for in hir-ing musicians? Reading music is essential, because wehave a lot to learn in a short time. Also, thestandards are those of artists such as Sting,Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, and Mariah Carey.Musicians like these are used to their ownbands and everything being just right, so Ineed to deliver the same level of comfort. Ilook for a high skill level on your instrument,and an overall professional presentation ofyourself. A good personality can carry you along way in this business.How did you meet the varied expecta-tions of so many star performers? Lots of preparation! It started with severalconference calls with producers andartists’ managers, to determine the finalsong choices. I then talked with the artiststhemselves to go over their personalwishes for the performance, keys of songs,and arrangements.Did you do the charts yourself?I’m an arranger by craft, but with all of theartist relations and managerial tasks thatare part of my MD job, I don’t have time towrite all of the charts. So, top-notcharrangers and copyists are the MVPs ofmy music prep team. The arrangers are“take-down” specialists who’ll dissect arecording note-for-note, and sometimes

contribute their own ideas.Keyboardists always seem to be theones who interface with the audioguys to get the sound right. What wasthat like at this gig?As to the politics of dealing with audioguys, I tell them what I’m looking for, thenlet them do their job without me steppingon toes or micro-managing. Fortunately, thecats who worked the Ball are the best inthe business. I show respect to all techni-cians, because we all have the same goal:a great show. What gear were you playing? A Yamaha Motif ES8 and a Korg Triton,plus a rackmount Motif. There was lot topay attention to in the production, so my

setup needed to be simple. In my in-earmonitors, I had the artists, musicians, andbackup singers, plus the director callingcues to me. So I had to “partition” mybrain to concentrate on playing themusic, being mindful of the artist onstage,watching the stage manager, and operat-ing my keyboard rig.Any advice for musicians who want toreach your level?Do whatever’s necessary to be ready foranything when your time comes. Prepara-tion is the constant, opportunity is the vari-able, and preparation plus opportunityequals success. I define success asachieving short-term goals over a lifetimespan of pursuing your dreams.

PLAY BY PLAY WITH ERIC DANIELSby Eric Daniels, as told to Mike McKnight

The world is watching. Mariah Carey isabout to sing a huge hit for the Presidentand First Lady. Sitting at a grand piano,you’re only a little less front-and-center thanshe is, and you’ve run the tune with thehouse band just three times. No pressure.

The Song“Hero” is a classic pop piano ballad with

major chords throughout. For this event, I

kept it simple, staying true to [writer] Wal-ter Afanasieff’s original form, and chosespecific spots to add my own touch.

A lot of my musician friends ask me,“Why do you play so simply?” Or moreoften, “How do musicians know you’rereally good if you’re playing like that?”Sure, I could play rings around the originalarrangement to prove I’m an ultra-badmofo. That’d ruin the vibe, upstage the

artist, and most likely, lose me the gig.

The Day BeforeWe arrive at the Washington ConventionCenter for the rehearsal as Mary J. Blige iswrapping up her segment; Beyoncé is upnext. I ask Mike McKnight to print the“Hero” charts I’d just finished. (I useSibelius software for notation, which hasalways been flexible and intuitive for me.)

Learn to Play “Hero,” as per-formed by Mariah Carey and Eric

Daniels at the inauguralNeighborhood Ball, on page 34.

Ray Chew with Yamaha Motif ES8 and Korg Triton Pro, as the First Couple hit the stage for their inaugural dance.

JAYNELL GRAYSON

26 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

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I think we’ll get to run “Hero” a coupletimes before Mariah arrives. I’m wrong! Sheshows up almost immediately and wants torun it to nail down camera blocking, light-ing, and other important cues. Who canblame her? Ray Chew (see page 25) and Ihave a quick huddle. I check with Mike,who’s on headset with Mariah. A minutelater we count off the song. We play it allthe way through with Mariah singing.

After she answers some technicalquestions for the director, Mariah says verynicely that she notices some “unfamiliarchords and notes.” That’s a diplomatic wayof saying, “Play it right!” I don’t think sheknew that the band and I were playingtogether for the first time. I pass out thecharts, and it sounds much better the sec-ond time. The guys are on it — the drum-mer even catches the ritard at the end ofthe bridge perfectly. She has no commentafter this pass. Yes!

Mariah leaves, we run it once more, andthat’s it. After playing it just three times, we’dperform it on worldwide broadcast the next day.

Inauguration DayI wake up to inaugural coverage on everychannel, which adds to my anticipation of

performing for the new President and FirstLady that night. We leave at 9 A.M. to beatthe massive traffic that’ll be coming intoDC. We arrive at the Convention Center toa tight security screening courtesy of theSecret Service.

In dress rehearsal, there’s rarely theopportunity to perform your segment twice,so it’s your last chance to get it right.Because MOTU Digital Performer is runningadditional orchestral tracks, I wear in-earmonitors and play to a click. The count-inand click are loud enough for rehearsal, butadd the microphone ambience of a scream-ing crowd, and it’ll bury the click. So afterour run, I have the monitor engineer crank itup somewhere between an extra 2dB and“Ouch!” Mike McKnight, whose count-invoice is recorded in DP, gives me an addi-tional 4dB boost. At such an historic gig, Isure don’t want to be remembered as thedude who didn’t come in on time!

ShowtimeWe’re ushered upstairs to a dimly-lit andunusually large curtained area, where all thecelebrities and their bands wait together fortheir cue to go on. Unlike awards showswhere everyone would be off in their sepa-

rate dressing rooms, this is a great time tomeet people from other bands and run intoold friends. You can feel the electricity.

Before we go on, I tell Mariah I actuallyhave “butterflies.” Not stage fright, but aphysical sense of anticipation and wantingto get it right. I’ve only had them one othertime — at my very first big concert, also inDC, in front of 19,000 people, some 20years ago! Believe me, once you hear thescreams of a large crowd, the nervousfeeling just evaporates and you’ll most likelygive them everything they came for and more.

While Maroon 5 plays on the otherstage, production rolls my Yamaha grandonto our stage; Alicia Keys would play itlater. I walk on, acknowledge Ray and ourband with handshakes and nods, settleonto the piano bench, adjust my clothes,and put in my in-ear monitors.

Mariah walks to her mic looking stun-ning. We wait for the stage manager’scountdown for coming back from commer-cial break. Actor/rapper Nick Cannon [alsoMariah’s husband], who was the MC andDJ, introduces her.

The next moment is the most difficult forme. In my ears I hear Nick’s voice, the stagemanager’s countdown for the cameras, andthe click and count-in for the song. Thinkabout it: One voice is counting forward,another is counting backward, and there’sdialogue mixed in — all at once! Lose it here,and there’s no fixing it. Man, I love my job.

I mentally zero in on Mike McKnight’scount-in and try to relax into its rhythm. Idon’t know how I manage this. I just do. . . .

I nail the intro and continue into the song.All along I’m listening to Mariah and the

click and keeping my dance between thetwo invisible to the audience. I’m absorbingevery facet of the performance now; thebass and drums are my secondary focus asMariah is the first. It’s flowing beautifully andI relax more. We reach the bridge and I’m infifth gear. We reach the outro and I’m asrelaxed as ever. The band and backupsingers are flawless. I hit the final arpeggioand smile like a kid who just got handed anice cream cone.

Visit PimpMyMPC.com, where Eric Daniels createscustom samples for Akai MPC, Propellerhead Reason, and Native Instruments Battery.

More words and pictures from gigging atthe Inauguration are at keyboardmag.com!

Eric Daniels at his Yamaha grand piano preparingfor the big moment: Mariah Carey singing “Hero”

at the inaugural Neighborhood Ball.

JONI

E MC

KNIG

HT

28 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

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30 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

Norse Gods of SynthBack when Norwegian friends SveinBerge and Torbjørn Brundtland were 12

and 13 years old, respectively, theybought their first synths, a Korg MS-

20 and a Roland Juno-106. Theirdedication to vintage synths turnedout to be one of the best — andcheapest — investments they evermade. Years later, after releasingthree fantastic electro-pop albumsas Röyksopp (including their latest,Junior), those synths are still hold-ing court as reigning kings of theduo’s sound — but they’ve cer-tainly picked up a few more tricks

and gadgets along the way. Here, Berge and Brundtland talk

to Keyboard while visiting Amsterdam(with Berge nearly being run down by a

tram while on the phone) about layeringsounds, holding onto the magic of an origi-nal idea, and working with some of Scandi-navia’s best singers.

On Junior, you worked with vocalistswith very distinctive voices. How doyou decide which vocalist is right for aparticular song?Svein Berge: Well, for instance, Lykke Li— she has a very sensual, percussive voice,which we thought would be in tune withwhat we wanted to present in the track

“Miss It So Much,” which was to be aromantic view — without sounding too nos-talgic — on missing analog in a digitalworld. So selecting voices is the sameprocess as selecting which sound shouldplay the lead, which sounds should play thechords, the bass kick, and so on.You guys wrote the basic idea for atrack on The Understanding at aparty to prove to some girls thatyou write your own music. Do yougenerally work out ideas together orseparately?Torbjørn Brundtland: We split it mainlyinto two ways. One is the more easy andfun way to do it: We meet up, hang out,listen to music, find some nice sounds,start playing with them, follow intuition,and record the bits that sound good andscrap what doesn’t. The other way iswhere you have an image in your head,and you try to make it become reality.That’s always much harder.Hip-hop producer Just Blaze once saidwhen songwriters are so emotionallyattached to a demo version of a songthat they’re never happy with the finalversion, he calls it “demo-itis.” Haveyou experienced that? TB: I’m flabbergasted that someone actu-ally made a word out of that. It’s ingeniousand should go straight into the dictionary,

because I think everyone who has beeninvolved in music at some stage knowsabout that. I think that’s a very personalthing that can lead to a lot of potential argu-ments between musicians because if yourecord something, there will always be onewho has a preference for a better recording,and another who has a preference for abetter expression. I remember reading inter-views with Portishead in their heyday, andthey talked about the importance of keepingthe original expression without re-recording,even though the original recording didn’teven have the right lyrics. So I think that ifyou’re able to find the right balance, thenyou are at the point where you want to be,because an early version is going to beflawed, and if you clean it up too much, themagic has disappeared.How do you keep the magic? TB: Let’s say there are some crackles in arecording that somehow sound unwanted,but at the same time, you like it. You can gointo micro detail and say, “I like thesecrackles here because they serve a pur-pose, but the crackles where the chorus iscoming in just sound plain unprofessional,so let’s remove those and keep the onesthat I react emotionally to.”How much do you still use the KorgMS-20 and Roland Juno-106 synths?SB: We still have them and use them for all

by Kylee SwensonPhotographs by Stian Andersen

310 6 . 2 0 0 9 K E Y B O A R D

they’re worth. But at the same time, we try toconceal to some extent when we use thembecause we don’t want the synths to be tooeasily recognizable. The Juno’s sound inparticular is very distinctive. To concealthem, you can layer them with other synths.If, for instance, you want a pad, like a stringsound from the Juno, you can just add a dif-ferent pad or string sound from another key-board and let them play the same thing. Andyou can patch sounds through the MS-20and use the filters to mess around with it. Oryou can put some things through guitar ped-als, and there are so many plug-ins that canalter sounds in many ways.

In order to make what some peoplerefer to as warmth, we tend to send soundsthrough old tube compressors. We have afew Chandler Limited TG1 Abbey Roadcompressors because we’re so fond ofthem, and we have a very cheap, old,eight-channel Boss mixer. When we sendstuff through that, it sounds like it’s beenthrough a tape recorder 20 times.What was the process for creating“The Girl and the Robot” with Swedishsinger Robyn?

32 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

Röyksopp

SB: We spoke a little about Lykke Li withher sensual, percussive voice, whereasRobyn has the more traditional pop voice.It’s very clear and versatile. So we askedher whether she’d be willing to play withtwo shabby idiots in a cupboard in Bergen,Norway. She’s easy to trick, so she saidyes. We had already made a few ideas forthe song, and I think we had at least fourdifferent ways we could take it. At onepoint we had something that was moreorchestral with lots of strings. It was a bitmore pompous, and slower. We decided togo for the more uptempo, energetic take onit. We wrote the lyrics together and alsoshaped the main body of the melody ofwhat she sings.

As for the production, there’s a bit ofthe orchestral synth, which is like the crownjewel for any train-spotter in terms of key-board fetish: the Vako Orchestron. It’sfavored by the likes of Florian Schneider ofKraftwerk, especially on their album, Radio-Activity. So we used the Orchestron mixedwith the choir from the Roland VP-330Vocoder, mixed with our singing. We singon top of these two synth sounds, theexact same chords, but it just makes awhole thick, rich thing. It’s very low in themix, but it adds dimension to the wholesound. Plus there’s a very nice kick, whichis sidechained by compressors into thechords, so that it sort of eats into the

music, which is a common way of makingthings pump. [See our Dec. ’08 issue orkeyboardmag.com for a tutorial on makingyour tracks pump using sidechains. –Ed.]There are a lot of intertwiningkeyboards, as on “Vision One.” Whendo you know you’ve got enough goingon or when you should cut back?SB: That’s the brain damage we have — tous, it’s never enough! We like it to be a bit“wrong.” Dub music, for example, is greatwhen it’s lo-fi and a bit wrong. You canhear the hissing and the distortion. And youcan hear that some instruments might be

out of tune, and they might miss the beat.When it all becomes a bit stupid and off,that’s something that we love. In terms ofbuilding a crescendo, as we do towardsthe end of “Vision One,” we just keep ongoing. But you don’t want it to be acacophony of melodies trying to kill eachother. As soon as you start with your fifthmelody, and you go, “Okay, now this isturning into a guitar solo,” you have to backoff and rethink.

For more of our interview, visitkeyboardmag.com/features.

RÖYKSOPP SAMPLING SECRETSSamplers: Akai S series, including theS3200XL. “In addition, we messaround with the audio in an editing pro-gram [mostly Steinberg WaveLab]”Berge says. “We sample vinyl, CD,field recordings, or we just recordthings onto tapes, send them throughour gear, and re-record it again.”The not-so-secret sample: “HappyUp Here” has a sample fromParliament’s track, “Do That Stuff.” Vinyl noise: “We’re suckers for thevinyl sound,” Berge says. “There’s nohiding that, and we don’t try to. If any-thing, we deliberately try to make itsound more vinyl-y by adding a cracklesound and ground sound, which youcan hear toward at the end of ‘SilverCruiser.’ There’s lots of humming andhissing, and that’s all put in there delib-erately to create the vinyl feel.”

Proven Improvement — Find out why the planet’stop musicians and audiophiles all over the worldmake Analysis Plus cables part of their system, visitwww.analysis-plus.com

“…a level of sonicreproduction I never

thought I could achieve.”

Joshua Fineberg, PhDComposer of contemporary

classical music and a Professorof Music at Harvard

330 6 . 2 0 0 9 K E Y B O A R D

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“HERO”AS PERFORMED AT THE NEIGHBORHOOD BALLby Mariah Carey and Walter Afanasiefftranscribed by Eric Daniels

To go backstage at the Inauguration performance of “Hero,” readour cover feature on page 20. For more on the keyboards behind

the Inauguration, flip to page 72 and visit keyboardmag.com.

“Hero,” words and music by Walter Afanasieff and Mariah Carey. © 1993 WB MUSIC CORP., WALLYWORLD MUSIC, SONGS OF UNIVERSAL, INC. and RYE SONGS. All Rights for WALLYWORLD MUSIC Administered by WB MUSIC CORP. All Rights for RYE SONGS Administered by SONGS OF UNIVERSAL, INC.

Used by Permission of ALFRED PUBLISHING CO., INC. All Rights Reserved. Reprinted by Permission of Hal Leonard Corporation.

34 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

PLAY IT ! POP

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PLAY IT !

PLAY IT ! ROCK

Ex. 1. On the recording, the intro figure is split between one synth soundpanned to the right speaker, and a guitar (or guitar-like synth patch) in theleft speaker. In their live performances, MGMT plays this part on guitar, but italso lends itself well to the keyboard. Place your left hand on the keyboard asillustrated in Ex. 1a, and you’ll be in the correct D major finger position. Theriff is played by alternating finger 5 with fingers 1, 2, and 3, as shown in 1b.Note the F# in the key signature of D major.

Ex. 2. The right-hand synth melody that follows is based on the same handposition in A major; see 2a. The line descends from finger 5 on E down to A(don’t forget the C# in the key signature of D major). Note that after you getto A, finger 5 reaches up to the F# (see Ex. 2b for the traditional notation).

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by Tom Brislin

MGMT’S “TIME TO PRETEND”

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Emerging from a sea of bubblinganalog synth textures, MGMT’s “Time ToPretend” is a pop voyage. Textures andmelodies float above an undeniablegroove, guiding the track from section tosection and adding flavor throughout.Here, we’ll look at the song’s intro and

its signature synth riff.For both sections, the parts are easily

played when you nail the correct handpositions. In other words, if you place eachhand over the proper group of five consec-utive notes, the parts practically play them-selves. We’ll play the intro with the left

hand and the riff with the right hand. Youdon’t have to play them simultaneously atfirst, but once you’ve got them in your fin-gers, test your coordination!

Learn how to reproduce MGMT’s “Time To Pretend”synth sound on page 40.

Hear this lesson with audio examplesat keyboardmag.com/play.

“Time To Pretend,” written by: Andrew VanWyngardenand Benjamin Goldwasser. © Sadguitarius Music andOld Man Future. All Rights for Sadguitarius and OldMan Future Controlled and Administered by Third SpiritMusic (SESAC). International Copyright Secured. AllRights Reserved. Used by Permission.

a)

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36 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

Also known as tone clusters, clusterchords usually consist of at least three con-secutive tones in a scale, played simultane-ously. Some of the early proponents ofcluster chords were composers HenryCowell, Charles Ives, Bela Bartok, and

Karlheinz Stockhausen. Jazz musiciansknown for their use of clusters include rag-time pianists Jelly Roll Morton and ScottJoplin — and more recent players like Thelo-nious Monk, Horace Silver, Cecil Taylor,Herbie Hancock, and Chick Corea.

While some cluster chords are meantto be dissonant and disturbing, others areof consonant construction, and quite soni-cally pleasing. Here are some ideas toget you started on the road to thicker,richer chords.

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�Ex. 2. Here’s a cluster derived from the A Mixolydian mode. Notice the scale cluster in the left hand, and the major triad in the right hand. This is also an excellent struc-ture to move around in parallel as a means of harmonizing melodies. The two clusters in 2b are derived from the G melodic minor scale, and can be used for the follow-ing chords: Gm(maj7), A7sus4b9, Bbmaj7#5, C7#11, D7b13, Em7b5, and F#7alt. Measure 2c shows a wider cluster for use on A7b9, derived from the A dominantdiminished scale.

Ex. 3. Perhaps one of the most compelling intros ever played by Herbie Hancock is on the classic Wayne Shorter composition“Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum” from the CD Speak No Evil. Herbie played cluster voicings, but the music presented here adds even morenotes to create richer, thicker voicings.

Ex. 1. This example explores one of the most dissonant — and powerful — clusters in the chromatic scale. Measure 1a has both the left and right hands playing five con-secutive chromatic scale tones. The first configuration in 1b has a Cm7 chord in the left hand and a Dm7 chord in the right hand; as you can see, playing clusters canget the fingers from both hands intertwined. By playing these two minor-seventh chords together, you’re actually playing all the notes of the C Dorian mode. You can usethis as a Cm7 chord, or any of the other chords derived from the Bb major parent scale. The second configuration can be used for the same chords, but the distributionof notes has the clusters isolated in each hand. In 1c, use the left hand to play Gdim7 and the right hand to play Adim7. Putting these two diminished seventh chordstogether yields all the notes of the G diminished scale. The second configuration distributes the notes into two groups of diminished scale clusters. Either way, you canplay these for any of the chords derived from this diminished scale (Gdim7, Bbdim7, Dbdim7, Edim7, A7, C7, Eb7, and Gb7).

CLUSTER CHORDSby Andy LaVerne

Listen to some great cluster chordson Wayne Shorter’s Speak No Evil(Blue Note) and Charles Lloyd’sForest Flower (Atlantic).

38 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

New York duo MGMT has struck goldwith their electro anthems “Time To Pre-tend” and “Kids,” proving that a hookymelody always wins. Of course, a slickretro synth patch to play it on doesn’thurt. To cook up the “Time To Pretend”lead, we’ll use Way Out Ware’sTimewARP 2600, which faithfully emu-lates the classic ARP 2600 semi-modularanalog synth. TimewARP 2600 is whatthe highly technical refer to as a “prettyhonkin’ synth” — it has tons of parametersand routing options. We’ll use it in astraightforward way, though, so justabout any virtual analog will work. Thepatch itself is only half the secret here —there are some key effects we’ll bring inafterwards.

1. This patch only uses one oscillator, setto a sawtooth wave. In TimewARP2600, run a virtual patch cord from the“sawtooth” jack to the VCO 1 input inthe VCF audio mixer section.

2. Using a lowpass filter (in four-pole or24db-per-octave mode), set the cutoffabout 75 percent open and resonance at 20 percent. The exact cutofffrequency on TimewARP 2600 is2,764Hz.

3. Make the amplitude envelope a simpleon/off type: attack, decay and release atzero and sustain all the way up.

4. On TimewARP 2600, turn up theAudio/VCF slider and Control/ADSRslider in the VCA mixer section, andfinally, turn up the VCA slider all the wayat the right in the Mixer section.

5. Now we have a bland sawtoothpatch. We spice it up by adding vibrato.Most synths call the relevant settingsomething like “LFO depth” or “pitchmod amount.” In TimewARP 2600, anyof the three oscillators can be switchedto low-frequency (LF) mode, so I

used oscillator 2 (VCO 2) to generatevibrato.

6. Then, I turned up the VCO 2 slider (theone in the VCO 1 section) to modulateVCO 1’s frequency. Use a sine or trian-gle wave set to about 7.3Hz with depthset pretty deep.

Now we’ll add some plug-in effects in theDAW. I used a subtle amount of Logic’sBitcrusher to make the tone a little more “inyour face.” Then I added EQ with a steeplow shelf rolloff from 440Hz down, an 8dBpeak at 1,300Hz to emphasize the nasalhonk, and a high shelf at 6,500Hz todampen highs that’d make things sound too“hi-fi” otherwise. Finally, I added a mediumamount of large, dark room reverb for sonicspace — you can hear a similar one in theintro of the original MGMT track.

Learn to play the key licks from “Time To Pretend”on page 36.

DO IT ! SOFT SYNTHS

MGMT’S “TIME TO PRETEND” SYNTH LEADby Mitchell Sigman

The original ARP 2600 didn’t have oscilla-tor wave selector switches. Instead, eachoscillator had a default waveform thatyou could override by plugging in patchcords. Here I’ve patched a sawtooth wavefrom VCO 1 into the filter’s VCO 1 input.

Go to keyboardmag.com/how-to or celebutantemusic.com/keybmag for this story with audio examples.You can also download the “Time To Pretend” patch for Way Out Ware’s TimewARP 2600 soft synth.

1

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40 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

Getting the most bombast from yourbass synths can be a bit of a chore. EQis one way to do it, but the results can beuneven if your bass line covers a range ofmore than one octave. Sub-harmonicenhancement, either via plug-ins or hard-ware, is another way, but it can introducemuddy low-end artifacts if a producerisn’t careful.

A few years back, I stumbled upon atrick that’s infinitely more precise thaneither of the above approaches, and isblissfully simple: Just add a sine wave.

Ableton users may notice preset instru-ments that include a macro knob labeled

“Body.” This knob mixes in a sine waveeither at the fundamental frequency or anoctave below. With this approach, we canemphasize only the frequencies present inour bass line, without introducing mud, dis-tortion, or unwanted overtones to the sur-rounding frequency ranges.

Simply duplicate the entire bass track.On the copied track, replace the originalsynth with a single sine wave oscillator,then mix copied and original tracks to taste.Most soft synths include sines as a wave-form option, but if for some reason none ofyours do, a triangle wave will work. Thoughit’s not quite as clean, adding a lowpass

filter to mute the triangle’s harmonics willhelp it blend better.

Below are three examples using Pro-pellerhead Reason’s Subtractor synth,and the process is really straightforward.Use oscillator 1 as your primary waveform,then use oscillator 2 to slowly add thesine wave.

One note of caution: It’s easy to getcarried away with the sine wave approachand add too much low-end to your bassline. When in doubt, compare your mix to afew commercial releases to ensure thatyou’re bangin’, not boomy. A little goes along way!

DO IT ! DANCE M IX

SINE OF THE TIMESby Francis Preve

Ex. 1. Here’s the initial patch: a single-oscillator sawtooth (oscillator2 is turned off) with the filter cutoff about 75 percent open.

Ex. 2. Now, we turn on the second oscillator, which is generating asine wave at the fundamental frequency only. For demonstrationpurposes, the sine is mixed a tad loud in the audio example atkeyboardmag.com/how-to, so you can hear its effect.

Ex. 3. For even more bottomy goodness, here’s the same patch withthe sine wave tuned one octave lower than in Example 2. Again, it’smixed in strongly for demonstration purposes.

Read this story online at keyboardmag.com/how-to for audio examples.

42 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

Inspired by the past - built for the futureIn the beginning, synthesizers weren’t about presets and using the same sounds as everyone else. They weren’t even about creating your own sounds. They were about creating your own original synthesis system. Origin takes the concept of analog modular instruments of the past to a new level using cutting edge digital technology. As a system housing several synthesizers, Origin goes far beyond what you can imagine. Some of these synths come from the past, such as the Minimoog, some are totally new and innovative. The end result is a sound that both honors the classics of the past while taking your music into the future. Be Original.

www.arturia.com

One of the most powerful features ofDigidesign Pro Tools is its ability to route anyaudio signal to anywhere within or outside ofthe Pro Tools environment. If you’re engineer-ing a recording session, the producer mightsay, for example, “Bus the Rhodes track tothe reverb plug-in and return it to an aux tracknamed ‘Reverb Return.’” More likely, they’llskip anything that specific and say, “Set upa reverb effects loop for the Rhodes.” ProTools uses common audio terms to describethe components involved in signal routing,but those terms might not be so common ifyou’re just getting your feet wet, so see“Jargon Jockey” below to clarify them. Then,to build your own effects loop, follow thesesimple steps:

1. After you’ve recorded some audiotracks, create one stereo aux input track,and one stereo master fader track. Alltrack outputs should be set to your mainaudio interface outs (e.g., Analog 1-2).

2. In the menu bar at the top of Pro Tools’Mix window, choose “View > Mix Win-dow > Sends A-E” then “View > SendsA-E > Send A.”

3. Activate Send A on one of the audiotracks by clicking the little “a” buttonand selecting “Bus 1-2.” This assign-ment routes a copy of the audio trackfrom the send onto the bus. Be sure toturn up the volume and adjust the pan-ning of the send as necessary. Repeatthis for the other audio tracks.

4. Set the input of the stereo aux track to“Bus 1-2” as well. This completes theloop by letting the aux track receive thesignal from that bus. Insert your desiredeffects plug-in on the aux track. Bringup the volume fader on the aux trackand bam — you’ve got yourself aneffects loop.

DO IT ! PRODU CTION

EFFECTS LOOP BASICS IN PRO TOOLSby David Franz

JARGON JOCKEYBus: A pipeline that carries asignal somewhere other thandirectly to the master output,usually carrying several sig-nals to one place. Send: A knob or fader thatdecides how much of a signalgoes down the bus. Think of thisas the “faucet” to the pipeline.Aux: An auxiliary input track.This is the destination of thebus, and acts like an audiotrack — it has a fader, and youcan pan it and put effects on it. Return: The output of the aux-iliary track, or end of thepipeline. In our example, itfeeds the main master output(Analog 1-2).

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Control the volumes of the unaffected or “dry” signals withthe audio (blue) tracks’ big faders, adjust how much signal isrouted to the effect with the little send fader on each audiotrack, and control the overall reverb effect amount with theaux (green) track’s fader.

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David Franz wrote the book Producing in the Home Studiowith Pro Tools (Berklee Press) and teaches online courses inmusic production at Berkleemusic.com.

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If I get one question more than anyother — from folks who might not be themajor keyboard geek I’ve been for thepast 25 years — it’s “Hey, you’re akeyboard guy. What’s the best digitalpiano if I’m just getting started?”Keyboard asked manufacturers the samequestion, and they sent their favorite spec-imens to compare. Ease of use, portability,and low price were paramount, but otherthan that, we let them infer their ownanswers to the inevitable follow-up ques-tion: “Getting started doing what?” Thisyielded seven candidates that, as you’llsee, had different strengths, but all withbeginner-friendliness and exceptionalvalue in common.

Five of the pianos in this roundup —the Casio Privia PX-320, Kawai EP3,Roland FP-4, and Yamaha NP-30 andP85 — have built-in speakers, whichmakes them ideal for households thatwant to keep it simple and not add furtheramps or speakers. With the proper adap-tor cables, though, any piano in thisroundup could be amplified through ahome theater or stereo system.

The two entries without speakers —the M-Audio ProKeys 88sx and ProKeysSono 88 — are starter pianos for a differ-ent sort of musician: the budding gig-player or desktop music producer. The

88sx is an ultra-light stage piano (andMIDI controller) for pro gigging, and doessuch a good job at this that it won ourKey Buy award in May ’06. The Sono 88adds a 16-bit/44.1kHz audio interface, soit’s all you need to play soft synths from acomputer or record audio to one. Ofcourse, it wouldn’t be in this roundup if itwasn’t also a digital piano you can playwithout a computer.

PORTABILITY ANDAESTHETICSThe Yamaha NP-30 is the keyboardequivalent of the campfire guitar. Just 12pounds, it’s the only keyboard in thisgroup that runs on batteries (six AA). Thismakes it a perfect vacation companion forspontaneous jams. On a family trip to thebeach, I easily wrapped it in a towel andput it across the luggage in the back ofthe car. Recessed channels on the bot-tom provide easy grip points.

At 25 pounds, the Yamaha P85 hasthe second-smallest weight and footprintof the pianos with built-in speakers. Likethe NP-30, recessed grooves on the bot-tom ease carrying. However, the under-side isn’t entirely flat — there’s a convexbulge in the middle. This is no problem ifusing the optional, furniture-style L85stand, or any other that supports the P85

at either end. On a regular X-type stand,whether the P85 sits flat or wobblesdepends on where each side of the Xtouches it, which depends on the heightthe stand is set to. The P85 will sit flat ona desk or similar flat surface.

The Casio Privia PX-320 is closest insize and weight to the P85, and also hasgood grab spots underneath. I have minorconcerns over how well the fabricstretched over the speaker grilles mightstand up to high-energy children or lots ofweekend bar gigs. As always, supervisionand keeping it covered when not in usego a long way in both settings. The PriviaPX-120 ($699.99 list/approx. $499street) is almost identical in size andweight to the PX-320, and features thesame built-in speaker system.

At 33 pounds, the Roland FP-4 is thenext heaviest in the group, but the modestweight gain is made up for by the sleekand sturdy chassis. The rugged steel con-struction should stand up to weekendgigs; at the same time, the pebbled blackfinish is equally at home in a well-heeledliving room.

Both M-Audio pianos are near-iden-tical in size, though the Sono 88 isseven pounds heavier than the ProKeys88sx. This is partially due to the extraparts involved in the Sono’s USB audio

G EAR

by Eric Lawson

TH E STARTE R P IANO

THE STARTERPIANOWe rounded up seven of today’s latest digital pianos that emphasize portability and low cost. Is one of them right for you?

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interface. Both are extremely compact,and are the tiniest 88-note keyboards I’veseen that include pitchbend and modula-tion wheels, and the only ones in thisroundup that have them. Either ProKeyspiano is so portable as to be the ideal“lives in the car” stage piano, with theSono being the choice if some of yoursounds come from your laptop.

The Kawai EP3 is the largest piano wetested, and at 46 pounds, the heaviest.Its larger speaker system contributes tothis, but also to room-filling sound. Makeno mistake, this is a gorgeous beast, witha shiny black steel finish that exudesclass. Between this and the nicely under-stated control panel, the EP3 is a greataesthetic choice if you need a digitalpiano that doesn’t look “technological,”but lack the space or budget for a modeldesigned to look like an acoustic uprightor baby grand.

KEYBOARD FEELIf traditional piano lessons are part of theplan, you want to get as close as possibleto the weight and resistance of anacoustic piano — any teacher will insistthat practicing on a synth-like action won’tbuild the finger strength that translates toa real piano when it’s time for that recital.If you’re playing for the fun of picking uptunes, or even doing weekend gigs, actionbecomes more of a matter of taste.

The Yamaha NP-30’s action is techni-cally semi-weighted: extremely light com-pared to a real piano, but meatier thanyour basic synth or Costco-boughtportable keyboard, and with keys shapedlike piano’s. One of the NP-30’s conces-sions to portability is that it has 76 keys(E to G) instead of the ususal 88.

The Yamaha P85’s fully-weighted actionis also graded, meaning it’s slightly heavierat the bass end and lighter towards thetreble, like an acoustic piano. Even thoughthe keys have a shiny plastic surface,they’re easy to dig into, and Yamaha’s sig-nature bright piano sounds really comealive under these black ’n’ whites.

The Roland FP-4’s keyboard is fully-weighted and graded. To my fingers, it feltmuch lighter than the Yamaha P85 andCasio Privia actions, but still weightyenough to feel like a real piano. It has apleasant “woody” quality, with a mattefinish on the keys to control slipperiness.Its quick key return allows for fast classi-cal runs and two-fisted rock and bluesplaying alike, without tiring out the hands.

The semi-weighted keys on both M-Audio pianos aim for the golden meanbetween pianists and synth players, andare about 1/2" shorter front-to-back thanthose on the other pianos. Like theYamaha NP-30, the keys are shaped likea piano’s as opposed to a synth’s.

Of the two, I preferred the Sono’s

shiny-surfaced action; it felt a bit lighterand more fluid than the 88sx. While the88sx has a slip-proof matte finish on thekeys, the heavier-sprung resistance felt abit unnatural on acoustic piano sounds.On other internal sounds, such as theEPs and Clav, it felt better. You coulddig into it all night with little or no fingerfatigue. Executive editor Stephen Fortnerobserved of both actions, “They remindme of the Keystation 88es MIDIcontroller, which I like for all-around usebecause the keys are chunky enough toplay piano like you mean it, but springyenough for organ and synth leads.”Those who want a weighted hammeraction combined with more extensiveMIDI controller abilities than the starterpianos in this roundup offer shouldcheck out M-Audio’s full-size ProKeys88 (reviewed July ’05).

I was pleasantly surprised by theSono’s non-piano sounds — the vocal andstring pads are especially nice when lay-ered with the pianos. The clonewheelorgan has a tasty bit of authentic chorusthat reminded me of my real Hammondorgan, and the Clavs and EPs made Fort-ner say, “I’d feel fine playing these in aband of serious funk guys.”

The Casio Privia PX-320 action is prob-ably the heaviest of all the pianos in thisroundup and while I liked how it played, Icould see it being tiresome on the hands

Kawai EP3

Casio Privia PX-320

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during a long gig. For practicing handexercises and first-year classical pieces,though, it’d be a piano teacher’s darling.Subjectively, it had a similar feel to theP85, but with heavier resistance starting atthe low end of the keyboard. The PX-120’saction is identical to the PX-320.

The action on the Kawai EP3 is quitesimilar to the Roland FP-4: fully-weighted,graded, and very pianistic, but with lighterweight than the Privia or P85, and apleasant non-slip matte finish on the keys.I could hardly differentiate these twoactions in a blind test.

EASE OF USEPlaying the Yamaha NP-30 couldn’t beany easier. However, changing soundsrequires you to press a function button,then hit one of the keyboard keys.Seven neighborhood kids on springbreak all loved playing the NP-30, butnone of them figured out how to changesounds from the default “Piano 1” with-out adult guidance. Likewise, to layersounds, you press the function button,then the two keys for the sounds youwant together — sound names are easilyreadable above the keys. Other extrafeatures (such as metronome tempoand time signature) are also accessedthis way.

The Yamaha P85 has dedicated but-tons for each sound type, so choosingsounds is extremely easy. I was pleas-antly surprised that, along with some ofthe other pianos tested, it does “toneremain” (see chart on page 47). This letsyou change to a new sound while sustain-

ing notes (by holding keys or the sustainpedal) from the old sound. Many modernkeyboards, pro synths among them, cutoff sustained notes as soon as you hit anew sound button. Layering sounds onthe P85 is a piece of cake — simply presstwo buttons at once.

Either M-Audio piano is immenselyuseful for the aspiring pro who needs 88keys for songwriting or otherwise workingin the studio or onstage. On the Sono, it’sa cinch to layer sounds and adjust theirbalance with the Voice Volume Knob. Ihooked up both M-Audios via USB to myMacbook Pro running Logic and Main-stage, and they worked “plug and play” ascontrollers for my soft synths — way cool.

The Casio Privia PX-320 and PX-120are extremely easy to use, with all soundsand features clearly labeled. Sound namesare silkscreened above the panel buttons;functions underneath. On the PX-120, youselect the two main piano sounds withdedicated buttons, and others in the man-ner of the Yamaha NP-30 — press a tonebutton, then a keyboard key. Other thingsare accessed in this way as well, but thekeys’ alternate functions are clearly labeledon the “fallboard” just above each key.

The Kawai EP3 is straightforward,with similar operation to the P85. It’s sim-ple to set up splits and layers — just holdtwo buttons together — and all the func-tions are easily accessed in a minimalistfashion. This is an elegant user interface.

SOUNDSThe Yamaha NP-30’s piano soundsremind me of much more expensive

Yamaha digital pianos. They respond wellto touch, considering the light action. It’snot hard to play softly and darkly, or verybrightly, depending on if you caress thekeys or really lay into them. There’s a pairof electric pianos: a DX7-style reminis-cent of the ’80s and a more traditionalRhodes that barks nicely under pressure.Rounding out the sounds are twochurchy pipe organs, a string section,and a harpsichord. Sounds can be lay-ered, a nice plus for such an inexpensivekeyboard. With 32-voice polyphony,some voice-stealing is apparent whenplaying a lot of notes with the sustainpedal down.

To my ears, the P85’s soundsseemed identical to the NP-30’s. I didfeel like I was getting more detail anddynamic levels from the P85, though,most likely due to the enhanced responseof its weighted action. So I tried playingthe NP-30 via MIDI from the P85’s key-board — and could not discern any differ-ence other than the P85 having twicethe polyphony.

The Roland FP-4 is chock full ofgreat sounds (333 total, including theGeneral MIDI bank). The bulk of non-piano sounds are accessed through apair of +/- buttons, though, and it’slaborious to scroll through them all.Thankfully, the frequently-used soundsget their own buttons, and layering orsplitting sounds is a matter of pushingtwo buttons at once. A really cool fea-ture is a knob for balancing two soundsin a layer or split. The only other keyboardin this roundup with such a balance

M-Audio ProKeys Sono 88

M-Audio ProKeys 88sx

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knob is the M-Audio ProKeys Sono 88.The FP-4’s main piano sounds are

sourced from a more expensive procousin, the RD-700SX. The default pianohas clarity and a satisfying sustain, andyou get enough variations not to getbored. The variations accentuate differentparts of the EQ spectrum, providingclassical- and modern-sounding pianos atthe push of a button.

Each M-Audio has a similar batch ofsounds, with the Sono edging out the88sx in versatility, as it has a better B-3organ sound, strings and choirs, plus anonboard General MIDI bank. The electricpianos and Clavs in the 88sx are funkyand authentic, though. The core acousticpiano sounds in these boards are verygood, especially for the price, and I’d usethem for rehearsing and combo gigs. TheSono can also layer two sounds.

The Casio PX-320’s piano soundswere, in my opinion, the most instantlygratifying at first play. The sense ofimmersion in a rich stereo field hasimpact from the moment you dig in to theinitial offerings of classical, modern, androck piano variations. I think this is due tohow Casio aimed their onboard speakers— they have a bit more tilt and thereforeproject at the player aggressively. Icouldn’t make the Privia’s pianos soundbad. The PX-320’s alternate sounds runthe gamut from solid electric pianos,strings, pads, and synths to a full bank ofGeneral MIDI sounds. For its lower price,

the PX-120 gives you11 sounds, butthese include two ofthe same grandpianos as in the PX-320. Surprsingly, theless expensive PX-120 doesn’t skimpon polyphony; it has128 voices like itsbigger brother.

The Kawai EP3’score piano soundevokes a classicaltone, and remindedme of an old Stein-way or Bösendorfer (though of courseit’s sampled from a Kawai concertgrand). Somewhat dark and woody, thispiano sound works well for solo perform-ances. The onboard speakers did won-ders for creating a sense of space. Infact, the Kawai’s speakers win the prizefor the most realistic “sounds like a realpiano in the room” illusion.

BELLS AND WHISTLESThe NP-30 is a straight-ahead portablepiano with no drum rhythms, songrecording, or arranger features — justsome built-in demo songs. Given itsextreme portability and affordability,that’s neither surprising nor objection-able. It does have a metronome that’llkeep time in 4/4, plus 3/4 for waltzes or5/4 if you’re mad about Brubeck. The

NP-30 has a single headphone jackwhere all other pianos in this

roundup have two. Twojacks let teacher andstudent, or parentand child, playtogether without dis-turbing anyone.

The P85 has abasic MIDI recorderthat captures onesingle-track song — anice way to sketch outand remember a tuneif inspiration strikes, orto record a practicedpiece for later evalua-tion by a teacher.

The Roland FP-4 is the Rolls Royce interms of extra features. Session Partner isan addictive auto-accompaniment systemwith drum beats, chords, and bass linesthat follow your playing. It’s really fun tojam along to the 80 onboard styles. TheFP-4 also boasts a three-track songrecorder and effects: adjustable reverb,one selectable multi-effect, and SoundControl (Roland’s name for preset EQ),available simultaneously. There’s arespectable Leslie simulation, with aselectable slow and fast rotary switch;the FP-4 is the only starter piano withthis feature. Left and right 1/4" audioinputs let you hear another keyboard — oran iPod, CD player, or other source ofmusic you’d like to learn — through theFP-4’s built-in speakers.

Both M-Audio ProKeys units are theonly entries with pitch and modulationwheels, making them more flexible for usewith a computer and soft synths. The88sx includes an AC adaptor, but that’san optional accessory for the USB-powered Sono. As mentioned before, theSono is unique in this roundup becauseit’s also a USB computer audio interfacewith an XLR mic and 1/4" instrument(guitar) inputs, plus stereo RCA line-levelinputs. Given that it comes with AbletonLive Lite, it’s a “starter” music productionsystem as well as a digital piano — justadd computer.

The Casio PX-320 is the onlykeyboard in this lineup with an SD Cardslot, for saving song data from the built-intwo-track recorder in addition to sound

Roland FP-4

Yamaha P-85

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registrations. The PX-320 also features1/4" stereo inputs for playing other key-boards (or MP3 players) through itsspeakers. Similar to Roland’s SessionPartner, the PX-320 has a cool auto-accompaniment feature with 70 rhythmpatterns. I had a lot of fun with Casio’s“one-man band,” and the only thing theFP-4 had that the PX-320 didn’t was avisual chord readout. You get similarauto-band features on the PX-120, butwith 20 styles instead of 70. Both Priviaehave basic reverb and chorus effects,which can be used together.

The Kawai EP3 has a two-track songrecorder and stereo line inputs. There’salso a hidden feature called “FourHands.” You trigger it by pressing theSplit button along with the Damperpedal. This splits the keyboard, with thelower end transposed up two octaves,and the top transposed down twooctaves. This lets two pairs of handsplay in the same range, so a teacherand student could play the same notes.

CONCLUSIONSAfter playing all these contenders throughonboard speakers as well comparing

their sounds through a pair of ADAMA7 studio monitors, I’m convinced thatpiano sounds are highly subjective, andhow “good” we think they are is influ-enced — clouded, even — by our per-sonal exposure to piano in certaingenres. You can read more about howeach piano sounded through studiomonitors as well as keyboard amps, atkeyboardmag.com.

Having said that, all pianos withonboard speakers delivered respectablesound on their own, with the YamahaNP-30 on the entry level of the volumeand bass spectrum (still plenty if yourjam-mates are playing acoustic guitarsand bongos), and the Kawai EP3 win-ning the “Carnegie Hall” award for fillinga room. In the middle, the Privia PX-320,Roland FP-4, and Yamaha P85 wereevenly matched as to how their internalspeakers projected sound.

We need to call out the Casio PriviaPX-320 for bang-for-buck. At a street priceof around $700, it delivers the mostpolyphony, the most sounds, and the most

G EAR TH E STARTE R P IANO

When we asked major keyboardcompanies, “Send us your lightestand most affordable digital pianos fora roundup,” Korg — being thestraight-shooters they are —graciously declined, saying, “Well,we’ve got the SP-250, but it’s 42pounds.” Then, two things happened.Kawai sent us the impressive (and 45-pound) EP3, and just as we went to press, the street price of the Korg SP-250dropped to around $700. So we’ve gotta give it a shout out. Our full reviewfrom the May ’06 issue is linked to the online version of this roundup at keyboardmag.com. Stephen Fortner

Yamaha NP-30

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pianistic keyboard feel in its price range.In fact, it’ll toe-to-toe with digital pianosthat cost two or three times as much. Ifits price is still too high, the PX-120gives you the same sound, feel, and formfactor, and a few of the fun-add features,for about $200 less.

The Yamaha NP-30 is the “ultimatebeach party keyboard” with its tiny size,solid sounds, and battery power. Also,the price is so low that it’s a great choiceif you’re feeling non-committal, say,because you’re worried your kids won’tstick with it — or that they’ll beat the livingdaylights out of whatever you buy.

I rate the Kawai EP3 as most built likea tank, with Roland’s FP-4 a close sec-ond. This is a subjective call, but theEP3’s playing experience seemed moreclassical and “upper-crusty” than theother pianos in this roundup (in particu-lar the brighter Yamahas and Casio).With its robust speakers and thetuxedo-like black finish, it’s a greatacoustic piano replacement for a for-mal setting — the kind where the hostwould otherwise be embarrassedabout a musical instrument having apower cord.

With its moderate price, simpleoperation, great sounds, and relativeportability, I’d recommend the Yamaha P85as best for overall use by the whole family.The Roland FP-4 would be my choice if youneeded a family piano to do double-dutyat weekend gigs, given its sturdy buildquality, superb sounds, and action thatwon’t tire your hands over a long night.

The M-Audio ProKeys duo are anexceptional value if, beginning or budget-conscious though you may be, more ofyour musical aspirations happen after darkthan after school. Their portability makesthem equally useful for seasoned playerswho always want 88 keys at the ready forworking out tunes. With the Sono’s audiointerfacing, you’ve got a tight littlerecording solution for keyboard-playingsongwriters on the move. Given their more“pro audio” look and orientation, they’realso most likely to succeed at holding theinterest of any musically-inclined teenagerfor whom “living room” digital pianos justaren’t hip enough.

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Arturia has had great success withtheir “V” line of soft synths that look andsound like the classic cars of the synthworld: the Moog Modular and Minimoog,Yamaha CS-80, Roland Jupiter-8, Sequen-tial Circuits Prophet-5 and Prophet-VS, andARP 2600. What could be cooler than tobundle these together in a single hardwarebox with lots of knobs, a step sequencer,and some modern goodies?

That’s Origin, but it isn’t just a hardwareversion of Arturia’s existing software. It’s afull-fledged modular synth in its own right.You can run Moog and Jupiter oscillators

through ARP and CS-80 filters, forinstance. Although it’s capable of someedgy, digital-era patches, Origin is mainlyabout huge analog sound.

FACTORY SOUNDSCan you say “big”? Can you say “mon-strously big”? I knew you could. When itcomes to amazing sounds, Origin getsfull marks. You’ll find fat ’80s synth-poppads like “City Lights,” analog stringsand choir such as “JP Strings” and“Memory Voices,” greasy basses such as“Zyzz Bass,” and “Dancin in L.A.,” trancy

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by Jim Aikin

PROSMonstrously huge sound. Lots of knobs.Interactive step sequencer. Highlypatchable, quite like a modular synth.Four-part multitimbral with aux outs.Numerous modules emulate vintagesynth components. CONSLimited polyphony. Several importantfeatures not yet implemented. No com-pare button for patch edits. Manualcontains some minor errors and couldbe clearer.INFO$3,200 list/approx. $2,500 street,arturia.com

ARTU R IA OR IG I N

ARTURIA ORIGINThe Synth Freak’s Dream Realizer

For an audio clip of a composition Jim Aikin recordedusing only Origin sounds, plus expanded coverage of its

synth engine, go to keyboardmag.com/audition.

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arpeggio patterns like “Fluid Arpeggio”and “Arpturia”, light leads (“7tease”), cut-ting leads (“Feedback”), a Joe Zawinul-esque multi called “FerretKing,”meat-and-potatoes comping fodderfrom jazz guitar to synth strings toelectric piano, and much more.

Stylistically, more of Origin’s factory

patches lean toward a Euro-techno vibethan toward the warm, “natural” analogsounds you’d hear on mainstream tracksout of L.A. Having spent a few weeks withOrigin himself, Executive Editor StephenFortner observed, “Factory sounds canhave a lot of bells and whistles becausethe designers want to show off everythingtheir new baby can do. With Origin, I foundthat getting more complex patches tosound ‘old-school’ was often a matter ofdialing back the effects and removing amodulation or two.”

Factory sounds are in no particularorder, but two category search fields at thetop of the screen let you find what you needquickly. When saving your own patches,you can give them a project name, thensearch by project as well as by type (lead,keyboard, etc.), sound designer, and so on.

MULTI MODEThe truly massive sounds are found in multimode. Factory multis like “The Score” layerbrass with strings and a filter sweep, while“Dark Side 80s” and “Wavestation” com-bine a pad with a pulsing arpeggio. When Iplayed the multis, the polyphony limitsbecame apparent. Normally Origin is a 32-voice synth, but the actual number of noteswill be smaller, and will depend on CPUusage in a way that you can only figure outby listening. With some of the thicker mul-tis, Origin will play only three or four notesbefore running out of voices.

Origin provides 100 factory multipatches plus 156 empty locations foryour own. A multi has four parts. Each part

can be set to its own key zone, so youcan do splits and layers, but you can’t dovelocity- or knob-controlled splitting. Eachpart can be set to its own MIDI channelfor sequencing, and the outputs of thefour parts appear in stereo at the eight aux

HANDS-ON

Input for putting external audio through Origin’ssynth engine and effects gets its own front panelknob with LED meters.The joystick can access up to three pairs ofsettings for groovy realtime tweaking. The white knob in each of these sections selectswhich oscillator, filter, LFO, or envelope in apatch is controlled by the gray knobs. It’s not a touchscreen, but the hi-res color LCDprovides plenty of detail.Buttons below the LCD provide one-click access tothe main pages.The numeric keypad is strictly for calling upsounds, not for entering parameter values whenprogramming sounds.Press this wheel in (it’s also a button) to enterand exit data entry mode.The mixer section gives you instant control overthe layers in a patch or patches in a multi. These knobs are effect returns when effects arerouted in parallel, and wet/dry controls when theeffects are in series. Bypass individual effects, andcall them up for editing, with the buttons. Using this row of 16 knobs and the backlit buttonsbelow them, you can interact with a sequenceseamlessly as it plays.Wood side panels and curved lip at the bottom canbe removed for rackmounting.

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The long row of 1/4" jacks around back includes left and right audio inputs, main audio outs, eight aux audio outs, footswitch and sweep pedal inputs, and the head-phone out, which has its own level knob on the front panel. You also get S/PDIF digital audio out and USB.

NEED TO KNOW

What is it? A hardware synth withhigh-quality digital models of the oscil-lators and filters from several classicanalog synths.What classic synths? Oscillator andfilter models based on the Minimoog,Roland Jupiter-8, Yamaha CS-80, andARP 2600.How many notes will it play atonce? As many as 32 notes with sim-ple patches, about 12 with moderatelycomplex patches, and as few as threeor four in multi-patch layers.How easy is it to program soundson the built-in LCD? If you under-stand modular synthesis, it’s very easy.If you’re new to this type of program-ming, there’s a learning curve.Can I use it on external audio?Yes. Stereo audio inputs on the rearpanel can be routed through the filtersand effect modules.What are Arturia’s future plans forOrigin? More pre-configuredtemplates of classic instruments. MIDItransmission of knob and joystickmoves. A data readout onscreen forthe knobs. Multichannel USB audiooutput to computer.

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outputs — part 1 left, part 1 right, part 2left, and so on. You can transpose eachpart up to two octaves higher or lower inhalf-step increments, but there’s no fine-tuning beyond the half-steps.

HARDWARE CONTROLSThirteen of the 54 knobs (the 12 whiteones plus the main data wheel) are alsobuttons — turning one selects somethingand pressing it brings that thing up for edit-ing. The white knobs down either side ofthe screen are programmable per patch.You can assign a single parameter, but notseveral at once, to each of these by high-lighting the thing you want and pressingthe knob.

The other knobs are grouped accord-ing to synth section. In the envelope sec-tion, for instance, you turn the white knobuntil you see the envelope you want in abrief pop-up in the display. Now the grayknobs affect that envelope. Within a sec-tion, one knob can control multiple settingsvia a “macro” option. Spin the white filterknob to “macro filter,” for instance, and thecutoff and resonance knobs will sweepevery filter in the patch at once. It’d be bet-ter still if you could handpick any parame-ters and assign your own macros to thescreenside knobs, as in soft synths that do“scenes” or “patch morphing.” Put that onour wish list for a future OS update.

Not to diminish the coolness of multiple

envelopes and filters per patch, but tweak-ing them isn’t as intuitive as it could be,because a glance gives no clear indicationof which oscillator, filter, LFO, or envelope agiven bunch of knobs currently controls —you have to move a knob to get the pop-upthat tells you what it does. However, Ori-gin’s system is logical and easy enough tolearn, and if you get in the habit of assigningthe eight screenside knobs to things you’regoing to use, you won’t have to fish for theright oscillator or filter when performing.

I also found it tough to get used to thedata entry method. The large data wheeldoes two things besides the usual scrollingthrough patches: First, it moves the editinghighlight (a black outline around the currentmodule or parameter) onscreen; the fourcursor buttons below it do the same thing.When you press the wheel (or Enter but-ton), the black outline turns red to indicatethat the wheel now changes the value ofthe highlighted thing — but the cursor dia-mond becomes inactive. I often meant toedit a parameter and wound up moving theediting highlight instead. My suggestion:Make the wheel strictly for data entry andthe cursor diamond strictly for navigation.With most parameters, turning the wheel(or a knob) doesn’t display the currentvalue. Arturia plans to add this amenity in afuture OS update.

The first two units we evaluated wereamong the first to roll off the assembly line,

and both had some hardware problems,such as the screen occasionally being darkon power-up. We alerted Arturia to theissues, and a third unit, which we received acouple of months later, tested out perfectly.

PATCHING THE MODULESWith 400 great factory sounds to choosefrom, it may be a while before you start pro-gramming your own to fill the 600 emptyslots. When you do, you’ll find a very deep,flexible modular synth. For a true synthgeek’s discussion of the modules andpatching system, go to keyboardmag.comfor this article’s online version, which hasan extra section called “More on the Mod-ules.” Here’s a quick overview.

A patch can have up to 20 modules inany combination. The available modulesinclude a two-dimensional vector envelopereminiscent of the original Prophet-VS, anda crazy triple LFO called Galaxy, which wefirst encountered in Jupiter-8V (reviewedJun. ’07). The number of inputs and outputsavailable per module isn’t fixed — you canstack them as needed.

Oscillators and filters include Minimoog,Jupiter, CS-80, and ARP (but no Prophet)types, which emulate the character of eachhistoric synth. Then there’s the “Origin”oscillator and filter: generic types that useless DSP power. Finally, the Wavetableoscillator produces the same glassy, gritty,digital waveforms as the Prophet-VS. Using

SOFT SYNTHS IN HARDWAREThere are two ways to design sounds in the Origin. You can call up a soft synth-like template or freely patch together modules based on Arturia’s well-known soft synths.At press time, the Minimoog (left) is the only full template, but components from Minimoog V, Jupiter-8V, ARP 2600V, and CS-80V (such as the CS-80 type oscillatorshown at right) are all onboard, so you can patch together, say, a virtual Jupiter-8.

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Origin’s joystick, you can emulate how theVS’ joystick crossfaded between its digitaloscillators — “Bode Pad” (patch 0193) isone example.

Arturia’s oscillators are free of aliasing,but when you send an oscillator through afilter, the filter adds some aliasing. It’sextremely low-level, if audible at all. Fortnercommented, “If I octave-shift up and play inthe top two octaves of a 61-key controller, Ican hear just a little. Overall, though, Originsounds as smooth as any virtual analogmachine gets.”

There’s no Compare button for patchedits, and no undo. If you press any of theSound Select buttons (on the numeric key-pad) during an edit session, your edits willbe lost, because there’s no “Are you sure?”before exiting edit mode.

Arturia plans to offer pre-patched tem-plates for four classic synths (see “SoftSynths in Hardware” on page 56). The onlytemplate in version 1.0, however, is the Mini-moog V. It adds matrix modulation and anextra LFO to the original Mini configuration.

ORIGIN’S SEQUENCER Tech, trance, and house musicians, and fans of old-school synths, will love Origin’s step sequencer.Sequences can be up to 32 steps long, and you can set odd lengths such as 19 or 25 steps. You can store 128of your own sequences, each of which contains three sub-sequences (rows) with accent and slide functions.Buttons let you select which sub-sequence Origin’s row of 16 knobs and lighted buttons controls; the buttonshere can also choose different sequencer patterns.

Normally, you’d use sub-sequences to change the filter cutoff, panning, and/or loudness of steps, but it’seasy to make them do three-note chords. Playing your MIDI keyboard gates the sequencer, unless the Holdbutton is lit, which keeps it running when you let off the keys. The sequence transposes with your playing,and if you hold a chord, several instances run in parallel. Origin also has a standard arpeggiator.

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EFFECTSOrigin has three independent effectsprocessors and five types: reverb, stereodelay, chorus, distortion, and dual phaser.Only one of each type can be active in apatch. The effects can run in series or par-allel; in parallel, each of the four outputmodules in a patch has its own sends forthe three effects, so you can do tricks likeputting only delay on one oscillator/filtercombo while putting only distortion onanother. The effects parameters aren’tfancy, but I was very pleased to find thatthe distortion’s drive knob is gain-compen-sated: You can turn it up or down withoutaltering the output volume.

COMPUTER CONNECTIONThe manual mentions a capability that’splanned but not yet implemented: multi-channel USB audio between Origin andyour computer. At present, USB isstrictly for MIDI and for communicatingwith the included librarian software.That software isn’t an editor, but given

the luxurious hardware controls, youhardly need one.

When I hooked Origin up to my PC andtried it with Steinberg Cubase, I found thatits sequencer would sync to incoming MIDIclock — as long as I started the Cubasetransport a few beats before the first noteCubase transmitted (to gate Origin’ssequencer). If I quantized a note to a barline then started playback right on thatnote, Origin would take a fraction of a sec-ond to get going, which put it out of syncuntil it received another (quantized) note.Once it locked up to the second note-on, itstayed in sync.

At present, Origin can’t transmit MIDIfrom its own knobs or joystick, either viaUSB or the regular MIDI output jack.Arturia plans to add this in a future OSupdate. Parameters can receive MIDI con-trol messages — so you can automate, say,a filter cutoff by drawing a curve in a MIDItrack on your DAW — but it’d be nicer if youcould record that automation by turning theknob on Origin itself.

CONCLUSIONSOrigin is an ambitious instrument. I’mbowled over by the sound, and excitedbecause what we have here is effectivelya virtual modular synth. I can live withoutthe other vintage synth templates,because the oscillators and filters thatwould make them up are already in there.When they get here, though, they’ll bewelcomed by anyone who wants ready-to-play, hardware-powered versions ofArturia soft synths. “Normally, either the‘just like a classic’ or the ‘totally open-ended’ aspect dominates a synth,” addseditor Stephen Fortner. “To get either ofthem, you’re usually talking software.Balancing both aspects, and doing it instandalone hardware, is prettyaudacious. That Origin does it so wellproves the audacity paid off.”

If you want powerhouse analog sound,the flexibility of soft synths, the zero latencyand no-hassle factor of hardware, and apanel full of knobs to tweak, Origin justmay be your dream machine.

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As a DJ who routinely tests newremixes-in-progress at my gigs, having atop-notch mastering tool isn’t just a “wouldbe nice,” but rather an absolute essential.Few things are more embarrassing thanbeing up in front of a crowd, fading out of acommercial release and into your own lat-est gem, and having it sounding small andamateurish by comparison.

For years, I’d subsisted on the factoryeffects that came with my DAW’s bundledCD mastering software package. At thebeginning it was fine, but as the stakes got

higher, I started to wonder why even mystudents’ tracks were sounding so big. Iasked around and one answer kept comingback: iZotope Ozone.

So last summer, I made the switch toOzone 3 and fell in love. This multipur-pose mastering plug-in made even one-day demos sound like finished releases.That’s absolutely no exaggeration. WhenOzone 4 arrived, I was eager to digdeeper into its new features. Is version 4 aho-hum semi-improvement — or a full-ongame changer?

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by Francis Preve

PROSLearn function takes guesswork out ofmultiband mastering. Mid-side process-ing adjusts center and edges of stereofield separately. Macros and global slid-ers are extremely easy to use for broadadjustments. Transparent and powerfulloudness maximizer.CONSWith all of its processes running simul-taneously, Ozone is a tad CPU hungry.INFO$249.99 list/approx. $200 streetizotope.com

I ZOTOPE OZON E 4

IZOTOPE OZONE 4Masterful Mastering

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THE OZONE COLLECTIONOzone comes with pretty much every mas-tering device required for delivering profes-sional results. Paragraphic EQ, multibanddynamics, loudness maximization, satura-tors, exciters, and stereo imaging tools areall present and accounted for, along withadditional amenities like reverb and multipledithering options for making your tunesound ideal in the usual 16-bit listeningformats. The nifty thing about how Ozone’simplements these tools is that many ofthem — the harmonic exciter and stereoimager included — are multiband-enabled.This means you can use just one or twofrequency ranges of (for instance) theexciter to gently give the upper mids somepresence without shredding the highs.Another example is that you could reallywiden the stereo field of the high-end “air”in your tracks while leaving the lowsuntouched.

The six-band paragraphic EQ is also astandout, with both an “analog” modeand digital linear phase correction. It alsohas a “matching” tool, which lets it sam-ple the frequency curve of a referencerecording and apply that curve to the sig-nal to be mastered. While other applica-tions also include this type of “spectrummatching,” it’s particularly well-suited to

the mastering stage, and Ozone’s imple-mentation is solid. With thoughtful trackmatching done by Ozone’s premium EQs,the results can be impressive.

For many producers, the true test of amastering software suite is how much andhow transparently it maximizes loudness.For the uninitiated, loudness maximizationis a process that elevates the technicalprinciples of limiting to high art, letting pro-ducers squash a mix into a solid brick offull-assault audio. Good loudnessmaximization maintains the illusion ofdynamic differences between loud and softpassages in the music. Apple Logic’sAdaptive Limiter is an example of this tech-nology, as is Waves’ legendary L1 and itssuccessors. I’m here to tell you that I’vetried the majority of the tools out there —both included with a DAW app and third-party — and Ozone’s loudness maximizer isthe among the best I’ve ever used. ItsCharacter slider and “Intelligent” releasemodes make it possible to compress thebejeezus out of a track while keeping it bigand punchy. Elven magic, methinks.

STANDOUT FEATURESAt the highest level, Ozone 4 is easier touse than any other mastering tool that’sgraced my hard drive. With its Macro

HANDS-ONCosmetically, Ozone 4’s main user interface takesits predecessor’s look up a few notches — it’sprettier than ever.As with Ozone 3, the dynamics, stereo imaging,and exciter do up to four discrete bands, so youcan tailor the amount of each effect to specificfrequency ranges.In addition to displaying the crossover points forthe multiband processing, the upper displayincludes realtime spectrum analysis.New mid-side processing lets you apply effectslike exciters and reverb to either the center or theedges of your song’s stereo field.Each processor now has its own slider for chang-ing the overall amount of a given effect, ratherthan digging into the individual parameters.A Global Amount slider serves as a macro for alleffects in a given preset at once, so new users canmake sonic changes first and learn the ingredientsthat go into them later.

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NEED TO KNOW

What is it? A full suite of high-endmastering tools in a single plug-in.What tools are included? LoudnessMaximizer, Paragraphic EQ, MultibandDynamics, Multiband Stereo Imaging,Harmonic Exciter, Mastering Reverb,and Dithering.How good are the factory presets?They cover a lot more than mere mas-tering applications, with well-designedreverbs, plus EQ that delivers bothlinear-phase accuracy and analogcoziness.Sound compared to Ozone 3?Bigger, wider, and much moreprecisely controlled.What does it run on? Power PC orIntel Mac with OS 10.4 or later; Win-dows XP, x64 or Vista. AU, DX, MAS,RTAS (Pro Tools), and VST plug-informats.Is it worth upgrading? Absolutely.The macro-based global and moduleamount controls allow even non-engi-neers to quickly customize complexpresets to suit the needs of almost anytrack – and the mid/side stereo func-tions deliver some very clever newmastering options you’ll be hardpressed to find elsewhere.

OZONE’S PRESET WINDOWOzone’s preset panel is now detachable, so you switch between previewing presets and editing them with fewermouse clicks. Each preset now has its own set of relevant macros in plain English for working quickly. At thebottom of the panel, you can see which processors are active for each preset.

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Presets feature, single sliders control sev-eral settings at once, so new users canshape overall EQ, dynamics, and stereocharacter — basically skating over Ozone’ssurface while keeping the option open tocustomize its presets, thanks to Ozone’seasy-to-grasp terminology. One leveldeeper are Module Amount Control slidersthat let you increase or decrease the gen-eral depth of any active processor. Let’ssay you love a preset, but want to widenthe stereo field a bit more, then back off atouch on the loudness maximizing. Justnudge each module’s slider accordingly.Even for seasoned engineers, this canmeasurably speed up mastering workflow.

On the opposite end of the program-ming spectrum, Ozone 4 includes somereally deep new features for massaging justabout any mix into something really special.Probably the coolest new amenity is mid-side processing in several of Ozone’s tools,specifically the EQ, harmonic exciter, mas-tering reverb, and multiband dynamics. Ifyou’re new to the concept, mid-side pro-cessing can apply different amounts of aneffect to the center and “edges” of thestereo field.

For example, using the exciter, youmight add a bit of tube warmth to the low-mids in the center of your mix, while makingthe highs sizzle only at the far left and rightsides of the stereo picture. If the descrip-tion sounds incredible to you, wait until youhear it in action. Speaking of analogwarmth, in addition to Ozone 3’s tube, tapeand retro modes, Ozone 4’s exciter nowsports a “warm” mode, which performs sortof like a blend of the three.

The crossovers in each of the multiband-enabled tools have also improved in subtleyet nifty ways. While iZotope’s websitetouts Ozone 4’s new Hybrid Crossover ascombining “analog character with perfectreconstruction characteristics,” the Learnfunction is the upgrade that caught myattention. If you’ve ever wrestled withselecting frequency ranges for a giventrack, wrestle no more. Just feed Ozoneyour mix, right-click the bands, and select“Learn.” From there, you can watch eachband resize automatically as it analyzes thesignal for the perfect crossover points in

real time. It’s a great-looking animation, andbest of all, it does a darned good job atmaking the right decisions for you, so yourears can stay focused.

OTHER AMENITIESIn addition to the above highlights, Ozone4 includes a slew of little touches that go along way toward improving the overallmastering process. There’s an exhaustivelist on iZotope’s website, but here are theimprovements that directly helped myworkflow.

What used to be the mute function oneach crossover band is now a solo control,which makes infinitely more sense in thecontext of setting up a multiband exciter orcompressor. The new mid-side processesare similarly solo-enabled, so you can iso-late specific processes within the stereofield for meticulous tweaks.

The Automatic Bypass Gain functiontransparently adjusts the relative volume ofthe unprocessed signal when comparing,so A/Bing a track doesn’t constantlyrequire having a finger on your master vol-ume fader.

Many of the tools, such as the EQ andcrossover functions, include CPU optimiza-tions, which I definitely noticed when work-ing on my 2GHz Core2 Duo MacBook —not a slowpoke, but not Vin Diesel’s streetracer either. These optimizations aren’t madeacross the board with every effect, so theamount of performance boost depends onwhat you’re using at a given time. Speakingof the EQ, you can now drag multiplenodes simultaneously. While admittedlyminor, once you get used to this, you’llwonder why everyone doesn’t implement it.

THE GREAT RESTORATIONBeing an Ozone fan, I already knew howgreat it sounded on modern productions,so as I was kicking the tires, I decided tounearth a few old demos from 2002 to seehow much Ozone could improve themwhile keeping everything soundingrelatively natural. Since the original materialwas end-to-end digital, this was a perfectopportunity to tinker with Ozone 4’sexciter’s saturation options without addingobvious distortion.

I started by boosting the lows slightlywith the paragraphic EQ. Nothing major,just a dB or so, centered at 80Hz with awide Q (bandwidth), using Ozone’s “ana-log” mode, which I generally prefer. Fromthere I activated the multiband dynamics,then used the Learn function to optimize thecrossover points. Since the track evolvedover time, I selected a dense part of thearrangement to analyze. I simply cannotoveremphasize how genuinely useful thisfeature is. Previously, I had to dial throughpresets until I found something that wasclose, then tinker from there. Now I justclick, enjoy the animation, then adjust thedynamics of each band until I’m satisfied.

From there, I applied a touch of multi-band exciter in mid-side mode. Using theexciter’s “tape” mode, I warmed up themidrange in mono, then added a bit of siz-zle to the edges of the top frequencies. Itsounded great, so I moved on to the multi-band stereo imaging, narrowing the widthof the lows, then spreading the upper midsslightly and the highs significantly.

Finally, I slapped on Ozone’s loudnessmaximizer in “Intelligent II” mode, loweringthe threshold until I could hear the effectkicking in, then backing off a tiny bit so asnot to overdo it.

I was quite pleased with the results untilI A/B’ed the track with the original and real-ized that the harmonic excitement was atad extreme. Rather than go back to theexciter’s editing panel, I decided to simplyuse that processor’s global slider to back itoff. A few moments later, I compared thetwo versions again and was surprised byhow much Ozone was able to improvethe mix without making it soundoverprocessed.

CONCLUSIONSI generally don’t gush unless a producttruly blows me away. Last year, Ozone 3became a staple of my production process,and I was completely satisfied with it in itsprevious iteration. Now, it’s indispensable,and includes a great-sounding reverb toboot. If you’re in the market for masteringtools that deliver professional results for astreet price of about $200, then you’vefound a Key Buy-winning solution.

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I’ve always been a high-end cableskeptic. I don’t buy the cheapest stuff inthe store, but triple digits for a single run?“Maybe for connecting rare guitars to rareramps,” I’d think, “But for keyboards, it’sgotta be overkill.”

Analysis Plus got my attention by say-ing, “We’ll send you some, and if you don’thear a difference, no sweat.” I got a pair oftheir standard Yellow Ovals (shown), plus a

balanced pair with skinnier straight barrelsthan the ones in the picture. Since the jackson many keyboards, mixers, and audiointerfaces are very close together, the“regular” fat barrels often pushed laterallyagainst each other when I ran stereo; theright-angle and skinny barrels (which youcan specify when you order) fit fine.

Running the output of a modern synthinto my mixer and studio monitors didn’tseem to do anything immediately. I heardthe first improvement as tracks began tostack up in a multitrack test recording — ithad less of that “1995 workstation demo”quality that can crop up when you use thesame keyboard for every sound. I alsobegan to feel as though the microscopictime between pressed key and heard notewas shorter: less latency, which paid off inthe form of better groove as I overdubbed.

“No way can an audio cable do this,” Ithought. So I repeated the experiment a fewtimes, and if I trust my senses, yes, it can.

This was most pronounced with vintagekeys such as real Clav and Rhodes Stage.It’s not like there was a problem with thecables I normally use, but swapping in theAnalysis Plus took a veil off the sound, andin terms of perceived latency, was almostlike turning the buffer on your audio inter-face down a setting.

I’m still skeptical about a lot of things thatclaim to improve your sound, but the YellowOvals have become my go-to cables forrecording and important gigs, and make amore tangible improvement than higher-pricedpremium cables I’ve tried. Perhaps they’resomething you buy after you’ve paid off thecredit card for other musical essentials, butonce you do, you won’t look back.

by Stephen Fortner

ANALYSIS PLUS YELLOW OVALPremium Audio Cables

PROSDefinite improvement to sound qualityand latency. Best ruggedness and buildquality we’ve seen in a cable.CONSExpensive. INFO10': $119 list/approx. $109 street;15': $164 list/approx. $154 street, analysis-plus.com

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Michael Duff is a singer/songwriter/producer living in Los Angeles and is the former lead singer/songwriter of Chalk FarMApple – Logic Studio, Mac Pro & MacBook Pro Euphonix – MC Mix controller Apogee – Duet audio interface Avalon – VT-737SP processor M-Audio – Axiom 61 USB keyboard Zoom – H2 recorder Digidesign – 002 Rack with Pro Tools LE

Line 6 – Pod & Bass Pod Pro Marshall Electronics – MXL V77 tube mic Fender & Taylor – guitars Tannoy – speakers

To locate an Apple Pro Audio Reseller near you, please go to: musicplayer.com/appleaudioresellers

With the i r expert knowledge, product se lect ion and pass ion for music, Apple Pro Audio Resellers are the perfect destination to build your dream studio.

©2009 EUPHONIX INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. MC MIX IS A TRADEMARK OF EUPHONIX INC. APPLE, LOGIC STUDIO, MAC PRO AND MACBOOK PRO ARE TRADEMARKS OF APPLE INC.

ALL OTHER TRADEMARKS ARE PROPERTY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS.

Studio Solutionsfor creative musicians everywhere

Synthogy Ivory raised the bar forhigh-quality sampled grand pianos. IvoryUpright Pianos is an equally ambitious sequel,weighing in at roughly 50GB with over 5,000samples and up to ten velocity layers.

Ivory Uprights fills a great void in thehigh-end sampled piano world. In the past,I’ve slapped EQ and effects on grandpiano sounds to emulate uprights, but thatonly goes so far. Bass strings are shorterand thicker on an upright, requiring agreater degree of “stretch” tuning, as wellas producing more inharmonicity and fasterdecay of high harmonics. The soundboardof an upright is also smaller and the ironframe is lighter, creating a different tonalcharacter. These aren’t characteristics youcan easily duplicate with effects.

The four uprights on hand (see “NeedTo Know” at right) give you a high degreeof variety, which is only increased by the

excellent sculpting abilities in the Ivoryinterface and included presets. Read thisreview at keyboardmag.com for info on thenew “Creaks & Clunks” (piano noises) lay-ers and the upright soundboard models.

I liked the “Modern” Yamaha best formost uses. It’s fun to play, and like manyYamaha upright and grand pianos, its bright,dynamic sound sits well in pop and rockmixes. However, it also has less characterthan the other models, which are just rightfor less run-of-the-mill circumstances. The1915 Packard model was custom-detunedjust enough to create an authentic barroomsound, but not so much as to sound like a“honky tonk” ROMpler preset. The tackpiano is less detuned, but equally loadedwith personality, brighter than the Packard,and just the thing for scoring gritty film cues.The 1914 Hume (which is not detuned)offers another vintage flavor — warmer thanthe Yamaha, but less like a grand in sound.Next to the Yamaha, I’d be most likely to usethis piano. In some rock contexts, I like iteven better, as it’s perfect for lending instantindie attitude to a song — think Ben Folds orColdplay before they got huge.

While it’s hard to argue that everyoneneeds a premium virtual upright the wayeveryone needs a good virtual grand, it is

about time a developer put the care intothe former that we’ve come to expect fromthe latter. If any of your piano tracks havewanted for a certain intimacy and grit thatyour grands haven’t quite delivered, IvoryUprights should be your first listen.

by Geoff Grace

PROSTotally authentic upright pianos. Distinctpersonalities of vintage and currentmodels. Lots of editing flexibility.CONSRequired iLok key is not included.INFO$299 list/approx. $279 street, synthogy.com NEED TO KNOW

What pianos are in it? “Modern” isa new Yamaha U5, “Vintage” is a 1914A. M. Hume, “Barroom” is a 1915Packard, and “Tack Piano” has metaltacks in the hammer felts.Do I need a fast computer? OnMac or PC, you need a 7200rpm orfaster hard drive and at least 1GB ofRAM. See synthogy.com for detailedsystem and OS requirements.Plug-in formats: AU, RTAS, VST, andstandalone mode.Why sample an upright instead ofa grand? Uprights often have morecharacter and “period” vibe. Thinkspeakeasies, ragtime, vintage jazz, orrocking out on the only piano yourschool didn’t keep locked.Do I need the original Ivory to usethis? Nope — Ivory Uprights stands onits own as a virtual instrument.

SYNTHOGY IVORY UPRIGHT PIANOSUpright Done Right

G EARSYNTHOGY IVORY U PR IG HT P IANOS

Original audio examples and expandedcoverage of Ivory Uprights’ features areat keyboardmag.com/audition.

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70 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

PRODU CT SPOTL IG HT Special Advertising Section

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710 6 . 2 0 0 9 K E Y B O A R D

CLASS IF IEDS

I played the bulk of the We Are Oneshow on Hammond B-3, one of my favoriteinstruments; I used a B-3 modified by TrekII. My other go-to keyboard was the OpenLabs NeKo. They were kind enough to pro-vide me with their LX5 model before any-one else had one. As for the soft synths Irun on it, I have just about everything outthere — a bunch of Giga stuff, Spectra-sonics, Native Instruments, ProjectSAM,

Synthogy Ivory, Ilio Origins, MOTU MachFive, the list goes on.

I’ve used NeKos on many TV gigs —the Oscars, the Emmys, the Grammys. Ishowed it to Herbie Hancock and StevieWonder. They flipped out. They haveevery keyboard known, so it was cool tohave something they didn’t. [Laughs.] I’msure the next time I go to Herbie’s, he’llhave three of ’em! I also used a Yamaha

Motif ES8 and a Korg Triton Extreme. Ican pretty much cover everything with allof those.

As to the stage sound, I mixed every-thing through a Mackie 12-channel mixerthat lived next to the Leslie [See photo onpage 21. –Ed.], but splits were taken beforethat for the front-of-house. I had in-ear mon-itors, and also a wedge which was mainlyto hear the Leslie properly. Michael Bearden

R IG HTEOU S ROAD R IGSGEEK OUT

Leslie 122out to Leslie

Hammond B-3

Korg Triton Extreme 76

left mic right mic

upper left mic in

Left AudioRight Audio

upper right mic in

bottom mic in

Yamaha Motif ES8

Open Labs NeKo

Mackie 1201VLZ 3Mixer

ILLU

STR

ATIO

N B

Y R

ICK

EB

ER

LY

MICHAEL BEARDEN’SINAUGURATION RIG

For up-close photos of this keyboard rig on the stepsof the Lincoln Memorial, visit keyboardmag.com. See

our cover story on this historic gig on page 20.

72 K E Y B O A R D 0 6 . 2 0 0 9

Steinberg is a registered trademark of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH.Yamaha Corporation of America is the exclusive distributor for Steinberg in the United States.

©2009 Yamaha Corporation of America. All rights reserved.

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