RETURN OF THE PUTNEY

In 1968, I was involved in discussion with Dr. Jerrold Ross about joining a new department at New York University in which I would be involved in creating new programs to establish a diverse, visionary performing arts department. I had just finished composing and producing a multimedia opera, ROTATION, as part of my doctoral thesis.  As it happened, I was studying composition with David Simon who happened to be the registrar of the New York College of Music. During the course of our lessons, I would disclose a number of ideas I had about music and technology and a new divergent model for music and performing arts programs connected to the professions. The concept was to have technology support every aspect of other programs, using recording studios to provide experience for our performance majors to be recorded, while also examining new techniques for recording, and researching acoustic and electronic sounds.

PUTNEY VCS

In 1969, as we began to implement a new program in music technology and music business, I learned of a new concept for a music synthesizer designed by Peter Zinoviev, an engineer musician who felt that synthesizers were overpriced. He designed the Synthi A which was dubbed the PUTNEY,  a voltage control synthesizer.  It sold for less than $1000.  I bought two for the department, and another for myself. Zinovief eliminated synthesizer patch cords with a grid that connected modules by means of a pin. He also added a joystick that could be connected to manipulate sounds and controls simultaneously. This began our modest beginning in music synthesis, and we set up dividing part of the hallway outside the music office into a synthesizer studio.

In 1970, KEYBOARD MAGAZINE, contacted me about NYU Co-Hosting with them a conference called THE SYNTHESIZER EXPLOSION. On a weekend, we transformed the Education Building and the Student Union Building into studios and demo rooms and we hosted hundreds of manufacturers and several hundred additional musicians and technicians for three days of transformational concerts, lectures and demos in Loewe Theatre,and hundreds more demos going on in different rooms and floors of The Educational Building and Student Union. The Synthesizer Explosion had about 2500-3000 visitors come to Washington Square for an iconic event.

Years passed and as the program grew, we moved to the eighth floor, and I traded a Steinway for an extensive Buchla 100 system, and we devoted a studio to the system.  We had installed a recording studio and a research lab on the eighth floor, and eventually the entire floor became studios for program with the exception of 879, which remained a classroom, while also servicing courses for music business and technology.

During this time of the COVID-19 Pandemic, I decided I wanted to return to experimenting with new aspects of music electronics and synthesis and began to research Eurorack systems and modules. As I was in the midst of designing my new system for improvising ambient music which I would use in videos and live performance, ERICA INSTRUMENTS announced it was creating a new version of the SYNTHI A (Putney VCS) that would be available at the end of April.

SYNTRX (ERICA INSTRUMENTS)

This is an extremely exciting development. The new version preserves the identity of the original, but has been updated for 2020. It really is an ingenious replication and a tribute to the visionary genius of Peter Zinovev.  Needless to say, I am awaiting its arrival in a few weeks if production is able to stay on schedule.  In many ways, in this time of isolation because of the endemic, I feel like I am entering a new era of sonic awareness.  I continue to design my ambient Eurorack, as there is so much more that I can explore.

A demo gives a taste of expressive qualities of The Syntrx.

 In https://youtu.be/nwsQnB2jDsA

DETOUR~ THE ROAD NOT TRAVELLED

There was tremendous negative energy in the air a few days ago.  It started peaking on Thursday, March 12... it was independent of CRV-19, but fear of the virus contributed to heightened anxiety... anger and fear. I had experienced a fantastic positive day on Wednesday.. which had followed Dr. Lisa Naugle of UCI departing after a two-day intensive that we could only describe as research... Researching Lived Experience. 

One primary object of research was the new multimedia production of West Side Story. The production was using media to construct the dramatic environment, using still images, prepared video, and live video.  These were techniques we had experimented in our international workshop IMPACT for ten years. 

Also in that context, under IMPACT PRESENTS, three of my theatre pieces utilized these techniques: IF TIME REMEMBERS (2014), ROTATION (2015), and IF THIS BE MADNESS (2016).

The works mentioned are works remounted from the past with new material added and production techniques using extended media and process. My research with Lisa those few days in March hasn't produced any mutual collaboration, inspires and informs my work going forward.