Analog, digital, virtual analog, software synths… which one is the best option? Which sounds the best? This is one of the most frequent question I get from my listeners, students and even friends from the music industry.

Lot of people (still) talk about the warmth of analog, the precisions of digital, the superiority of hardware over plugins. At the same time, few are talking about the user experience, as opposed to the “perfect synth”. Or the impact of a different interface can have on the music itself. So let’s examine some differences, starting with the most fundamental to some more recent concepts. Read more…

The words “art” and “artist” are used extremely lightly these days. The honesty behind art. What is true art and what is fake art, no-art or an artsy commercial dishonest product? Self-declared artists. Marketing vs Art. Marketing vs Industry.

I don’t pretend to know the answer, but here is how I think of “art”. Read more…

Should an orchestra sound real in electronic music? Should composers like Vangelis use better samples, or is the focus purposely on something else? Although the technical difference between them is significant, what really sets sampled orchestral music and electro-orchestral music apart is the idea behind the composition, and the type of sonic character and musical expressions the composer prefers to communicate these different ideas with.

Let’s take a look at these two approaches to music production, which can result in very diverse types of outcomes. Read more…

Many think that the musical styles “Ambient” and “New Age” are the same and that these two words are interchangeable. And they could not be any more wrong. Examining the their origin, differences in purpose, influences, and especially the ideology behind them reveals a dynamic history. The intellectual approach and production techniques associated with examples of these works, from John Cage, Terry Riley, Brian Eno to Enya, Shpongle and relaxation music. Ambient musicians today loathe to be associated with new age, while most online stores don’t even have an ambient category for ambient music (and shove some of the most inventive records into some of the lowest quality release junk). Read more…

The global and personal story behind the Fukushima 50 Hymn, a tribute music dedicated to the heroes of the Fukushima nuclear plant and victims of the March 11 2011 Japan Tohoku earthquake, tsunami and nuclear catastrophe. Read more…