mildbill Posted February 1, 2007 Share Posted February 1, 2007 http://www.kurzweilai.net/news/frame.html?main=/news/news_single.html?id%3D6360 Whoa! I wonder what this will bring? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mate stubb Posted February 1, 2007 Share Posted February 1, 2007 Tis a good sign for them. Looks like the company is waking up after a long slumber. I for one welcome our new Kurzweil overlords. Moe --- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Lewis Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 Tis a good sign for them. Looks like the company is waking up after a long slumber. mate - I sure hope so - it's been a long time coming. ivorycj Main stuff: Yamaha CP88 | Korg Kronos 2 73 | Kurzweil Forte 7 | 1898 Steinway I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mildbill Posted February 2, 2007 Author Share Posted February 2, 2007 oops - 'HVX' already posted about this in the other Kurzweil thread. Oh well, it's good news and worth a double posting I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Pierce Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 Even if this hiring is only symbolic (and I'm not saying it is, only that it could be), it's a really good sign about Hyundai's intentions for their new acquisition. Viva Kurz! --Dave Make my funk the P-funk. I wants to get funked up. My Funk/Jam originals project: http://www.thefunkery.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 IIRC, Ray didn't really have that much to do with the development of the instruments....he was much more about running the companies. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Professional Affiliations: Royer Labs • Music Player Network Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kad Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 IIRC, Ray didn't really have that much to do with the development of the instruments....he was much more about running the companies. dB Ray was the driving force behind the development of the original K250, which demonstrated to the world, in the mid 1980's, that digital sampling really could produce a viable replica of an acoustic piano. To this day, I still use that original K250 piano sample (in my K2600XS) for live performances. It has "character". I am thrilled to hear that Ray is once again associated with this incredible company!!! Reality is like the sun - you can block it out for a time but it ain't goin' away... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HVX Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 oops - 'HVX' already posted about this in the other Kurzweil thread. Oh well, it's good news and worth a double posting I guess. A separate thread all by itself was warranted for something like this. I'm very intrigued by his return. Like Jobs' return to Apple? Dunno. It'll be interesting just the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicbysterling Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 The really positive news is that Mike Papa is back at Kurzweil. He was the national sales manager of Kurzweil during the 90's heyday and ran the company very successfully. Mike will lift Kurzweil up if anyone can. �Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here!� J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mildbill Posted February 2, 2007 Author Share Posted February 2, 2007 The only thing that worries me about this news: I sure hope they don't go back to the attitude of "We're so good that we're going to have 'rock star' only prices". That'd sink 'em for sure. They started making lower end products, which more people could afford, but at the same time, they also pretty much gutted them of any semblance of VAST, which meant they weren't useful for people who like to program. The PC3 is the first board I've heard of from them that may have the potential to keep cost in line while having a good deal of on-board programming, and also allowing for a very good amount of control over external units. It's very appealing to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 Ray was the driving force behind the development of the original K250, which demonstrated to the world, in the mid 1980's, that digital sampling really could produce a viable replica of an acoustic piano. To this day, I still use that original K250 piano sample (in my K2600XS) for live performances. It has "character"....and you can thank Joe Ierardi from Synthogy for that. That sample was in the K1000 and K2000 as well, IIRC. Chet Graham, Bob Chidlaw, John Teele, Dexter Bates and a variety of others were the people behind the instrument itself. I used to work for Kurzweil in the late 80s. One of my three best friends in the world was Ray's administrative assistant for years. While I wasn't there for the K250's development, the engineers who were frequently commented that Ray's main influnence was more on the business side and not so much to do with the actual instrument itself. His new title seems to indicate (to me, anyway) that this is what they want from him again. I am thrilled to hear that Ray is once again associated with this incredible company!!!I'm a huge Kurz fan as well, so I'll be interested to see what changes his presence bring about. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Professional Affiliations: Royer Labs • Music Player Network Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K K Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 They started making lower end products, which more people could afford, but at the same time, they also pretty much gutted them of any semblance of VAST, which meant they weren't useful for people who like to program. If you refer to the 1000 modules, they had excellent programmability for the time (around 1990), especially in modular mode. I still use my old Kurz Pro-1 module for certain sounds (clean Rhodes and electric guitars) that IMO no other synth still can surpass today, including the new Kurzweils. And if you refer to the PC2/PC1 series, you are missing the point about their true possibilities, since they use the same sound engine and basic VAST as the K2x00 series. With the PC2 manager freeware, those instruments offer an enormous programmability, including FUNs, numerous DSPs, thousands of parameters per layer, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Lewis Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 The only thing that worries me about this news: I sure hope they don't go back to the attitude of "We're so good that we're going to have 'rock star' only prices". But...but...I thought you WERE a rockstar!?! Oh, the pain...the disappointment :grin: ivorycj Main stuff: Yamaha CP88 | Korg Kronos 2 73 | Kurzweil Forte 7 | 1898 Steinway I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Real MC Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Great news to hear that Ray is back on board. Hopefully Hal Chamberlan is still there, he had a lot of involvement in the development of hardware and software of many of the Kurzweil products. Another fan of the 1000 modules (I have fully loaded PX, HX, SX, GX), they may not have DSP effects but the samples are top notch. Very underrated boxes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NuSkoolTone Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 The only thing that worries me about this news: I sure hope they don't go back to the attitude of "We're so good that we're going to have 'rock star' only prices". That'd sink 'em for sure. +1. It's why I never gave Kurzweil a chance. I just didn't feel the "bang for the buck" factor with their products. Of course when I was originally shopping the K series (1993) I had no idea that the architecture was going to stay for 10+ years! Also the original K2000 just felt cheap to me. I really hope they can step it up a notch with sounds that raise the bar and an intuitive snazzy new UI for the imminent K3000. Can't let the Big 3 have ALL the fun! This is where you put your gear list that no one reads anyway! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Schmieder Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 I had a feeling something was up when I was at the Kurzweil booth, but didn't expect Ray to come back on board. He looks so young, but isn't he in his late 60's or early 70's by now? I interviewed for him back in 1978 or thereabouts when he was running the reading devices for the blind outfit (a summer internship, but I didn't make the cut as I wasn't really experienced enough yet). He must have been at least in his mid to late 30's at the time? Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1, Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Muscara Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 "Raymond Kurzweil (pronounced: [k?z-wa?l]) (born February 12, 1948)" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_kurzweil "I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck "The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dp2 Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Rock Star prices or not, I'm glad I purchased my K2600XS. I like the versitility, the design, and the feel. Like NuSkoolTone, I too am waiting to see what Kurzweil does to raise the bar again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Schmieder Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Haha, just goes to show how "old" everyone seems when you're a teenager :-). Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1, Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Lewis Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Great news to hear that Ray is back on board. Hopefully Hal Chamberlan is still there, he had a lot of involvement in the development of hardware and software of many of the Kurzweil products. Another fan of the 1000 modules (I have fully loaded PX, HX, SX, GX), they may not have DSP effects but the samples are top notch. Very underrated boxes. TRMC, Hal is in fact still around - he was with us at the booth this year again. It's really cool having his experience and knowledge of the 'black art' of V.A.S.T. dB - in what years of your musical life did you work for us? ivorycj Main stuff: Yamaha CP88 | Korg Kronos 2 73 | Kurzweil Forte 7 | 1898 Steinway I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 dB - in what years of your musical life did you work for us? I worked at the Waverly Oaks Walltham facility during the 80s doing tech support, product demonstration and some R&D, and out in California in the early 90's as a product specialist. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Professional Affiliations: Royer Labs • Music Player Network Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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