two synth questions

[Cowfingers]

right, excuse my ignorence here, but i hear aftertouch and apregiators mentioned all the time with regard to synths and i have no idea what they are. could somone please enlighten me?

thanks

-cowfingers

[Tusker]

Aftertouch is a message that is routed to a destination in the synth's parameters to alter the sound. For examples if you are playing a string pad and rout aftertouch to the filter cut-off, you could play a note and then vary the brightness of that note by varying the pressure you put on the key (while you are holding it down). There's polyphonic and monophonic aftertouch as described in this thread:

 

http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=18;t=004543

 

Most synth modules today receive poly aftertouch, but most synth keyboards only generate mono-aftertouch. Go figure.

 

An arpeggiator is an automation device. Hold down some notes and it plays a pattern based on the notes you held down. Generally if you are in the store and you hold down a note and the synth does a lot of patttern work (instead of a single note) chances are that's the synth's arpeggiator doing it's thing.

 

Cheers,

 

Jerry

[Cowfingers]

ah so an arpegiator is just a cheat to make it sound like your playing a complicated line when your not. electronic chops!

thanks

[Raymar]

Apeggiators are an electronic cheat but you don't have to just hold down a chord, you can play chords and notes too which is more interesting.

 

steve

[Pim]

If it sounds good, you ain't cheatin'...

[D_dup3]

Originally posted by Raymar:

Apeggiators are an electronic cheat but you don't have to just hold down a chord, you can play chords and notes too which is more interesting.

 

steve

A friend once made a very interesting, florid melody track by setting up an up & down arpeggiation program & then selecting several notes which he held down, releasing various notes as the line ran back & forth.