julean simon

about "wax"

"Julean Simon plays a wind controler and is one of a few specialists for this type of instrument worldwide. He primarily uses physical modelling synthesis and programs dynamic voice control (MAX/ MSP). He is interested in the variability and playability of electronic voices and developed special playing techniques - e.g. polyphonic multivoice playing. His works can be seen as cross-over of contemporary music, new jazz and experimental electronic music with a strong improvisatorial approach. He performes solo and in various ensembles, sometimes integrating other media such as digital images, video, light, dance, etc. In 2005 the CD [polimer]isation has been published at Konnex-Records." (HG)

wind-controler / blaswandler

Commercial instruments : A wind-midi-controler (e.g. WX5) is an electronic instrument with saxophone-type key-fingering. The keys do not alter the aircolumn though, but trigger sensors. The instrument has a sax-like mouthpiece with a lip-pressure sensor and a wind-gain sensor. The sensors send midi-data to a hard or software-synthesizer, which actually produces the voice. (see: wind-controlers)

In the case of the Yamaha VL70m or VL1m sound is generated by algorithms called physical modelling which (instead of employing usual techiques like frequency modulation or sampling) calculates a sound on the basis of the physical properties of a wind-instrument. The voices used in the early projects have been generated with yamaha`s "Expert Editor" which gives thorough control of the fairly complex parameter space. Although voices often sound like an acoustical instrument (e.g. trumpet, sax characteristics), the main focus has not been to achieve similarity to the traditional instrument sound, but to optimize playability, the range of variability and the expressive capability.

prototype developments

wax2

Compared with the traditional saxophone, a wind-controler gains degrees of freedam on different levels:
* form: there is no need to cope with the form of an air-columne,
* fingering: no need to cope with the logic of elongating/shortening an air-columne,
* mouthpiece: requires no vibrating reed, air-flow could go bi-directional

A WX5 looks like a plastic clarinet. Besides reaching a broader buyer-range, there is actually no need to approximate the classical instrument-form. The form of an acoustical instrument depends to a high degree to the physical necessity to modulate an air-columne with the fingers (or to requirements regarding resonance in the case of a violin, etc.). An electronic instrument allows to dedicate formal aspects mainly to ergonomical considerations. I built several prototypes to test ergonomic settings and hardware sensor-interface layouts. I call this series of instruments "WAX".

The MidiBody Interface: In midi-instruments we have a separation of sound and soundsource. Instead, the instrument has to establish an interface between the body and the processing of soundparamenters. To make a real instrument the body-based controling has to be emphasized.
An instrument is a composition-principle (on a high level) to which the designer of the instrument, the players and composers commit  themselves.

The traditional procedures in electronic music to generate sounds are oscillators, frequncy-modulation, waveforms, sampling, etc. Yamaha's "virtual acoustic" simulates vibrations, resonances, reflections and other acoustical phenomena via physical modelling. It allows a complex mapping of sound-parameters to controler-interactions, the instrument becomes highly responsive and realistic for the player, comparable to an acoustical instrument.

Physical Modelling is a form of synthesis that generates sounds on the basis of the physical properties of a defined virtual instrument. Actually the programer defines a mathematical model of an instrument and the sound is a spin-off of its activation through control-parameters.

The wave-guide model stands in the center of physical modelling synthesis. It simulates delay-sequences and reflection-coefficients of a swinging aircolumne or string by way of socalled delay-lines. Virtual instruments consist of a driver (form of mouthpiece, reed, plectrum, etc.) and the resonance-system. The timbre of the voice is the result of all components in a certain state such as damping, absorbtion, the form aof the resonance-body, pitch, blow-pressure, attack, formant and other aspects of embouchure, etc. These parameters can be influenced by mapping them to contol-interactions.

The programming of voices is therefore complex and it takes a long time to understand the behavior of hundreds of parameters and their internal interaction. The factory presets and most commercial voices are not really useful in my opinion, so programming them yourself is the way to go.

Additionally I use MAX/MSP to write software-based sound-generation, performance-control programs which allow fast access to particular voice-parameters, voice-mixing, spatialisation, organization of voice-settings, etc. and also programs that support practicing. My central performance-control program is called ombOS (one man band operation system). A very light version of this project "vlctrl" can be downloaded.

Blaswandeln (2002, germ)

Der Instrumentalist in der elektronischen Musik (IEM) (2004, germ)

Der Instrumentalist in der elektronischen Musik (NMI) (04/06, germ)

Was zeigt das Bild dem Ton: Zur audio-visuellen Kopplung (NMI 2007 Akademie d. Wissenschaften, Berlin)