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Looper's Delight
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At 8:30 AM -0400 7/1/02, Hedewa7@aol.com wrote: >sometimes i'm the one making the original bleeping that's being >looped, and at other times i'm looping other sources --- inputs from >microphones on the sax-ist, the drummer, bassist, singer, etc..... At 6:14 PM +0100 7/1/02, Steve Lawson wrote: >I did the recently with vibraphonist Orphy Robinson - I ran his MALLET KAT >MIDI vibes thingie into my loop set up, and tweaked away - it was great >fun, >and when we play live, I'm thinking of having a line from the MALLET KAT >into my raven labs DI, so I can bring it in and out when I want to to loop >bits in with my bass nonsense... Aside from the occasional solo gig where I process prerecorded material, all of my performances are based on sampling and processing of other performers. The setup varies somewhat, but normally is built around a mixer with multiple effects sends and several processors. I did this for several years (1982-85) with Diamanda Galas, using two DDLs, an Eventide Harmonizer, and digital reverb. In this case there was no looping (except on one of the prerecorded backing tapes), but there was a certain amount of cross-routing of the effects. I returned all the effects outputs to mixer inputs, so that I could send one effect to another via the effects sends. The main outputs generally went to a quad surround speaker system. We used four microphones, and these were often sent individually to separate processors. Mics were also spatially assigned for some pieces. On "Eyes Without Blood" AKA "Les yeux sans sang" AKA "Wild Women With Steakknives" three stand mics were arranged in a small triangle. The left mic went to the left front speaker and the right mic to the right speaker; the top (center) mic went to the rear speaker(s). The left and right mics were individually assigned to DDLs and the returns of these delays were assigned to the opposite speakers (left mic to left speaker and to DDL1; DDL1 output to right speaker). The hand-held mic went to all speakers. Performances with bassist Robert Black used a smaller setup, usually an Eventide H3000 and one or two TC2290 sampler/delays, with everything controlled from a Max patch and fader boxes. The processing was generally more extreme than with Diamanda and was much more freely improvised. In these performances looping and processing with long delays were common. A couple projects with the Philadelphia new music ensemble Relache used a method of sending selected inputs to a Fairlight Voicetracker, so rather than imposing effects processing on the instrumental sounds I would generate a derived synthesizer voice that tracked the source with varying degrees of accuracy. Sometimes I'd send an instrument signal into a reverb and then to the Voicetracker, introducing a kind of "pitch memory" to the VT's response. My setup with Cosmic Debris (late '90s) used a pair of Eventides fed by signals from the rest of the band (actor, flute, keyboard synths, percussion loops, sometimes bass). The processing in this case was all over the DSP map, but looping and sampling were prominent in certain pieces. Signal routing was accomplished with a sort of backwards patching of an old Mackie 1604 mixer. I'd send the Alt 3-4 outputs to the house mix, which allowed me to audition my post-fader effects without sending either the source or the effects to the mix. Then when I was ready I would assign the effect to Alt. Processing other people can be challenging both on a technical and aesthetic level and on an interpersonal level. Most people just don't like their performance to be messed with; others treat it as a delightful opportunity. -- ______________________________________________________________ Richard Zvonar, PhD (818) 788-2202 http://www.zvonar.com http://RZCybernetics.com http://www.cybmotion.com/aliaszone http://www.live365.com/cgi-bin/directory.cgi?autostart=rz