synths

• when did sampling start

  in the 1940s
• who started sampling in music

   Pierre Schaeffer
• what is musique concrete?

  music which was experimental and used of common sounds placing them firmly outside the realms of what was accepted and understood as ‘real music’ at the time
• what was the first tape based play back instrument and who created it

  the chamberlin created by harry chamberlin
• what was the chamberlin

  a keyboard which could play back any sound
• what was the most successful successor to the chamberlin?

  the mellotron, which can be heard in records by the beatles, king crimson and tangerine dream
• when was the mellotron invented

  1963
• what was the first digital sampler

  fairlight CMI
• what is the name of one of the earliest most influential synthesisers?

  e-mu systems SP-12
• when was the e-mu systems SP-12 released?

  1985
• What was the SP–12 conceived as a successor to?

  1. Mu Systems’ Drumulator
• What was the original intention behind the Drumulator?

  To rival Roger Linn’s iconic LM–1
• How many preset drum samples did the SP–12 include?

  24 preset drum samples
• What was the sampling rate of the e-mu systems SP–12?

  27.5 kHz
• How does the SP–12's sampling rate compare to CD-quality audio?

  CD-quality is 44.1 kHz at 16 bit, which is higher than the SP–12's rate
• What characterizes the sound of the SP–12?

  The "dusty" character due to its lower sampling rate
• Why was the timing of the SP–12's market arrival significant?

  It coincided with the evolution of hip-hop into a musical revolution
• Who is Marley Marl and what did he contribute to music?

  He stumbled upon the concept of sampling drum sounds and developed it in early records
• How did the SP–12 impact the practice of sampling in music?

  It normalised the practice of sampling breakbeats and drum sounds
• What was Rick Rubin's role in the summer of 1986 regarding the SP–12?


  He oversaw the sessions for the Beastie Boys’ debut album
• How did Rick Rubin utilize the SP–12 in the track ‘Rhymin & Stealin’?

  He used it to enhance the track’s drums with John Bonham samples
• Which Led Zeppelin song did Rick Rubin sample for the Beastie Boys’ track?

  ‘When The Levee Breaks’
• What was the SP–12 subverted by?

  The first generation of modern electronic musicians
• How did early DJs repurpose the turntable?

  They used it in innovative ways to create music
• What could you do after erasing the preset drum sounds on the SP–12?

  You could fill the machine’s memory with your own samples
• What did E-Mu Systems release to expand the SP–12’s sampling memory?

  A Turbo update that expanded the memory to 5 seconds
• What was the significance of the SP–1200 compared to the SP–12?

  The SP–1200 unlocked sampling’s potential and influenced hip-hop and dance music
• When was the SP–1200 released?

  1987
• How long was the SP–1200 in production?

  For a decade
• What change did E-Mu Systems make to the SP–1200 regarding preset drum samples?

  They got rid of the preset drum samples entirely
• How could users store samples on the SP–1200?

  By using a floppy disk
• How many samples could the SP–1200 hold with its four banks?

  A total of 32 possible samples
• What was the sampling time of the SP–1200?

  10 seconds
• What was the sampling rate of the SP–1200?

  26.04 kHz
• What was the impact of the SSM2044 filter chips on the SP–1200?

  They contributed to the machine's distinctive sound quality
• What did the SP–1200 provide to producers in terms of music creation?

  An all-in-one box to create entire tracks
• How did the limitations of the SP series contribute to its innovation?

  Its weaknesses became strengths, driving creativity
• What became synonymous with much of New York City’s musical output from 1987 onwards?

  The SP series’ easily-identifiable sound
• Who taught Large Professor to use the SP–1200?


  Paul C. McKasty
• What did Paul C. McKasty say about the SP–1200?

  It was the machine “you want to rock with.”