Speaking of futuristic instrumental design, the Eigenharp – an instrument that looks like the bassoon was redesigned by Vulcans – brings two big developments with its appearance this week in the Bay Area of California. First off, if you’ve doubted its utility in musical practice and you’re a fan of American minimalism, we’re treated to it covering the music of Philip Glass’ landmark Koyaanisqatsi. Geert Bevin, Eigenlabs’ Senior Software Developer, explains how he did it:

I’m using SonicCouture’s Glass/Works Kontakt instrument in a four-part multi-timbral setup in Native Instruments Kontakt. Each key individually controls pitch, velocity and the resonance of the convolution filter cut-off frequency (which creates a faint scraping-like sound).

The vocals are done through the DPA microphone that’s clipped onto the breath pipe and plugged into the Eigenharp Alpha. It uses the built-in Eigenharp Alpha pre-amp and is routed through a series of Audio Unit effects in EigenD for pitch shifting, stereo spreading, EQ and
compression. I’m monitoring directly from the headphone output of the Eigenharp Alpha with my Etymotic ER-4P earphones.

The single instrument cables carries all the information, data and audio, in both directions.

Geert has good news for those who hope to modify the software, or see it become a platform on which other instrumental innovation can happen. As originally promised, key components of the software are now covered by the GPLv3. It’s not the whole software stack, but I think it’s the stuff that most matters. Full details:

http://www.eigenlabs.com/wiki/Developers/

I can imagine this will open up some new possibilities for the Eigenharp’s dedicated band of players to mod the instrument for their own needs. But players, I’d love to hear from you – does the GPL here matter to you? Will you be able to dig into the code, or know someone who could? (Or want to try to motivate developers to do so?)

Is there anything genuinely new in digital instruments? Isn’t it just a load of repeated novelty, without the ability to actually make useful musical noises? Hasn’t the technology just gotten in the way of the music? Isn’t … (sigh) .. all you see … all you get … (repeat ad infinitum)

Even among technologist futurists, skepticism about the iterative process of new digital design runs rampant. But if you yearn for a bit more optimism, here are four strong counter-examples, projects that, building upon previous research, begin to reach a level of maturity and expressivity that could inspire. They’re inventions that you might want to pick up and spend time learning, play into late evenings for the joy of the challenge of them, creations with which you’d build a relationship. They’re not alone, but you can catch all four in the Bay Area starting today through this weekend, and I hope that they help kick-start a new conversation about what instruments can be. In place of the novelty of new invention, they might just start to raise questions about what could really last.

None other than our friend Roger Linn, creator of the LinnDrum, MPC, and new designs, is hosting the event. Geert Bevin of Eigenlabs fills CDM in on the details, and has some reflections on what’s special about these four examples:

One thing that makes these instruments so uniquely expressive is their ability to sense the precise movements of each finger in 3-dimensional space (for example, pressure for note expression, left/right for pitch, and forward/backward for timbre), and to do that for all fingers simultaneously. But each instrument also presents many other innovative ideas and improvements over the limitations of traditional mechanical-age instruments.

The instruments:

The Eigenharp, demonstrated by Geert Bevin, Senior Software Developer from UK-based Eigenlabs.
http://www.eigenlabs.com

The Continuum from Haken Audio, demonstrated by Bay Area pianist Ed Goldfarb.
http://www.hakenaudio.com

SLABS, a new instrument designed by David Wessel, director of Cal Berkeley’s CNMAT computer music department.

SLABS: Arrays of Pressure Sensitive Touch Pads

The LinnStrument prototype by Roger Linn.

http://www.rogerlinndesign.com/products/linnstrument

If You’re Going to (Be Near) San Francisco…

Live event details, from Geert – if you make it and can help document for CDM, we’d be hugely grateful (hello from, for the moment, Montreal)

Here are the events:

Thursday, May 5 from 7 to 9 p.m.
Stanford University’s Center for Computer Research in Music and Audio (CCRMA)
660 Lomita Dr. Stanford, CA 94305
Directions: https://ccrma.stanford.edu/about/directions
At this event, the Eigenharp, Continuum and LinnStrument will be demonstrated and discussed.

Friday, May 6 from 7 to 9 p.m.
University of California Berkeley’s Center For New Music and Audio Technologies (CNMAT)
1750 Arch Street, Berkeley, CA 94709

http://cnmat.berkeley.edu/

At this event, the Eigenharp. SLABS and LinnStrument will be demonstrated and discussed.

Saturday, May 7 from 2 to 4 p.m.
Guitar Center San Francisco, Pro Audio Department
1645 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94109
At this event, the Eigenharp and LinnStrument will be demonstrated and discussed.

Monday, May 9 from 4:45 to 5:45 p.m.
SF Music Tech Conference
Hotel Kabuki, 1625 Post Street, San Francisco, CA 94115
At this event, the Eigenharp, Continuum and LinnStrument will be demonstrated and discussed.
Note: Conference entry fee is required–see www.sfmusictech.com

Please join us to see, learn about ~ and even try out for yourself ~ these radical new instruments that are changing the way music is made.

Please note that these instruments are not otherwise available in the bay area to see or try out.

Additional events might still be added, keep an eye on http://eigenzone.org/events

Enjoy if you make it. Aside from these four, what new instruments would make your short list?

Not far from Indio, California, the home base of Coachella, lies an artificial lake called the Salton Sea. In the '50s, it was a popular tourist destination, a boating and fishing paradise that was considered a kind of desert riviera. Then came wave after wave of fish and bird die-offs, brought on by the lake's rising salinity levels; these days, the area is an ecological disaster zone, a wasteland populated mainly by retirees who live in trailers in Slab City, an abandoned military installation. This is the setting for the video for Rusko's new single "Everyday"; director Jason Miller makes the most of the site's strange, dystopian atmosphere, and he humanizes the picture by including cameos from local characters like Leonard Knight, creator of the roadside Salvation Mountain, a colorful work of Christian folk art. For more on the Salton Sea, check out the amazing documentary Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea. And for more Rusko, check the "Everyday / Lick the Lizard" single on Mad Decent, featuring remixes from Netsky, DJ Q and Original Sin. The man with a mohawk also has an even newer single out, "William H Tonkers / Roma" for 2nd Drop Records.

Watch this video on Beatportal

Ableton has introduced various features to its flagship Live tool over the years, but one of the simplest ideas – combining instruments and effects into accessible Racks – is also one of its most useful. They make those sound controls immediate and functional, and they can be a great way of delivering sounds. Two cases in point: free downloads that incorporate synthesized vocals and retro Nintendo blips.

AfroDJMac keeps his free Live goodies coming with noises constructed on a vintage Nintendo Entertainment System, the 8-bit timbres orchestrated by the sadly impossible-to-get MidiNES MIDI adapter. True to form, you get direct access to the NES’ Pulse and Triangle channels, plus Noise, which can give you either pure 8-bit sounds or game-styled chip retro tunes. Sure, there are plenty of other ways to do this, but you can’t beat the convenience here. Enjoy:
Free Weekly Ableton Live Rack #6- “AfroDJMac Nintendo Rack”

You can keep up with his musical productions and free downloads on http://afrodjmac.com/. In case you missed it, one particularly nice entry recently features his mother’s china dinner plates, layered into thicker pads.

Francis Preve has made a name for himself both as a writer and a sound designer; now he’s focusing on his new record label and artistic career, but connecting those two disciplines. So, when he introduces a classic formant filter used to synthesize vocal sounds, he also walks through the technique of producing it in the software and why it’s a relevant sound on clubland’s floors. (Hint: Pleasurekraft, most recently. But part of why I like classic synth techniques is that they’re become comfortable and familiar, in the way acoustic instruments have been, and thus don’t have to apply to any one genre.)

Picking apart this Rack will give you some good tips on how to build such things – or you can just go ahead and use it to start some new ideas. If you concoct something, I’d love to hear it. (No sound sample, so just go download!)

Ableton Preset: Tuvanism

Recent star of the RA Exchange, Martin 'Blackdown' Clark, is wondering what we should be calling the groundswell of music coming out of the UK, as part of his monthly Dubstep/Grime column over at Pitchfork.

Further proof that the A-list DJ elite has more fun than you: goodie bags, models in bikinis, and the kind of waterfront real estate you'd expect from an episode of Miami Vice. Check out this recap of Miami Music Week's Casablanca Mansion, hosted by IHEARTCOMIX, Mad Decent and Media Contender, and featuring Diplo, Skream, Drop The Lime, Brodinski, Franki Chan, Jokers Of The Scene, Paul Devro, Dillon Francis, and several dozen of their hottest friends. Then cop the video's soundtrack, L-Vis 1990's "Forever You," and see if it has the same effect on your own pool party. Spring break, woooo!

Watch this video on Beatportal

Chromeo have previously referred to themselves as "the only successful Arab/Jewish partnership since the dawn of human culture"; now they find something else they can agree on: a winner in our "Hot Mess" remix contest! Turbo Recordings' panel of guest judges—Harvard Bass, Clouds, Mike Mind, and Thomas Von Party—selected five finalists, from which Chromeo made their final pick; read on to find out which mix carried the day. Update: We've added all four honorable mentions, along with feedback on each remix from Turbo's guest judges.

Read more on Beatportal

Hamburg's Kaiserdisco enjoyed a banner year last year. Their hit "Aguja" landed at #9 in Beatport's most charted tracks of 2010, and they had two more tunes in the top 100 as well—"Jaana" at #28 and "Jaune," with Flavio Diaz, at #70. Now they're back with a new EP for MBF, featuring two new tracks—"Lurin" and "Callao" plus a Max Cooper remix of "Holding Up My Life." The package arrives just in time for the explosion of springtime vibes, brimming with Afro-Latin percussion and sing-song hooks. Open-air season starts here! We asked Kaiser disco to share some of their favorite tunes at the moment, and they all fit that sun-drenched vibe; read on for their picks and comments.

Read more on Beatportal

British electro veterans Basement Jaxx go into new lines of action. The band just posted the new track 'The Ends' which marks their debut as film score writers. The bass-ridden piece soundtracks the showdown of Joe Cornish’s new sci-fi flick Attack The Block, which comes to UK cinemas next week.

Listen to the track:

Basement Jaxx - "The Ends" from "Attack The Block" by Basement Jaxx

At the end of this month, Ibiza hosts the fourth Ibiza International Music Summit, a five-day confab of panels, discussions and events to accompany the opening of the island's summer season. Underscoring the role of IMS as a platform for the development of the electronic-music industry, this year's theme is "Back to Business." The lead keynote interview finds Richie Hawtin interviewing Daniel Miller, founder of the legendary Mute Records. Other speakers include Jho Oakley, manager of Chase & Status; George Ergatoudis, head of music at BBC Radio 1; Amy Thomson, manager and agent of Swedish House Mafia; Because label founder Emmanuel du Buretel; KCRW's Jason Bentley; Kanzatip's Nikita Marshunok; and artists like Sasha, Jamie Jones, and Nervo. Of course, no dance-music conference would be complete without some actual dance music, and IMS has that covered as well. The event includes five nights of affiliated parties and showcases including the official IMS Opening Party at Pacha, featuring Seth Troxler, Jamie Jones and Damian Lazarus; IMS pesents David Guetta, Nervo and friends at Dalt Vila; the All Gone Pete Tong opening party at Pacha, featuring Pete Tong and 2manyDJs; Cadenza's all-day beach party at Ushuaia, featuring Luciano, Reboot, Michel Cleis, and Robert Dietz; Carl Cox's Space Opening Fiesta, featuring Steve Lawler, Jeff Mills, Technasia, John Digweed, Fedde Le Grand, and more; and Cadenza's opening party at Pacha. Delegate badges and individual event tickets are on sale now; check the official IMS website for tickets, event lineups, news, and more.

Read more on Beatportal

Children Of Berlin is a 20-minute film on the Berlin electronic music scene, the Berlin Wall and their connected history.

NYC producer Brenmar just dropped a sick new mix for The Fader, packed full of the kind of bass-heavy, sex-ready tracks guaranteed to get you laid. Here's what he says about it:

"The mix is my vibe, the Brenmar aesthetic put into a mix. House, hip-hop, R&B, bass music, and regional club styles (Bmore, Jersey club, footwork) all on the same mix. A lot of new young US producers on this one and some of my current UK favs. I try to strike a balance between a certain level of accessibility and fun while still pushing new sounds and ideas. I love new music. Can’t forget about the girls either, it always comes back to them. Cause if they ain’t having fun…we ain’t having fun.”

We feel it, son. Check the mix below.

Gold Bricks Fader Mix (NEW 2011!!!!) <---click 4 tracklist by BRENMAR

Another unofficial video for secretive hip-hop producer Clams Casino has sprung up. While the last one, featuring the track 'Gorilla' traded on the dazzle of David Copperfield, this one is more subdued and melancholy.

Featuring footage from the 1989 film Lost In New York (not to be confused with the epic '92 sleeper hit Home Alone 2: Lost In New York) the video has a deep sense of loss and occultism, meshing perfectly with the Imogen Heap-sampled 'I'm God'.

Once again, Beatport's genre editors have compiled their charts of the week's must-hear tracks across every major genre, and they've turned up some doozies. The great John Tejada turns up on Kompakt, while Matt John drops a fat doublepack for Bar25. Sei A remixes Azari & III's "Hungry for the Power" for Turbo. Rising star Maceo Plex shows he's an "Alpha" male for Hot Waves. Former Wighnomy Brother Robag Wruhme joins DJ Koze's Pampa Records with "Thora Vukk." R3hab remixes Wynter Gordon, voted Breakthrough Artist in this year's Beatport Music Awards. Sebastien Leger buzzes his way into the dirtybird nest with "Bees." Plus new cuts from Joris Voorn and Edwin Oosterwal, Boys Noize, Dirty Vegas, Peaches, and much, much more.

Read more on Beatportal

Ghostly founder Sam Valenti interviews American visual-artist Mike Cina who also presents a series of free wallpapers.