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Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Last weekend, I visited the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to see the Synchronous Fireflies event in Elkmont. Luckily we arrived at the peak time for the fireflies after weeks of thunderstorms passing through the southeast. It was tough finding the proper camera settings for the firefly show on the first night. However, by the second night, I had the settings adequately set, and my Canon camera performed optimally. We also saw some incredible sights, including owlets that lived in the Elkmont campground. We couldn’t have been more fortunate to have clear skies and mild weather during our stay. Looking forward to visiting again next year!

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Moog Rumba

For this video Moog Rumba I wanted to try something different then what I’ve done in the past. Recently I updated to Ableton Live 11 and I thought it would be cool to try some afro-cuban rhythms that have always been a big influence on me in music. I decided to try a rumba inspired beat on the DFAM and see how it goes, since there are only eight steps in the sequence I went with a half time version. I might try using the Mother-32 next time for the beat because it would give me more room to work with, but I figured this was a start. I’m happy with how the sound turned out the Subharmonicon, Matriarch, and Grandmother blended nicely with the other semi-modular synthesizers; it really gave the whole song a different feel. I look forward to trying more of these great rhythmic patterns in the future. Check out my other videos here!

Moog Rumba
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Moog Saturday Afternoon

Moog Saturday Afternoon

Decided to spend my Saturday afternoon making a new song with the Moog semi-modular crew. This time I wanted to use the Matriarch for some house synth stabs. I was really happy with how the overall sound turned out the Subharmonicon is using the SEQ2 to VCO1 patch which extends SEQ 1 to 64 steps and has been a cool new functionality to explorer. The DFAM is playing the kick and snare while I have a drum rack in Ableton Live 10 playing the hihats and snare rim. Looking forward to you feedback hope you enjoy this new video!

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Moog Matriarch & Grandmother Duet

I recently purchased a new Moog Matriarch for my home studio and couldn’t wait to make a video showing off this amazing piece of hardware. The synthesizer really lives up to the hype, there are so many endless possibilities figured I needed to start somewhere. This performance uses a Am7 Fmaj7 Dm7 Cmaj7 chord progress on the Matriarch. Then I combined the DFAM, Subharmonicon, and Mother-32 for some backing on the track. On the Mother-32 I did a simple sequence in Am7 and then had the Subharmonicon play a 64-step progression of 16-steps root notes A F D C. Lastly I used the Grandmother for the lead melody and solo which gave me the ability to perform it live. Thanks for checking out this video looking forward to creating many more. If you have any questions please post them in the comments below and I’ll respond when I can!

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April photography

Here is some photography from April, I’ve been making an effort to get back outside now that the weather is warmer, hope you enjoy! Check out my other photos here.

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Moog Sirin Sunday

I spent my entire Sunday with the Moog Sirin limited-production synthesizer. This incredible module has a unique story it’s “The first instrument in the Taurus family to summon searing, soft, and even clangorous lead sounds with ease.” I couldn’t agree more with this, the Sirin has a truly special place in the Moog lineup and provides a compact straightforward design that makes for a enjoyable playing experience. For this video, I wanted to try a new sequence on the Mother-32 which is controlling the DFAM and Subharmonicon. The chords I chose for the sequence are actually from Fly Me To The Moon by Frank Sinatra. This progression was perfect for a 32 stepped loop I could play off of with the Subharmonicon. Add a little drum beat from the DFAM with a Sirin Solo and viola. I hope you like this video check out more of my performances here!

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Red-shouldered hawk

A beautiful Red-shouldered hawk was in the backyard yesterday I couldn’t miss this oppertunity to get some photos! We have a few that visit frequently, there’s a lake back here that has lots of frogs, snakes, and vole around and the hawks seem to really like it. I haven’t been able to tell if this is the same one, there aren’t any distinct features to identify them by individually so far. Check out more of my photography here.

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Moog Sirin & Minitaur Duet

Moog Sirin
Moog Sirin & Minitaur Duet

Thought this would be a cool sound to try out with a live performance video. The Moog Minitaur was the first synthesizer I owned. When I got a Moog Sirin I thought of trying to create paraphonic sound by sending midi to both from the M-Audio midisport 4×4 interface and recording the audio. This combination created a really awesome harmonizing sound that could be modulated or tweaked. In addition I patched up my Grandmother with the semi-modular trio Moog DFAM, Subharmonicon, and Mother-32 then midi synched with Ableton Live 10. Hope you enjoy this duet as much as I do, check out some of my other videos here!

Atlas- Moog Sirin & Minitaur Duet