Synthesizers

Over four decades, Vince Clarke has helped shape the sound of electronic music. We talk to him about how his working practices have changed, from early Depeche Mode to the new album from Erasure.

We talk to prolific producer Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith about her ambient compositions and love of Buchla synths.

Dr Manny Fernandez has been heavily involved in development and programming for Yamaha and is best known for his FM and Physical Modelling work through their glory years of new synthesis technologies in the DX7II, SY77/99, VL1, VP1, EX5, AN1x and FS1R. More recently he has been working with the Reface DX, Montage and MODX.

Robin Rimbaud, AKA Scanner, takes us on an autobiographical sonic journey as he talks about his early fascination with tape recorders, to life beyond the computer screen and his studio filled with modular and table-top synths.

Alex Ball has built a reputation as one of the most informative and interesting synth historians of the YouTube age. Rob Puricelli talks with him about his recent documentary on ARP.

In a rare interview, legendary composer Vangelis shares his thoughts on the role of synthesizers in music — including his beloved Yamaha CS80.

Join composer and electronic musician Caro C in conversation with Suzanne Ciani, a synthesizer and electronic music legend who has pushed the envelope since the 1960s.

David Vorhaus of White Noise chats with Rob Puricelli about his early involvement with the Fairlight CMI and his Kaleidophon ribbon controller and Maniac sequencer inventions.

Having just returned home from SynthFest UK 2019 held at Sheffield's Octagon, I thought it might be appropriate to focus...

Sequential founding father and synth designer Dave Smith made time at Synthplex 2019 to discuss the current state of play of the wonderful world of synthesis.

Dieter Doepfer is known as the founding father of Eurorack, the modular format that now dominates all others — but how did it all come about?

Peter Zinovieff has been described as Britain’s Bob Moog. A renowned composer from the mid ‘60s to the present day, he was also one of the founders of EMS who produced seminal synthesizers such as the VCS3 and the Synthi AKS, as used by Brian Eno, Pink Floyd and the Chemical Brothers.

New album Electronica sees Jean–Michel Jarre making connections with a galaxy of other legendary figures from the world of electronic music.

The stuff of synthesizer legend, Keith Emerson's megalithic modular system hasn't just been restored — it's also been completely recreated.

Who are the most successful British synth manufacturers of all time? Hint: they’re alive and well — and busier than ever...

In the early 60s, pioneering British composer Daphne Oram set out to create a synthesizer unlike any other. The engineer who turned her ideas into reality was Graham Wrench.

Walk inside Philip Taysom's studio and you will find classic synths in abundance, all connected and all ready to play...

As a member of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, a composer for film and TV and a performer in his own right, Jan Hammer helped to define the role of the synthesizer player in rock and jazz.

One of the original pioneers of electronic music in Britain, David Vorhaus has remained at the cutting edge of the genre for over 30 years.

Electronic music pioneer Klaus Schulze talks about the way he'd like to see synthesizer design developing over the next few years.

Do you ever wonder who's responsible for the waveforms and sound patches in your favourite synth? If it's a Korg keyboard, then the answer might be Steve McNally, one of the team of sound developers.