electronic mantra



Bernie Worrell


March 2008

I'm getting ready to start the 2nd Annual Synth Composition Challenge and will be updating the website shortly.
- Randy
 

From the 1st contest:
Electronic Mantra presents a
Synthesizer/Electronic Music Composition Challenge




Keith Emerson of ELP



Robert Moog

New! Download the Cool Poster:

What: A composition contest using synthesizer/electronic sound design and composition skills.

Deadline: Submissions must be postmarked by June 14, 2007 and received by June 20.

Note: June 14 is the mail-in deadline.  You can arrange to drop off your entry in person up till 6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 20.  Please contact me ahead of time to arrange this. 
 electronicmantra at comcast dot net 
When: Contest judging event is Tuesday, June 26th, starting at 8:00 p.m.

Where: CHAC Lounge, 1621 12th Ave 
(Capitol Hill Arts Center)
No Cover!

How Much: There is no cost to enter the contest though compositions must be submitted in Audio CD format.

Prizes:  
1st Place: $75 worth of equipment from the Guitar Center, 
2nd Place: $35 Guitar Center Gift Certificate, 
3rd Place: $25 Guitar Center Gift Certificate.  



Clara Rockmore


Donald Buchla


Contest Downloads

Contest Rules & Entry Form
PDF     Word

Example of Contest Entry Form
PDF    Word

Musical Phrase
MIDI     Wav (1 MB)

Musical Phrase Notation & MIDI Event 
PDF   Word

For more information contact:
Randy Wiger
electronicmantra at comcast dot net 

Mail entry submissions to:
Synthesizer/Electronic Composition Challenge
c/o Randy Wiger
P.O. Box 12173
Seattle, WA 98102


Morton Subotnick

Background:

I want to start a Seattle area synthesizer enthusiast's club of some kind. 
I haven't found anything quite like what I'm looking for, so I decided to start something. 
(Yes, we'll work on a less "geeky" name than "synthesizer enthusiast's club" soon.)

There is the SoniCabal.  They do neat things that sometimes involve synthesizers,
but don't quite have the focus I'm looking for (but they do have some really cool performances!).

And there is the Pacific Northwest Do-It-Yourself Synthesizer Meeting, held once a year at Renton Technical College.  I am in awe of people who can build their own analog synths from scratch,  but I hunger for something more performance-oriented (and that gets together more than once a year). 

The Fourth City Laptop Battle has made a niche for a new breed of musicians using programs such as Ableton Live and others that incorporate combinations of sampling, sequencing, and wave editing.  While there is definitely overlap between digital synthesizers and these artists and programs, I have not found what most excites me about synthesizers in this arena.

Local performers to check out that are synth- and midi-involved include Obelus and Basskamp (some of the members of the disbanded SkyLobby) as well as KJ Sawka.

Some of you may have seen the documentary "Moog: the movie" (the Seattle Public Library has the DVD) or "Haack: The King of Techno" at the "Early Circuits: Pioneers of Electronic Music" film series (Fall 2004) at the Northwest Film Forum as part of that year's Decibel Festival.  

Have you visited the Moog company website, or checked out Analog Days, 
the book about the invention and impact of the Moog synthesizer?

Of course you have heard "Ohm: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music" (also available at the Seattle Public Library), but have you heard "Machine Soul: An Odyssey Into Electronic Dance Music?"

So if this sounds like something that intrigues you in any way at all, 
stay tuned and grab on to your sine waves, 
'cause we'll get something new goin' around.

Youtube video of a theremin performance from 1st Thursdays at the Alchemy Studios at 619 Western Avenue in Seattle.

Contact me at: electronicmantra (at) comcast (dot) net

Last revised: March 27, 2008

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