AI Experiments – Sonic Exploration through Machine Learning
AI Experiments – Sonic Exploration through Machine Learning As computer musicians, we get the best of both worlds: we get to geek out in the mathematic, technical world of synths and plug-ins, as well as enjoying the magical, emotional and mysterious world of music. Some of us are more computer-ey (the more left-brain type) and some of us are more music-ey (the right-brain type). But, as producers, we have to tap into both of these sides to get the work done. Over at AI experiments, they’re doing the same thing: combining the best of both worlds by using artificial intelligence and machine learning to organize how we make sense of the world around us—including language, sound, objects, and music. AI experiments is an open source platform where anyone can toggle with tools and technology to explore how machine learning work. Below are three cool experiments that use some crazy …
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Welcome to Festival Season – 11 Festivals to Play at this Summer
Welcome to Festival Season – 11 Festivals to Play at this Summer It’s February already and… festival season is basically around the corner. If you’re considering taking your performance skills to the next level and have hopes of performing at one this summer, it’s time to get your electronic press kit together ASAP. If you’re not yet ready to hit the stage, you should still try to make some festival appearances, as they can be an incredible source of ~inspiration~ and ~fun~. That $200 ticket not in your budget? Try volunteering—in exchange for about 4 hrs a day, you can get your ticket for free. Not a bad deal if you don’t mind lending a hand! Here are 11 California festivals to keep on your radar and reach out to. divider style=”clear” Do it Ourselves Fest – April 28 – 30 This tidy little festival is nestled up in …
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How to Hack the Playlisting Game – Getting Heard
How to Hack the Playlisting Game – Getting Heard It’s probably no new news that playlists are a big deal. They are hard to avoid… and kind of just pop up everywhere. Music bloggers, music news sites, magazines, streaming services (Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora), brands, radio stations and bands are common curators of such playlists (one of my favorites is the Indie Shuffle). Playlists are great for the listener: hitting play is mindlessly easy, and exposes the listener to unknown songs in a style they’ve already given the nod. For artists, they can also be a major game changer. Take independent singer-songwriter Perrin Lamb, whose album hadn’t gained much traction up until a year after its release. One day he discovered one of his songs had gotten placed on an official Spotify playlist, gaining it more than 10,000,000 views. From zero to hero, by algorithmic magic. This is just an example of how a mindfully placed …
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GIRLSCHOOL Music Fest 2017 – Female Fronted Festival this Weekend in Echo Park
GIRLSCHOOL Music Fest 2017 – Female Fronted Festival hits Echo Park The echoes of last week’s Women’s March can still be heard reverberating from City Hall to Hollywood and back. These echoes will soon harmonize with the powerful, face-melting, soul healing music of the dozens of female-fronted bands that are going to rock this weekend’s GIRLSCHOOL music fest. This will be GIRLSCHOOL’s second annual music festival, which is organized and fronted by females only. It runs January 27-29 at the Bootleg theater in Echo Park. Proceeds will benefit the Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls LA, a summer camp that empowers girls to find their voice, then shout it from the rooftops—guitar/bass/piccolo/harp/bow in hand. The lineup features incredibly talented musicians such as Chelsea Wolfe, The Bird and The Bee, Francisca Valenzuela, Deap Vally, and The Wild Reeds. On top of that, the festival is also stacked with panels, workshops …
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Tiny Desk Concert Contest – Open for Submissions
Tiny Desk Concert Contest – Open for Submissions It’s that time of the year again, NPR is accepting submissions for their Tiny Desk Concert Contest. This is one of the biggest, friendliest, simplest, most supportive contests out there for independent artists. You should do it. All you have to do is submit a video of you playing one original song (with a desk). Entries range form bedroom iPhone shots, to creative and well executed ideas. You can make it as tricked out or simple as you want. If you win you get to film your own Tiny Desk Concert in Washington, DC, and go on a nationwide tour with NPR Music. divider style=”clear” Why should you submit? A reason to release. This is the perfect opportunity to post a video of you performing your music. As artists we get in ruts and neglect to put out our …
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VST Speech – Text to Speech VST (Free Plugin)
VST Speech – Text to Speech VST (Free Plugin) Move over, Siri, there’s more than one talkin’ robot in town. Get your inner robot on with the Text to Speech VST: VST Speek. This plugin is a recreation of the Software Automatic Mouth (SAM) vocal synthesis software that was created by Softvoice Inc for the Commodore 64. It is a free vocal synthesis device that transforms text into old skewl robotic speech. It is available for Mac OS X 10.6 – 10.8 and Windows in both 64 and 32 bit. Download here for Windows and here for OS X. Once downloaded, all you have to do is type your text in the textfield and click “speak.” You may trigger voice with MIDI notes, and the plugin is sensitive to MIDI velocity and pitch bend. You may also edit parameters such as pitch, speed, mouth, and throat. If you’re unsure about the differences between …
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