Playing MIDIs with Win98's original SB16 OPL3 sound card

Btw, do you have samples of Rolf Harris' electronic song? JMJ released
his first album in 1969 but I haven't listened to his earliest.

wrote:
On Feb 27, 4:12 pm, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
In message
,

writes:
On Feb 27, 12:12 am, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
[]
I just can't think of a squarewave as an _instrument_. It's just - a
squarewave.

Agreed.
How could a square wave be an instrument? Ditto for a pure sinewave,
for
that matter.

I'm glad someone agrees with me, and sees what I'm getting at.



Ask Jean Michel Jarre, he's probably the first to make use of it in
music and gain international commendation.

I doubt he was the first, actually (I think Rolf Harris might have beat
him by a decade or so); but whether he did or didn't, it's not an
instrument, it's a waveform.

It's like saying red is art. Red is a colour. It can be _used_ in art.

It's equipped into many guitars and keyboards who may or may not
reproduce it perfectly.
We obviously disagree on the definition of an instrument but in this
digital age, many have ceased to be in the physical form we're used
to. As squarewaves are a distinct sound which can be used as legit
musical notes, I think it qualifies as an instrument.

But the logic is wrong. A square wave, triangle wave, and sine wave each
produce a distinct sound (when fed to an amplifier and heard from the
loudspeaker), but that has nothing to do with whether they qualify as a
musical instrument. A waveform is not an instrument.

In message
,
writes:
Btw, do you have samples of Rolf Harris' electronic song? JMJ released
his first album in 1969 but I haven't listened to his earliest.

I was referring, rather tongue-in-cheek, to his having been employed to
market the Stylophone; however, I do have some feeling that he did do
some impromptu things with it outside the actual ad.s. But I could be
wrong about that. Whether released commercially or just appearing during
his TV shows again I'm not sure.

I didn't know JMJ was _that_ early - what was it? I think I first became
aware of him for Oxygene, which I place in the 1970s.

Earlier users of the output of electronic oscillators (though I can't
name individual waveforms!) include the Tornados (Telstar), the BBC
Radiophonic Workshop of course (especially Delia Derbyshire [sp?]), and
the Musique Concrete movement in France. Plus I believe Stockhausen.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

A bird in the hand makes it hard to blow your nose.

On Feb 27, 8:41 pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
wrote:
On Feb 27, 4:12 pm, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
In message
,

writes:
On Feb 27, 12:12 am, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
[]
I just can't think of a squarewave as an _instrument_. It's just - a
squarewave.

Agreed.
How could a square wave be an instrument? Ditto for a pure sinewave,
for
that matter.

I'm glad someone agrees with me, and sees what I'm getting at.

Ask Jean Michel Jarre, he's probably the first to make use of it in
music and gain international commendation.

I doubt he was the first, actually (I think Rolf Harris might have beat
him by a decade or so); but whether he did or didn't, it's not an
instrument, it's a waveform.

It's like saying red is art. Red is a colour. It can be _used_ in art.

It's equipped into many guitars and keyboards who may or may not
reproduce it perfectly.
We obviously disagree on the definition of an instrument but in this
digital age, many have ceased to be in the physical form we're used
to. As squarewaves are a distinct sound which can be used as legit
musical notes, I think it qualifies as an instrument.

But the logic is wrong. A square wave, triangle wave, and sine wave each
produce a distinct sound (when fed to an amplifier and heard from the
loudspeaker), but that has nothing to do with whether they qualify as a
musical instrument. A waveform is not an instrument.

All instruments produce waveforms, a piano looks like a triangle with
stairs, a trumpet looks like jaguar teeth. And a sinewave can be
produced non-digitally with an actual physical instrument, so YOUR
logic is wrong.

On Feb 28, 12:13*am, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
In message
,

writes:
Btw, do you have samples of Rolf Harris' electronic song? JMJ released
his first album in 1969 but I haven't listened to his earliest.

I didn't know JMJ was _that_ early - what was it? I think I first became
aware of him for Oxygene, which I place in the 1970s.

His first officially released album is Deserted Palace released around
1971 but he played the Moog Synthesizer for other bands years before
he got his own label. The Wikipedia page features an early sample in
1969 that sounds like a Sawwave.

Earlier users of the output of electronic oscillators (though I can't
name individual waveforms!) include the Tornados (Telstar), the BBC
Radiophonic Workshop of course (especially Delia Derbyshire [sp?]), and
the Musique Concrete movement in France. Plus I believe Stockhausen.

Good to know. The 8-bit music fanboy community would be especially
interested in this. They get rather lonely when mocked for listening
to cell phone beeps and chirps and need a grandfather figure to look
up to. :P

wrote:
On Feb 27, 8:41 pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
wrote:
On Feb 27, 4:12 pm, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
In message
,

writes:
On Feb 27, 12:12 am, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
[]
I just can't think of a squarewave as an _instrument_. It's just - a
squarewave.

Agreed.
How could a square wave be an instrument? Ditto for a pure sinewave,
for
that matter.

I'm glad someone agrees with me, and sees what I'm getting at.

Ask Jean Michel Jarre, he's probably the first to make use of it in
music and gain international commendation.

I doubt he was the first, actually (I think Rolf Harris might have beat
him by a decade or so); but whether he did or didn't, it's not an
instrument, it's a waveform.

It's like saying red is art. Red is a colour. It can be _used_ in art.

It's equipped into many guitars and keyboards who may or may not
reproduce it perfectly.
We obviously disagree on the definition of an instrument but in this
digital age, many have ceased to be in the physical form we're used
to. As squarewaves are a distinct sound which can be used as legit
musical notes, I think it qualifies as an instrument.

But the logic is wrong. A square wave, triangle wave, and sine wave
each
produce a distinct sound (when fed to an amplifier and heard from the
loudspeaker), but that has nothing to do with whether they qualify as a
musical instrument. A waveform is not an instrument.

All instruments produce waveforms, a piano looks like a triangle with
stairs, a trumpet looks like jaguar teeth. And a sinewave can be
produced non-digitally with an actual physical instrument, so YOUR
logic is wrong.

WHAT musical instruments can produce a pure sinewave, squarewave, triangle
wave, or sawtooth waveform?

In message
,
writes:
On Feb 27, 8:41 pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
[]
But the logic is wrong. A square wave, triangle wave, and sine wave each
produce a distinct sound (when fed to an amplifier and heard from the
loudspeaker), but that has nothing to do with whether they qualify as a
musical instrument. A waveform is not an instrument.

All instruments produce waveforms, a piano looks like a triangle with
stairs, a trumpet looks like jaguar teeth. And a sinewave can be
produced non-digitally with an actual physical instrument, so YOUR
logic is wrong.

Piano and guitar produce decaying waveforms, by the nature of their
construction - not just diminishing in amplitude, either.

But just because instruments produce waveforms, does not mean waveforms
are necessarily instruments. (Actually I do not know of any instrument
that produces a pure sinewave, though some come close.)


On Feb 28, 12:13*am, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
In message
,

writes:
Btw, do you have samples of Rolf Harris' electronic song? JMJ released
his first album in 1969 but I haven't listened to his earliest.

I didn't know JMJ was _that_ early - what was it? I think I first became
aware of him for Oxygene, which I place in the 1970s.

His first officially released album is Deserted Palace released around
1971 but he played the Moog Synthesizer for other bands years before

Interesting, I didn't know that.
[]
Earlier users of the output of electronic oscillators (though I can't
name individual waveforms!) include the Tornados (Telstar), the BBC
Radiophonic Workshop of course (especially Delia Derbyshire [sp?]), and
the Musique Concrete movement in France. Plus I believe Stockhausen.

Good to know. The 8-bit music fanboy community would be especially
interested in this. They get rather lonely when mocked for listening
to cell phone beeps and chirps and need a grandfather figure to look
up to. :P

Some links - Telstar (1962):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telstar_%28song%29
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryrEP...feature=fvwrel
Delia Derbyshire (1937-2001: best known work her realisation, using
lengths of tape and other things, of Ron Grainer's score for a certain
TV programme): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delia_Derbyshire
BBCRW (1958-1998 and 2012-):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiophonic_Workshop
musique concrète (194x-):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musique_concr%C3%A8te
Stockhausen (1928-2007): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockhausen
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

.... her greatest triumph to date has been doggy-paddling to each area of the
shipping forecast. - Eddie Mair (on Charlotte Green), Radio Times 13-19
October 2012

On Feb 28, 4:32*pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
wrote:
On Feb 27, 8:41 pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
wrote:
On Feb 27, 4:12 pm, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
In message
,

writes:
On Feb 27, 12:12 am, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
[]
I just can't think of a squarewave as an _instrument_. It's just - a
squarewave.

Agreed.
How could a square wave be an instrument? Ditto for a pure sinewave,
for
that matter.

I'm glad someone agrees with me, and sees what I'm getting at.

Ask Jean Michel Jarre, he's probably the first to make use of it in
music and gain international commendation.

I doubt he was the first, actually (I think Rolf Harris might have beat
him by a decade or so); but whether he did or didn't, it's not an
instrument, it's a waveform.

It's like saying red is art. Red is a colour. It can be _used_ in art.

In message
,
writes:
On Feb 28, 4:32*pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
[]
WHAT musical instruments can produce a pure sinewave, squarewave, triangle
wave, or sawtooth waveform?

A tuning fork produces a perfect sinewave. A hammond organ can produce

Yes, a tuning fork is probably the closest.

a near-perfect sinewave but it might need some specific tuning to
control harmonics. I don't know of any acoustic instrument that can
reproduce the other ones perfectly, but I always thought a clarinet
sounded very close to a squarewave minus the sharp edges, call it a
rounded-square wave. And there has to be woodwind instruments that

If it's rounded, it's not a squarewave (-:!

sound like trianglewaves. I've played old games with triangle tunes
that intended to mimic a flute/ocarina and did a damn good job of it.

Something with a reed is probably closest to a triangle, or at least
sawtooth, wave. Especially if just the mouthpiece (with reed) is played;
once the sound resonates in the body, this modifies it. I've always
thought a flute has very _few_ harmonics, which I wouldn't think is
characteristic of either square or triangle.

But since you didn't say the instrument had to be acoustic: many
electric guitars and keyboards come equipped with it, but most of them
intentionally don't produce perfect forms of the wave for stylistic
purposes. I like Soundblaster pro's synth of Sawwaves than real
sawwaves themselves.

Fair enough, as long as you know they're not the pure waveform. (Note
I'm not saying the pure waveform is necessarily pleasant to listen to.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"Galbraith's Law of Human Natu Faced with the choice between changing one's
mind and proving that there is no need to do so, almost everybody gets busy on
the proof." - John Kenneth Galbraith

On Feb 28, 5:13*pm, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
If it's rounded, it's not a squarewave (-:!

A rounded-square I said -.- A square without the sharp edges.

Something with a reed is probably closest to a triangle, or at least
sawtooth, wave. Especially if just the mouthpiece (with reed) is played;
once the sound resonates in the body, this modifies it. I've always
thought a flute has very _few_ harmonics, which I wouldn't think is
characteristic of either square or triangle.

No, square has a ****load of harmonics, sawtooth is even worse.
Triangle doesn't have too many and it does resemble many woodwind
instruments minus the breath noise.

Fair enough, as long as you know they're not the pure waveform. (Note
I'm not saying the pure waveform is necessarily pleasant to listen to.)

Some are but the pure waveforms are not considered aesthetic enough by
the mainstream so few are designed such.

wrote:
On Feb 28, 4:32 pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
wrote:
On Feb 27, 8:41 pm, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
wrote:
On Feb 27, 4:12 pm, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:
In message
,

writes:
On Feb 27, 12:12 am, "Bill in Co"
wrote:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
[]
I just can't think of a squarewave as an _instrument_. It's just -
a
squarewave.

Agreed.
How could a square wave be an instrument? Ditto for a pure
sinewave,
for
that matter.

I'm glad someone agrees with me, and sees what I'm getting at.

Ask Jean Michel Jarre, he's probably the first to make use of it in
music and gain international commendation.

I doubt he was the first, actually (I think Rolf Harris might have
beat
him by a decade or so); but whether he did or didn't, it's not an
instrument, it's a waveform.

It's like saying red is art. Red is a colour. It can be _used_ in
art.

It's equipped into many guitars and keyboards who may or may not
reproduce it perfectly.
We obviously disagree on the definition of an instrument but in this
digital age, many have ceased to be in the physical form we're used
to. As squarewaves are a distinct sound which can be used as legit
musical notes, I think it qualifies as an instrument.

But the logic is wrong. A square wave, triangle wave, and sine wave
each
produce a distinct sound (when fed to an amplifier and heard from the
loudspeaker), but that has nothing to do with whether they qualify as a
musical instrument. A waveform is not an instrument.

All instruments produce waveforms, a piano looks like a triangle with
stairs, a trumpet looks like jaguar teeth. And a sinewave can be
produced non-digitally with an actual physical instrument, so YOUR
logic is wrong.

WHAT musical instruments can produce a pure sinewave, squarewave,
triangle wave, or sawtooth waveform?

A tuning fork produces a perfect sinewave.

I don't consider a tuning fork a "musical instrument" (it's just a test
instrument).

And for that matter, I'm not even sure if it produces a pure sinewave (and
NO harmonics, whatsover). (a pure sinewave only has a fundamental
frequency and no harmonics).

A hammond organ can produce
a near-perfect sinewave but it might need some specific tuning to
control harmonics. I don't know of any acoustic instrument that can
reproduce the other ones perfectly, but I always thought a clarinet
sounded very close to a squarewave minus the sharp edges, call it a
rounded-square wave. And there has to be woodwind instruments that
sound like trianglewaves. I've played old games with triangle tunes
that intended to mimic a flute/ocarina and did a damn good job of it.

But since you didn't say the instrument had to be acoustic: many
electric guitars and keyboards come equipped with it, ...

I guess I'm too much of a purist to consider a "keyboard", and its
electronically generated (artificial) waveforms, a real music instrument.
:-)