Electronic Music Glossary

8/12/2019 Electronic Music Glossary

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Glossary oF ElectronicMusic Terms

A

Additive Synthesis: The process ofconstructing a complex sound using aseries of fundamental frequencies (puretones or sine waves).ADSR: Abbreviation for Attack, Deca,!ustain, and "elease. These are the fourparameters found on a basic snthesi#erenvelope generator.

$hen a ke is pressed, the envelopegenerator will begin to rise to its full

level at the rate set b the attackparameter, upon reaching peak level it

will begin to fall at the rate set b thedeca parameter to the level set b thesustain control. The envelope will remainat the sustain level as long as the ke isheld down. $henever a ke is released,it will return to #ero at the rate set b

the release parameter.Aliasing: Aliasing is the term used to

describe the unwanted frequencies whichare produced when a sound is sampled

at a rate which is less than twice thefrequenc of the highest frequenc

component in the sound.Amplifier: A device with electron tubesor semiconducters that is used toincrease the strength of a signal.Amplitude: Amplitude is a term used todescribe the amount of a signal. %t can

relate to volume in an audio signal or theamount of voltage in an electrical signal.

Amplitude Modulation: A change inthe level of a signal. &or example, if a'oltage ontrolled Amplifier ('A) werebeing modulated b a ow &requenc

*scillator (&*), the result would be aperiodic increase and decrease in theaudio level of the signal. %n musicalterms this would be referred to as

Tremolo. The abbreviation of Amplitude+odulation is A+.

Analog: Data (signal) presented in anondigital, continuous form.Analog Synthesier: A snthesi#erwhich uses voltage controlled analogmodules to snthesi#e sound. Thethreemain voltage controlled modules in ananalog snthesi#er are- 'oltageontrolled *scillator ('*), 'oltage

ontrolled &ilter ('&), and 'oltageontrolledAmplifier ('A).

Aperiodic !aveform: A waveform that

does not have a repeating pattern.AR": American "ecording /erformance

o, a compan which introduced someama#ung snthesi#ers in the late

seventires and earl eighties.Arpeggiator: A device or computerprogram that sequentiall moves apattern of notes over a range of thekeboard.Attac#: The first parameter of anenvelope generator which determinesthe rate or time it will take for the event

to reach the highest level before startingto deca.

Attenuator: Attenuate means to reducein force, value or amount. An Attenuatoris a device that reduces the value ofsomething, usuall the amplitude of asignal.Audi$le Range: The range offrequencies that the human ear canhear. A health oung human can

usuall hear from 01 ccles per secondto around 01,111 ccles per second (01

01,111 2#).Auto %orrelation: A process that

determines optimum start and endingloop points to produce minimumdiscontinuit.Au&ilary %ontrollers: These areexternal controlling devices used incon3unction with a main instrument or

controller. !ome examples of suchcontrollers are foot pedals, pitch bending

and modulation wheels.

'

'and "ass Filter: A filter which allowsonl a selected band of frequencies topass through whilere3ecting all otherfrequencies above and below the cutoffpoint.

'aud Rate: The speed at which digital

information is passed through a serialinterface expressed in bitspersecond.

+%D% data is transmitted at 45.06 78audor 45,061 bits per second.

'inary: *f or based on the number twoor the binar numeration sstem (base


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0). Digital computers use this form ofnumbering because the values of 1 and 5can easil be represented b an open orclosed switch.

'it: A 8it is a single piece of information

assigned a value of 1 or 5 as used in adigital computer. omputers use digital

words which are combinations of bits. A8te is a digital word consisting of eight8its.

'oot: !tarting up a computer b loadinga program that allows it to run otherprograms. The term comes from

bootstrapping which means that thecomputer 9pulls itself up b its own

bootstraps.9

'ounce: $hen recording or sequencing,to bounce tracks means to combine(mix) several tracks together and recordthem on another track.

'uffer: An area of computer memor

that is used to temporaril store data.

'ug: An error in a computer program

that causes it to work incorrectl.

'yte: A computer word made up of eightbits of data.

%

%ardioid: (kar: deoid:) A directionalmicrophone with a heart shaped, narrow

pattern, which picks up from directl infront of the mic.

%atalog: A list of all files stored on a

disk or in a bank. !ometimes called adirector.

%ent: ;nit of pitch equal to 5


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%lose Mi#ing: A microphone placementtechnique which involves placing amicrophone close to the sound source inorder to pick up mainl direct sound, andavoid picking up reverberant sound.

%omputer nterface: 2ardware whichenables a computer to communicate with

other devices. A common example is a+%D% interface, which allows a computerto communicate with a musicalinstrument.

%ondenser Mi#e: A microphone whichconverts sound pressure level variations

into variations in capacitance and theninto electrical voltage.

%ontinuous %ontroller: "efers to +idiinformation other than notes. &orexample, volume, pitch bending,modulation (vibrato). These parameterscan change continuousl over time andallow electronicall generated music tosound more expressive.

%ontour: !ee nvelope Benerator

%ontroller: A device which let:s ouenter or change events into a computeror other digital device. xamples includekeboards, pitch and modulation wheelsand wind controllers.

%opy: To make a cop of something,

either a sound or segment, b selectingit and choosing the cop function from

the module menu. $hat is copied isplaced on the clipboard.

%rossfade: To graduall fade out onesound while fading in another so that aseamless transition is made between thetwo sounds.

%ursor: A visual indicator showing theposition of the next entr.

%ut: To remove something, either asound or a segment, b selecting it andchoosing the cut function from themodule menu. $hat ou cut is placed onthe clipboard.

Cutoff Frequency: The frequency aboveDpassfilter will start

DAT (machine*:!ee Digital Audio Taperecorder.

Data:%nformation a computer needs inorder to make decisions or carr out aparticular action.

Data !heel: A knob that allows ou to

scroll through /rograms and changeparameter values. ;suall used when a

kepad is not available or for fine tuningand scrolling through infinite variables.

d'/-ctave: The unit tpicall used toindicate the slope of a filter, or how fast

the frequenc response rolls off past thecutoff frequenc. xample- A 0>

d8 d8 one octave above the

cutoff frequenc, b >? d8 two octavesabove the cutoff frequenc, and so on.

Decay: The second stage in an AD!"tpe envelope generator. !ee AD!".

Deci$el (d'*: A reference for themeasurement of sound energ. The

minimum change in volume that thehuman ear can perceive. Camed after

Alexander Braham 8ell. A decibel is5


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Digital to Analog %onverter (DA%)- Adevice which interprets Digitalinformation and converts it to Analogform. All digital musical instrumentsmust have a DA so that we can hear

their output.

Digital Audio Tape (DAT*:The medium

that a machine that records sounddigitall uses. The generall use aspinning drum similar to those found in'":s as opposed to the record andplaback heads found on regular analogtape recorders.

Digital Signal "rocessor:!ee !ignal/rocessors. +ost signal processors these

das are digi tal. The allow the instant

recall of all the para meter settings of the device without having to manuallreset all the controls ever time adifferent sound effect is required.

Direct time loc# (DT0* and enhancedtime loc# (DT0e*: A snchroni#ationstandard that allows +ark of the

;nicorn:s +acbased sequencer,/erformer, to lock to !+/T through a

converter which supports thesestandards.

Display:A device that gives informationin a visual form.

Distant Mi#ing:A microphoneplacement technique which involves

placing a microphone far from the soundsource in order to pick up a high

proportion of reverberant sound.

Drum Machine: A sample based digitalaudio device that makes use of theplaback capabilities of "*+ (read onl)memor to reproduce carefull recordedand edited samples of individual

instruments which make up the moderndrum and percussion set.

Drum "ads: The plaing surface buttonswhich are designed into a drum machineand plaed with the fingers.

Drum+pad controller: !uch a controlleroffers the performer a larger, moreexpressive plaing surface that can be

struck either with the fingers and hands,

or with mallets and drum sticks for fullexpressiveness. Additionall, a drumcontroller will often offer extensive setupparameters.

Dynamic Allocation:*n the %%%,

Dnamic Allocation defeats an preassigned output channel assignments

and assigns the output channelsaccording to a modified circularalgorithm.

Dynamic Mi#e: A microphone in whichthe diaphragm moves a coil suspendedin a magnetic field in order to generate

an output voltage proportional to thesound pressure level.

Dynamic Range: The range of thesoftest to the loudest sound that can beproduced b an instrument. *r the rangeof the low and high signal levelsobtainable b a velocit sensitivekeboard. The greater the Dnamic"ange, the more sensitive the keboard.

EEdit: To change or modif information.

To change parameters or alter existing

data.

Envelope Generator: A circuit, usualltriggered b pressing a ke on akeboard, that generates a changingvoltage with respect to time. Thisvoltage tpicall controls a '& or 'A.An A2D!" and AD!" are two tpes of

nvelope Benerators. !ee AD!".

E1ual Temperament: A !caling sstem

where the octave is divided into 50 equal

parts. The ratio of the frequenciesbetween an two ad3acent notes isexactl the same. +ost keboardinstruments are scaled in this manner.

E1ualier:A device which allows

attenuation or emphasis of selectedfrequencies in the audio spectrum.

quali#ers usuall contain man bands toallow the user a fine degree of frequenc

control over the sound.

Error Message: A message shown inthe displa to alert the user that an errorof some tpe has occurred.


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FFast Fourier Transform: A computeralgorithm which derives the fourierspectrum from a sound file.

Fc: !ee utoff &requenc

Filter: A device used to remove

unwanted frequencies from an audiosignal thus altering its harmonic

structure. ow /ass filters are the mostcommon tpe of filter found on musicsnthesi#ers. The onl allow frequenciesbelow the cutoff frequenc to pass (ow/ass). 2igh /ass filters onl allow thehigh frequencies to pass, and 8and /assfilters onl allow frequencies in a

selected band to pass through. A Cotchfilter re3ects frequencies that fall withinits notch.

Flange: An effect created b laeringtwo identical sounds with a slight dela(5 01 m!) and slightl modulating thedela of one or both of the sounds. Theterm comes from the earl das of taperecording when dela effects were

created b grabbing the flanges of thetape reels to change the tape speed.

Floppy Dis#: A thin portable disk usedto store digital data.

Fourier Spectrum:The description of asound that is in terms of its distributionof energ versus frequenc rather thanits amplitude versus time (waveform).

Fre1uency: The number of ccles of awaveform occurring in a second.

Fre1uency Modulation: The encodingof a carrier wave b variation of itsfrequenc in accordance with an inputsignal.

FS2: &requenc !hift 7eing. An audiotone (frequenc) modulated b a square

wave, which is used both for datatransfer and also forsequencer and

drum machine synchroniation.

Fundamental: The first, lowest note of

a harmonic series. The &undamental

frequenc determines a sound:s overallpitch.

G

Gain:The factor b which a deviceincreases the amplitude of a signal.

Cegative gain will result in theattenuation of a signal.

Glissando: A rapid slide through aseries of consecutive tones in a scale likepassage. *n an mu !tems mulator%%% arpeggiator for example, when twonotes are plaed with glissando on,ever note in between the two notes willbe plaed in a sequential order. !imilar

to portamento except that the pitchchanges in semitone steps.

Ground 0oop: 2um caused b currents

circulating through the ground side of apiece of equipment or sstem. This isdue to grounding it at points of differentvoltage potential.

3

3ard Dis#: A storage medium for digitaldata which can hold more information

and access it faster than a flopp disk.

3ard dis# recorder: A computerbasedhardware and software packagespecificall intended for the recording,manipulation, and reproduction of thedigital audio data that resides upon harddiskand


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3ert/3: A unit of frequenc equal to5 ccle per second. Camed after 2einrich". 2ert#.

3igh "ass Filter: !ee &ilter

nitialie: To prepare a disk to receivedata. A hard disk or a flopp disk mustbe initiali#ed before it can be accessed.

nteractive se1uencer: A computerbased sequencer that directl interfaces

with +%D% controllers and sequenced

+%D% files to internall generate +%D%prformance data according to acomputer algorithm.

nternal se1uencer: A sequencerdesigned into an electronic instrumentthat directl interfaces with theinstrument:s keboard and voicestructure.

5

5ust ntonation: A sstem of tuning inwhich the distances between pitches are

based on the natural harmonic seriesinstead of the octave being equall

divided.

2

2: Abbreviation for 7ilo or 5111

2ey$oard Assignment:The assignmentof specific sounds to an area of the

keboard. &or example, the lowestoctave could be drum sounds, the nextoctave could be an electric bass, the rest

of the keboard could have various pianosamples assigned to it.

2ey$oard controller: A keboarddevice expressl designed to transmitperformancerelated +%D% messagesthroughout a modular +%D% sstem

0

0ayering: The abilit to place or stacktwo or more sounds on the same area ofthe keboard to create a denser sound.

0F-:ow &requenc *scillator. Anoscillator used for modulation whose

range is below the audible range (012#). xample- 'aring pitch cclicall

produces vibrato.

0oading: To transfer from one datastorage medium to another. This isgenerall from disk to "A+ memor orviceversa, as opposed to saving from"A+ to disk.

0oc#: To prevent data from beingedited, discarded or renamed, or to

prevent entire banks or disks from beingaltered.

0ongitudinal time code (0T%*: Timecode which is recorded onto an audio orvideo cue track. T encodes the biphasetimecode signal onto an analog audio or

cue track as a modulated squarewavesignal

0ooping: ooping is the process ofrepeating a portion of a sample over andover in order to create a sustainingsound. The looped sound will continue aslong as the ke is depressed. A sound isusuall looped during a point in itsevolution where the harmonics andamplitude are relativel static in order to

avoid pops and glitches in the sound.

0o4 6ote "riority: $hen more than

one note is plaed on a monophonicsnthesi#er, onl the lowest note willsound.

0o4 "ass Filter: A filter whosefrequenc response remains flat up to acertain frequenc, then rolls off

(attenuates signals appearing at itsinput) above this point.

M

M: Abbreviation for +ega or million.

Memory: ;sed for storing importantinternal data, such as patch information,
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setup configurations, and digitalwaveform data.

Merge: To combine or unite. To +erge

means to combine sequences, sounds,tracks, +%D% data, etc.

Musical nstrument Digital nterface(MD*: A digital communicationslanguage that allows multiple electronicinstruments, controllers, computers andother related devices to communicatewithin a connected network. +%D% is anasnchronous, serial interface, which istransmitted at the rate of 45.06 78aud

or 45,061 bits per second.

MD %loc#: Allows instruments

interconnected via +%D% to besnchroni#ed. The +%D% lock runs at arate of 0> pulsesperquarter note.

MD %ontinuous %ontroller: Allowscontinuousl changing information suchas pitch wheel or breath controller

information to be passed over the +%D%line. ontinuous controllers use large

amounts of memor when recorded intoa +%D% sequencer. !ome standard +%D%

ontinuous ontroller numbers are listed

below.

"!37"itch !heel%3"7 "ressure87 Modulation !heel97 'reath %ontroller

7 ("ressure on Rev. 8 D;


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port and and transmits this data toanother +%D% instrument or device thatfollows within the +%D% data chain.

MD time code (MT%*: A sstem foreasil and costeffectivel translating

!+/T time code into an equivalent timecode that conforms to the +%D% 5.1

!pecification.%t also allows for timebased code and commands to bedistributed throughout the +%D% chain todevices or instruments capable ofunderstanding and executing +Tcommands.

Mi&er: A device which allowscombination of different audio signals

together and outputs them in mono or

stereo. +ixers come in man si#es andare referred to b the number ofchannels (different audio inputs) thehave. +ost software sequencers alsohave a mixer onboard which lets oucontrol the volume levels of theindividual parts of our song.

Modulation: The process of one audioor control voltage source influencing a

sound processor or other control voltagesource. xample- !lowl modulating

pitch cclicall produces vibrato.+odulating a filter cclicall produceswawa effects.

Modulation nde&: The depth of

modulation when performing frequencmodulation.

Module dentifier: The screen thatdisplas information about what moduleis currentl activated.

Monophonic: A musical instrument thatis onl capable of plaing one note at atime. +usic with onl one voice part.

Multi+tim$ral: The abilit of a musicalinstrument to produce two or more

different sounds or timbres at the sametime.

Multi+trac#: A wa to record a complexmusical piece b dividing itinto simpletracks, and combining the tracks duringplaback.

Module: !ame as tone module or soundmodule or tone generator. !ee tonemodule.

Monitor: This word can mean at leastthree different things.

A computer screen A studio or stage speaker sstem A kind of li#ard

Multitas#ing: The abilit for man ofthe faster, more powerful personalcomputer:s to process more than one

program and


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refers to a sound which can be altered,i.e. it:s stored in "A+ memor.!ometimes also called preset, program,or sound. omes from the use of patchcords on the original modular

snthesi#ers.

"atch editor: A softwarebased package

used to provide direct control over acompatible +%D% device, while clearldisplaing each parameter setting on themonitor screen of a personal computer.

"atch li$rarian: A software packagecapable of recieving, transmitting, and

often organi#ing patch data between oneor more devices and a personal

computer sstem.

"ercussion %ontroller: !ame as adrum controller, except that there areman percussion controllers which areconfigured like mallet instruments andthus are ver adept at plaing pitchedparts.

"itch 'end: A continuous controller

which can be applied to snthesi#ednote(s), usuall from a 3ostick to the

left of the lowest keboard note. The

sound is a raising or lowering of the pitchand changes as ou move the 3ostickleft and right.

"olyphonic: A musical instrument thatis able to pla more than one note at the

same time. +usic with more than onevoice part.

"reset: A preprogrammed sound andcontrol setup on a sampler orsnthesi#er. /resets can be made up inadvance of a performance, stored inmemor, then recalled instantl whendesired.

"ressure Sensitivity: The abilit of aninstrument to respond to pressure

applied to the keboard after the initialdepression of a ke. !ometimes calledaftertouch.

"ro&imity Effect: $hen cartioidmicrophones are placed ver closeto thesound source, a boosting of the bass

frequencies occurs which is known as theproximit effect.

"unch+in: $hen recording, punching in

overwrites a previousl recorded trackstarting at the punch in point.

"unch+out: $hen recording, punchingout stops the recording process startedb a punch in, thus preserving thepreviousl recorded track starting at thepunch out point.

Dial: "otar knob used to scrollthrough data or select parameters. ;sedon 7awai sequencers to select, among

other things, a particular bar in a song.!ee alsoData wheel

uantiation: A timing function of asequencer or sequencing software usedto correct humanperformance timingerrors within a composition.

R

RAM: Acronm for "andom Access

+emor. The memor in a computer in acomputer that stores data temporaril

while ou are working on it. Data storedin "A+ is lost forever when power isinterupted to the machine if it has notbeen saved to another medium, such asflopp or hard disk.

RS=99: A highspeed serial

communication port which allows data to

be transferred to and from an externalcomputer at a ver high rate (6117baud).

R-M: Acronm for "ead *nl +emor.This is computer memor which can:t bechanged or erased. %t is :burned: into thecomputer or device. +ost snthesi#ershave some sounds which are in "*+memor and can:t be altered. A sign of a

more expensive snthesi#er is havingsounds in "A+ memor, impling that

ou can alter the sounds and savevariations as our own.


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Realtime %ontrols: *ccurring in actualtime or live.

Resonance: A frequenc at which a

material ob3ect will vibrate. %n a filterwith resonance, a signal will be

accentuated at the cutoff frequenc. !eeF.

S

Sampler: Also called a digital sampler. Atpe of snthesi#er which derives it:ssounds from recording actual sounds(instruments or non musical sounds) and

then storing them in computer memor,either flopp discs, hard drive, or

recorded onto D"*+. The are usedextensivel for generating sound effects.

Sample Rate: $hen digitall sampling asignal, the rate at which levelmeasurements of the signal are taken.

Sampling:The process of recording a

sound into digital memor.

S%S: Acronm for !mall omputer!erial %nterface, which is a connection onthe back of our computer or electronicinstrument which allows connection toother hardware devices such as externalD"*+ drives, external hard drives,some printers, scanners, etc.

S%S "ort: The port on the back of theinstrument to which !!% devices are

connected. !equencer- A device whichsteps through a series of events. A

digital sequencer ma record keboarddata, program changes, or realtimemodulation data to be plaed back latermuch like a tape recorder or plaerpiano. Digital sequencers use memor onthe basis of events (ke on, ke off, etc.)

while a tape recorder uses memor(tape) on the basis of time.

Serial nterface: A computerinterface in 4hich data is passedover a single line, one bit at a time. The

+%D% interface is an example of a serialinterface.

Soft4are Se1uencer: A sequencingsoftware package designed to be loadedinto a computer. !oftware sequencersusuall have more features and have theadvantage of showing ou a lot more

information at once because of it:s

computer screen.

Sound Module: !ee tone module.

Signal "rocessing: The art of modifingan existing sound through the use ofelectronic circuitr.

Signal "rocessor: An electronic devicewhich audio signals can be routed

through to affect the sound of thatsignal. xamples- echo and reverb units,

distortion devices, etc. +ost electricguitarists run their instruments through:pedals: which are small floor units thatprocess signals at the press of a footpedal.

Signal to 6oise ratio (S/6*: The ratio

between what goes in a device designedto alter or record sound, and what comes

out the other end. %f what ou get outthe other end is all distorted or hiss the

piece of equipment has a low signal to

noise ratio. A ver expensive DATmachine for example, will have a high!


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Song "ointer: +%D% information whichallows equipment to remain in snc evenif the master device has been fastforwarded. +%D% !ong /ointer(sometimes called +%D% !ong /osition

/ointer) is an internal register (in the

sequencer or autolocator) which holdsthe number of +%D% beats since the startof the song.

Step Time: A sequencer mode whereevents are entered one at a time.

Su$tractive Synthesis: The process ofconstructing a sound b starting with a

complex sound and then removingharmonics with a filter. A low pass filter

is most commonl used. The cutoff

frequenc of the filter is usualldnamicall varied, which changes theharmonics that are removed. ;sing thelow pass filter on the mulator %%% toalter the sound is a form of subtractivesnthesis.

Supermode: An mulator %%% +%D%

function designed to enhance the!equencer


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frequenc is determined b a controlvoltage.

@elocity Sensitivity: A keboard which

can respond to the speed at which a keis depressedI this corresponds to the

dnamics with which the plaer plas thekeboard. 'elocit is an important

function as it helps translate theperformer:s expression to the music.'elocit can be routed to mandestinations on the mulator %%% and isalso translated over the +%D% line.

@i$rato: A cclic change in pitch, usuall

in the range of H to 5> 2#.

@olatile Memory: +emor which loses

its data when power is removed. The"A+ memor in the mulator %% isvolatile, the data on the hard disk is nonvolatile.

@oltage "edal: A pedal which outputs acontrol voltage which is dependant on its

position.

!!ind %ontroller: A controller:instrument: which is woodwindlike orbrasslike in it:s fingering. The areblown into and the air stream triggerssounds from a snthesi#er or tonemodule. +an do not have sounds oftheir own and must be connected(through +idi) to a snthesi#er or tone

module. The will pla whatever sound iscalled up on the connected snthesi#er.

!rite "rotect: To protect data (eitheron a disk or in memor) from beingwritten to, although data can still beread.

;+

ero %rossing: The point where thepolarit of an electrical or sampled signalchanges from positive to negative (or

viceversa) as it passes through #ero. A#ero crossing provides a convenient point

to splice two sounds because the levelsof the two splice points are the same at#ero volts.

Documents

Electronic Music Glossary