Dixon Hill 4,234 Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 I'm easily turned off by the DX7 these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkissimo 1,973 Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Do you have one? It's a nightmare to program, but you can get some interesting, if lo bit soundscapes out of it. Just stay well away from the presets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon Hill 4,234 Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Yeah I've got one. Nightmare is the right word. I'm spoiled by Zebra I guess.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkissimo 1,973 Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Whatever the opposite of intuitive is, the DX7 is it. Created by computer scientists who couldn't play a C Major scale if their lives depended on it. bruce marshall 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joni Wiljami 1,206 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 It's sad that talented composer went crazy and started to use synths that much. But he didn' t realize they will become very dated that soon.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon Hill 4,234 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uni 306 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 I'm still partial to this workhorse. Going to heavily feature it in something soon.Hah! I had an upgraded version of this when I was in high school! You could program your own sounds and voices. Very chic.He shouldn't have gone the DX7 way ...Mike, during the cheesy "theme music" that covers the opening credits of Space Mutiny on MST3K: "Sounds like someone owns themselves a DX7, huh?" Dixon Hill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck 154 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 This cue isn't written by someone who doesn't get synth...That's what Jerry said... "If the composer use electronic sound they should understand it." publicist 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLUMENKOHL 1,068 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 It's sad that talented composer went crazy and started to use synths that much. But he didn' t realize they will become very dated that soon....So Jerry had synthophilia.And Johnny had xylophilia.Everyone's entitled to sounds that drive people insane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck 154 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Yeah, even xylophilia became dated now too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A24 4,331 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Everything is dated except strings and trombones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Timpani! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A24 4,331 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Bass drum is more hip! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Taiko drum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A24 4,331 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Taiko drum doubled with taiko drum samples played one octave lower! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Epic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A24 4,331 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Yes, the sound tells that you what you are watching is great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkissimo 1,973 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Nah, it's all about that surdo ensemble! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck 154 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 shakuhachihammered dulcimer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A24 4,331 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Synths ... in moderate doses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnome in Plaid 219 Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 When used sparingly, I think a taiko ensemble can be quite effective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trent B 337 Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 The few rare scores he's done with out the synth's are marvelous IE: The Edge and First Knight. I think the synth's might have hurt them rather than helped those scores. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skyy38 21 Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 I usually can't stand it. I don't think he truly grasped the instrument's unique abilities, and certainly not ways to integrate it organically with acoustic instruments. For the most part, Jerry's synths stand out as a sore thumb in a landscape that may otherwise be brilliant (LEGEND being the prime example).I love Goldsmith, but mostly for his acoustic experimentation. Despite his fascination for synths, especially in the 80s, he never really "got it".Oh yes he did! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck 154 Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 This one I think is the pinnacle of his synth mastery achievement Disco Stu 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 I've always enjoyed Goldsmith's use of synths and I'd love to know more about his history with them, especially early one. For instance, what was the first Goldsmith score to feature an analog synthesizer? @Yavar Moradi perhaps you can answer this question? I assume there was at least one before Apes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yavar Moradi 2,599 Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 Does Apes even have a synthesizer? I could’ve sworn it was all achieved without electronics (just weird instruments like mixing bowls and weird treatment of regular instruments). I think he used a Hammond organ or a Novachord or something on some of his Twilight Zone scores back in the early 60s... so maybe that would count? But come to think of it, I think he might’ve even used stuff like that back in the 50s for certain Climax! scores performed live...my memory is foggy on this but give it a listen and tell me if there’s anything that sounds electric organ-y: I’ve heard it said that Jerry’s interest in synths really started in earnest on Freud in 1962, which was his first Oscar nomination but a different composer Henk Badings was credited with supplemental “electronic music” (I don’t think Badings was included in the Oscar nom, though, somehow.) I think perhaps he resolved to learn this new synth stuff so that wouldn’t happen again...plus he always liked weird sounds anyway. Yavar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brundlefly 2,385 Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 Here's the scores that I think are using synths in astonishing fashion and to great effect: Star Trek: Nemesis - The dark, metallic noises as well as the droning makes this one of the most uneasy scores in the Star Trek universe. It has always been my personal favourite score among these - not least because of its synth work. Hollow Man - Very focused use of synth. The synth strings provide a modern and clinical impression, whereas the breathing synth seems like the sonic placeholder for the invisibility. The Ghost and the Darkness - There is... The Shadow - ...so much... Total Recall - ...to unwrap. Poltergeist II: The Other Side - This one's very self-aware with its heavy use of synthetic soundscapes. The eerie, smooth and floating atmosphere makes me personally prefer it over the first Poltergeist score. Legend - I agree with the people who claim that this one would sound great without any synth. However, that version would more apply to a natural forest, it seem. I think, the synthesizers kinda represent the strangeness of the surroundings that Legend takes place in. The score is like a romance of nature + an element of other-worldiness. And another bunch of scores with overwelcoming or poor uses of synth that sometimes even destroys the otherwise great music: Bad Girls - The cheap e-piano in the main theme was outdated in 1995 already. Sleeping with the Enemy - The much too sweet main theme didn't require to be sugarcoated by these lullaby synths. In addition to that, when the mustache man is on screen, anything and everything that you hear is an awkward synth tapestry that is trying to be eerie. Warlock - A great score with a cheapening surface. Many parts could have been played by real instruments instead. The use of synths often seems like a financial instead of an artistic choice Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend - Instead of jungle atmosphere Goldsmith went for inappropriate synths that make the cheesy movie even cheesier. presumably a bunch of other scores I don't know (Lionheart, Supergirl) or don't wanna know (Not without My Daughter, Rent-a-Cop, Alien Nation, Criminal Law, Runaway) Luckily in most cases, only a bad score goes with bad synth. 3 hours ago, Yavar Moradi said: Does Apes even have a synthesizer? I could’ve sworn it was all achieved without electronics (just weird instruments like mixing bowls and weird treatment of regular instruments). I'm very sure it doesn't have any synthetic instruments. Alien is another score that many people think uses synth, but it doesn't. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 3 hours ago, Yavar Moradi said: Does Apes even have a synthesizer? Gosh I guess you're right, those echoplex'd sections can just sound so synthy to my ears. So what was the first Goldsmith score to use what we think of as real synths, and not just early electronic organs and such? Googling I see "Illustrated Man" comes up as an early one? I need to seek that out! Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488 Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 Jerry Goldsynth Unlucky Bastard 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveMc 2,674 Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 Bond will return in GoldSynth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yavar Moradi 2,599 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 Sebastian pre-dates The Illustrated Man...and the Flint scores pre-date them both, with the first coming in 1966. I’m pretty sure those would qualify as “real synths”? Actually I think some of the unreleased music from 1965’s In Harm’s Way has synths.... Yavar Disco Stu 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
publicist 4,643 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 From 00:10 onwards i count as synth (or electronically altered). Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce marshall 1,315 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 3 hours ago, Yavar Moradi said: Sebastian pre-dates The Illustrated Man...and the Flint scores pre-date them both, with the first coming in 1966. I’m pretty sure those would qualify as “real synths”? Actually I think some of the unreleased music from 1965’s In Harm’s Way has synths.... Yavar Yes. Yes. Yes. The sounds he got from keyboards in the FLINT scores is astonishing! LEGEND uses synths wonderfully. FIRST CONTACT has sublime synth. ALIEN uses synth for the landing in alien planet. Many of his scores use electronic manipulation and processing. The echoplex and electric guitar in APES. ALIEN is infused with massive amounts of post-recording tape manipulations. He. Is. The. Master. Nuff said Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brundlefly 2,385 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 1 hour ago, publicist said: From 00:10 onwards i count as synth (or electronically altered). I'm pretty sure that's not synthetic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce marshall 1,315 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 Course it is! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
publicist 4,643 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 10 minutes ago, Brundlefly said: I'm pretty sure that's not synthetic. That's why i wrote 'electronically altered', like an early Moog noodling. That's what synths amounted to in the early 60's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brundlefly 2,385 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 Okay, so it's one of the earliest uses of a synthesizer, however, the first use of synthetic sounds was still pending at that time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce marshall 1,315 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 I see no differentiation between electronically. generated music from keyboards like Ondes or Theremin- both versions and ' synthetic' music. It's just a term of art. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karelm 2,913 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 On 4/24/2021 at 8:34 AM, Yavar Moradi said: Does Apes even have a synthesizer? I could’ve sworn it was all achieved without electronics (just weird instruments like mixing bowls and weird treatment of regular instruments). I think he used a Hammond organ or a Novachord or something on some of his Twilight Zone scores back in the early 60s... so maybe that would count? But come to think of it, I think he might’ve even used stuff like that back in the 50s for certain Climax! scores performed live...my memory is foggy on this but give it a listen and tell me if there’s anything that sounds electric organ-y: I’ve heard it said that Jerry’s interest in synths really started in earnest on Freud in 1962, which was his first Oscar nomination but a different composer Henk Badings was credited with supplemental “electronic music” (I don’t think Badings was included in the Oscar nom, though, somehow.) I think perhaps he resolved to learn this new synth stuff so that wouldn’t happen again...plus he always liked weird sounds anyway. Yavar Apes did not use a synth. No tuba either. The closest thing to a synth was sometimes it used an electronic harp which might have just been an echoplex on the harp used very sparingly. The primitive percussive music were all from Emil Richards's private collection of instruments Mr. Richards collected as he toured the world as a studio drummer. He would visit the local music shops and end up owning some new instrument some of which had very primitive/ethnic timbres give the score its unique feel. He played on every Apes film for all composers from 1968 through 2017's War for the Planet of the Apes. Mr. Richards died in 2018 I believe and his exotic collection is now available for musicians to rent. Holko and Yavar Moradi 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 12 hours ago, Yavar Moradi said: Sebastian pre-dates The Illustrated Man...and the Flint scores pre-date them both, with the first coming in 1966. I’m pretty sure those would qualify as “real synths”? Actually I think some of the unreleased music from 1965’s In Harm’s Way has synths.... Yavar Come on, you know what I mean. Synths like the Moog, not stuff like Hammond organs and clavinets or whatever. Synthy synths! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce marshall 1,315 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 Well the first synths didn't come into widespread use until mid - sixties. Morricone had one of the first. If you mean keyboards that could be manually played and had the ability to manipulate sounds Early models were used in modern classical music and were part of music labs. Then there are digital synth. So.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naïve Old Fart 9,520 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 I've never had a problem with Jerry, or any composer using synthesizers. Heck, my favourite Jarre score is completely electronic. I accept them as another instrument of the orchestra. They neither replace, nor usurp. They enhance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 Just now, Naïve Old Fart said: I've never had a problem with Jerry, or any composer using synthesizers. Heck, my favourite Jarre score is completely electronic. I accept them as another instrument of the orchestra. Jarre's use of synths in Prancer is a big reason why it's one of my 3 or 4 favorite Christmas film scores. Naïve Old Fart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naïve Old Fart 9,520 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 I wasn't thinking of PRANCER, but, yes, it's a good score. bruce marshall 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 1 minute ago, Naïve Old Fart said: I wasn't thinking of PRANCER, but, yes, it's a good score. Oh yeah, I was just giving another example of how Jarre was right up there with Jerry in the 80s for film composers utilizing synths Naïve Old Fart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce marshall 1,315 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 3 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said: I've never had a problem with Jerry, or any composer using synthesizers. Heck, my favourite Jarre score is completely electronic. I accept them as another instrument of the orchestra. They neither replace, nor usurp. They enhance. You're not welcome HERE!😠 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brundlefly 2,385 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 12 hours ago, bruce marshall said: It's just a term of art. No, the differentiation is of physical nature. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce marshall 1,315 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 22 minutes ago, Brundlefly said: No, the differentiation is of physical nature. What is your interpretation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karelm 2,913 Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 I strongly prefer Jerry's 60's and 70's synths/electronics over the 80's and 90's. For example, I loathe the cheesy synth score of "Not Without My Daughter" (1991) in contrast to Logan's Run (1975) or STTMP (1978) where I either love the electronic score or find it so well blended that the acoustic instruments and electronic instruments blend to make a perfect hybrid entity ala vyger. Yavar Moradi and Jay 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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