Hex and 2032 - new Dynamic Tonality apps

We would like to announce the release of a couple of free applications (for Windows or Mac), which can be downloaded from http://www.dynamictonality.com (these apps have been designed and implemented by Andrew Milne and Anthony Prechtl).

Hex is a MIDI sequencer designed to make sequencing in non-standard tunings and MOS scales as straightforward as the familiar diatonic/chromatic scale used by traditional MIDI sequencers. 2032 is a Dynamic Tonality physical modelling synthesizer designed to produce realistic simulations of acoustic instruments while also allowing their tuning and timbre (spectral tuning) to be changed dynamically.

Hex replaces the piano roll found in conventional MIDI sequencers with a button-lattice roll---the vertical height of each "button" corresponds to its pitch, and rotating the lattice corresponds to changing the size of the generator.

For example, when using a hexagonal lattice with a Wicki note layout, a rotation of -15.6 degrees corresponds to a tuning generated by a perfect fifth of 697 cents (1/4-comma meantone), a rotation of -16.1 degrees corresponds to a generator of 700 cents (12-tone equal temperament), a rotation of -19.1 degrees corresponds to a generator of 720 cents (5-TET), a rotation of +32.4 degrees corresponds to a generator tuning of 379.9 cents (a good tuning for the Magic temperament), and so on. The rotation of the lattice can be automated, and the corresponding tuning changes are sent---via MIDI CC20 (coarse) and CC21 (fine)---to a Dynamic Tonality synthesizer (like 2032).

The number of small and large steps of an MOS can be specified, and this determines the number of black and white notes. For example, specifying 5 large and 2 small steps gives the familiar seven white diatonic notes, and five black chromatic notes; specifying 3 large and 7 small gives a magic MOS scale with ten white notes and three black notes (the notes available in the next higher-cardinality MOS scale).

2032 uses modal synthesis---a bank of resonant filters (modes) are excited by a variety of different excitation models. As such, it can provide quite realistic simulations of acoustic instruments, but it can produce quite novel sounds too.

As a Dynamic Tonality synthesizer, it has a few simple parameters to facilitate the exploration of tunings. The main tuning slider controls the size of the generator (over the range 0 - 1200 cents). The Tone Diamond's left-right axis allows the partials of any sound to be moved towards one that matches the underlying tuning; its up-down axis allows the 2-D tuning (octave + generator) to be moved towards one of two related 3-D (5-limit just intonation) tunings.

For example, the tuning can be moved smoothly between the diatonic scale generated by a fifth (of any size), and a JI diatonic scale of 1/1, 9/8, 5/4, 4/3, 3/2, 5/3, 15/8 (bottom of the Tone Diamond) or a JI diatonic scale of 1/1, 10/9, 5/4, 4/3, 3/2, 5/3, 15/8 (top of the Tone Diamond). For any of these tunings, the spectrum of the tones can be dynamically changed between fully harmonic (left of the Tone Diamond) and fully matched to the tuning (right of the Tone Diamond).

To trigger a specific note in 2032, we map from MIDI note number and Channel numbers 1-5 (we'll post the mappings to the website shortly). 2032 can also be played with a computer QWERTY keyboard (using a Wicki/Thummer layout).

These two applications form part of a suite of compositional tools for Dynamic Tonality, which includes Hex, 2032, The Viking, and Bill Sethares' TransFormSynth---the latter two will be updated soon to accept the MIDI CC20 and CC21 tuning messages from Hex (Viking is also currently being ported to Max to make it Mac compatible).

Hopefully you'll find them useful, fun, and inspiring to play with...

…if you have any questions please ask.

Hi Andy,

Hex looks very cool... I will have a good play with it soon. I see it is possible to use it with a DAW. :)

I hate the standard piano roll which repeats after 12 notes, for obvious reasons. It's a chore to work out inversions and transpositions when you're dealing with a lot more notes.

It's good to see this alternative has been developed, and that more microtonal-tools are being developed and distributed for free. That's very gracious of you guys.

When I get round to working with this I'll send some feedback your way.

Cheers,

Sean

--- In tuning@yahoogroups.com, "andymilneuk" <ANDYMILNE@...> wrote:
>
> We would like to announce the release of a couple of free applications (for Windows or Mac), which can be downloaded from http://www.dynamictonality.com (these apps have been designed and implemented by Andrew Milne and Anthony Prechtl).
>
> Hex is a MIDI sequencer designed to make sequencing in non-standard tunings and MOS scales as straightforward as the familiar diatonic/chromatic scale used by traditional MIDI sequencers. 2032 is a Dynamic Tonality physical modelling synthesizer designed to produce realistic simulations of acoustic instruments while also allowing their tuning and timbre (spectral tuning) to be changed dynamically.
>
>
> Hex replaces the piano roll found in conventional MIDI sequencers with a button-lattice roll---the vertical height of each "button" corresponds to its pitch, and rotating the lattice corresponds to changing the size of the generator.
>
> For example, when using a hexagonal lattice with a Wicki note layout, a rotation of -15.6 degrees corresponds to a tuning generated by a perfect fifth of 697 cents (1/4-comma meantone), a rotation of -16.1 degrees corresponds to a generator of 700 cents (12-tone equal temperament), a rotation of -19.1 degrees corresponds to a generator of 720 cents (5-TET), a rotation of +32.4 degrees corresponds to a generator tuning of 379.9 cents (a good tuning for the Magic temperament), and so on. The rotation of the lattice can be automated, and the corresponding tuning changes are sent---via MIDI CC20 (coarse) and CC21 (fine)---to a Dynamic Tonality synthesizer (like 2032).
>
> The number of small and large steps of an MOS can be specified, and this determines the number of black and white notes. For example, specifying 5 large and 2 small steps gives the familiar seven white diatonic notes, and five black chromatic notes; specifying 3 large and 7 small gives a magic MOS scale with ten white notes and three black notes (the notes available in the next higher-cardinality MOS scale).
>
>
> 2032 uses modal synthesis---a bank of resonant filters (modes) are excited by a variety of different excitation models. As such, it can provide quite realistic simulations of acoustic instruments, but it can produce quite novel sounds too.
>
> As a Dynamic Tonality synthesizer, it has a few simple parameters to facilitate the exploration of tunings. The main tuning slider controls the size of the generator (over the range 0 - 1200 cents). The Tone Diamond's left-right axis allows the partials of any sound to be moved towards one that matches the underlying tuning; its up-down axis allows the 2-D tuning (octave + generator) to be moved towards one of two related 3-D (5-limit just intonation) tunings.
>
> For example, the tuning can be moved smoothly between the diatonic scale generated by a fifth (of any size), and a JI diatonic scale of 1/1, 9/8, 5/4, 4/3, 3/2, 5/3, 15/8 (bottom of the Tone Diamond) or a JI diatonic scale of 1/1, 10/9, 5/4, 4/3, 3/2, 5/3, 15/8 (top of the Tone Diamond). For any of these tunings, the spectrum of the tones can be dynamically changed between fully harmonic (left of the Tone Diamond) and fully matched to the tuning (right of the Tone Diamond).
>
> To trigger a specific note in 2032, we map from MIDI note number and Channel numbers 1-5 (we'll post the mappings to the website shortly). 2032 can also be played with a computer QWERTY keyboard (using a Wicki/Thummer layout).
>
>
> These two applications form part of a suite of compositional tools for Dynamic Tonality, which includes Hex, 2032, The Viking, and Bill Sethares' TransFormSynth---the latter two will be updated soon to accept the MIDI CC20 and CC21 tuning messages from Hex (Viking is also currently being ported to Max to make it Mac compatible).
>
> Hopefully you'll find them useful, fun, and inspiring to play with...
>
> …if you have any questions please ask.
>

Likewise.
couldn't agree more

--- In tuning@yahoogroups.com, "sevishmusic" <sevish@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Andy,
>
> Hex looks very cool... I will have a good play with it soon. I see it is possible to use it with a DAW. :)
>
> I hate the standard piano roll which repeats after 12 notes, for obvious reasons. It's a chore to work out inversions and transpositions when you're dealing with a lot more notes.
>
> It's good to see this alternative has been developed, and that more microtonal-tools are being developed and distributed for free. That's very gracious of you guys.
>
> When I get round to working with this I'll send some feedback your way.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Sean
>
>

w00t!

--- In tuning@yahoogroups.com, "andymilneuk" <ANDYMILNE@...> wrote:
>
> We would like to announce the release of a couple of free
> applications (for Windows or Mac), which can be downloaded
> from http://www.dynamictonality.com (these apps have been
> designed and implemented by Andrew Milne and Anthony Prechtl).

This is great! The modeling is very inspiring the presets are good.

You HAVE to try the microphone excitation option. Running my finger over my computer's built in mic while holding down a large chord feels *Just* like strumming a guitar. Very very expressive, you can even get a feel for how to "strum" the mic to get different emphasis on high or now parts of the chord like on a guitar.

I'd record an audio example right away in a cool tuning, but I need to figure out how to record 2032 directly because I'm using the microphone as an excitation device...

John

--- In tuning@yahoogroups.com, "andymilneuk" <ANDYMILNE@...> wrote:
>
> We would like to announce the release of a couple of free applications (for Windows or Mac), which can be downloaded from http://www.dynamictonality.com (these apps have been designed and implemented by Andrew Milne and Anthony Prechtl).
>
> Hex is a MIDI sequencer designed to make sequencing in non-standard tunings and MOS scales as straightforward as the familiar diatonic/chromatic scale used by traditional MIDI sequencers. 2032 is a Dynamic Tonality physical modelling synthesizer designed to produce realistic simulations of acoustic instruments while also allowing their tuning and timbre (spectral tuning) to be changed dynamically.
>
>
> Hex replaces the piano roll found in conventional MIDI sequencers with a button-lattice roll---the vertical height of each "button" corresponds to its pitch, and rotating the lattice corresponds to changing the size of the generator.
>
> For example, when using a hexagonal lattice with a Wicki note layout, a rotation of -15.6 degrees corresponds to a tuning generated by a perfect fifth of 697 cents (1/4-comma meantone), a rotation of -16.1 degrees corresponds to a generator of 700 cents (12-tone equal temperament), a rotation of -19.1 degrees corresponds to a generator of 720 cents (5-TET), a rotation of +32.4 degrees corresponds to a generator tuning of 379.9 cents (a good tuning for the Magic temperament), and so on. The rotation of the lattice can be automated, and the corresponding tuning changes are sent---via MIDI CC20 (coarse) and CC21 (fine)---to a Dynamic Tonality synthesizer (like 2032).
>
> The number of small and large steps of an MOS can be specified, and this determines the number of black and white notes. For example, specifying 5 large and 2 small steps gives the familiar seven white diatonic notes, and five black chromatic notes; specifying 3 large and 7 small gives a magic MOS scale with ten white notes and three black notes (the notes available in the next higher-cardinality MOS scale).
>
>
> 2032 uses modal synthesis---a bank of resonant filters (modes) are excited by a variety of different excitation models. As such, it can provide quite realistic simulations of acoustic instruments, but it can produce quite novel sounds too.
>
> As a Dynamic Tonality synthesizer, it has a few simple parameters to facilitate the exploration of tunings. The main tuning slider controls the size of the generator (over the range 0 - 1200 cents). The Tone Diamond's left-right axis allows the partials of any sound to be moved towards one that matches the underlying tuning; its up-down axis allows the 2-D tuning (octave + generator) to be moved towards one of two related 3-D (5-limit just intonation) tunings.
>
> For example, the tuning can be moved smoothly between the diatonic scale generated by a fifth (of any size), and a JI diatonic scale of 1/1, 9/8, 5/4, 4/3, 3/2, 5/3, 15/8 (bottom of the Tone Diamond) or a JI diatonic scale of 1/1, 10/9, 5/4, 4/3, 3/2, 5/3, 15/8 (top of the Tone Diamond). For any of these tunings, the spectrum of the tones can be dynamically changed between fully harmonic (left of the Tone Diamond) and fully matched to the tuning (right of the Tone Diamond).
>
> To trigger a specific note in 2032, we map from MIDI note number and Channel numbers 1-5 (we'll post the mappings to the website shortly). 2032 can also be played with a computer QWERTY keyboard (using a Wicki/Thummer layout).
>
>
> These two applications form part of a suite of compositional tools for Dynamic Tonality, which includes Hex, 2032, The Viking, and Bill Sethares' TransFormSynth---the latter two will be updated soon to accept the MIDI CC20 and CC21 tuning messages from Hex (Viking is also currently being ported to Max to make it Mac compatible).
>
> Hopefully you'll find them useful, fun, and inspiring to play with...
>
> …if you have any questions please ask.
>