Prototypical
An album of original music by Tim Thompson. A melodic blend of rock, new age, jazz, and algorithmic composition.
The software used to record (and in some cases, algorithmically generate) these pieces is KeyKit (which used to be called Keynote). The source code and executables of this software are freely available for non-commercial use, and can be obtained from the KeyKit download site.
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Autograph
This piece is done entirely with a single Yamaha TX81Z, using only the 8-note polyphony of that synthesizer. The solo at the end is algorithmically generated.
Twinkle Tune
Composed for the first MMML (Mostly MIDI Mailing List) tape, this piece was recorded with the first realtime (but no graphics) version of KeyKit. This rendition is newly orchestrated, adds some new wrinkles, and uses General MIDI. This recording uses a Roland SC7 with some extra reverb.
Fluence
This one was inspired by the chords of early Chicago tunes, and uses a Peavey V3, Waldorf Microwave, Korg EX8000, and Roland SC7.
Group Effort
This was done as part of the the "MIDI Playgroup" project on the net, organized by Matt Blais in 1992. Several dozen people contributed small snippets of MIDI music, usually only a measure or two, and the collection was distributed to the group. The goal was for everyone to create music using the snippets in any way they wanted. This piece was my result, created by using the then-newly-written multi-window interface of Keykit to manipulate the snippets. I used the mouse exclusively - I never touched a musical keyboard when creating this piece.
State Machine
Recorded using the Roland SC-7 and a little extra reverb, this is a very "old" song - I have arranged and recorded it 3 different times. This version is a General MIDI composition, so the MIDI file should sound pretty good on any General MIDI synth.
Shameless Boogie
This is the riff I always improvise to when relaxing at the keyboard. The Kurzweil 1000PX provides the piano.
Caffeine-Based Life Form
An old tune from college days, which I could never play through without making mistakes - thank goodness for MIDI. The solo at the end of the piece is one of my favorites. Originally recorded for one of the MMML tapes, this is freshly recorded and uses the Korg EX8000, Roland SC7 and MKS70, Kurzweil 1000PX, Peavey V3, and Emu Procussion.
Lineage
This was the intro to a long improvisation done for my father when he visited me in New Jersey. Uses the Kurzweill 1000PX.
Hypercube
This one started out as four different pieces. Uses the Roland SC7 and MKS70, Waldorf MicroWave, Kurzweil 1000PX, Korg EX8000, Emu Procussion, Peavey V3, and Yamaha TX81Z.
Friendly Phases
Just before I left New Jersey, I met a lot of new friends. This was composed for the fifth MMML tape - Tape95. It is a General MIDI piece, recorded with the Roland SC7 and some extra reverb.
Stock Answer #1
On the MMML, I proposed a game in which everyone would take a short musical phrase and compose music based on it. The phrase was generated from the letters of the word "Weinstock" - hence the name of the game was "The Weinstock Variations". The game kind of fizzled (only one person besides me finished anything), but I got two pieces out of it, so for me it was a smashing success. This one uses an ostinato that was algorithmically generated from the letters in "Weinstock", and the sequence of transpositions over the length of the piece was also based on the letters. I improvised and algorithmically manipulated the melodies. A General MIDI piece, it uses the Roland SC7.
Shadow Suite
Composed long long ago. Toward the end is one of my favorite melodies. A General MIDI piece, it uses the Roland SC7.
Stock Answer #3
This was my second piece for "The Weinstock Variations". It is completely algorithmically generated from a KeyKit program. (Well, okay, I manually removed a few of the less interesting measures to tighten it up, but I didn't modify any of the notes.) The overall heuristic was to generate a lot of echoes and then arpeggiate the results. The same algorithmic technique is the basis of "Algorithm B" in the Muse-O-Matic toy on my web site. This recording uses the Kurzweil 1000PX and Roland SC7.
Last Call
Originally done for one of the MMML tapes, this is re-orchestrated. Uses the Roland SC7, Peavey V3, Kurzweil 1000PX, and Korg EX8000.