The song. All proceeds to the Alan R Pearlman Foundation! UPDATE: I've just donated the $220 that sales of this song generated. Huge thanks to everyone who bought it. alexball.bandcamp.com/track/arp-quadra-make-it-happen
It boggles the mind that you simultaneously are capable of producing engaging videos, but also with a level of musicianship that's second to none. Are you mad? Yes, but also brilliant.
I love the Quadra, I bought one years ago to use with Peter Hook & The Light, specifically to recreate the New Order synth sounds, sample them and use them LIVE. It was a joy to use and experiment with. I also found out that you could route an external input into the Quadra’s phaser by using a Y-cable and inserting the TRS end into any of the quad outputs, which was great because the phaser was amazing. I had mine fully overhauled and fitted with an external arpeggiator clock input and then I decided to sell it a few years ago…it was bought by a guy called Pete Townshend. Enjoy the Quadra Pete 👍🥂
I too have been a fan for many years. But more recently watching post Gabriel/Hackett interviews (particularly with Gabriel & Hackett in the group interview) you can certainly feel the uncomfortableness/tension when Banks is talking about songs & "differing perspectives" about writing/producing songs, especially with Hackett... I got the feeling that Banks was very much a musical "Bully" in terms of other band members opinions in relation to a song's direction... 🤔🙄✌
Me too, Mr Banks was my original inspiration to become a keyboard player - the Quadra sounded much better than the Korgs (presumably) he switched to on the later tours as the similar but different sound he used didn't cut through nearly as much IMHO when he let fly e.g. the awesome In The Cage medley.
Interesting fact, my Mom dragged my brother and I to see Neil Diamond back in the mid 80's. Normally traveling with an orchestra, he was without for this show. As a synth geek I went up to the stage to look at his keyboardist's setup... I didn't know what this kybd was, but on the back was a very large, all in caps, "QUADRA." Lemme tell you, the strings on all Neil's tunes were HUGE and awesome sounding. Thanks QUADRA
This is the sound of my undergraduate days. Your Simple Minds homage was completely spot on. WVBU of Bucknell University was a quintessential college radio station in the heyday of college radio stations.
Love the business Tony Banks did with this on Mama - a cowbell playing 16ths routed out of the drum machine into the trigger input for the 'sequenced' sounding chords.
I saw a band that had one the year they came out, and everyone in the crowd had to walk up and look at it. They had him do a three or four minute solo just to show off all the wild sound that one person could make. It was very impressive at the time.
@@gabigolescu Not entirely. Membrane panels were the "next big thing" at the time, as they are printed as a sheet, so can work out cheaper than tons of switches if made in numbers. The technology did improve somewhat with "blip disks" underneath that gave them tactile feedback. Synths like the DX7 were of better quality, but still wore out.
Two things that surprises me are 1) the age of the synth and 2) modern approach to its design - given the color scheme, infographics and the layout of controls this synth it could have easily been released in 2020’s. But it’s actually 11 years older then me and I am in my early 30’s.
It’s the new order synth! They used the heck out of this thing from 1980-1983. My favorite use case of it by them is the bassline on Chosen Time from their debut Movement.
One thing I really like about your videos is that your demos are a good showcase of these instruments being used "as originally intended" if that makes sense, and that really does justice to these rare pieces of gear.
Hey Alexius! Behringer are sniffing around their user groups trying to garner interest in a recreation of the Quadra. I dobbed you in with this vlog, hope that's ok. You should be a consultant for MusicTribe!
I wasn't gonna at first when the CA Quadra was released; trying to avoid 'Completionism' just for the sake if it ... But after hearing Tom Bukovac jamming on his vintage ARP I decided to go for it. I'm SO glad that I did. I now have it as one of the default instruments in my DAWs. "Quadratic Sensation "
"Gloriously flawed" but that's character. The multi-instruments of the Seventies are oozing with that special orangey, stringy cheese! Love the Hooky impression btw, to a tee.
I always dig those odd time signatures in your tunes. That quick 15/8 in the first demo had a really nice feel to it. Great feature track, too. I'll gladly throw some Quad-Coin to accelerate the coming Arpocalypse.
LOL I kept counting over and over and furrowing my brow and said, “did he really just use 7 and 3/4 of a bar? That is absolutely genius and so catchy.” I forgot that 4 is not the only time sig denominator. Maestro Ball, your demos are phenomenal. Odd time is always tempting but it is not usually nearly as catchy as you made it. :) it sounds like what would have happened if temporary secretary by paul mccartney panned out as a good idea… 😐 just kidding. that would be impossible.
Oh my goodness. This synth was on my list of "when I'm a rock star" gear since '79. Sadly, I never got one. Sigh. But wow, you're doing a better job with it than I could have!
I've just watched "Fresh Lineup" for the third time and am still laughing. The bass guy vibing while the keyboarder being annoyed at his under-utilization, and the guitarist doing everything not to leave a bad impression. Been there.
Can't tell how much happiness your demos - and especially the feature track - gave me! I dream of having your songwriting and performace skills!! Jolly good vid!
One of the things I love about your videos is how effective your sensibilities are with gear, you really make it shine without overproducing things in a way that makes synths seem deceptively simple to sound great while showcasing their standout features: my instincts are always to tweak 800 different parameters, you know how to voice them so incredibly well. Have you ever considered doing a video teaching your approach to sound design?
Cheers! Synths are like any musical instrument in that regard, I guess. I remember studying orchestration at university and just looking at the scores to famous classical pieces and seeing how there were actually only three things happening at once, but how sections were allocated to reinforce each of those things. The overall effect was that it sounded absolutely massive, but also clean and clear. Was a real eureka moment for me.
Very cool stuff. One thing you missed, or neglected to point out, and that is, the Nord Stage line of keyboards. I didn't realize that the Nord Stage was SO influenced by the ARP QUADRA!!! Or at least it seems so. Just look at the ARP panel, separate sections for sounds, with a mixer in the middle to BOOT! and take a look at the Stage keyboards, SAME THING!! It's wild to see how so influenced Nord is by ARP. This also brings up another observation, and that is, ARP was the first synth company to have REVERB in a synth. THE ARP 2600, and SPEAKERS as well!! I don't even think they knew how ahead of their time they were.
Gawd(y) that UI is some kind of crazy mix of ARP meets Casio and Roland in one fell swoop! Awesome vid, big jelly at your ability to access and house all this wonderful firmery!!! Thanks again!
Another fabulous video, thank you. That reaching across two keyboards - best exponent I ever came across for that was Sad Cafe's Vic Emerson who would go out with three Claviolines and with them close together recreate the lush string arrangements he'd recorded in the studio. An astonishing arranger and player. (In fact, that little clip you show does look a bit like Vic..) The Band Member Tune reminded me a bit of RAH Band's The Crunch.
Wonderful video! I loved the sounds you made with the Quadra. You're always great at capturing the contemporary sound of the time period the instrument comes from!
Que du niveau sur cette fantastique chaîne ! que du niveau ! tout impeccable, tout drôle, tout beau, tout impressionnant, mais quel technicien, mais quel artiste ! Je n'ose pas imaginer la quantité de travail et l'investissement personnel pour faire aussi souvent des vidéos d'une telle qualité... j'ai bien peur que l'artiste explose bientôt et que ces vidéos ne seront qu'un lointain souvenirs pour fans esseulés, et ça sera tant mieux pour Alex !!
I used to have a Quadra back around 1979. I loved it because Tony Banks had one, and all my friend were mesmerized because I was a teenager that own a rare piece of pro equipment (No, mom and dad didn't pay for it, I worked my butt off). It had so many problems. The oscillators would drift and never stayed in tune. It was sent back to the factory so many times for what we call "stabilization bake". I still wish I didn't sell it until this day.
I never got a chance to touch a real Quadra, but I'm enjoying Cherry Audio's software recreation - real patch memory and more. The lead synth section is really fun.
Damn you, Alex Ball. We are calmly trying to manage our own business, working or reading some interesting book, or even finish a patch on an overgrown eurorack system, and there you come with a new video. Each demo is an interesting feast of creativity (or am I naive?), some sounds are mind baffling, songs could have made the top 10 forty years ago (don't take it bad, this >is< a compliment). Now we are stuck for yet another 30 minutes plus the time to try to digest the question "how does he did it"?
Survival instinct. Everything I do has to be done at one million miles per hour and with super lean efficiency. I learned that doing music for adverts for over a decade with crazy deadlines and very high stakes.
as always, i am most entertained by your musical creations. demo 2 sounded very much like one of my favourite film composers, mike post, who did many seminal tv scores in the 70's and beyond. keep them coming
Brilliant!!!!! What an odd machine! But in true ARP fashion, they did their own thing, and built machines that people wanted! The golden days of synths, when people could manufacture these things unaware of what they were going to be worth 40 years after the fact!
As usually your videos make my days :) Demos 3 and 4 are just fantastic! 3 is so fresh with your Ibanez play and with 4 I immediately felt the New Order style, but significantly more "optimistic" in it's character. And the feature track... I think 40 years ago Genesis would ask you for permission to play it during their stadium concerts :) THANK YOU ALEX.
Pride of place in all of my living rooms over the last 40 years, has been a giant. poster of Joe Zawinul at his ARP Quadra. It has always been a dream of mine. Thanks for a stonkingly informative piece. You're a class act!
There is a reason you exist, this is one of many reasons. So glad I have come across you in my life, such an amazing individual that brings joy to the masses.
Love this video. This instrument looks particularly spectacular when used with a Roland Jupiter 8. I got a Quadra new and used it as my 80s gigging synth, it handled all of our New Wave covers easily. The bass synth was sent directly to a large bass amp and did a very good job of making up for no bass guitar player. I thought of it as not especially impressive, but very practical, decent sounding, and great looking.
Fanstastic stuff really... I wish to one day have at least half your talent... Critically underrated would be such an understatement to qualify this channel
I'd love to see how New Order used a Quadra (if indeed it was a Quadra) for that simultaneous 'sequenced' bass and lead thing on 'Temptation' (the original version, not the 1987 re-recording). I'm assuming it was receiving a 16th note gate signal that was routed to the bass and lead sections simultaneously and all they had to do was lift fingers off and on. They seem to interact somehow though. If you listen to the 12", there are some great little arp-ey, sequencer-y little bits where they seem to be fighting eachother for notes.
I swear, your videos just get better and better each time, so much effort into this and I dig the snippets of songs and music that you make with these, so jealous, and kinda wishing youd release them for us to listen to!!! Great video once again, thanks for sharing!!!
Thank you for another fab video and tune - I got rather excited when I saw you'd done one on the Quadra, as it was not only Tony Bank's weapon of choice for many years as detailed, but it looks so pretty in the same way the Jupiter 8 is a work of art IMHO.
ARP quadra synthesizer, was widely used (among other synthesizers) by the keyboardist of the ELO (Electric Light Orchestra); Richard Tandy, on the 1979 Discovery LP. Tandy and ELO also used other ARP synthesizers; Omni, 2600, Odyssey among others...
The song. All proceeds to the Alan R Pearlman Foundation!
UPDATE: I've just donated the $220 that sales of this song generated. Huge thanks to everyone who bought it.
alexball.bandcamp.com/track/arp-quadra-make-it-happen
these are awesome!!
Totally love it! 👍👍
Yeah, that ending tune is a total uplifting banger. Nice work!
Artists like you making music in the old style make me wish culture had stagnated before 9/11 instead of slightly after.
😌🙌
Videos like this make me wish the 80s never ended.
So do I
It boggles the mind that you simultaneously are capable of producing engaging videos, but also with a level of musicianship that's second to none. Are you mad? Yes, but also brilliant.
Thank you. 🙂
Right! I love these videos!
It's his life love and passion.
Lmao
Mad ? Madly talented !
I love the Quadra, I bought one years ago to use with Peter Hook & The Light, specifically to recreate the New Order synth sounds, sample them and use them LIVE. It was a joy to use and experiment with. I also found out that you could route an external input into the Quadra’s phaser by using a Y-cable and inserting the TRS end into any of the quad outputs, which was great because the phaser was amazing. I had mine fully overhauled and fitted with an external arpeggiator clock input and then I decided to sell it a few years ago…it was bought by a guy called Pete Townshend. Enjoy the Quadra Pete 👍🥂
I've been a massive fan of this synth for years. All because of Tony Banks.. my hero.
Ditto, Tony pumped this through arenas for a good 5 years and he made it sound amazing on tape just as well.
Good ol' Bony Tanks.
I too have been a fan for many years. But more recently watching post Gabriel/Hackett interviews (particularly with Gabriel & Hackett in the group interview) you can certainly feel the uncomfortableness/tension when Banks is talking about songs & "differing perspectives" about writing/producing songs, especially with Hackett... I got the feeling that Banks was very much a musical "Bully" in terms of other band members opinions in relation to a song's direction... 🤔🙄✌
Me too, Mr Banks was my original inspiration to become a keyboard player - the Quadra sounded much better than the Korgs (presumably) he switched to on the later tours as the similar but different sound he used didn't cut through nearly as much IMHO when he let fly e.g. the awesome In The Cage medley.
The last song sounds to me like Genisis post-Gabriel, mixed with Gabriel-post Genisis!
Interesting fact, my Mom dragged my brother and I to see Neil Diamond back in the mid 80's. Normally traveling with an orchestra, he was without for this show. As a synth geek I went up to the stage to look at his keyboardist's setup... I didn't know what this kybd was, but on the back was a very large, all in caps, "QUADRA." Lemme tell you, the strings on all Neil's tunes were HUGE and awesome sounding. Thanks QUADRA
Didn't know it was used Neil's live shows, very interesting! I guess it was cheaper than a string section.
You can spot the Quadra also in Neil's movie of the period, "The Jazz Singer".
Best color scheme I've ever seen on a synthesizer. Just beautiful. Sounds good too.
REISSUE THIS! REISSUE THIS!
I love the sound of the Quadra on Genesis' Abacab. Pretty sweet.
So ahead of its time.
This is the sound of my undergraduate days. Your Simple Minds homage was completely spot on. WVBU of Bucknell University was a quintessential college radio station in the heyday of college radio stations.
Love the business Tony Banks did with this on Mama - a cowbell playing 16ths routed out of the drum machine into the trigger input for the 'sequenced' sounding chords.
Yeah, he got everything out of it, at a time when it quickly became outdated too. Respect.
Definitely has one of the most fun front panels in synth history!
Yeah, stunner isn't it!
I saw a band that had one the year they came out, and everyone in the crowd had to walk up and look at it. They had him do a three or four minute solo just to show off all the wild sound that one person could make. It was very impressive at the time.
Unfortunately, the membrane panels were shit and wore out fast.
And they had no tactile feedback.
@@TryptychUK... though that was a technical/manufacturing limitation, at the time .. had nothing to do with the genius of the "concept" 😊
@@gabigolescu Not entirely. Membrane panels were the "next big thing" at the time, as they are printed as a sheet, so can work out cheaper than tons of switches if made in numbers. The technology did improve somewhat with "blip disks" underneath that gave them tactile feedback. Synths like the DX7 were of better quality, but still wore out.
Two things that surprises me are 1) the age of the synth and 2) modern approach to its design - given the color scheme, infographics and the layout of controls this synth it could have easily been released in 2020’s. But it’s actually 11 years older then me and I am in my early 30’s.
It’s the new order synth! They used the heck out of this thing from 1980-1983. My favorite use case of it by them is the bassline on Chosen Time from their debut Movement.
Movement is such an underrated album. What it lacks in catchy melodies it more than makes up for with the rhythms and atmospherics!
I love New Order, I had no idea they used this synth - thanks!
I saw a ARP QUADRA at a vintage instrument shop. The thing was massive and looked like it could crush your head if it fell on you.
So are the string pads on songs like age of consent and blue Monday from the Quadra?
@@bryceneal3136 yes!
The synth that killed ARP. You can see what went into this right away. Crazy for its time! My first synth was an ARP Axxe, the same year.
The Avatar killed them.
Nice to see the guitars getting a workout😊
One thing I really like about your videos is that your demos are a good showcase of these instruments being used "as originally intended" if that makes sense, and that really does justice to these rare pieces of gear.
Cheers. Genuinely a fan of the era, so enjoy exploring the styles of the time with the instruments they used. Super fun.
The Quadra always makes me think Duke era Tony Banks and Movement era New Order. So cool seeing the sole focus of one of your videos.
Always makes me think of Escape from New York too. :)
@@AlexBallMusic "Legit Carpentry"
Remember Apple’s Super Multimedia. Computer “The Quadra”?
Hey Alexius! Behringer are sniffing around their user groups trying to garner interest in a recreation of the Quadra. I dobbed you in with this vlog, hope that's ok. You should be a consultant for MusicTribe!
Man, the demo 3 song sounds better than a lot of final productions around, HOLY MOLY
I wasn't gonna at first when the CA Quadra was released; trying to avoid 'Completionism' just for the sake if it ...
But after hearing Tom Bukovac jamming on his vintage ARP I decided to go for it.
I'm SO glad that I did.
I now have it as one of the default instruments in my DAWs. "Quadratic Sensation "
"Gloriously flawed" but that's character. The multi-instruments of the Seventies are oozing with that special orangey, stringy cheese! Love the Hooky impression btw, to a tee.
I always dig those odd time signatures in your tunes. That quick 15/8 in the first demo had a really nice feel to it. Great feature track, too. I'll gladly throw some Quad-Coin to accelerate the coming Arpocalypse.
Gotta love odd time.
Arpocalypse in 9/8 ? 😁
LOL I kept counting over and over and furrowing my brow and said, “did he really just use 7 and 3/4 of a bar? That is absolutely genius and so catchy.” I forgot that 4 is not the only time sig denominator. Maestro Ball, your demos are phenomenal. Odd time is always tempting but it is not usually nearly as catchy as you made it. :) it sounds like what would have happened if temporary secretary by paul mccartney panned out as a good idea… 😐 just kidding. that would be impossible.
Make it Happen is a wonderful song, love it.
Thanks!
As prominently heard in Escape From New York! Among others. Your second demo captures that so well!
I demand to see more of my favorite shows scored by Alex Ball.
That little jam at the end is BETTER than ANYTHING on the radio nowadays or top 200, or whatever!!! Excellent!!!! 🌟
ELO would have been proud of that.
@@djsherz 💯
This guy names "top 200" as if that's more impressive than beating anything in the top 20.
@@TheLarryBrown Gomlisten to the top 20 on Spotify. It’s 🤢
Oh my goodness. This synth was on my list of "when I'm a rock star" gear since '79. Sadly, I never got one. Sigh. But wow, you're doing a better job with it than I could have!
I honestly don’t understand how you and Florian aren’t mega Producers at this point! Love u guys 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
P.S. love the haircut
I've just watched "Fresh Lineup" for the third time and am still laughing. The bass guy vibing while the keyboarder being annoyed at his under-utilization, and the guitarist doing everything not to leave a bad impression. Been there.
It's where we all feel most at home.
Every day I wake up super pissed that this channel doesn't have a million subs. Those jams are so fun!
Probably a bit niche for 1 million. 🙃
The Arp Quadra - Halloween II
Lovely !
Don’t forget the Prophet 5 and the Prophet 10!
So much “ELO-y” goodness in that last track…. Just fantastic!
I was just about to say the same thing, it has the right pace, chord progressions and harmonising !
The Phase Shifter MAKES this synth!
It certainly does!
Sounds great, looks like something out of Space 1999
Space 1978.
Reminds me of when our band acquired an Oberheim Xpander. Very unique!
Love the Xpander.
I had never heard that about playing two keyboards with one hand, what a relic of the era. Great stuff as always sir!
Yep, became totally unnecessary within a short period and everyone forgot why there needed to be a solution to help it!
Love little tidbits like that.
@@AlexBallMusic and to think, they'd be lost to time without commited documentarians 🙏🙏
You can see that sometimes from classical or theatre organists.
@@Triplechorus2 Yeah, Bach for example often couldn't just leave that extra manual and that one idle finger unused.
Did it myself as well in the 1990s while having had some vintage analog synths without midi or cv control.
Can't tell how much happiness your demos - and especially the feature track - gave me! I dream of having your songwriting and performace skills!! Jolly good vid!
One of the things I love about your videos is how effective your sensibilities are with gear, you really make it shine without overproducing things in a way that makes synths seem deceptively simple to sound great while showcasing their standout features: my instincts are always to tweak 800 different parameters, you know how to voice them so incredibly well. Have you ever considered doing a video teaching your approach to sound design?
Cheers! Synths are like any musical instrument in that regard, I guess.
I remember studying orchestration at university and just looking at the scores to famous classical pieces and seeing how there were actually only three things happening at once, but how sections were allocated to reinforce each of those things. The overall effect was that it sounded absolutely massive, but also clean and clear.
Was a real eureka moment for me.
@@AlexBallMusic I'm reminded of the gag..
"What are we doing this afternoon?"
'Studying orchestration'
"err.. studying it is.."
You nailed the look of new order playing in the studio
That British awkwardness.
@@AlexBallMusic Real musicians who unwantingly became minor celebrities. Unlike today popstars are just celebrities posing as musicians.
Make It Happen is really making it happen. That's some of the best new wave I have heard in quite a while.
Very cool stuff.
One thing you missed, or neglected to point out, and that is, the Nord Stage line of keyboards. I didn't realize that the Nord Stage was SO influenced by the ARP QUADRA!!! Or at least it seems so. Just look at the ARP panel, separate sections for sounds, with a mixer in the middle to BOOT! and take a look at the Stage keyboards, SAME THING!! It's wild to see how so influenced Nord is by ARP.
This also brings up another observation, and that is, ARP was the first synth company to have REVERB in a synth.
THE ARP 2600, and SPEAKERS as well!!
I don't even think they knew how ahead of their time they were.
I didn't realize that the Quadra came out in 1978. So it had colored rows of buttons long before the Jupiter-8!
Gawd(y) that UI is some kind of crazy mix of ARP meets Casio and Roland in one fell swoop! Awesome vid, big jelly at your ability to access and house all this wonderful firmery!!! Thanks again!
Just a touch of Yellow Magic Orchestra with the Skeleton Dance track. Very awesome!
I miss my ARP Quadra
I never knew about the reasoning for the overhang. Very cool explanation!
Amongst only the very best of strings.
A heartbreaker also in maintenance but that hood alone makes me cry.
wow.. what a flagship...!
the pitchshifter section on those tones is outta this world.
Your demos are sick! 😎 I especially like the demo 1: Skeleton Dance. You absolutely nailed the 4/4+7/8 groove!
The synth sounds great, too! 😊
ditto
You are such a gem, Alex Ball. I love what you do.
Another fabulous video, thank you.
That reaching across two keyboards - best exponent I ever came across for that was Sad Cafe's Vic Emerson who would go out with three Claviolines and with them close together recreate the lush string arrangements he'd recorded in the studio. An astonishing arranger and player. (In fact, that little clip you show does look a bit like Vic..)
The Band Member Tune reminded me a bit of RAH Band's The Crunch.
Great video Alex! Man those Quadra Strings around 3:12 are otherworldly. Different enough from a Solina to be unique, but so powerful!
Yeah, they are nice.
Agree. With the phaser, it actually sounds rather similar to the Solina
Massive deliciousness in sound!!! Amazing demo and super cool tracks Alex! 😃🙌 Gotta love ARP synthesizers ❤️
Hey Michael! Cheers. :)
I don't know why more synths don't feature a number of orange rectangles. When coupled with an orange jumper, good vibes always ensue.
Man, that jam in 23 was sinister! Thanks for the continued fun, dude!
It was like YMO did a Neo-noir film score.
Holy hell! ‘80 played with a guy who had the Quadra he loved it!
Super cool to see it in action again!
Wonderful video! I loved the sounds you made with the Quadra. You're always great at capturing the contemporary sound of the time period the instrument comes from!
You, sir, are a very talented guy! Love your tracks.
As a fellow Brit (albeit now in the US) I love your quirky humor, but you can also program great sounds, and even more importantly play!
Thanks for all the great information and cool jams. I love learning about these vintage instruments.
I’m a guitarist, but your channel is really showing me how much I’ve slept on classic synths like this. There’s some great sounds coming out of this.
5:55 Was thinking this sounded like a cue from Escape From New York then saw it was called "Legit Carpentry." 😂
Had to be done. It was the law.
Thank you for your wonderful arrangements and amazing multi instrumentality,and thank you for the proper knowledge and sound demo of that great synth.
This is next level synth demo stuff. You've put a lot of effort into this!
Thanks man!
Que du niveau sur cette fantastique chaîne ! que du niveau ! tout impeccable, tout drôle, tout beau, tout impressionnant, mais quel technicien, mais quel artiste ! Je n'ose pas imaginer la quantité de travail et l'investissement personnel pour faire aussi souvent des vidéos d'une telle qualité... j'ai bien peur que l'artiste explose bientôt et que ces vidéos ne seront qu'un lointain souvenirs pour fans esseulés, et ça sera tant mieux pour Alex !!
T'as eu la flemme de traduire en anglais ?
What a fantastic piece of kit. Reminds me of the synth stuff I love like Numan, Human League and Ultravox
Christ, that’s a nice sounding bit of kit. Brilliant content and performances, as always Alex
I used to have a Quadra back around 1979. I loved it because Tony Banks had one, and all my friend were mesmerized because I was a teenager that own a rare piece of pro equipment (No, mom and dad didn't pay for it, I worked my butt off). It had so many problems. The oscillators would drift and never stayed in tune. It was sent back to the factory so many times for what we call "stabilization bake". I still wish I didn't sell it until this day.
This is one of my fave synths of all time. Well done. Cheers
I never got a chance to touch a real Quadra, but I'm enjoying Cherry Audio's software recreation - real patch memory and more. The lead synth section is really fun.
Listening to these always makes me think of the library composer classics
Some superb demos in this one... Yes, ok I may be a fan of 80s-esque synth and guitar bands
Damn you, Alex Ball. We are calmly trying to manage our own business, working or reading some interesting book, or even finish a patch on an overgrown eurorack system, and there you come with a new video. Each demo is an interesting feast of creativity (or am I naive?), some sounds are mind baffling, songs could have made the top 10 forty years ago (don't take it bad, this >is< a compliment). Now we are stuck for yet another 30 minutes plus the time to try to digest the question "how does he did it"?
Survival instinct. Everything I do has to be done at one million miles per hour and with super lean efficiency. I learned that doing music for adverts for over a decade with crazy deadlines and very high stakes.
as always, i am most entertained by your musical creations. demo 2 sounded very much like one of my favourite film composers, mike post, who did many seminal tv scores in the 70's and beyond. keep them coming
Another great video Alex! What a very cool looking keyboard. Very interesting info about the overhanging keyboard. Thank you so much for doing these.
A great viewer experience, as usual with your videos. Danke Shön sir
Man you are a stellar musician.
Cheers
Another fantastic video, it’s always been one of the best looking synths for me and as a New Order fan a real treat to see you demo it. 👌🏻
I cannot find a word in the dictionary to describe how Fantasticallysuperbalicious your videos are Alex.
Nope actually, the keybed had overhang because it was designed by Tom Oberhang.
Perfect joke.
Brilliant!!!!! What an odd machine! But in true ARP fashion, they did their own thing, and built machines that people wanted! The golden days of synths, when people could manufacture these things unaware of what they were going to be worth 40 years after the fact!
Love the shoutout to Keith Emerson and his mighty Moog at 9:46!
As usually your videos make my days :) Demos 3 and 4 are just fantastic! 3 is so fresh with your Ibanez play and with 4 I immediately felt the New Order style, but significantly more "optimistic" in it's character. And the feature track... I think 40 years ago Genesis would ask you for permission to play it during their stadium concerts :)
THANK YOU ALEX.
Pride of place in all of my living rooms over the last 40 years, has been a giant. poster of Joe Zawinul at his ARP Quadra. It has always been a dream of mine. Thanks for a stonkingly informative piece. You're a class act!
There is a reason you exist, this is one of many reasons.
So glad I have come across you in my life, such an amazing individual that brings joy to the masses.
It definitely has something of a "BBC Radiophonic Workshop" sound to it. Which I guess makes sense.
Love this video. This instrument looks particularly spectacular when used with a Roland Jupiter 8. I got a Quadra new and used it as my 80s gigging synth, it handled all of our New Wave covers easily. The bass synth was sent directly to a large bass amp and did a very good job of making up for no bass guitar player. I thought of it as not especially impressive, but very practical, decent sounding, and great looking.
Fanstastic stuff really... I wish to one day have at least half your talent... Critically underrated would be such an understatement to qualify this channel
I'd love to see how New Order used a Quadra (if indeed it was a Quadra) for that simultaneous 'sequenced' bass and lead thing on 'Temptation' (the original version, not the 1987 re-recording). I'm assuming it was receiving a 16th note gate signal that was routed to the bass and lead sections simultaneously and all they had to do was lift fingers off and on. They seem to interact somehow though. If you listen to the 12", there are some great little arp-ey, sequencer-y little bits where they seem to be fighting eachother for notes.
Those phased strings were on some disco songs. It's going to bug me till I remember which ones! 😱
The earlier Solina and Omni were too, so it might have been any of the three.
I swear, your videos just get better and better each time, so much effort into this and I dig the snippets of songs and music that you make with these, so jealous, and kinda wishing youd release them for us to listen to!!!
Great video once again, thanks for sharing!!!
Thank you for another fab video and tune - I got rather excited when I saw you'd done one on the Quadra, as it was not only Tony Bank's weapon of choice for many years as detailed, but it looks so pretty in the same way the Jupiter 8 is a work of art IMHO.
just love your videos Alex. Amazing info and music!
Superb synth, done justice.
Excellent introductory presentation of ARP Quadra indeed.. I love it! 👍🏻🤩👍🏻
Thanks so much! 🙏🏻
I have never heard and seen something about this machine 😁, Sounds very unique Great vintage machine.
A rare bird now. Great to be able to cover it.
Your videos are very informative as well as musically wonderful, keep up the great work!
ARP quadra synthesizer, was widely used (among other synthesizers) by the keyboardist of the ELO (Electric Light Orchestra); Richard Tandy, on the 1979 Discovery LP.
Tandy and ELO also used other ARP synthesizers; Omni, 2600, Odyssey among others...