Linux-audio-user September 2007

linux-audio-user@lists.linuxaudio.org

130 participants
158 discussions

Re: [LAU] Programs which use midi control knobs/sliders

by Simon Williams

Hartmut Noack wrote: > Parameter-Knobs/Sliders in synth-apps capable to react to > MIDI-control-messages. Would you care to name some of these synth-apps? > So I can alter the subharmonics of the second > oscillator of a synth-patch Sounds good, but I'm yet to find a synth which actually responds to midi controls. > while playing by comfortably turning a handy > knob on my MIDI-Keyb.(instead fiddeling around with the mousecursor) That's exactly why I want to get mine to do things. >> 3. Is there any Linux software which will make use of them? > > YES: > > Alsa Modular Synth: Great, that's sort of what I'm looking for, but how in the world do I use it? Most of the examples I load want LADSPA plugins that I don't have, and all the modules have lots of letters in their names with nothing to tell me what they actually do. And I don't know enough to create a piano sounding waveform from a bunch of oscillators. > Ardour: I can't actually work out how to use Ardour. It's way too complicated for what I currently need. Does it even have a synth?

17 years, 3 months

Re: Re: [LAU] Any lyrics please?

by julien lociuro

> > > On Wed, 2007-09-19 at 18:53 +0200, julien lociuro wrote: > > > Hi, > > > > > > Does anybody happen to have written any kind of lyrics I could > > use for > > > composing a song? > > > I never felt like writing lyrics..but I would like to try > composing a > > > song based on lyrics.. > > > so..any guy there? > > > > If you don't mind using non-exclusive lyrics, just grab some old > poetry > > that has passed into the public domain. Lots of great stuff > available. > > > > > > --ll > > > > > > Yes, that's a good idea! I didn't think about that. > > But of course, I woud preferably have something more intimate. > > By "intimate" I assume you mean something like one person talking to > another? That's been around along time! > > -- > David > gnome(a)hawaii.rr.com > authenticity, honesty, community Well, no..by intimate..I want to say more personal..a collaboration with someone.. Heuu and you mean talking to another person in my lyrics? or talk to somebody so he can provide me lyrics? I'm kind of confused :-)

17 years, 3 months

Re: Re: [LAU] Any lyrics please?

by julien lociuro

> > Does anybody happen to have written any kind of lyrics I could use for > > composing a song? > > I never felt like writing lyrics..but I would like to try composing a > > song based on lyrics.. > > so..any guy there? > > I've written a lot of lyrics, most of them also have accompanying > melodies - with many of the melodies never written down so I no longer > remember what they were. What kind of lyric are you interested in? > > -- > David > gnome(a)hawaii.rr.com > authenticity, honesty, community Really any kind of lyrics should be ok. Well, lyrics with meaning that touches your feelings. Preferably not simple depressing love lyrics (Ex: she left me and I feel alone..I'm gonna die :-) ) But it could be love lyrics.. Anyway, fyi it'll probably be a song with as base instrument the piano. Thanks. Julien p.s : sorry for the previous unedited subject

17 years, 3 months

Hideous dmix, alsa, jack, realtime and mixing mess

by Simon Williams

AAAARRRGGHHHH!!! FOR GOODNESS SAKE!!!!!!! Hardware manufacturers are now driving me totally insane. Are they all completely brain dead? How in the world is anyone actually supposed to use the appalling software sound cards they put in laptops and on motherboards these days? My previous laptop, a T20, had a CS46xx card, which was amazing- it had a hardware mixer. Actually it wasn't amazing. It was an ordinary sound card. The cards which don't have hardware mixing are useless pieces of ******* ****. I now have an IBM ThinkPad T23, which has one of the censored types of sound cards above, which is intel8x0 based. It is not capable of hardware mixing. At the time I made this "upgrade" ALSA did not ship with dmix enabled by default, and it drove me totally insane trying to get it to work (more on why later). In the end I gave up and settled with one audio application at a time. Then one day, to my delight I read that ALSA was now shipping with dmix enabled by default. It sortof worked, but to this day I have not actually been able to use it properly, because any application which doesn't use dmix blocked the soundcard anyway, so if any one of my applications didn't use dmix I was back to one at a time. (I'm looking at YOU, flash plugin (which, incidentally, also comes under the category of "useless ****ing ****")- more on that later as well) With the addition of a midi keyboard I now also have the problem of realtime. So I added jack. And my current jack setup isn't acceptable either. The main issue with jack is again the lack of hardware mixing. I have to manually start the jack server when I want it and shut it down if I want to play audio from any other application. Actually, whilst I'm at it could somebody please explain why fluidsynth --> ALSA lags, yet fluidsynth --> jack --> ALSA does not? How in the world does adding yet another layer of software actually SPEED UP the sound output??!?!?!?!? Anyway, with the addition of MIDI I then find out that these cheap software soundcards are also lacking MIDI sequencers, requiring software to do that as well. Fine. I eventually got that working, and even in (almost) realtime. But now I want to play along to an mp3 track. And here a large number of unacceptable hacks and compromises combine, eventually forcing me to go right back to the beginning. My initial thought was to try and get my other applications to use jack directly, which would have the added bonus of mixing them nicely. Great in theory, but xmms-jack didn't work and it looks like most other applications will require similar hacks, which for the most part are not available. I can't even get some applications to use ALSA instead of OSS, so I don't really stand much chance of getting them to use jack. And then I found this... http://www.articleworld.org/index.php/How_to_force_ALSA_applications_to_use… which looked great, but it uses /etc/asound.conf and ~/.asoundrc. Why is this a problem? Well, aside from the horrific memories it brings back of trying to get dmix to work, I am never actually sure if either of those two files are actually being used, if the syntax is correct, or if the particular contents I found on the internet should actually work. I am convinced that there is some voodoo involved. The site given above also mentions restarting the alsa rc script to make sure that the changes take place, but since there isn't actually an alsa service this seems like complete rubbish to me. The init script for alsa just saves and loads volume levels. Besides, non root users can't run rc scripts, so that's even more pointless with asoundrc files. I have a 486 in my loft with an ISA AWE32 which I am sure can do better than this. So, to summarise: 1. How do you tell an application to use dmix (an old and probably irrelevant question, but I want to know anyway)? 2. Why does adding an extra layer of software (jack) in between fluidsynth and ALSA speed up the audio output? 3. How do I get proprietary software (which for some reason all still uses OSS)(flash, teamspeak) to use ALSA? 3a. Or at the very least get the flash plugin to release the sound device once it's finished, without requiring the whole of firefox to be restarted? 4. How do I check that /etc/asound.conf and/or ~/.asoundrc are actually being used? 5. How can I force applications to use jack (at the least I need xmms, vlc, mplayer and preferably flash)? If I buy a pcmcia soundcard is it worth it? Any recommendations? Will it have hardware mixing and a hardware synth? Why are they so damn expensive? I'm currently looking at 70 pounds on ebay for a Creative Audigy 2, which seems totally ridiculous seeing as my midi controller only cost 50. I'm loathed to buy a USB one (especially as I only have USB1.1)- anyone got any comments on those? The whole point of buying a midi controller instead of a normal keyboard was that it was supposed to be cheaper and more portable. It doesn't seem to be going that way. Any suggestions? Simon

17 years, 3 months

Re: Re: [LAU] Any lyrics please?

by julien lociuro

> > Here is my try at composing a lyric, never done such thing before in > this fashion in a great while so please take it with a grain of salt and > you dont have to > use it if its crap, or doesnt fit your style, whatever. > > A Wonderfull Day > > I want to see your crystal eyes > Even knowing they are just a lie > A robotic sound might emphasize > The truth i share in my synthetic dice > > No, no, no, you dont know > Knowing is not how you will find > The truth lies on a sober heart > And this my friend i dare to say > > Lets make a perfect union > My sober heart and your crystal eyes > Spliced in one million bytes > Flowing trough a great river > Reaching grandma dad and son > > I could go even further > Not today, nor tomorrow > let the time decides its way > Rest in peace a wonderfull day Thanks. It looks good :-) Well, I cannot say I will use it. I will meditate on it. I want to feel it and if it triggers emotions, then I'll be able to try compose accordingly.. If I use it, the idea is that I want to make many versions with the same lyrics..and share it with you..so you can say which one you prefer or you think is more appropriate with the lyrics context.. -- julien

17 years, 3 months

Re: [LAU] another song with corin

by Dave Phillips

Frank Pirrone wrote: > I'm assuming the students you work with are studying vocal music, and > given the quality of everything you've posted and written I also > assume you guide them with insight and taste, but I'd like to offer a > suggestion or two invoking my own creds as a teacher and performer: A quick point: I don't teach singing per se. I make no claims to have any ability as an instructor for basic vocal technique, but it seems that more students are caling me for singing lessons. I inform them that my skill in that direction is largely as a coach, and that if they can't aready sing they should look elsewhere for a qualified instructor. That said, I do like working with singers, and I strongly encourage all my students to get into singing at any level. Also, most of my students are studying guitar, but I have a few students studying bass guitar, a few more vocalists, and even a couple of kids getting into digital audio recording technique and methods. Great fun, very rewarding. > What Corin may not fully appreciate, given her age and generation, is > the difference between singing and, let's say, crooning. Ever hear a > classically trained singer, perhaps someone from the operatic > tradition, or early stage and film musicals sing a jazz, blues, or > even pop tune and just not get it "right?" I'd attribute that > generally to singing within their native tradition, and its not > fitting the song. Wait, didn't William Shattner sing some Beatles tunes? Whoa, you're not dissing the Shat, are you ? ;) Your point here is good. As a matter of course, when Corin was learning Twisted I put together a disc of all the versions of the song I could find, including one by some operatic tenors. I know they were just having a good time with the song, but it was pretty bad from a stylistic POV. Btw, Corin does take classical voice lessons, and has for a few years. She probably wouldn't be working on the popular music with me if the classical teacher had okay'd the stuff for their lessons, but he has no feeling for pop or jazz. > Where her voice naturally falls within the first two tunes, her quick > and quavery vibrato and flattish phrasing keep "Fever" from becoming > an equally strong vehicle for her talents. She's "crooning" it more > than singing it. Yes, that's it exactly. As I wrote previously, she has done it better live, she can connect with her audience pretty well by now. > I'd have her syncopate it more. Slow down the vibrato, or drop it at > points altogether. That's common enough for jazz singers. Sing with > a little more edge, and from the throat. Have her close her eyes and > both visualize the story of the lyrics and the expressive process of > voicing it. Have her practice some bluesy growl and timing, even to > the extent of visualizing herself as a tube of vocal music, squeezing > it out perfectly with pressure from the diaphragm. If you sing, show > her. She'll quickly get the point and emulate the difference. These are great suggestions, Frank, thank you, and I will use them. I haven't really approached the use of vocal effects (I'm still trying to master Blind Wilie Johnson's growls myself). She has trouble with the vibrato. I think perhaps her classical teacher has failed her there, she didn't realize she had it until I pointed it out. Sometimes it's mitigated by her comfort level, I've noticed that in performance her first songs have more vibrato than the later selections. She's getting more comfortable with the recording process though, and hopefuly she'll learn how to "iron out" the vibrato and to apply it with more control over where & when. > One last thing, and Thorsten may have been reacting to this, though he > focuses on the vocal, the music should be more assertive. I've played > fever for a long time, and could even demonstrate what I mean on a > single instrument. Put three or four tracks together and this song > should simply boil. I mean that figuratively and literally, if you > will. Some tunes need to charge ahead and shout to have the desired > impact. Not "Fever." I've got an arrangement and guitar chording > chart that at the same time as it's subtle and understated, it simply > cooks. It drives and burns. We listened to a dozen recordings of the song, but the one she kept turning to was Peggy Lee's version, which is a rather understated arrangement (compared to some of the versions we heard). Of course, different people hear our arrangement differently: One friend here, a very experienced musical felow, loved its minimalism, while another equally experienced musician expressed the same thoughts as you. Obviously we need to plan for remixes... :) > Look for that, if you agree with me, and I believe you and Corin will > take this excellently chosen tune to another level - and with a > minimum of additional effort and time. I think she wants to keep it as a repertoire item, we'll try getting more into it for the next performance. > p.s. If that sounded too critical Dave, it's not what I feel and > meant. I genuinely liked this piece and recognized it for what it > represents. No fear, Frank, your comments are deeply appreciated. I don't feel especially skilled as a vocal teacher, and I can use suggestions for taking my students to new levels. I have two more young students who idolize Corin and want to learn to sing like she does, they have the talent but almost no experience, so your advice is most timely. I'll discuss the various responses posted here with her at her next lesson. She's a very even-tempered student, she'll consider all criticism in good spirit, and she'll definitely work on her problem spots. Best, dp

17 years, 3 months

ecasound and neteci

by Julien Claassen

Hi! I've got a problem with ecasound's neteci. It doesn't seem to accept realtime-commands like "engine-launch", "start" and "stop". Has anyone here ever worked with this? Is it a bug or a feature? If it's a feature, does anyone know a way around it. I need to control ecasound from a script, which must be able to load chansetups and connect them and start processing. I use telnet for the command-piping. Kindest regards Julien -------- Music was my first love and it will be my last (John Miles) ======== FIND MY WEB-PROJECT AT: ======== http://ltsb.sourceforge.net the Linux TextBased Studio guide ======= AND MY PERSONAL PAGES AT: ======= http://www.juliencoder.de

17 years, 3 months

A list of available OSC parameters?

by Ken Restivo

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Does OSC support "reflection"? i.e., is there any way in OSC to interrogate a device and get back a list of all available parameters that the device supports? I remember someone posting a complete listing of all the OSC parameters that WhySynth supports, but I can't seem to find it now, or how they discovered it. Thanks. - -ken -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.6 (GNU/Linux) iD8DBQFG9sQxe8HF+6xeOIcRAnfCAJ47La86zeU8RsSLbp05jvNUU+zJHwCg254s FMZ9TFNZ5Nb42g3kQBuIFlw= =y2/O -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

17 years, 3 months

Re: Re: [LAU] Any lyrics please?

by julien lociuro

> > On Wed, 2007-09-19 at 18:53 +0200, julien lociuro wrote: > > Hi, > > > > Does anybody happen to have written any kind of lyrics I could use for > > composing a song? > > I never felt like writing lyrics..but I would like to try composing a > > song based on lyrics.. > > so..any guy there? > > If you don't mind using non-exclusive lyrics, just grab some old poetry > that has passed into the public domain. Lots of great stuff available. > > > --ll > Yes, that's a good idea! I didn't think about that. But of course, I woud preferably have something more intimate. Thanks. Julien.

17 years, 3 months

FIC neo1973 linux mobile

by Robert Jonsson

Hi folks, Lots of talk today about linux mobiles on the internets. Apparently Trolltech has ported Qtopia to the neo1973 linux mobile. Interesting news in itself. Even more so the neo1973 seem to be a very interesting device in itself. I only very quickly glanced through the specs on the openmoko site, it looks to be a very capable device with interesting possibilities. Apart from pretty much all mobile devices I know it seems to have USB host-controller possibilities which should make it possible to connect an USB soundcard to it. Would make a splendid recording/playback device. Also, on this page: http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/Neo1973_Audio_Subsystem there are some schematics of the audio hardware which also seem interesting. Possibly there's both stereo line in and stereo line out, the inputs seems to route through some "Voice codec" "thing" though... Anyone know anything more about this device? /Robert

17 years, 3 months

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Linux-audio-user September 2007