This film is just brilliant. The editing and visuals are so incredibly creative. The piece is perfect combination of precision and beauty. This is the best way to spend 16 minutes on UA-cam. Thanks Nahre!
I wonder how she'd do with a Roli Seaboard, with vibrato & pitch-bend available on a per-note basis? I've seen some people playing those & making it sound like a string section in an orchestra, but with the soloist doing different stuff to the rest of them. On ordinary keyboards, you get a pitch-bend & a mod wheel but they're global - they bend or modulate *all* notes at once.
Quincy Jones once said: "There was this guy, sitting in front of a keyboard which sounded like a piano on drugs. 'What's this?' i asked. 'I call it a synthesizer.' I fell in love with it. It had an effect on my work as if the alphabet was expanded form 26 letters to 1200.' I guess this is the best description of synthesizers ever.
@@NahreSol I have to wholeheartedly agree with Anna! To be honest, I wondered for a while you had a professional editing the videos for you. I suppose that in itself shows the quality of your work :)
I kind of feel like your compositions represent where classical music is supposed to be now. I don't know how to phrase it, but like, post-minimalism... If that makes any sense. I really like it
this is where the magic of synth comes through first in this video IMO. Ms. Nahre Sol is so technically proficient that exploring depth through simplicity could be a new direction... as opposed to astounding virtuosity that she already can demonstrate endlessly. I find her desire to explore new worlds very brave and inspiring. :-)
This comment has to be about Adam's o-face when she plays it, right? I thought it was a lil weird. I guess I haven't played enough to understand the feel.
@@SukoSeiti the ending was very experimental, even i can't say i loved it but it is quite unique. it makes you wonder what future tastes may be like in music and the sort of opportunities that will be available that modify timbre
I love how it's edited and thought as a short documentary, I'm a sucker for documentaries. Great work you've been putting out, and this series is very interesting. Thank you!
Nadeem Bitar The first question I have for you is do you understand harmonics? Understanding the basics of harmonics - well, overtones, which is to say harmonics specifically in sound - is something you need to understand filters, and filters are a key building block, along with oscillators and amplifiers, in analog all voltage controlled, I don’t know how things are done in digital.
Nahre this is kind of mind-bending. I think I would just be sitting there stunned by too many options. This was very interesting to watch your ability to patiently focus, upon being confronted with so many new sounds, and then to actually compose a piece of music. Wow.
It'd be interesting to see her look at a few styles as well. It'd be a shame if she just focused on current trend polyrhythmic metal (which isn't all that to someone trained in classical) rather than looking at the variations in what matters to the artists when comparing Jason Becker with Pantera and Paysage d'Hiver. Obviously she's not gonna see this comment, but as SikTh once said: "can't we all dream?".
(Seeing the gigantic modular wall of knobs, panels, displays and connection wires) Me: "Gee, I bet this thing can produce some awesome, complex, beautiful sounds! Just look at it!" Modular wall: "Blip blop blooopy bloop ecky ecky ecky pakang zoom-poing"
This was my sentiment as well. Nahre is undoubtedly talented and the piece is great, but it doesn't cater to the strengths of what a synth can do. I am very interested in what kind of music she would make if she spent some more time absorbing more classic modular synth compositions
@@rangizcool the CP88 is a sample-based stage piano and not a synth. while there are ideas in the piece influenced by the world of synth, there's no synthesis involved here. and i'm very sure nahre knows that and there's probably even more a chance she felt limited by it after having explored the world of synths a bit.
When you say you're hearing a "halo" on that Wurlitzer synth patch you're likely actually talking about the dissonance of the upper harmonics! Fascinating, I've never heard anybody describe it quite like that.
aberea often times people put themselves in classical music bubbles because of elieteism or other factors. it's nice to see someone be humble and see her embrace other forms of music
As much as I like dance music its sad how synths became associated with just EDM or 80's Pop. Synths were primarily used by art musicians as a way to push music beyond what was possible during an era of acoustic instruments. Thank you for this video and exposing people to electronic music beyond stereotypes.
Just listen to Wendy Carlos' realisation of the 4th Brandenburg concerto, and remember it was all played by hand, to tape, on a manually programmed synth with oscillators that drifted with temperature, and every single timbre change was added separately. A work of art, and, to my mind the best recording of a Brandenburg concerto. Actually all of the Switched on Brandenburgs are superb. But that's my favourite. Especially the last movement.
@Dirk-Ulrich Heise No, Tim meant that Wendy Carlos managed to capture polyphonic piece with monophonic synthesizer, with help of overdub tape recording. In live setting it wasn't possible, because you could play only one note at the time. The entire album was recorded a decade before first polysynths entered the market.
B1SCOOP yes. With one hand, playing all the parts, separately one after the other, with each change of timbre being programmed into the Modular Moog requiring separate recording. By one person. Although I don’t know if there was a recording operator too. A real labour of love.
Disappointment is not the correct word but I feel you played it really save with the sound design. That's the thing that breaks synths apart from many instruments. Half the instrument is designing the sound, the other half is playing it. It's a great arrangement, but it's pretty much piano.
I was looking for this notion in the comments. I feel the same way. It's a wonderful composition and a really well done video, but I feel like she really resisted the instrument.
Nahre, Thanks for All You do, and this is an excellent piece, and brilliantly played,... However what You have really done is play on piano an imitation of what "electronic music" sounds like to You. There is nothing here that is an exploration of sound, timbre, or form, as enabled by synthesizer and or sequencer, or electronic sources and manipulations of sound. Your exploration of synthesizers was more like a kid sampling sweets, at a sweet shop and deciding which ones appeal to them, without knowing anything about how they are made or why. Synthesis is about exploring the possibilities of sound, but it seems that there are few videos that go into the aesthetics of sound and how various gadgets can help a person reach the unchartered territories of the "minds EAR " ! Most of what i see about synthesis on YT seems to be more about being wowed by some rich kids fiddling with gadgets and hoping that all the knobs, flashing lights, and cables will obscure the fact that they really are not musicians, or composers. You are both a great musician and composer, but this is not really electronic music! And although Your friends , who helped you "explore" seem very knowledgable, there was really very little discussion of substance, or an explanation of basics. A missed opportunity. Agree with Synth Future, and Satchmo Plays.
@@Geopholus I somewhat agree. With my own exploration of synthesis, I had to abandon what I know about music to really understand it. But bringing that understanding back to a musical sense was the hard part for me - which was my goal in the first place. Once you marry the two, the possibilities are endless. I didn't expect to see a Lisa Belle Donna level composition (although it would have been dope), but I did like her approach to imitate how a modular synth would sound if it was patched into a classical musician playing piano.
So few musical ideas we encounter today face forward, and here I discover your channel and everything you do sounds like the future. And your approach to analyzing music is refreshing and illuminating. What a treat! Thank you.
I immediately thought of the battle themes against bokoblins and small guardians, and also Hyrule field theme (the very last chord)! Wonderful video as usual!
As a musician with classical music background, I RELATE SO MUCH WITH MS NAHRE SOL. Thank you so much Nahre for this video, I really love the editing!!!
Oh Nahre, you should definitely listen to Prog Rock's masterpiece Brain Salad Surgery by Emerson, Lake & Palmer if you haven't done so. Keith Emerson being one of the great early synthesizer pioneers in rock music(whom happened to be a classically trained organist and pianist as well!) As well as his personal hero Wendy Carlos and her "Switched on Bach" which I'm sure you've listened in the past. For a more contemporary flavour a composer I cannot recommend enough is a film/game composer who goes by the name of Disasterpiece, a lot of the sounds you were making reminded me of his work, he's like Satie on synths, he also has an album with prepared piano; Acoustic piano augmented with synth sounds, called Disasters for Piano.
When I was 10 years old I had a best friend that my mom set me up with her co-worker so she didn't have to pay for a baby sitter herself, but just let us play together at a local museum and flea market. We would explore the place together and had the most fun discovering. That is how Nahre Sol makes me feel in how she explore music. She talks comfortably like a best friend and just open my ears and heart to this wonderful perspective that she has in music. I do think the subject of synth is very cool, but adding her skills to the mix, is making me say I want the person playing as well as the synth. Just watching her tickle the keys from over view is so addictive and captivating. I imagining the piano being giddy and laughing with her touching them. I normally think of classical artist as discipline and orderly, but she is something else! Every video she does has open my perspective.
It's really exciting and enlightening to see such a collision of perspectives! Exploring synths through this lens is something really unique to this channel.
Your playing skills are really impressive and so is your understanding of melody. I always wished I could operate on such a high level of melodic complexity.
15:37 - This part is my absolute favorite. I'm not even sure how it sounds so good, but it's just crazy beautiful to me. Just... 4, 7b, 3b, 6b, all in 9ths.... absolutely gorgeous.
I've written some super complex stuff using sequencers and arpeggiators, real three hand stuff. I often think no human player could play that live, then I see Nahre and have to revise that thought.
As someone who live music as much as breathing, but never excelled at reading music let alone writing, this was one of the most entertaining videos I've seen in a while. :)
Great topic! pianist on synth, very not overlapped worlds. loved the previous loop video very much! I think a big difference is that when playing synth, you sometimes dont exactly know what that knob turning or patching will do to your sound. it s more of an experiment and you are trying to "find" something, in a more literal sense.
It's like the final stage of what people had been trying to do with pipe organs for the past five centuries. First just different timbres, then mutations, and now synthesizers. Finally we have a way of making all the sounds.
the shot of you and adam jamming together, you on the minikorg and him on the bass. ugh. what a cool friendship. Loved this whole video though, your piece is incredible.
Thanks again for sharing your self initiatic journey into music. So inspiring how you are so dedicated, curious and persistent. Please continue sharing with us.
Can't believe I initially thought she was "stiff" she's just really focused on classical and badass enough to cross genres! she's cool. Her friends are really knowledgable man, I love my city!
12:16 yeah despite a lot of people saying it has a great touch i wasnt impressed either. I own a cp4 which im not that impressed with either btw lol Anyway isnt the cp88 just a stage piano not an actual synthesizer? To me this sounded like a classical piano piece that was just layered with 1 or 2 extra sounds here and there
The idea was to create something inspired by the Synthesizers, after understanding how it functions. At 9:02 is explained, still getting that sound with Synthesizer sound from that piano.
Hello Nahre. May I recommend two reference points for your listening experience? One is a record assembled in 1985 by a musician named Gratziano Mandozzi titled *Bach Handel 300* . He recorded it for Deutsche Grammaphon using synthesizers from PPG. The other reference point is the material from a musician from Anaheim (pyrotechnics specialist by day) named Don Dorsey. One record is BachBusters (also recorded in ‘85), and his second is called Beethoven or Bust (from ‘88). He used a Synclavier II with a collection of outboard models. You could come away from hearing all three of those releases with a whole lot of information and ideas.
but no synthesis is used in the piece, it's just layering sample instruments, even if it was linear synthesis the effect remains it's just piano and xylo and an organ emulation, i feel like she didn't try to learn how to build unique sounds, and the andrew youtuber with the huge modular doesn't know how to show off the capabilities of such a large system, he just used circadium rhythms and a few other bits, i hate to nitpick but i feel like nahre cast synthesis away and just stuck with sounds she was already comfortable with and didn't have to experiment with, i realize the cp-88 is not a synthesizer per-se but it does have synth sounds included and none were used or explored, the myriad of synthesis methods are capable of such wonderful and varied and beautiful and expressive sounds, with synthesis you in a way are building the instrument, inventing it's sound, as you play and build a patch, what starts with a simple waveform or partial or operator or whatever else can become something with the presence and power of a whole orchestra worth of sound, i wish more classical musicians would explore the world of synthesis i dunno what else i want to say, i just feel a bit let down that she didn't use any synth sounds at all, i don't understand why it always feels like musicians that play acoustic instruments have such a hard time appreciating or understanding or something, the world of digital and electronic sound and music, do they look down upon it? are they just uncurious? thats too harsh im sure and clearly our host here is and im glad she put the effort to this video and im just overthinking and being dumb but i wish she had been shown much better things so she would be inspired to explore them and incorporate them into her music im sorry ill stop overthinking this now, liked and subbed either way, i wish everyone could feel what i feel from beautiful synth sounds
You are right and not quite at the same time. You know with such complicated piece you cannot put huge sounds it'll harm the piece trust me. She was searching for sounds for that thing and that was a priority. It would be cool if she wrote it based on sounds but not the case. To properly use such sounds you shouldn't be a great player in fact neely was right the sequence can be simple as hell but still gorgeous its the home for synths.
I think you're absolutely right. I mean to be fair she still explored synthesis while talking with everybody in the video, but in the final piece it doesn't really dive into synthesis at all. It would have been cool to hear some different oscillator shapes, fm, creative modulations, and the like. She says at the end that she doesn't really like saws, but you can shape them into a huge variety of sounds and articulations and I think she could have definitely found a way to turn a saw into something more palatable whether it be a pad, a stab, or some sort of really modular bassy sound Although at the same time, I guess with the classical background it's much more about performing, and only so many synth sounds can really play a whole piece by itself, y'know? Synths are definitely designed to be layered, and that's how most digital producers are used to using them. Having one patch play some chords, another play the lead, another playing the bassline, ect. You can't really take that same approach to a piece that's meant to be played all on one keyboard by one musician completely live. Maybe the next excursion should be combining what she learned about synthesis with her loop pedal and building up a lush track filled with a larger variety of sounds, as that would be a happy medium between live more 'classical' playing and the more layered 'digital' approach.
Kudos to Yamaha for supplying a CP88 to Nahre. While other brands are "too cool for school", Yamaha is out there supporting true artists like her. Awesome!
The way you approach the subject with open eyes/ears and without prejudice, seeing the options that are there... So unlike many other classically trained people. Awesome!
This is so cool! It was really cool watching you react to and fall in love with some new sounds! The piece is really unique. The editing of the video was also charming. The little scribbles to illustrate the sound of different synth patches was really cool and creative, they really did illustrate that sounds very well. Really nice job!
First off, you're a very talented pianist and your composition is very interesting, with overtones of Steve Reich and Keith Emerson. It sounds very much like a human interpretation of a synthesizer playing arpeggiated or sequenced patterns, which is a nice contrast of human and mechanical. At the same time, I can't really help but feel that you haven't really engaged with the synthesizer as an instrument. As a pianist/synthesist myself, I totally sympathize with this. The piano is so wonderfully expressive and easy to connect with, that it's almost instinctive to fall back on it. But synthesizer is all about timbre and exploring sound design, rather than concentrating on notes and chords. You should start with an understanding of how analog synthesis really works. You should get a simple analog synthesizer--preferably a monophonic one with lots of knobs like a MiniMoog. There are inexpensive iPad apps available for this. Really explore it and get an understanding of voltage controls and the filter, and how simple tones can be made expressive. Then, with some understanding of sound design, you can move to more complex digital and polyphonic synthesizers and apply what you've learned to orchestrate really complex sounds and textures. This is partly Yamaha's fault for sending you a CP88, instead of an MODX8. The CP88 is a great stage piano with some interesting additional sounds and effects. But it's not really a synthesizer that you can build your own sounds on. By forcing you into presets, most of which are piano-oriented, it really short-circuited your exploration of actual synthesis. As interesting as your piece is, a really talented synthesizer sound designer can keep your interest for a similar length of time with a single note, varying the timbre in interesting and unexpected ways. I'd encourage you to listen to composers like Morton Subotnick, (see ua-cam.com/video/QIq6rLgodG4/v-deo.html ) and Luigi Nono (see ua-cam.com/video/-z-IUbwaMC0/v-deo.html ), who used timbre to substitute for polyphonic complexity. Here is an example of a modern ambient work that really exploits a new complex digital synthesizer, the Waldorf Quantum--but only with timbre ( ua-cam.com/video/5xAco6AwaQU/v-deo.html&lc=z23jhz4yeunhtbh2racdp435mg2d2rc5qzxi5w4fzh5w03c010c.1573256731306393 ) Good Luck and thanks for the video!
You should use sound effects like Reverb, delay, chorus, filters to make your sound more unique and interesting. in my opinion synths and effects go hand by hand
I came here from Adam Neely's locrian challenge. Instant crush. Thank you! Also, the final piece has this Lyle Mays/Pat Metheny vibe to it, with frantic movement interchanged with mellow, broader soundscapes. Great piece.
I love this clip, it shows how you are as a music digester too, focusing on the more unconventional which was so fun to watch. the little synth piece around 7:30 mark was particularly beautiful set of tonalities
Hey, thanks for reminding me of him. I'm in the process of trying to recover music I used to have copies of, and there was one of his albums that pleased me a great deal. Let's see...Celestial Soda Pop, I think, was one piece from it, and since it's the only one I can name, it must have been my favorite.
WONDERFUL WORK! I've been diving into the rabbit hole of synth timbre for almost 20 years... so its lovely to see a classical musician like yourself dip your toes in such a great video!
Nahre: Learns all about the unique qualities found in synthesis, sound design, and breaking the confines of standard composition. Also Nahre: Lets play piano but use a different sound. Is this synthesizers?
I actually really loved that about the final piece. It's not trying to go to the extreme wacky infinite spaces of how a synthesizer can do almost anything, but rather taking a strength - something that is fundamentally a piano composition - and enhancing it with a variety of subtly-different timbres and sonic qualities for each passage, in a way that is only really practical on a synthesizer. To me it's an example of using the synthesizer to add to the art, instead of designing art to fit the synthesizer. Both are cool, but I feel like I've seen this kind of video less often.
Honestly, I adored the little visuals added, because a lot of them were so similar to what I see synesthetically during the sound design process, but I can never quite recreate them visually. Beautiful film work, editing, and that doesn’t even touch the actual music or learning experience. Incredible video.
This film is just brilliant. The editing and visuals are so incredibly creative. The piece is perfect combination of precision and beauty. This is the best way to spend 16 minutes on UA-cam. Thanks Nahre!
The legend himself!
Music theory God himself
Bat'ka is here
Bashlyk is here
President of musical UA-cam is here
Step 1: Split the whole song into 20 second segments
Step 2: Sell each segment to Apple as ringtones
Step 3: Profit
then play backwards. sell again. more profit ;)
You forgot
Step 3: ????
Step 4: see people using your sound to make billion of dollars and you having no right about them
Stonks
add trap beat
sell ringtone trap to drake
profit
*plays with vibrato* finally, i can express myself!
I'm ams vibratez now! Am I gooseflesh or a deadening clash on the threshing floor?
*laughs in string instrument*
I wonder how she'd do with a Roli Seaboard, with vibrato & pitch-bend available on a per-note basis? I've seen some people playing those & making it sound like a string section in an orchestra, but with the soloist doing different stuff to the rest of them. On ordinary keyboards, you get a pitch-bend & a mod wheel but they're global - they bend or modulate *all* notes at once.
Vibrato is a modern affectation - dating from the mid TwenCen. Go back and listen to singers and musicians from the 1920s and 1930s.
I'm mainly a guitar player and I always wiggle my fingers back and forth when I play piano even though it doesn't do anything lol
Nahre is a great educator. She once taught a 5 year old how to play piano. That boy grew up to be Mozart.
Nahre Sol, latest Dr Who incarnation apparently.
Can I get an amen
@@pabloemiliorui2281 No
Jk AMEN
@@pabloemiliorui2281 I'm more concerned that 4 people liked your comment and didn't say amen. What a bunch of uncultured swines
Quincy Jones once said: "There was this guy, sitting in front of a keyboard which sounded like a piano on drugs. 'What's this?' i asked. 'I call it a synthesizer.' I fell in love with it. It had an effect on my work as if the alphabet was expanded form 26 letters to 1200.'
I guess this is the best description of synthesizers ever.
I have to mention, your editing is just awesome!
Thank you!!!
@@NahreSol I have to wholeheartedly agree with Anna! To be honest, I wondered for a while you had a professional editing the videos for you. I suppose that in itself shows the quality of your work :)
Came to say the exactly same thing. Reeeeally good!
I kind of feel like your compositions represent where classical music is supposed to be now. I don't know how to phrase it, but like, post-minimalism... If that makes any sense.
I really like it
Wow,, thank you... 🙏
I'm definitely in for (post-)minimalism! I love minimalism.
This is exactly how I would describe it myself...
this is a great comment.
It's like where modern classical and prog should be converging
Andrew's wall of eurorack is a definite flex. Great video Nahre!
Until Junkie XL pulls up 😂
@@zamplify Junkie XL really takes the cake when it comes to modular. And he mostly uses a DAW anyway.
I never realized how big it was until this
That’s just the showroom at Perfect Circuit
Have you seen Look Mum No Computer?
07:20 - please record and release this! It's so beautiful.
I said the same thing when it was playing in the video...
this is where the magic of synth comes through first in this video IMO. Ms. Nahre Sol is so technically proficient that exploring depth through simplicity could be a new direction... as opposed to astounding virtuosity that she already can demonstrate endlessly. I find her desire to explore new worlds very brave and inspiring. :-)
This comment has to be about Adam's o-face when she plays it, right? I thought it was a lil weird. I guess I haven't played enough to understand the feel.
I agree
I like what Nahre is doing at 7.05. already. But I agree. And I like that part better than what she is doing later herself.
Awesome music - but I’m even more impressed that all my favourite UA-camrs know each other and play together in NY!
6:42 "Oh, I've never gotten it to do this before"... or ever again. The curse of modular.
Always be ready to record or sample. Or use VCV. 😎
It's also a blessing, you're always in for a surprise
Or, stick with synthesizer models equipped with modulation matrices and user-created patch memory.
I don't get why would anyone use modular at this day and age. Sounds like wasting absurd amount of time to get most basic ugly sounds.
Man.... at 7:10, this is incredible. When Adam grabbed his bass it gave me goosebumps!
She should make a longer version of this I really enjoyed it as well
Yah, I actually enjoyed that more than the final piece tbh.
I loved that part!
It was the best sound indeed
@@SukoSeiti the ending was very experimental, even i can't say i loved it but it is quite unique. it makes you wonder what future tastes may be like in music and the sort of opportunities that will be available that modify timbre
Andrew Huang looks like a mad scientist in that room.
Well... I think he IS a mad scientists of music.
Nah, he looks more like he's ready to operate some spaceship from the 90s.
@@bohlam6c Absolutely! XD
@@juanmoralesvideo That would be "look mum no computer"
That whole console is a thing of beauty
I love how it's edited and thought as a short documentary, I'm a sucker for documentaries. Great work you've been putting out, and this series is very interesting. Thank you!
Sound design is a whole other world and I love it.
Nadeem Bitar
The first question I have for you is do you understand harmonics? Understanding the basics of harmonics - well, overtones, which is to say harmonics specifically in sound - is something you need to understand filters, and filters are a key building block, along with oscillators and amplifiers, in analog all voltage controlled, I don’t know how things are done in digital.
Yeah, it sucks that others say that it doesn't take that much skill 😢
@@jccanizal6410 They are just ignorant people, it is better to instruct them, but there are people so stubborn, that it is lazy to explain them... :(
Nahre this is kind of mind-bending. I think I would just be sitting there stunned by too many options. This was very interesting to watch your ability to patiently focus, upon being confronted with so many new sounds, and then to actually compose a piece of music. Wow.
Thank you!!!
As someone who is trained in both classical, jazz and now messing around with electronic; this is exactly how it feels. It is super overwhelming, haha
9:50 yeah, Metal digested by a classical musician is definitely coming soon...
I've wanted that for months.
Collab with vkgoeswild 👍
I would definitely dig this.
Hahaha, that’s called progressive rock!
It'd be interesting to see her look at a few styles as well. It'd be a shame if she just focused on current trend polyrhythmic metal (which isn't all that to someone trained in classical) rather than looking at the variations in what matters to the artists when comparing Jason Becker with Pantera and Paysage d'Hiver. Obviously she's not gonna see this comment, but as SikTh once said: "can't we all dream?".
4:59 Adam Neely making a Lo-Fi song
You mean "smooth jazz but for millennial" ? 😉
Breath of the wild ost
The final piece sounds like a guardian encounter on Zelda Breath of the Wild.
Amazing!
...and it would fit into the game perfectly. Imagine a boss battle with it.
This was exactly my thought, too.
Was looking for this comment
Or the horse riding theme
But more aggressive
Jesus, Andrew. That's a mortgage with of modular gear.
I'd make a modest guess of at least $20,000 worth of gear on that wall.
haha dude has finally cashed out that youtube money
I'm pretty sure that he earns an income not just doing UA-cam hehe
Im sure since he gets free music products and sponsers maybe the same could be said for modules
@@Skrinkus94 Nah, it's gotta be more then that
Breath of the Wild 2 OST sounding Lit.
New combat theme :DDD
Totally Breath of the Wild, first thing I thought when hearing it
I remember a lot her writing style when i hear the game soundtrack, there's a lot of similarity in there
I was just about to comment this!!
Haha it was irking me what was familiar about it until I saw this
I wasn't expecting an Adam Neely collaboration, but man am I glad it happened :)
(Seeing the gigantic modular wall of knobs, panels, displays and connection wires)
Me: "Gee, I bet this thing can produce some awesome, complex, beautiful sounds! Just look at it!"
Modular wall: "Blip blop blooopy bloop ecky ecky ecky pakang zoom-poing"
Her final composition have the blips and blops too
you actually made me fall of my chair
Ni!
@@Rickandmorty_com Oh, what sad times are these when passing ruffians can say ni at will.
Modular wall that's actually patched to the max: kjapztkbjrjpervtajkvperpnpbvcpaepcaegt
Could you do Sampling, as digested by a classical musician?
The piece sounds like the answer to life, the universe and everything. Thrilling!
Pianist focusing on study of synths to make a test song... end using piano preset.
layered with a wurly.. but very true. would like to see a pt. 2 taking synths further into classical realm
This was my sentiment as well. Nahre is undoubtedly talented and the piece is great, but it doesn't cater to the strengths of what a synth can do. I am very interested in what kind of music she would make if she spent some more time absorbing more classic modular synth compositions
Yep. The piece above is just piano music played on an electric keyboard.
I have to disagree, I think the composition really express the two world colliding: classical + synth
@@rangizcool the CP88 is a sample-based stage piano and not a synth. while there are ideas in the piece influenced by the world of synth, there's no synthesis involved here. and i'm very sure nahre knows that and there's probably even more a chance she felt limited by it after having explored the world of synths a bit.
Seeing your reactions to sounds in this really makes me curious for "Techno, As Digested by a Classical Musician"
YES!!!
with the looper video and the synth video, she basically got it all already
I recommend Jeremy Blake from Red Means Recording for that, the contrast of personalities would be awesome.
Lilpeach101 you should dig for some... there is plenty good techno.
I wanna see her synthesize a kick drum from scratch :P
I get Zelda: BoTW vibes from your song. Sounds good
Vaintti THAT WAS MY FIRST THOUGHT TOO
Exactly what I was thinking. Very frenetic. Love it.
yeah I was going to say the same!
YES.
The sound design in that game is absolutely masterful.
You’re skill on the piano is mesmerising. I can’t believe someone can reach this level of mastery
I will NEVER be able understand how musicians can write songs this complex and/or fast!!! Astonishing!
Another most underrated thing is your video editing. Huge fan of it!
When you say you're hearing a "halo" on that Wurlitzer synth patch you're likely actually talking about the dissonance of the upper harmonics! Fascinating, I've never heard anybody describe it quite like that.
0:42 “I’ve been less exposed to digital sounds until quite recently”
Analog fanboys: *quaking in anger*
Does she knows why?
@@Noiretranquility she's a classically trained musician.
I WAS NOT.
I mean, not really.
aberea often times people put themselves in classical music bubbles because of elieteism or other factors. it's nice to see someone be humble and see her embrace other forms of music
Oh heck, looking at the responses I think that close to nobody got the digital/analog joke
As much as I like dance music its sad how synths became associated with just EDM or 80's Pop. Synths were primarily used by art musicians as a way to push music beyond what was possible during an era of acoustic instruments. Thank you for this video and exposing people to electronic music beyond stereotypes.
Industrial was the answer to that stopping by the late 70s and still is around
I'd love to see you tackle Math Rock, Drone or Shoegaze.
I can imagine Nahre doing some incredible classical noodling on an MBV-type setup and destroying her apartment building from the noise
*_yOu MeAn EmO JaZz_*
@@fermiLiquidDrinker math rock is great
they kindof got into the whole shoe gaze idea with the amount of sound design in this video, but i would still love to see it.
All so much simpler than classical music. (Yes, including math rock.)
That is an awesome tune. If I had to wake up at 7.30 and leave at 8.00 am, my alarm tune playing at 7.55 am would be this.
Just listen to Wendy Carlos' realisation of the 4th Brandenburg concerto, and remember it was all played by hand, to tape, on a manually programmed synth with oscillators that drifted with temperature, and every single timbre change was added separately. A work of art, and, to my mind the best recording of a Brandenburg concerto. Actually all of the Switched on Brandenburgs are superb. But that's my favourite. Especially the last movement.
Tim Beaton Tomita
@Dirk-Ulrich Heise No, Tim meant that Wendy Carlos managed to capture polyphonic piece with monophonic synthesizer, with help of overdub tape recording. In live setting it wasn't possible, because you could play only one note at the time. The entire album was recorded a decade before first polysynths entered the market.
B1SCOOP yes. With one hand, playing all the parts, separately one after the other, with each change of timbre being programmed into the Modular Moog requiring separate recording. By one person. Although I don’t know if there was a recording operator too. A real labour of love.
Got chills at the end ! It's cool seeing you collab more often nowadays !
Thank you!!!
Disappointment is not the correct word but I feel you played it really save with the sound design. That's the thing that breaks synths apart from many instruments. Half the instrument is designing the sound, the other half is playing it. It's a great arrangement, but it's pretty much piano.
I was looking for this notion in the comments. I feel the same way. It's a wonderful composition and a really well done video, but I feel like she really resisted the instrument.
@@ErikNonIdle to be fair, as a classical musician, she'd be terrified of this new world
Nahre, Thanks for All You do, and this is an excellent piece, and brilliantly played,... However what You have really done is play on piano an imitation of what "electronic music" sounds like to You. There is nothing here that is an exploration of sound, timbre, or form, as enabled by synthesizer and or sequencer, or electronic sources and manipulations of sound. Your exploration of synthesizers was more like a kid sampling sweets, at a sweet shop and deciding which ones appeal to them, without knowing anything about how they are made or why. Synthesis is about exploring the possibilities of sound, but it seems that there are few videos that go into the aesthetics of sound and how various gadgets can help a person reach the unchartered territories of the "minds EAR " ! Most of what i see about synthesis on YT seems to be more about being wowed by some rich kids fiddling with gadgets and hoping that all the knobs, flashing lights, and cables will obscure the fact that they really are not musicians, or composers. You are both a great musician and composer, but this is not really electronic music! And although Your friends , who helped you "explore" seem very knowledgable, there was really very little discussion of substance, or an explanation of basics. A missed opportunity. Agree with Synth Future, and Satchmo Plays.
Less is more
@@Geopholus I somewhat agree. With my own exploration of synthesis, I had to abandon what I know about music to really understand it. But bringing that understanding back to a musical sense was the hard part for me - which was my goal in the first place. Once you marry the two, the possibilities are endless.
I didn't expect to see a Lisa Belle Donna level composition (although it would have been dope), but I did like her approach to imitate how a modular synth would sound if it was patched into a classical musician playing piano.
So few musical ideas we encounter today face forward, and here I discover your channel and everything you do sounds like the future. And your approach to analyzing music is refreshing and illuminating. What a treat! Thank you.
Lovely video! The piece at the end reminds me somewhat of the soundtrack of the newest Zelda game.
Thank you!!!
I immediately thought of the battle themes against bokoblins and small guardians, and also Hyrule field theme (the very last chord)! Wonderful video as usual!
Would say Tarkus by ELP
I've played Classical piano for 20+ years and have always been baffled by synthesisers - especially the beast at 6:39. Really enjoying this!
love your music
Thank you!!!
@@NahreSol Finished watching and it was excellent! Love your content.
“So I tried to experiment with vaporwave and sampling but I ended up with a codeine addiction”
As a musician with classical music background, I RELATE SO MUCH WITH MS NAHRE SOL. Thank you so much Nahre for this video, I really love the editing!!!
Oh Nahre, you should definitely listen to Prog Rock's masterpiece Brain Salad Surgery by Emerson, Lake & Palmer if you haven't done so. Keith Emerson being one of the great early synthesizer pioneers in rock music(whom happened to be a classically trained organist and pianist as well!)
As well as his personal hero Wendy Carlos and her "Switched on Bach" which I'm sure you've listened in the past.
For a more contemporary flavour a composer I cannot recommend enough is a film/game composer who goes by the name of Disasterpiece, a lot of the sounds you were making reminded me of his work, he's like Satie on synths, he also has an album with prepared piano; Acoustic piano augmented with synth sounds, called Disasters for Piano.
What a good taste!
Thank you for having me! It was fun
Wow, the end of 'Sideways' was so calming and thoughtful. I love that type of atmosphere!
This was crazy!! The last section really caught me off guard and since I'm not a pianist myself, those chords felt like a new sound to. So good!!
I wonder what Nahre could do with a Roli Seaboard or a similar expressive controller.
Something amazing. There's no doubt in that.
When I was 10 years old I had a best friend that my mom set me up with her co-worker so she didn't have to pay for a baby sitter herself, but just let us play together at a local museum and flea market. We would explore the place together and had the most fun discovering. That is how Nahre Sol makes me feel in how she explore music. She talks comfortably like a best friend and just open my ears and heart to this wonderful perspective that she has in music. I do think the subject of synth is very cool, but adding her skills to the mix, is making me say I want the person playing as well as the synth. Just watching her tickle the keys from over view is so addictive and captivating. I imagining the piano being giddy and laughing with her touching them. I normally think of classical artist as discipline and orderly, but she is something else! Every video she does has open my perspective.
It's really exciting and enlightening to see such a collision of perspectives! Exploring synths through this lens is something really unique to this channel.
Thank you!!!
you've so quickly become one of my favorite people on youtube. i love your style. probably the easiest patreon pledge I've ever made.
Your playing skills are really impressive and so is your understanding of melody. I always wished I could operate on such a high level of melodic complexity.
I very much appreciate your use of contrast in your harmonies, melodies, and the combination of them both. Beautiful composition!
this was so cool to watch, loved the editing, your thought process and how you transfered the journey in the video.
Thank you so much! :)
15:37 - This part is my absolute favorite. I'm not even sure how it sounds so good, but it's just crazy beautiful to me. Just... 4, 7b, 3b, 6b, all in 9ths.... absolutely gorgeous.
a synth and a classical musician? Only beauty may ensue
🙌
I don't usually subscribe after just watching one video from a creator, but this'll have to be the exception. Great video.
7:06 This is why i loove synths! The discovery of sounds that will blow your mind to new dimensions!
This is FREE content wow. The piece blew me away. Percussive, expressive, modal, tender, emotional, mechanic, amazing
The final piece, Sideways, was absolutely amazing!
Agreed
"I don't like that on its own"
Percussionists: :(
Minute 7:12 is really pure letting those emotions flow... I really enjoy watching your videos, besides I learn more about music, tnks!
Marco Castro my favorite part for sure. Hope an extended version of whatever that turns out to be gets released. Sounded great!
I just discovered your Channel and i wanted to say that I never saw such a well made youtube video. Truly emerging and beautiful.
I love how visually u think of music sometimes 🙏
Pre-liking this. SO stoked to watch later
When Nahre Sol meets Jacob Collier musicians everywhere will take up knitting.
Actually Nares advised Jacob Collier's Songbook
@@ElGrecoOB knitting time
So basically: you're a living, breathing arpeggiator.
Making a synth play notes faster than a average human can.
Love the progress and endresult.
I've written some super complex stuff using sequencers and arpeggiators, real three hand stuff. I often think no human player could play that live, then I see Nahre and have to revise that thought.
I'm crying right now...because the world is a beautiful place filled with great music. Thank you
As someone who live music as much as breathing, but never excelled at reading music let alone writing, this was one of the most entertaining videos I've seen in a while. :)
1:20 reminds me of the guardian battle theme from LoZ: BotW
Great topic! pianist on synth, very not overlapped worlds. loved the previous loop video very much!
I think a big difference is that when playing synth, you sometimes dont exactly know what that knob turning or patching will do to your sound. it s more of an experiment and you are trying to "find" something, in a more literal sense.
Thank you!!!
This comment combined with Nahre's remark about timbre at 6:20 sums it up very well.
It's like the final stage of what people had been trying to do with pipe organs for the past five centuries. First just different timbres, then mutations, and now synthesizers. Finally we have a way of making all the sounds.
the shot of you and adam jamming together, you on the minikorg and him on the bass. ugh. what a cool friendship. Loved this whole video though, your piece is incredible.
Thanks again for sharing your self initiatic journey into music. So inspiring how you are so dedicated, curious and persistent. Please continue sharing with us.
This is your daily dose of Recommendation
Classical musician meets Digital Music
A phenomenal crossover of musical history by Nahre Sol
Can't believe I initially thought she was "stiff" she's just really focused on classical and badass enough to cross genres! she's cool. Her friends are really knowledgable man, I love my city!
12:16 yeah despite a lot of people saying it has a great touch i wasnt impressed either. I own a cp4 which im not that impressed with either btw lol
Anyway isnt the cp88 just a stage piano not an actual synthesizer? To me this sounded like a classical piano piece that was just layered with 1 or 2 extra sounds here and there
The idea was to create something inspired by the Synthesizers, after understanding how it functions.
At 9:02 is explained, still getting that sound with Synthesizer sound from that piano.
Hello Nahre. May I recommend two reference points for your listening experience? One is a record assembled in 1985 by a musician named Gratziano Mandozzi titled *Bach Handel 300* . He recorded it for Deutsche Grammaphon using synthesizers from PPG.
The other reference point is the material from a musician from Anaheim (pyrotechnics specialist by day) named Don Dorsey. One record is BachBusters (also recorded in ‘85), and his second is called Beethoven or Bust (from ‘88). He used a Synclavier II with a collection of outboard models. You could come away from hearing all three of those releases with a whole lot of information and ideas.
I'm watching this and I'm like... GAWD how can such an awesome person exist?! Narhe Sol, you are so cool.
Your piece reminded me a little of Steve Reich, I loved it!
It reminds me more of John Adams.
but no synthesis is used in the piece, it's just layering sample instruments, even if it was linear synthesis the effect remains it's just piano and xylo and an organ emulation, i feel like she didn't try to learn how to build unique sounds, and the andrew youtuber with the huge modular doesn't know how to show off the capabilities of such a large system, he just used circadium rhythms and a few other bits, i hate to nitpick but i feel like nahre cast synthesis away and just stuck with sounds she was already comfortable with and didn't have to experiment with, i realize the cp-88 is not a synthesizer per-se but it does have synth sounds included and none were used or explored, the myriad of synthesis methods are capable of such wonderful and varied and beautiful and expressive sounds, with synthesis you in a way are building the instrument, inventing it's sound, as you play and build a patch, what starts with a simple waveform or partial or operator or whatever else can become something with the presence and power of a whole orchestra worth of sound, i wish more classical musicians would explore the world of synthesis
i dunno what else i want to say, i just feel a bit let down that she didn't use any synth sounds at all, i don't understand why it always feels like musicians that play acoustic instruments have such a hard time appreciating or understanding or something, the world of digital and electronic sound and music, do they look down upon it? are they just uncurious? thats too harsh im sure and clearly our host here is and im glad she put the effort to this video and im just overthinking and being dumb but i wish she had been shown much better things so she would be inspired to explore them and incorporate them into her music
im sorry ill stop overthinking this now, liked and subbed either way, i wish everyone could feel what i feel from beautiful synth sounds
I think I have just read my opinions.
You are right and not quite at the same time.
You know with such complicated piece you cannot put huge sounds it'll harm the piece trust me. She was searching for sounds for that thing and that was a priority. It would be cool if she wrote it based on sounds but not the case. To properly use such sounds you shouldn't be a great player in fact neely was right the sequence can be simple as hell but still gorgeous its the home for synths.
More time playing, less time writing, buddy.
@@HrdRck lol!!!
To the original commentator.
A big part of synthesizers is using stock sounds.
I think you're absolutely right. I mean to be fair she still explored synthesis while talking with everybody in the video, but in the final piece it doesn't really dive into synthesis at all. It would have been cool to hear some different oscillator shapes, fm, creative modulations, and the like. She says at the end that she doesn't really like saws, but you can shape them into a huge variety of sounds and articulations and I think she could have definitely found a way to turn a saw into something more palatable whether it be a pad, a stab, or some sort of really modular bassy sound
Although at the same time, I guess with the classical background it's much more about performing, and only so many synth sounds can really play a whole piece by itself, y'know? Synths are definitely designed to be layered, and that's how most digital producers are used to using them. Having one patch play some chords, another play the lead, another playing the bassline, ect. You can't really take that same approach to a piece that's meant to be played all on one keyboard by one musician completely live. Maybe the next excursion should be combining what she learned about synthesis with her loop pedal and building up a lush track filled with a larger variety of sounds, as that would be a happy medium between live more 'classical' playing and the more layered 'digital' approach.
Kudos to Yamaha for supplying a CP88 to Nahre. While other brands are "too cool for school", Yamaha is out there supporting true artists like her. Awesome!
The way you approach the subject with open eyes/ears and without prejudice, seeing the options that are there... So unlike many other classically trained people. Awesome!
This is so cool! It was really cool watching you react to and fall in love with some new sounds! The piece is really unique. The editing of the video was also charming. The little scribbles to illustrate the sound of different synth patches was really cool and creative, they really did illustrate that sounds very well. Really nice job!
Nahre Sol: "Something came in the mail today."
Me: "What?."
Nahre Sol: 10:02
Deez nuts
First off, you're a very talented pianist and your composition is very interesting, with overtones of Steve Reich and Keith Emerson. It sounds very much like a human interpretation of a synthesizer playing arpeggiated or sequenced patterns, which is a nice contrast of human and mechanical.
At the same time, I can't really help but feel that you haven't really engaged with the synthesizer as an instrument. As a pianist/synthesist myself, I totally sympathize with this. The piano is so wonderfully expressive and easy to connect with, that it's almost instinctive to fall back on it. But synthesizer is all about timbre and exploring sound design, rather than concentrating on notes and chords.
You should start with an understanding of how analog synthesis really works. You should get a simple analog synthesizer--preferably a monophonic one with lots of knobs like a MiniMoog. There are inexpensive iPad apps available for this. Really explore it and get an understanding of voltage controls and the filter, and how simple tones can be made expressive. Then, with some understanding of sound design, you can move to more complex digital and polyphonic synthesizers and apply what you've learned to orchestrate really complex sounds and textures.
This is partly Yamaha's fault for sending you a CP88, instead of an MODX8. The CP88 is a great stage piano with some interesting additional sounds and effects. But it's not really a synthesizer that you can build your own sounds on. By forcing you into presets, most of which are piano-oriented, it really short-circuited your exploration of actual synthesis.
As interesting as your piece is, a really talented synthesizer sound designer can keep your interest for a similar length of time with a single note, varying the timbre in interesting and unexpected ways. I'd encourage you to listen to composers like Morton Subotnick, (see ua-cam.com/video/QIq6rLgodG4/v-deo.html ) and Luigi Nono (see ua-cam.com/video/-z-IUbwaMC0/v-deo.html ), who used timbre to substitute for polyphonic complexity. Here is an example of a modern ambient work that really exploits a new complex digital synthesizer, the Waldorf Quantum--but only with timbre ( ua-cam.com/video/5xAco6AwaQU/v-deo.html&lc=z23jhz4yeunhtbh2racdp435mg2d2rc5qzxi5w4fzh5w03c010c.1573256731306393 )
Good Luck and thanks for the video!
You should use sound effects like Reverb, delay, chorus, filters to make your sound more unique and interesting. in my opinion synths and effects go hand by hand
I came here from Adam Neely's locrian challenge. Instant crush. Thank you!
Also, the final piece has this Lyle Mays/Pat Metheny vibe to it, with frantic movement interchanged with mellow, broader soundscapes. Great piece.
I love this clip, it shows how you are as a music digester too, focusing on the more unconventional which was so fun to watch. the little synth piece around 7:30 mark was particularly beautiful set of tonalities
I strongly recommend listening to oneohtrix point never. Especially r+7 and Age Of. I think you'd like it and could benefit from it
Thanks for the recommendation, they sound incredibly different from most things I know. Very interesting!
Look into Phillip Glass if you want classical music with synth bits thrown in
Hey, thanks for reminding me of him. I'm in the process of trying to recover music I used to have copies of, and there was one of his albums that pleased me a great deal. Let's see...Celestial Soda Pop, I think, was one piece from it, and since it's the only one I can name, it must have been my favorite.
"I had some good ideas and a lot of questionable ones", every musician ever listening to themselves improvise.
WONDERFUL WORK! I've been diving into the rabbit hole of synth timbre for almost 20 years... so its lovely to see a classical musician like yourself dip your toes in such a great video!
I just found your channel. As a late musical bloomer I really love your videos.
Nahre should do some piano arrangements for Sungazer
Underrated comment of the year
Nahre: Learns all about the unique qualities found in synthesis, sound design, and breaking the confines of standard composition.
Also Nahre: Lets play piano but use a different sound. Is this synthesizers?
I actually really loved that about the final piece. It's not trying to go to the extreme wacky infinite spaces of how a synthesizer can do almost anything, but rather taking a strength - something that is fundamentally a piano composition - and enhancing it with a variety of subtly-different timbres and sonic qualities for each passage, in a way that is only really practical on a synthesizer. To me it's an example of using the synthesizer to add to the art, instead of designing art to fit the synthesizer. Both are cool, but I feel like I've seen this kind of video less often.
Yes! Amazing work! Reminds me of Philip Glass or Steve Reich
Honestly, I adored the little visuals added, because a lot of them were so similar to what I see synesthetically during the sound design process, but I can never quite recreate them visually. Beautiful film work, editing, and that doesn’t even touch the actual music or learning experience. Incredible video.
Great content, great editing, great music. Probably the best music channel on UA-cam rn