Explaining Ambient Music (using Korg Volcas)

[@craigsurette3438]

I really appreciate the shout out to oldschool Rave culture, and Chill Out rooms, and the music they played. Those spaces and the music created in them, or for them , was vital to helping create and curate the many positive experiences people had in those parties.The booming loud room was for revving you up, and getting you pumped, while the chill out room was for quiet introspection and integration, as well as being a space where people could more easily connect with others and or have some quiet alone or creative time if they needed it. Helping run parties, especially Chill Out rooms was a huge part of my life in the 90s and seeing how the music often helped people, became a huge part of why i love Ambient music.

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks! Great comment!

[@chrispearson7163]

I see a lot of Volca snobbery on the Internet, but your channel shows exactly why that snobbery is misplaced. Volca mastery with a history lesson thrown in for good measure.🙂🤘

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks! Happy you enjoyed!

[@caveymon]

Oh man, I totally forgot about ambient and my love/hate relationship with it back in the 90's haha :D Thanks for reviving those memories. Guess now I'm older, I can better appreciate the downtempo side of things in ambient. Back then, man, I needed hardcore/gabba/techno/goa/jungle/breakbeats/bigbeats/anything loud and fast to keep going :D

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Nice! Yes, the Downtempo stuff was more to chill you out! :)

[@Drobvio]

nice track and history lesson! thank you!

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks for the comment! 🙂

[@erikavery1105]

That was SICCK! 😁😁😁🤘🏾🤘🏾🤘🏾I'm still learning to use my volcas.

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks!

[@erikavery1105]

@@AdamVoxMusic I am getting a Volca Bass!!! *grinning like happy child*😁😁😁

[@williamfullam3412]

Love the history, tutorial and jam! Thank you so much for sharing. Also love the Volcas focus personally, they really are affordable and versatile gear we can all learn from and enjoy.

[@AdamVoxMusic]

I agree with that! 😊

[@prcr]

Excellent content, I really enjoyed it. And the jam at the end was beautiful! 🔥👍

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks! :)

[@Micro-Genius]

Thanks! Really underrated channel! Finally I know what is ambient :)

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks for the comment!

[@dani_raudvik]

Great video on ambient music as a whole and wonderful use of the volcas and NTS-1 to make a cool chill-out tune.

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks! 😊

[@GordonBraicks]

I am always enjoying and looking forward to your videos. A blend of musical history, tech and love for gear and music!

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thank you! 😀

[@damienphotographe]

The history of music genre is an essential added value to your videos, congratulation

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks! 😊

[@ryanwaingo]

Love the set up! I run my Volcas through the NTS-1 all the time and it sounds great, especially those reverbs. Keep it up!

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Yes, I also love that reverb!

[@joannawhite1841]

What a nice way to fall a sleep. Love it ! Thank You Adam

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thank you! 🙂

[@liamg6328]

Lovely Adam. Ambientastic! 🙂🙂

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Ambienthank you! 😊

[@Mr.Tubster]

Happy new year Adam! Applause for the great show and the EXCELLENT explanations 🙂 as I said, its like watching Arte idk 😀 you are just good! Have a good time, Tubster

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks! Cheers!

[@riccardotorri8648]

just discovered your contents. now you are my guru, sorry for that ;-)

[@AFTN85]

It's absolutely fantastic! Always your videos about volcas are a breath of fresh air

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks! Happy to hear! 😊

[@thedharmapunk5913]

cool history lesson. And this track is ready for release. just awsome. Im a big ambient guy, I like many genres, but ambient is special to me. Ambient is undrrated. The first time I heard FSOL Lifeforms I was blown away. And I still listen to it. For me it was Future sound of London that got me interested in making electronic music. (Jean Michel Jarre was the first spark)

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks for the comment! Both FSOL and J.M.Jarre are great inspirations to me as well. Great stuff! :)

[@leowilliamcullen]

Sweet tune! Adam, why are you so into Volcas? Maybe you could do a video about why you focus on Volcas.

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Let's see if I can figure out how to explain that...

[@plynth]

Perfect track!

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks!

[@celestial_shed]

Nice song! Here is some recommended ambient listening: Biosphere - “Substrata” (1997), William Basinski - “The Disintegration Loops” (2002), Robert Rich/ Alio Die - “Fissures” (1997), Atrium Carceri - “Black Corner Den”. While I truly enjoy the calmer works of Aphex Twin, I wouldn't call them “ambient” (except for “I”, several of the vol.2 tracks ..and one I can't recall the name of currently) I think he named it such because he likes to troll? Idk. Kind of like when Throbbing Gristle called their 1979 experimental electronic album “20 Jazz Funk Greats”?

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks for the List, I'll check it out! 👍

[@lewisd49]

cool

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thanks!

[@wyntube07]

is your nts in the fx send?

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Yes

[@pinkmouse4863]

Nice one. For me it was the instrumental stuff from Wyndham Hill that got me into ambient rather than the electronic stuff, that came later. Still can't get on with Aphex Twin though - worked on one of his early shows in the 90's, thought he was nothing special then, and my opinions haven't really changed... ...Dons fireproof suit... :-D

[@AdamVoxMusic]

I have to check out Wyndham Hill. Sounds interesting! 😀

[@pinkmouse4863]

@@AdamVoxMusic ...Windham Hill...;-)

[@craigsurette3438]

I hate to be that guy, but .... Despite otherwise excellent English, you keep using the word "Mode" in place of the word "Mood" Mode, as you are saying it, means a particular manner, for example the we searched the house in detective mode, or in the case of musical modes, a sort of pre equal temperament sort of scale used primarily in Medieval and other Early music, for example the Phrygian or Dorian mode. Mood, rhyming with dude, with the same vowel sound as "Moo is the sound a cow makes" is the word you are looking for. Moods are the "feeling of a thing" or a general emotional ambiance. For example, listening to this , put me in a happy or anxious mood. I only have to mention it , because "Mode" does have a specific musical use context. Ironically , specific modes, are often associated traditionally with creating different moods. Otherwise, this is seriously awesome work. I love the use of Volcas and other simple low end gear to show us how these basic techniques work, so we can see how very approachable Ambient music can be to the average person wanting to try making some

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Thank for the comment! As I am Swedish, I am struggeling with some English words. For example Base is hard to separate from Bass. Shoes is har to separate from Choose and yes, Mood is hard to separate from Mode... 😂

[@craigsurette3438]

@@AdamVoxMusic You are doing amazingly well. with your English. Having tried to learn a bit of Swedish I am seriously in awe of how well any of you do with English. You have WAAAAY more vowels than we do, and your language uses pitch/ accent to differentate words/grammar. My American ears can barely understand what is going on I am only bringing this particular pronunciation mistake up ,because it in particular can be confusing because we have both mood and mode used as very different words to describe very different but related things in a musical context in English Tak !

[@beerchiller9878]

I hear in the examples, a desire to agitate and annoy the listener. What mode is that?

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Sorry my English is not allways perfect. Im not a native speaker. My desire to say "Mood" apparently became "Mode"...

[@iorth]

Awesome video and jam man! Thank you so much for that! I also did an ambient experiment with a Volca. It's a 3 part series with the Volca Drum, check it out!

[@AdamVoxMusic]

@@iorth thanks. I'll check it out! 👍

[@fredflintstone2527]

Wonderful historical facts. Careful naming every instrumental riff or texture ambient music. It's simply not. Ambient is when music and environment become one, in your head. Too much melody distracts, too much rhythm irritates, too much of anything.... keeps you from feeling ambient. Instrumental music is simply not the same as Ambient music by definition. That's an illusion.

[@AdamVoxMusic]

Agreed!

[@afkac]

This - ambient is when music and environment become one in your head. This! This is such a great way to define ambient.