How Do You Make BLADE RUNNER Music???

In this week's vlog I do a live (poor mans) homage to #vangelis' seminal score from Ridley Scott's seminal film #bladerunner . What do YOU use to make dystopian soundscapes?
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[@LockStoppageSandwich]

Well you got the background drone bit right. The rest was pretty pants to be honest.

[@TheCrowHillCo]

Thanks for your words of encouragement. I’m glad you’re not MY teacher.

[@LockStoppageSandwich]

@@TheCrowHillCo ………and visa versa x

[@donshekn9114]

cool channel though. youll probably be butthurt and hate me but thats ok too

[@decisivedolphinn]

@@TheCrowHillCo what a strange reply to a decent bit of criticism

[@rreprah9515]

@@decisivedolphinn Bro this is literally the opposite of criticism. Saying "lol ur bad" isnt criticism, its just needless feces slinging lol.

[@JohnPloskina]

Best way I've found to get dystopian future soundscapes is to walk around outside with a microphone.

[@Ayo.Ajisafe]

I'm not sure if you meant this as a joke or literally but it made me laugh for sure.

[@JohnPloskina]

@@Ayo.Ajisafe Every joke has that kernel of truth in it somewhere...

[@mattbondcomposer]

Oh daym.

[@kid.forever]

😂

[@MorningStar-369]

lol... true... blade runner visuals with the luxurious smooth ziggurats in the opening scene were not dystopian at all. Standing in a line in the supermarket watching few men with belly ahead of you with cart full of junk food is the dystopian scape

[@theboofin]

Vangelis is the missing ingredient. Across all his records he displays his inimitable feel, taste and instinct. One of a kind. The 2049 score is a masterclass of sound design and abstract sonic world building though. Great stuff

[@shaft9000]

more like instrument + player + circumstance(S) people never know what they are capable of until they are pushed beyond assumed limits

[@CFox.7]

Christian tells you of his time limitations and ths is not his usual style.. so.. for a couple of hours of twiddling.. he has actually done a remarkable job. Vangelis on the other hand - well he has done this his whole life - so not really remarkable

[@ssdelko]

Blade Runner will always be that “I just got my first VCR” movie.

[@Seeattle]

Lol!

[@duncanthompson957]

Blade Runner at the time was oddly boring. It only took on its full resonance and majesty when watched a second time. VCRs made it the movie it’s come to be praised as. (It was pretty much a flop at the movies!) And for my money, the theatrical cut was always the best cut. Harrison Ford’s flat, throwaway voiceover really made it sing, and removed the grand air of pretension it has otherwise. Any director who choses to reinsert a cut unicorn dream sequence (heaven help us!) really needs to get a brother called Tony to save the family name, in my book. Talk about labouring a point. “You’ve done a man’s job, sir! Too bad she won’t live. But then again, who does?”

[@duncanthompson957]

My “I just got my first Betamax” movie was Alien. An equally good groundbreaking soundtrack.

[@ssdelko]

@@duncanthompson957 Yep! That was the other one! LOL

[@willscherrer2642]

Or if you're a little younger, it's a "I just got my first Laser Disc" movie.

[@adgtr383]

As someone who owns a cs80. (Believe me or not) it is an unbelievable piece of gear and still blows my mind I got it.

[@leftovernoise]

I'm jealous, but my back hurts just thinking about moving it anywhere haha

[@adgtr383]

@@leftovernoise Probably taken about 2 years off my life moving it haha

[@FLH3official]

​@@leftovernoise You don't move it, you go to it.

[@Seeattle]

So how does the Deckards Dream compare in your opinion?

[@mrnelsonius5631]

Never used one but a huge fan of its sound. It’s kind of the perfect synth for being drenched in time based effects because of the tuning irregularities. It’s constantly rubbing against itself (like a real choir of voices) so it just sounds huge with some reverb and delay. Instantly evocative sounds, worlds within textures

[@Jobjoossen]

That was so good, despite being clicked together in 40 minutes, The Bladerunner score is so etched into the very fabric of me, hearing you build up this demo gave me goosebumps. I don't know how much it is the synth and much the artist, but it IS clear it is dear to your heart as well... And yes, I liked what Zimmerman did with the 2049 score, it was a homage to the original one without having the audacity to do better, just different without losing the DNA of the original.

[@aaronmarshall]

One of the biggest secrets of Blade Runner’s sound are the reverbs. Lots of Lexicon high end verbs. You can put the cheapest, dumbest sounding synth through one and if you have the right envelopes of saw waves going into the correct reverb, it’ll get to Blade Runner vibes fast. The reverb is more important than the synth for that lead. Eventide DSP sounds good, the old units like 4000 or 7000, but I think Lexicon PCM 70, 80 or 300 is great too.

[@duncanthompson957]

I got to touch a CS-80 in the early 1990s. It was magnificent. One of two or three in the studio it was housed in. I worked in a small shoebox of a studio space in a studio complex in North London. Opposite our studio, on the other side of the corridor was a huge studio packed to the rafters with stunningly expensive keyboard equipment and a massive state of the art mixer. It was upkept by a Belgian dude for his absentee boss. The Belgian dude was an engineer/musician who just hung around tinkering on all the CS-80s, Polymoogs, what have you. His boss was some Greek guy, with only one name. Began with a V or something. But he never showed up.

[@swalshcomposer]

I actually had the chance to work for Vangelis a few years back, best experience of my career. Vangelis is the nicest and wise person you'll ever know.

[@kiminthemix4251]

The sound is astounding..I got a plug_in called Messiah from memory moon which recreates the exact sound. It even has a preset called blade runner. And i loved your energy and enthusiasm.

[@AlexRaptakis]

Vangelis did what he was best at, thus we now have the term "bladerunnery". A sound that we didn't know we wanted, but we needed. Zimmer did great justice to the sequel of the film. He has a great understanding on character, thematics, andstill manages to put his own characater without ruining anything at all.

[@snoolee7950]

did not need the sequel, which was made as a shameless cash-cow. bad movie junk. even the original director said the remake was just... (insert term). and lots of dead space and time-fill in the movie. you can feed people candy bars and tell them it is steak and many people go along with it.

[@urdnal]

I was really disappointed with 2049's score. I was really hoping for something vangelisy as well as bladerunnery. I'm not a musician, barely a music fan. All I know is that I can't even remember one single piece from the entire thing. It's like it wasn't even there. Sure there were some sounds, but I can't recall a score. Good thing the movie was good otherwise.

[@daelra]

@@urdnal Agree. Too much soundtrack and not enough score in the new one. The bluesy/jazzy aspect of the original was the sort of the total opposite of the soundscape stuff. It's the juxtaposition of the old and the new that made the original soundtrack so good. This ties in with the replicants having synthetic memories and feelings. As someone else put it. "a strange nostalgia of a memory that doesn't exist".

[@Quark.Lepton]

I’ve just discovered that-remarkably and fairly surprisingly-Arturia’s little Microfreak coupled with an outboard FX unit like Bluesky can recreate all of the Deckard’s Dream and all of the CS sounds with the same depth for around $300. 😵‍💫

[@cablevamp3163]

Microfreak can produce buchla tones too

[@GrootsieTheDog]

Well, "300.00" isnt totally accurate because you have to add the price of the efx into that equation 🤪

[@shaft9000]

Yea and I heard that microfreak also replaces an entire RA Moog Modular system, too! and whenever you're hungry it knows to enter the super-secret Serge 'Soup Kitchen mode'

[@Quark.Lepton]

@@shaft9000 You’re wrong-it doesn’t. But for those of us who are forced to consider costs for basic living these days, it’s an affordable option to achieve some acceptable, pleasing results-my point. My druthers though-I’d prefer having a Deckard’s Dream and a CS, just like our mate Christian! 😄👍

[@Quark.Lepton]

@@GrootsieTheDog Indeed. I use a Behringer Virtualizer, ‘which, compared to the Bluesky, is remarkably and fairly surprisingly….’ 🤣 …is a hundred quid at your local B&Q…. 😁

[@sworntoavenge]

Vangelis was the first time I'd ever heard synth. I feel like my interest in the genre has always been pursuing the sounds that I heard as a child, without ever truly approaching them.

[@maitreya1906]

Bladerunner score is sick man I do all my art projects listening to it. Literally no bodies of work out there like it, and still searching

[@VitaKet]

Check out "The Ascent" OST.

[@Ancient_Entity]

Yes... bladerunner is my all time fav film, and the music is a big reason why

[@MrDCPatterson]

I've spent years skirting the prickly admission that I just want to sound like Vangelis ❤️ and occasionally I admit to that and have a great time. I'm torn between Bladerunner and Chariots of Fire as being my most profound musical origins. It is lovely to find I'm not a lone nerd, but there is a perhaps an entire generation of us! PS Christian, that is the easiest to understand review of the Deckard's Dream I've ever seen, and now my wife understands why I need one. Thank you!

[@henrahmagix]

10:50 OMG THAT'S IT! god it's so recognisable, the pitch bending down 😍

[@starsunderer]

Flash Gordon was awesome, your crazy. Can't wait for the sequel.

[@Lance_G]

Magnificent homage 🙌 absolutely a huge fan of Vangelis and his work so to hear this done so beautifully warms my heart.

[@TraxtasyMedia]

This is my first vid of your channel and when you played the Bladerunner chords I nearly felt to tears. So AMAZING

[@DanaVastman]

Had a CS60 for 5 years when I was a we lad of 28...sold it to a fella in Japan during the dawn of midi...for PEANUTS to "upgrade" to ALL the new stuff as it was a PIA re tuning... but listen to my early stuff captured on cassettes & it brings back sooooo many lovely memories.

[@McTroyd]

I've been trying to get into synths since I first learned of their existence in the 80s. A mere ~17 years ago I finally bought a Yamaha keyboard with MIDI over USB capability (very new for the time!). The closest I've come to making soundscapes THAT big, though, would be thanks to a Korg NTS-1 I bought with a gift card from my father. I liked the novelty of "building" your own synth, but wasn't ready for just HOW BIG that little thing can get, as a mono synth with onboard effects. If I ever had to produce a soundtrack like that, the NTS-1 would feature prominently. It might even be... _instrumental._ 😁👍️

[@prod.byshroom6112]

I make experimental hip hop beats and have been using a lot of the cinematic libraries I acquired when I bought Komplete 11 but have never seen anyone use the samples like you did. This inspires me to keep experimenting and pushing my ideas.

[@adastra123]

Your enthusiasm made this video. Class stuff. Kudos from Ireland 🇮🇪

[@Concreteowl]

Flash Gordon is a fantastic film. It perfectly matches the kinky kitch vibrancy of the score. If you don't like it you haven't lived.

[@travislee9662]

Totally agree. I was little when this came out and we first got HBO. Every time it was on me and my brother was watching it lol

[@69shakti]

Go Flash Go! Classic

[@cordellscott]

He's a miracle!

[@travislee9662]

@@cordellscott He saved everyone of us!

[@brainwashingdetergent4322]

I would love to hear what Beethoven would do with such a setup!

[@DiamondWoodStudios]

I think you would have explain a few things to him before hand 😅

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@DiamondWoodStudios He'd have to get caught-up to be sure, but it's worth bearing in mind he was one of the first users of brand new Renaissance music technology which his peers thought were too complex or new-fangled to be of any use. Electronic music may well be beyond his tastes, but I'd hope he could at least appreciate how the technology has moved-on. Since he was familiar with acoustic advances of the time, my way would be going-over the evolution of electro-acoustic instruments, then electric, then onto pure electronic, and hope he can keep track of how the sound waves get translated.

[@bcanuck]

@@kaitlyn__L Renaissance art (1350 - 1620 AD ) Beethoven (17 December 1770 - 26 March 1827) Nothing "brand new" from the renaissance to Beethoven or anyone else living during Beethoven's time. Beethoven would master any music of any time regardless of what time that is.

[@SamLowryDZ-015]

The sine wave is not an extra oscillator - it's the same osc but the sine bypasses the filter and is mixed in at the VCA stage.

[@SvenHeitland]

wow, that was great. i love blade runner. was watching your video and had to switch off my speakers (was concerned to disturb my neighbours). so I switched to headphones and that was the point i was completely blown away. could not belive that you could reproduce the sound to quick. fantasic job. Thanks

[@IanWaugh]

Hey Christian - Love this! Love Bladerunner. Played a CS-80 for 2 minutes back in the day when a boy/girl duo who was headlining at a club I was working at had one. They cost £5K back then (about £40K) now but then you could buy a couple of houses for that! No idea how they could afford one! What tickled me were the drawers containing mini panel layouts for storing presets. Japanese ingenuity 😁 Can't justify a Dream but will certainly get a Behringer DS-80 although that will probably arrive about the same time as Bladerunner 3! 🤣

[@Barrxn]

Beautifully done

[@emodate]

10:08 That bass right there! Perfection!

[@gagsmedia]

CH it’s a pleasure watching you work :)

[@jacobrandallholmes]

Love your content! I’m currently an MM in media scoring student at Frost school of Music because of your channel! Thank you! ❤️🙏

[@sschmidtfilms]

Just missing the Crystallizer now. That plug-in is great and Hans and Ben used it all over 2049.

[@rbingraham]

Damn I remember that plug-in. What happened to it? I used to have it but since I'm just not at all into these types of synths I never really made use of it or followed it's demise I guess.

[@georgenelson9038]

From sound toys?

[@SkillGamingNL]

@@georgenelson9038 yeah, the soundtoys crystallizer

[@DavidHilowitzMusic]

Great video. Beautiful sounding synth. Very much my sound-Blade Runner is definitely the score I’ve listened to the most in my lifetime.

[@ChristianPauchet]

You did a great job on the entire atmosphere and texture, that Vangelis thing he used so well to build up his notorious sound signature. Very good job indeed. Cheers!

[@GuidoGautsch]

Great stuff! You could consider picking up a Hydrasynth to go with it. Not only is it an amazing synth in its own right, but comes with a poly aftertouch keyboard AND the ribbon controller, so you'd get all the expression capabilities of the original as well if you use it as MIDI controller for the DD 🤩

[@imme.7106]

Memories of green is a great song.... before even considering the wonderful integration of synthesized textures that make the song iconic. It all works when there's a true musician behind the knobs and sliders!!

[@0therun1t21]

That was beautiful, thank you!

[@danandkiko]

That's some great sounds. I was fascinated to hear all the elements you thoughtfully put in. I love BR and synths, but am not much of a keyboardist. Even still, I learned a lot from this exercise. Thanks.

[@markdarnell614]

My dad bought me a CS-60 when I was a kid...cost about $450 new - when it first came out. I was oblivious to how Awesome the baby brother to the CS-80 really was! I made my 1st Demo on it, and I remember mixing the ring-modulator, with the sub-oscillator & filters to get strikingly realistic bowing sound! I loaned it out to my half-brother, who refused to return it, as he traded it for a used truck! Got it back through law enforcement! - and then ...SOLD IT! God! - what it would be worth TODAY!!!

[@flowinsounds]

that vinyl was a prized possession of mine in the 90s. just a beautiful work

[@AuralVisions]

YES!!! This is gold, thank you!

[@NickBDesigns]

Awesome thanks for showing off the beautiful synth

[@NateHorn]

Great video - I'm on your tails Christian now all I need is an immense amount of talent and I'm set

[@Oceanwireaudio]

Great stuff Christian, really enjoyed that.

[@Musik_Arbeiter]

Great video Christian! I think you captured the thematic presence of the film pretty well with the gear used. Deckard's Dream sounds excellent! 🤙🎹🎶

[@WhitbyStuff]

Every time someone pronounces Moog properly another Angel cheers.

[@CoreFinder100]

That was awesome so enjoyed it, could imagine the music playing with the movie

[@waverleyinstruments]

Poor man's homage to Vangelis seems a bit harsh - I really like it. How about Blade Runner-Up Music? 😁 I had no idea the tuning on the CS-80 was that shonky! As for what I'd use for "futuristic dystopian soundscapes", I reckon I might have something lying around that lends itself to that sort of thing, but would hate it to come across as a shameless plug 😉 For percussion though, I'd use the the Snakes Of Russia snares and kicks samples, which I can plug without shame! Appreciate that won't sound like Vangelis, but they're very dystopian soundscape friendly!

[@dykodesigns]

It sounds excellent! I really get that Blade Runner feel from it. The koto / plang sound at the end contrasts nicely with the megadrones.

[@scottyhughes9179]

lovely, thank you Christian.

[@joshuatiley4298]

That was fantastic.

[@dillipphunbar7924]

Gorgeous autumnal backdrop. Sounded great to my novice ears.

[@avsystem3142]

Speaking of movie soundtracks, there is a company, Monstrous Movie Music, that is transcribing many B movie soundtracks, e.g.. the score from Rocket Ship X-M (1950) by Ferde Grofé. Some of the sci-fi and horror movies of the 1950's and later actually had some really nice scores by name composers, A favorite CD of mine is "Sci-Fi At The Movies" with tracks by Bernard Hermann (The Day The Earth Stood Still), James Horner (Krull), John Charles (The Quiet Earth), Miklos Rosa (Time After Time), and John Scott (Yor, The Hunter From The Future).

[@jordanwalton9091]

love the video! great work

[@hardspank]

Very cool, thanks for this

[@vividphotography]

Watched Blade Runner again last week the directors cut after many years of listening to Vangelis Juno to Jupiter now.

[@DavidLilja]

Beautiful! And some nice tips there. Appreciated! My best trick is what Gary Numan and Andy Gray said in an interview back in the days: process, process, process!

[@clc2432]

Nice simulation! I'm hoping that Jóhannsson's unused BR 2049 score will be released so we could hear his singular musical perspective.

[@garaughty]

My go to synth for this type of sound/music is U-he Diva... awesome on so many levels !

[@MatheoRamet-mc3qb]

Hwo did i miss that youtube ?? Been searching for that for a long time. Very grateful for all your work !

[@kubrickguy]

Brilliant thank you!

[@blahpunk1]

Love your poor man's Blade Runner!

[@electronictiger]

Cool stuff! Think you got close to the spirit of the Blade Runner score. And the Deckards Dream is beautiful sounding synth indeed.

[@koumospecial]

13:30 … man this is it!!! Well done ✌️😎👍

[@mikezimmerman9547]

Ho ho ho hohoooooollld on Christian.....Flash Gordon is a classic. You take that back!!!!!

[@clivehunte3026]

Nice low end rumble at 4.53 - headphones a must!

[@acimbobby]

really good return to that era. You got the thing nailed down with those vintage sounds. No mention of a Fairlight sampler going on in this. Vangelis... He really played it for real. And the YES singer sounded good with that stuff too.

[@71goaliemask]

I have resurrected my Korg M1 and have started playing it into the audio interface WITHOUT a midi safety net. It's liberating and I believe creatively useful, do you have any favourite M1 settings/sounds? And it's my weapon of choice for dystopian warbling!

[@Russtopia]

For huge spaces, get an Ensoniq DP4 or DP4+ or ASR-10.. Hall reverb of 2+ minutes and incredible, tunable detune with this gear that nothing else since seems to recreate.

[@jackduxbury1632]

The walkthrough I was waiting for - Christian is the 🐐

[@71goaliemask]

I just relistened to the Blade Runner soundtrack the other day after a VERY long break. Holy moly does it stand up well to the test of time.

[@tajobi9984]

if you felt like extending out that demo to a full album I would definitely spend some time listening to it. I could use more soundtrack to my present/future dystopian life

[@richnewman]

Nick from Sonic State did a demo of the original Dreadbox Nyx that's squarely in Blade Runner territory. And I can confirm that that synth, with its onboard reverb, does get the job done nicely.

[@harrysdesignery-editsnstuf4947]

this was released on my birthday and it has inspired me to keep pushing for me synthwave sound

[@mordy91]

I’d just love to have one of those and play around with polyphonic portamentos!! 😊 Also the use of the downpitched crotale sample gives me strong Terminator 2 vibes as it reminds me of Brad Fiedel’s similar use of the unnaturally low downpitched use of the ‘Anvil11’ sample played using the Fairlight CMI III and used throughout the film. Especially because of the similar futuristic and dystopian universe.

[@violentene]

Very nice!

[@AynenMakino]

For dystopian soundscaping I've been getting a TON of good use out of the Roland system 1m combined with the Intellijel Rainmaker. The 1m is particularly great for the low end there, while the Rainmaker can really add more richness across the whole frequency spectrum if you mix the delay and comb filter together. The constant moving around you can do in the stereo-field also really adds to the final result.

[@dominiclaberge3337]

I put my DDRM through a Nemesis Delay and a Nightsky and it just sounds beautiful while adding tons of extra functionality on the signal path.

[@AndreaGiordaniComposer]

Drooling! That's all I can say for now!

[@johnwinstondarby]

That is how YOU make Blade Runner music...it is also how I listen to your Blade Runner music. Superb!

[@ralfmoss]

Great video.Thanks

[@awpMusic1]

I recently discovered a great little monosynth - the Dreadbox Typhon - fantastic sound and fantastic effects - well worth checking out. Deckards is beyond my budget for now.

[@157preilly]

Very cool video.

[@GrootsieTheDog]

There is a running joke for guitarists: There is a guitar shop where a sign above the guitars states, "NO STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN". "NO Blade Runner theme (and Jump)" should be a sign...😛

[@2fathomsdeeper]

The Roland A-80 had one patch identical to what Vangelis used. I ran that and a Kawai K1II factory tenor sax patch to play along with the soundtrack. Only thing missing was a breath controller for the sax, but could still nail it pretty well on keys.

[@lokelosk]

I've seen that Deckard's Dream unity in your desk quite a few videos ago and always wondered why it's there. Now I know. Such a cool synth.

[@inception8]

Very cool. While I was listening to this being put together it reminded of something I was trying to put my finger on it... The Book of Eli.

[@jasonmateus924]

I found you very excited at 11:52. I totally understand why.😂

[@markonemusic]

Great demo, really captures that Vangelis spirit. A big part of his workflow was to work the polyphonic aftertouch on the CS80 to dynamically bend certain notes. You owe it to yourself to get a Poly-AT keyboard like the Venerable Roland A80, Oh, yes, and the big ribbon controller to do those big chord dives. I’m sure there must be a midi one of those too 😎

[@jayneubauer3401]

Kurzweil makes one

[@milgeekmedia]

When I heard that pitch bend the hairs on the back of my neck shot up! (I am probably the only non-musician commenting here so I don't understand your technical stuff... I just understand what makes me go wobbly when I hear Cyberpunk-esque soundscapes.) Excellent video and demonstration, thank you.

[@dietervoser4425]

Sehr schön !

[@scottglasgowmusic]

Fun! I did a score years ago called STASIS which was a time-travel terminator type film. The director wasn't sure of music direction and I said "imagine if I walked into Vagelis studio then used his gear to create your score?". Director loved the idea so that is exactly what happened. Cool video.

[@bcbudrecords]

Hi Chris ... love your videos ✌️

[@fusion-music]

The lmk4+ controller keyboard aftertouch function is setup in the "controller" function. You decide which function it will operate (like expression or voice). I learn a lot from you, and this is a fascinating synth. Moog sacrificed polyphony for the beefy richness. It was a good move.

[@mngyuan]

Just curious - what camera setup do you record these on? I'm stunned by how nice the first shot looks, color and composition and everything.

[@JohnSk82]

Great job mate always on top .So the whole game is on the poly aftertouch imperfections + the 15 - 20% detuning between oscillators .So without the aftertouch it sounds a bit ''flat'' but still you got the sound pretty close (i was hoping you'd use the strymon pedal for splosh) .Bottom-line E-DNA stacked up captures the Blade Runner world greatly. Kudos

[@gibsondrummer]

It sounds a little like the opening chords to the little house on the prairie theme on acid , awesome

[@paulcousins6535]

The cs-80 V by Arturia does a pretty good job of replicating it for a soft syth.

[@papastratman218]

I like to run my Deckard's Voice (Eurorack) through the Erbe-Verb. Such a big sound.

[@jamesblunsdon3576]

Hi Christian, when using virtual/software synths, what methods would you recommend for replicating that instability of tuning to make them sound more imperfect/authentic - great video, thanks! :)