Korg Monologue, MicroFreak, Volca FM, Novation Circuit Jam - Hedgehog

A 20 minute jam with the Korg Monologue, Arturia MicroFreak, Korg Volca FM and Novation Circuit.
UPDATE 2020-01-12: This track is part of my "Silver Glass" album on Bandcamp: waveformer42.ba...
UPDATE 2019-12-20: Patches for Korg Monologue and ZOOM-MS70CDR are included in the text below.
The MicroFreak is on chord duty, using a custom patch based on the SuperWave oscillator, and LFO modulating cutoff frequency, and a looping cycling envelope modulating both cutoff frequency directly and the LFO speed. I'm loving the modulation matrix on this thing. The Zoom MS-70CDR really does wonders with the rather simple MicroFreak patch, adding a phaser and delays to spread the chord out in a wide stereo image.
Korg Monologue is used for solos and some sequences, with vibrato, tremolo, delay and reverb on the effects side.
The VolcaFM plays an arpeggiated sequence of short melodic and percussive sounds, with a huge dose of delays and reverb, as more of a background ambience. Reminds me a bit of the "Universe" patch on the Korg M1.
The Circuit provides drums, percussion, bass and some more melodig patterns.
No Midi connections. Sequencers on all 4 synths/groovebox are set to the same tempo, and I just start and stop the sequencers manually.
The audio is recorded on a Korg KP2S and normalized in Audacity. Video is recorded on iPhoneX. Audio and video is synchronized in DaVinci Resolve 15.
Gear:
Korg Monologue
Arturia MicroFreak
Korg Volca FM
Novation Circuit
3 x Zoom MS-70CDR
Korg Mini Kaoss Pad 2S (for recording)
Connections:
Monologue - MS-70CDR - Mintbox Mixer
MicroFreak - MS-70CDR - Mintbox Mixer
Volca FM - MS-70CDR - Mintbox Mixer
Circuit - Mintbox Mixer
Mintbox Mixer - KP2S
Midi: No Midi connections, manual sync of Circuit, MicroFreak, Volca FM and Monologue
Effects:
MS-70CDR (Monologue): Vibrato (Depth 22, Rate 34, Balance 100) - Tremolo (Depth 38, Rate 32, Level 110) - Delay (dotted quarter note, ping pong) - HD Hall
MS-70CDR (MicroFreak): Duo-Phase (RateA 7, RateB 11, ResoA 3, ResoB 1, Link STR, DPT_A 23, DPT_B 24)- ModDelay 2 (Time 528, FB 51, Mix 46%, Rate 16, Depth 51) - Delay (3x quarter note, FB 35, Mix 52%, ping pong) - Particle Reverb (Dwell 0, Gain 100, Mix 63%)
MS-70CDR (Volca FM): Pitch Delay (Time 807ms, Pitch 7, Mix 78%, FB 4, Tone 8)- Delay (5x quarter note, ping pong, Mix 100%) - HD Hall (Max Decay, Mix 92%)
Patches:
The Zoom MS-70CDR patch for the Monologue is included below. To load the patch into the MS-70, connect your MS-70 to your computer using a USB cable, go to g200kg.github...., right-click an available patch slot, select "Import Patch from text", and paste in this text.
f0520061280a0102004c02080010327000070000000000000000110000504c04000037500100000000000000000400600000302a284001167000400600000000000000200008007038440014400040060000000000030000110000707460050017401040060000000000000011000000520434011760403102000000000800000040190f480065646765486f67004d5700f7
The three Korg Monologue patches can be downloaded from the "Files" section of the official Korg Monologue Facebook group.
The Arturia MicroFreak patch, and the Zoom MS-70CDR patch that goes with it are described in this video • Synth + Pedal Sound De... .
Misc:
Volca FM patch: Glocken
Tempo 60 bpm
Chords:
Main theme: Em7 - Bm7 - Bb - Fmaj7/A - Ab - C#7 - D - H7/Eb
Theme 1: E5 - G5 - H5 - D5 - F#5/C# - A5 - Dsus4 - H/D# - Em
Theme 2: Em - G - Hm - D
Theme 3: Em9 - D9 - Hmadd2 - G9 (no 3rd in 9th chords)
If you want to support me, consider using these affiliate links when buying gear (or other stuff):
Thomann: www.thomann.de...
Reverb: reverb.grsm.io...
Amazon: amzn.to/2SfJleI

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

You discovered beautiful gentle sounds in the Freak!!! Wow!!! This video and your gear laid out, is a visual lesson in synth recording...look at those CDR's one for every synth...and the sound you are creating...gorgeous from this configuration. I have been sound designing, composing, recording, performing for 50 years on keyboards/organs/pianos....I am just in awe of this video.

[@Waveformer]

Wilderness Music Thanks a lot 😀. I’m happy that the liner notes are useful.

[@Volcaniced]

Omg goosebombs all over ...this is so f*** beautiful...I have no words ...

[@Waveformer]

VolcaNiced Thank you 😊

[@Volcaniced]

@@Waveformer what a f******* Masterpiece !!!!

[@aphexon.]

but.. you just wrote 10 words :D

[@Volcaniced]

@@aphexon. dann your right

[@nawel1]

VolcaNiced talking here! What a nice crossover!!

[@djofortunato5799]

About to get a monologue - this is so far my fave demo of its sound. Thank you 🙏

[@kahecebeats.6728]

c'est ouf!! ce mec est trop fort. F***** skills, F***** sensibility, brillant !

[@Waveformer]

Thanks, man 😀

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

The time flew by, 20 minutes already, one of the best jams yet on KZbin, you are the master.

[@Waveformer]

Wilderness Music 😊

[@SyncdAlien]

Awesome & impressive! Wonderful work! 😍😍😍

[@Waveformer]

SyncdAlien Thanks 😊😊😊

[@soilentmichi]

wow....with these instruments....wow...great, beautiful..perfect to fly and dream...

[@trikOsk]

Wonderful! Beautiful! Nice! Amazing!

[@Waveformer]

trikOsk Thank you 😊😀

[@nawel1]

Not only great stuff, great sound and music. You are great when you take your time for share us all the data bellow (gear, connections, setups, etc...incluided chords! Amazing). Thanks for share this Masterpiece and all the data! Cheers from Argentina!

[@Waveformer]

Thank you 😊😊😊. Glad you found it useful 🎧.

[@koenroels1431]

Those were 20 well spent minutes!

[@Waveformer]

Koen Roels Glad you liked it 😊

[@thx1138abc1]

Beautifully done. Excellent use of equipment. Thanks!

[@DJDigitalJosh]

I love the way you have everything planned out and the sequencer ready for action. It takes a lot of skill to plan out knob movements, keyboard playing, sequence transitions, etc. Great Job!

[@Waveformer]

Thank you, 😄

[@barryamazon3237]

This is superb! I've been thinking about a Circuit for ages but now I know my setup needs one! Thank you

[@Waveformer]

You’re welcome 😊😊

[@strongocho]

Hell yeah! This is incredible! Making that monologue sound as dope as ever, still my most used synth in my arsenal.

[@Waveformer]

strongocho Yup. The Monologue is really great! There’s lots of sounds to be made from a pretty basic set of parameters. I love that it’s analogue. The drifting oscillators gives the sound more character.

[@Arperture]

Beautiful man. And thanks for sharing the recipe in the notes.

[@Waveformer]

ChasingDogma Thanks 😀. Glad you found my notes useful.

[@loadreadyrun]

Love the development of the harmonies, particularly starting at 2:46. Nice setup, well arranged!

[@Waveformer]

loadreadyrun Thank you 😊.

[@gernot-reininger]

Now this is a beautiful jam! Thank you for sharing.

[@magicmulder]

Inspiring and instructive, and just to dream away to at the same time, those are the best tracks. Love it!

[@Waveformer]

Thanks 😊 😊😊

[@AseGarcia]

This is a wonderful lesson of fine live performance. I've not only enjoyed it, but also learned a lot :D Awesome!

[@Waveformer]

Ase Garcia Glad you liked it 😊. I learn a lot by watching others perform, so I’m very happy when people find my videos useful too 🙂.

[@AseGarcia]

@@Waveformer Totally! It's very nice and fun, not only to enjoy the awesome music on these videos, but to play guess the small details: The gear setup, the sequences, sounds, effects, all the massive work behind them. Really cool and inspiring :)

[@sunnyschramm9650]

wonderful work - reminds me on old kitaro tracks

[@Waveformer]

Probably not only coincidence. I’ve listen to Kitaro a lot :-).

[@camlong89]

Great stuff! I love my Microfreak. Most inspiring synth I've ever bought. The keyboard rules.

[@Waveformer]

camlong89 I agree, it really is a great synth, easy to program, great selection of oscillators and lots of possibilities in sound design.

[@brettmarshalltweaksource]

I third this. Love the keyboard. Love the synth.

[@us3r11]

I'm loving the setup. Cheers!

[@Waveformer]

Cheers, Jakub! 😀

[@bigthey1827]

Fantastic and inspiring

[@robertjuh]

Yoooooooooo this is beautiful

[@Waveformer]

Thanks, Robert 😊😀😀

[@JonathanRCross]

Really lush sounding jam sir!

[@Waveformer]

Jonathan Cross Thanks 😊.

[@Philipplus]

Great track!

[@Waveformer]

Philip+ Thanks 😊

[@rayderrich]

This jam could go on for another 40 minutes and I would still be glued to the screen and my speakers. Edit: one year after my comments I come back and still get goosebumps from some of the sections in this jam. This is what I always wanted to be able to do, yet it feels further away than ever. Thank you for inspiring me nonetheless.

[@AsphaltKobold]

When i heared this beautyful song, i've been dreaming of tangerines... 🤩

[@Waveformer]

😊

[@paulmullins8425]

Lovely sound l like the way you link everything up no midi using your own timing 👍👍👍

[@Waveformer]

Paul Mullins Yeah. It’s a bit more stressful than cabled sync, but with some training it’s mostly muscle memory.

[@TheSteventodd71]

Sounds very jean Michel jarre, awesome!

[@Waveformer]

stevie t. Thanks. He’s certainly an inspiration to me :-).

[@harrisc2093]

The solo on the Korg Mono starting at 3:35 has a real Pink Floyd vibe. I dig it, nice job.

[@Waveformer]

Thanks 😊. I love the Gilmour solos.

[@DanceOfDawn]

I love listening to your jams and sessions while working. your state of flow while creating them translates to me perfectly and let's me concentrate on sometimes quite tedious tasks. may you continue making this amazing music. happy new year and merry jamuary 2020!

[@Waveformer]

DanceOfDawn Thank you, and happy new year to you too 😀.

[@liamcurtis7570]

Just wow. Love the chord progressions and modulations, and love how you make the most of your gear. Great work.

[@toosickforyou]

Soooo inspiring. Much love!

[@Waveformer]

Glad you enjoyed it 😊

[@FredC79]

from outher space! love it!

[@Waveformer]

🚀😊

[@Ingenieur_Robotique]

Incredible detail in the description. Brilliant. Love the fact ur not using any midi sync.

[@Waveformer]

I watched a video by Alba Ecstasy where he explained how he played without using MIDI sync and started sequencers and arpeggiators by ear. It makes for a much simpler setup, and it’s not as hard as it sounds to sync manually. The clocks on modern synths are in general very stable and do not drift much.

[@infn8loopmusic]

Wow this is amazing

[@Volcaniced]

Ok I am very interested in the lead Pad on the Monolouge ....did you spice it up with wht MS 70 CDR?

[@Waveformer]

VolcaNiced You have to ask 😉. Yeah. Vibrato, tremolo, delay and reverb.

[@Volcaniced]

@@Waveformer can you pick up the Text Code for this that would be so great

[@Waveformer]

VolcaNiced I have now shared the three Monologue patches to the Files section of the public Korg Monologue Facebook group. The MS-70 patch that goes with them is in the description for this video.

[@amb13nt59]

Waveformer, your talent has me in awe! Very nice!

[@TheSteventodd71]

Can't stop listening to this, I got myself a freak and its the best synth I've bought so far. You should do a video on how you go about making a tune like this! Amazing!

[@Waveformer]

stevie t. Thank you 😊. I also find the MicroFreak to be a great and inspiring synth. I can’t promise that I’ll make a tutorial, but it’s on my todo list 🙂.

[@RosssRoyce]

Funny, I have the impression that micro freak is the least contributing to the lovely sound (I may be wrong..)

[@cuezaireekaa]

Wow this one is impressive sir

[@Waveformer]

cuezaireekaa Thanks! Glad you liked it 😊.

[@DaVeTheWaVe]

very good! you're improving each time =)

[@Waveformer]

DaVe TheWaVe Thanks 😊. That’s my goal 😀.

[@jmmesaaudio]

beauty sound!

[@Waveformer]

Juan Mesa Jam Music Thank you 😊😊😊

[@pat6779]

Jean-Michel???Tu es là?(Are you there?) Magnifique, merci!

[@Waveformer]

Merci 😊

[@sjkentucky]

Would you recommend the Microfreak as a first synth? I have a few Volcas that I am loving. Looking for my next adventure. I have also considered the Monolouge, I realize they are completely different. Both are very appealing.

[@Waveformer]

sjkentucky Hm. That’s a tough one. As you say, they are very different. I have both, and love them both, and will never sell any of them. Perhaps, as you already have some Korg synths, it would be more fun to try the MicroFreak first, and then get the Monologue next 😉.

[@PalmBobo]

Wonderrrrful and inspiring! But one thing I just don’t understand: how can you make the microfreak (and I guess the volca) follow these chord changes? The most limiting thing I experience working out of the box is that I can only make modal music (one chord for the whole time) . How do you achieve the chord changes?

[@FredF78]

Very Tangerine Dream/Jarre/Vangelis-esque. Love the chord modulations! btw, I think the C#7 in the main theme description actually sounds like a Cm#7, right?

[@leol7831]

awesome

[@Waveformer]

Léo L Thank you 😃😃.

[@valdemarbranco5445]

Шикардос !

[@Heleno.]

In your setup you have several pedals interconnected to each other. What is the result of the applied effects? Are effects applied individually, or effects are added together?

[@RosssRoyce]

Nice songs! Great feel for ambience and sections positioning/transitioning! Is the mint box a splitter 😝??

[@jeekakrishna]

amazing

[@DinantRiks]

Really nice tune. I was wondering, why don't you share a MIDI clock across all devices to keep them in sync? Wouldn't that be easier than starting and syncing manually?

[@Waveformer]

Dinant Riks Well, I don’t have a central Midi brain/sequencer driving everything. And I’m alternating between playing sequences and playing manually on both the MicroFreak and the Monologue, and not everything is planned out in advance. So until I get a Digitakt or a Deluge to control everything, this is the easiest way for me to do it, so far. But I’m constantly learning 😀.

[@Arperture]

@@Waveformer You could easily sync up the Circuit via MIDI into the Monologue or the Freak and then send sync clock to the other two devices over 1/8 cables... but I really kinda like the way this flows without the hard quantization. It's much more organic this way.

[@Waveformer]

ChasingDogma Yeah, you’re right. Just wanted to try without sync this time to see how it felt. Experimenting 🙂.

[@jjrusy7438]

ok, so I have come back to this video after your recent video on the freak setup alone. I have also just decided on my next pedal purchase. I was going to get an earthquaker dual reverb-delay pedal for $399US, but I am now just going to get 3 of these zoom pedals for the same money. one for the freak, one for the unosynth and one for the $200 used JV-2080 that I have. (the JV came with 5 add-in boards, I got really lucky on that one)

[@Waveformer]

jj rusy Cool! I suggest starting with just one MS-70 and see how you like that.

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

Done in the key of B, then a transition away...into another land, place, time.....:)

[@Waveformer]

Wilderness Music 🎹🎼

[@willvidal36]

Came for the MicroFreak, stayed for the Jean Michel Jarre !!

[@TilliKommunikation]

Exactly!

[@Recloh]

Jmj hasn't done anything this fresh in 30 years

[@RosssRoyce]

I’m curious, when you monitor the whole mix, don’t you wish that the mint box had some volume pots on it?

[@RosssRoyce]

Is the novation containing all this long chain of chords BTW? PS haha read the description actually, answers my questions!

[@rubend.3956]

magnifico

[@Waveformer]

Grazie 😄

[@Davimre]

80s Tangerine Dream vibes for sure

[@Waveformer]

Yeah, I love their work, especially the earliest albums.

[@carlospagan4]

What patch are you using on that Monologue? sounds amazing! Great jam, man!

[@Waveformer]

Carlos Pagan-Muniz Something I made myself. I always make a new patch for every jam. It runs through a Zoom MS-70CDR effects pedal, adding vibrato, tremolo, delay and reverb.

[@jamesbruce6388]

@@Waveformer Its lush!

[@SynGirl32]

What's the name of the Monologue patches you used?

[@АлексейПавлычев-ч7ъ]

geniously

[@Healectro]

what a sound man at 10:54 :) 8

[@Waveformer]

Glad you liked it, Martin 😀.

[@zamavee]

you build your own mint mixer? Any good source for diy mixer?

[@Waveformer]

Yeah, home made all the way. See the Community part of my KZbin channel for a description and pictures 😀.

[@grubbytron]

Wow what an amazing performance. If only you were to make a video showing what each piece of gear is contributing....

[@Waveformer]

grubbytron Thanks 😊. I’ll see if I have the time to do a tutorial some time soon.

[@JakeTheCake254]

It sounds like I am in a giant underground lab where they test quantum tunneling devices.

[@intican6697]

and where does the connection of all this equipment go next? on the mixer or directly to the computer? I want to play like that now too)

[@Waveformer]

Orkidea Now The jam is recorded on the Korg KP2S to the upper right. And my headphones are connected to the KP2S. You can see the black cable in the lower right, just below the Monologue. No computer involved in the jam. Just some very very light post processing in Audacity afterwards.

[@Waveformer]

The “mixer” is the green mint box with a smile in the middle.

[@intican6697]

@@Waveformer I just recently bought a micro freak=) thanks, I'll try to assemble something like your setup

[@Waveformer]

Orkidea Now Enjoy 😀

[@feelda303]

nice!

[@matthewfrench4790]

Nice Tangerine Dream influences

[@Waveformer]

Matthew French yes 😊. Berlin school is a great inspiration to me.

[@madmac66]

No midi connections!!! This blew my mind. I guess all 4 synths have very reliable clock. I couldn’t do that with the KO-PRO and the CS1x. No way. Half a bar out of sync by the end. This was a little bit Jarre, a little bit Enya, a little bit Air but a whole lot of wonderful. Beautifully orchestrated

[@pat6779]

Wish You Were Here...?

[@Waveformer]

Yeah 😀

[@TilliKommunikation]

Great! Jean-Michel Jarre in the pocket.

[@robthedrummer5190]

3:50 very Pink Floyd - ish sound to that synth lead. Nicely done!

[@Waveformer]

RobtheDrummer Yes, I admit having listened to Shine on you crazy diamond a lot, but I didn’t try to copy the chords or any melodic parts. Hope I didn’t - the mind works in mysterious ways when improvising.

[@Waveformer]

I like how many of Pink Floyd’s songs are like a journey with different parts and themes that vary throughout the song. And I like long songs. And have a long term goal of making the solos I play on a synth be as varied and full of nuances as a solo played on a guitar or a saxophone. I have a long way to go :-).

[@robthedrummer5190]

@@Waveformer Evoking another artist's style is cool in my opinion. One can do a lot worse than to be influenced by Pink Floyd!

[@MrPokerian]

​@@Waveformer ​ Congrats, it was an impressive performance! On the basis of hearing some demos, I have associated the Monologue with rather agressive and growly sonic charactere. Now I am glad to hear that it is capable of such beautiful and smooth lead sound. Did You tweak it yourself?

[@Waveformer]

Dr Pokerian Yes, I created the patch myself. Nothing fancy. Two saw waves with the same pitch (analog VCOs, so of course drifting slowly back and forth), ring modulation and LFO set to one shot and modulating filter cutoff frequency. I’m running it through the Zoom MS-70CDR with tremolo, vibrato, delay and reverb.

[@danasdas6683]

12,999 views! Hope my view made 13k!

[@Waveformer]

🥇

[@dappstep7872]

Hedgehog in the Fog?

[@StolTechInc]

Talked to Vangelis today. He also heard this track, and will now quit music and sell all his synths.

[@Waveformer]

Haha 🤣. Really hope he keeps on playing for a long time still 😀.

[@amb13nt59]

🤣