Designing Your Voice: Synthetic Sounds from Circuits
**This site is live and changing. I will be using it as a repo over the course of the semester**
Course Description:
In this 14-week course, students will explore sound design fundamentals through synthesis on microcontrollers, and modular synthesizers. Modular synths are a type of electronic instrument used to generate, manipulate, and shape sound through the interconnection of individual modules, or components. This course is designed to equip students with the skills and creative prowess required to craft their own unique devices that adhere to the Eurorack design format; a popular modular synthesizer standard.
The curriculum blends the art of sound design with the technical aspects of hardware synthesizers, building skills so that by the end of this course students will have the competence to create a unique modular synth component. By harnessing the modular nature of these devices, students will work independently to design modules compatible with those of their peers, resulting in a patchable synth ‘voice’; a term used to describe a collection of components that define the signal path of a synthesizer.
The first half of the course will focus on sound design coding techniques utilizing the Teensy microcontroller, with the second half dedicated to developing tangible hardware design skills.
Pre-requisites:
Intro to Physical Computing or equivalent experience. No sound design/experience in music is required.
Grading System:
ITP has a pass/fail grading system, which will be awarded based on the following breakdown:
Participation & Attendance: 20%
Homework Assignments/Documentation: 20%
Midterm Project: 30%
Final Project: 30%
Homework is due at the beginning of each class. You are expected to be prepared to present on the development of your work and to keep a blog.
Class Pledge:
This document isn’t solely a roadmap of what we will accomplish over the course of the semester. It is an agreement between all of us to commit our efforts to fulfilling it! Above all, we must respect each other’s opinions, abilities, backgrounds, and presence here at all times. Learning in a class setting is a collective experience. Let’s make it great.
Learning Objectives:
Upon completion of this course you will have the tools to:
Navigate the Teensy Audio Design Tool: Demonstrate proficiency in using the Teensy Audio Design Tool to create and visualize signal flows, establishing the groundwork for your synthesizer design.
Write Code Using the Audio Library: Utilize the Teensy Audio library to implement sound design techniques o.
Design Eurorack-Formatted Hardware: Design hardware devices adhering to the eurorack format.
Interface with External Systems: Communicate with external software and hardware.
Use Analog Components for Signal Processing: Utilize analog components to create simple filters and utility circuits to further manipulate and shape audio signals.
Design Faceplates: Develop your own faceplates for your designs.
Complete a Eurorack Module: Produce a eurorack module; a tangible component of a larger modular synthesizer system.
**This is a lot. The complexity of the module(s) you create will depend on several factors. As long as you’re creating you will excel in this class.
Key Course Dates:
2/19: No class due to President’s Day
3/11: Midterm Presentations
3/18: No class due to Spring Break
5/6: Final Presentations
Note: This course requires hardware circuitry/fabrication materials throughout the semester. ITP has lots of things to borrow and also scavenge. If you are unable to financially support your project for this class please see me and we can hopefully find an alternative arrangement.
ITP Code of Conduct
As with all activities at ITP and IMA, we’ll be following the ITP/IMA code of conduct. Please consider it as a guide for projects you might make or see in this class, and how we behave with respect to each other in class.
Statement of Academic Integrity
Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work as though it were your own. More specifically, plagiarism is to present as your own: A sequence of words or programming code or images quoted without quotation marks from another writer or a paraphrased passage from another writer’s work or facts, ideas or images composed by someone else.
Statement of Principle
The core of the educational experience at the Tisch School of the Arts is the creation of original academic and artistic work by students for the critical review of faculty members. It is therefore of the utmost importance that students at all times provide their instructors with an accurate sense of their current abilities and knowledge in order to receive appropriate constructive criticism and advice. Any attempt to evade that essential, transparent transaction between instructor and student through plagiarism or cheating is educationally self-defeating and a grave violation of Tisch School of the Arts community standards. For all the details on plagiarism, please refer to page 10 of the Tisch School of the Arts, Policies and Procedures Handbook.
Statement on Accessibility
Please feel free to make suggestions to your instructor about ways in which this class could become more accessible to you. Academic accommodations are available for students with documented disabilities. Please contact the Moses Center for Students with Disabilities at 212 998-4980 for further information.
Statement on Counseling and Wellness
Your health and safety are a priority at NYU. If you experience any health or mental health issues during this course, we encourage you to utilize the support services of the 24/7 NYU Wellness Exchange 212-443-9999. Also, all students who may require an academic accommodation due to a qualified disability, physical or mental, please register with the Moses Center 212-998-4980. Please let your instructor know if you need help connecting to these resources.
Title IX Statement
Tisch School of the Arts is dedicated to providing its students with a learning environment that is rigorous, respectful, supportive and nurturing so that they can engage in the free exchange of ideas and commit themselves fully to the study of their discipline. To that end, Tisch is committed to enforcing University policies prohibiting all forms of sexual misconduct as well as discrimination on the basis of sex and gender. Detailed information regarding these policies and the resources that are available to students through the Title IX office can be found by using the following link: https://www.nyu.edu/about/policies-guidelines-compliance/equal-opportunity/title9.html