Composer + synthesist Marius Leicht shared this live performance of Nachtblau, featuring the sound of the Oberheim Matrix 1000 synthesizer.
“The piece Nachtblau has gone full circle,” he notes. “I originally wrote it as a synthesizer piece, when I got GForce Software’s Oberheim Eight Voice emulation, OB-E for review.”
“While recording my first solo album, Weltmaschine, I transformed it into a piano piece and recorded it with Nils Frahm’s Zwicki Piano at his studio in Funkhaus, Berlin.”
“As there is not always a piano available when I play live shows, I rarely played that piece on stage. But since it gets requested a lot, I now went on to create a sound on my Oberheim Matrix 1000 which can be played very nuanced in dynamics and color, so I can do this expressive piece justice.”
In the video, the Open Reel Ensemble, a Japanese band known for their use of open-reel recordings to create music, performs with bowed audio tape.
This is a trio performance on the “JIGAKKYU,” a traditional folk instrument, made by stretching magnetic tape across bamboo. Tape loops are attached to a bamboo bow, which is used to control how the tape moves through a reel-to-real tape deck.
The track is composed by the Open Reel Ensemble (Ei Wada, Haruka Yoshida and Masaru Yoshida).
Knobcon organizers let us know that this year’s Guest of Honor will be Cameron Jones, co-inventor of one of the most important synths ever created, the New England Digital Synclavier.
Jones will deliver the keynote speech at Knobcon’s annual banquet.
Here’s what they have to say about Jones and his role as this year’s Knobcon Guest Of Honor:
“We are delighted to announce Cameron Jones as our esteemed guest of honor. Join us at the annual banquet for his keynote address and to help us honor him.
Cameron Warner Jones is the co-inventor and principal software architect of the Synclavier, the groundbreaking digital synthesizer and music workstation developed in the late 1970s. Jones, co-founder of New England Digital, designed the Synclavier’s real-time software engine, interface, and iconic button panel, helping create one of the most advanced instruments of its era—combining FM and additive synthesis, sampling, and sequencing. He later revived the technology through modern apps and hardware, ensuring the Synclavier’s legacy lives on.”
Knobcon’s annual catered banquet will be held Saturday, September 6, 2025 at 7 pm in the Sapphire Pavilion. Tickets are available as an add-on for Knobcon attendees for $75. Seating is limited.
