MIDI 40th Anniversary Celebration Coming to 2023 NAMM Show
At the 2023 NAMM Show – being held April 13-15 in Anaheim, CA – The MIDI Association will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) with MIDI@40.
MIDI debuted at the 1983 Winter NAMM Show, held Jan 21-23, where synth pioneer Dave Smith demonstrated it by connecting a Sequential Circuits 600 and a Roland Jupiter 6. The MIDI Specification was published in Aug 1983.
As part of the MIDI@40 celebration, the MIDI Zone in the front of Hall A of the Anaheim Convention Center will features a wide range of products and innovations using MIDI. In total, 30 companies will be displaying the latest in MIDI technology. The MIDI Association will also be demonstrating MIDI 2.0, the most important upgrade to MIDI since its debut at The NAMM Show in 1983.
“MIDI@40 not only showcases all of the amazing MIDI products that have impacted music over the past 40 years but also looks forward to the future with MIDI 2.0 products that will continue to shape the way music is made for decades to come,” notes Athan Billias, President of the MIDI Association.
On Friday, April 14, from 4:00 – 5:00 p.m., A3E: Advanced Audio Applications Exchange will present MIDI 2.0: What Developers Need to Know About Free Tools for Developing MIDI 2.0 Products and Apps. The panel discussion will feature members of the MIDI 2.0 working group, including Pete Brown, Florian Bomers, Mike Kent, and Torrey Walker, as they discuss recent changes to the core MIDI 2.0 specifications and the MIDI 2.0 API on Apple, Google, Linux, and Microsoft operating systems. They’ll also explain the tools that The MIDI Association is providing to all developers to help make MIDI 2.0 devices easier.
Immediately following the session, attendees can delve into MIDI 2.0: What Musicians Need to Know About MIDI 2.0. The panel session, featuring Athan Billias, Craig Anderton, Brett Porter of Art and Logic, Michael Cain of Ekwe and artist Moldover, will introduce the new MIDI 2.0 products at The NAMM Show and provide an overview of what new MIDI specifications will mean to musicians, including MPE.
The MIDI 40th Anniversary Celebration, being held 3:15-5pm on Sat, April 15th, will feature performance by Resonant Alien, Mike Garson, Ellis Hall, Mark Isham, Myron McKinley, Jordan Rudess and others.
At Saturday’s anniversary celebration, lifetime achievement awards will also be presented to (or posthumously honor) music industry innovators who created the modern music production environment of synths, drum machines, and sequencers, including Bob Moog, Don Buchla, Ikutaro Kakehashi, Tsutomu Katoh, Roger Linn, Tom Oberheim, Alan Pearlman, Dave Rossum, and Dave Smith.
See the MIDI website for more information.
