User Posts

This video is all about exploring textures in ambient music. Many people think of ambient music as music without rhythm, structure, or texture, often with a lot of reverb to wash everything together. But I like to search for rhythmical, noisy, and textural structures within ambient music. This video is a sonic exploration of that. The textures in this piece are shaped by the Passive Operator from Error Instruments. Their experimental modules are truly inspiring, pushing me to explore new sonic territories. For the bass and the lead melody, I’m using Sena from Vostok Instruments. The rhythmic patterns are played by XPO and Plaits. Rings and STO are providing a counter melody. The pad/wash is created by Beads. The effect modules are my loyal nautical duo Sealegs and Nautilus.

In this video, I’m using three looping melodies and a baseline, each with a different length. In this way you can start with a simple melody and build it into something complex and beautiful. By using melodies of different lengths, they fall over each other in new ways. This creates fresh harmonies every time the loops start again. I’m using the Moog Mother-32, the Make Noise XPO and STO and Mi’s Rings for melodic lines, while Mi’s Plaits is creating deep and textured bass. Together, they form the core of the sound.To add more depth, I use the Quadrax envelope generator by Intellijel. It shapes the sound’s dynamics and builds up to a beautiful climax. Please enjoy the music!

When the world feels dark and confusing, I turn to music. Hope, I believe, is like a muscle—you can train it. And in times like these, we need that strength more than ever.
We all need something to fuel our fire, something to inspire us to keep going. For me, that is making music, and especially with my modular synth. Creating keeps me going. It gives me hope. And I hope my music can bring you some light, too. We need music now more than ever—something to bring us together.

Yesterday, after giving a Masterclass on Modular Synthesizers at the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE), my dear friend and musical partner, estroe had all her Modular Synth gear stolen from her car. This is absolutely devastating. A Modular Synth is a deeply personal and valuable instrument, something built over years, and not easily replaced.

I’m reaching out to the Synth Community and asking everyone to keep their eyes and ears open. If you see someone trying to sell multiple modules from this list, please send me or Estroe a message. The list of stolen modules is attached, and you can find a link to her Modular Grid Case in my bio, also shown in one of the photos.

Let’s come together and show Estroe some support. Anyone who has a love of modular synths will understand that this is heartbreaking. Thank you.

Her case here on Modulargrid:

Gear list:

• Mutable Instruments - Plaits
• Happy Nerding - FX Aid Pro
• ALM Busy Circuits - Pamela’s PRO Workout
• Klavis - Logica XT
• Klavis - Quadigy
• MoMo - Cara
• Magerit - Lanākaea
• Qu-Bit - Nebulae v2
• Shakmat Modular - Dual Dagger
• Plum Audio - ADVA
• Happy Nerding - DVCA
• Intellijel - Quadrat 1U
• Intellijel - Mix Up 1U
• Doepfer - LFO
• WMD - Fracture
• Neuzeit Instruments - Warp
• Neuzeit Instruments - Warp

Hello everyone,

This patch swings with a bouncy, organic feel, almost like an acoustic instrument. The video is a little bit messy because I couldn't sit still while filming — you'll catch glimpses of my shoulder in the frame from time to time. Sorry about that!

I hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed making it.

If you like this video, please consider liking and subscribing. Your support really helps me keep creating these patches.

This video is a rehearsal. t’s for a performance of Estroe and me. It’s such a joy to make music and perform together. But we are also very busy at the moment So in our 20 min performance there are two five min solo parts This is the rehearsal of my five min part. It might totally change but at this moment I like it. It’s the STO and Rings, being sequenced by my keyboard and the Moskva. Beads, Sealegs and the fx aid are my loyal effect companions. Enjoy the music!

“Life is what happens to you while making other plans” A quote from Allen Saunders made famous by John Lennon
And in the case of this video totally true. I was preparing to record a patch,I had programmed it earlier this week and was patching up my synth. While patching I noticed my beautiful new Passive operator box by Error Instruments.
I did not use it for this current patch for it is new, amazing but also wild! (It’s Error instruments ;)) But somehow I thought, let’s patch PO through a filter and play with it! It totally surprised me, PO was not wild but started making sounds that were in between r2d2, birds and crickets Very organic, yet electronic exactly what I love! Like being in a forest in Star Wars. I started changing the patch into this lush ambient outer space forest. Inspired by my Passive operator. Totally unexpected but I love the odd turn this patch took. I hope you do too! Enjoy the music. :D

Hi! This is our very first time performing live together with our modulars. We were guests at Modular on the Spot, playing outside on top of Fort Maarsseveen in the middle of the Netherlands. The weather was perfect so we were very lucky.

We have so much fun making music together and have rehearsed multiple times to prepare for this performance. We're excited to perform together even more in the future, so feel free to spread the word 🙂

For now, enjoy the ride, and we’re very curious to hear what you think of this video and our music!

Hello! The joy of modular is that you can create your own unique perfect little instrument. I have been so happy with my current setup. I love to make intricate compositions with almost songlike structures. My Hermod+ sequencer is perfect for that, I love it to death and will always use it. But there was one thing missing.... I was longing for a hands-on sequencer that allowed
me to improvise on it and play it like an instrument. A module that would get me out of my hea, a module that would surprise me. That is exactly why I bought the Moskwa II by Xaoc devices. I’m in love! Watch the video to see and hear what I mean.

Hello! I am reading 1984 by Haruki Murakami, It's a thrilling ride through Tokyo with a lot of suspense and mystery.It wasn't intentional but I think this patch was subconsciously inspired by this amazing novel. It is slightly different than my usual patches. Normally I design and map out my performances. This performance is mostly improvised. I created an arp, a basic bassline and I used a lot of modulation. Then I just pressed play with no plan and I started performing the patch. Let's see where this midnight ride through Tokyo will take me, I have no idea as well. Enjoy the ride!

Delays often play an essential part in modular music
Estroe has Nautilus by Qubit
I have Sealegs by Intellijel
Both modules are gorgeous delays
both with a nautical themed name

Estroe loves my Sealegs,I love Estroe’s Nautilus :D
Luckily when you make music together you can have both!
In this video we combine Nautilus and Sealegs and we loved what came out of our synths.The music actually made us think of the ocean and waves, so we were on theme. Please enjoy this nautical trip!

Recently I acquired Dual dagger by Shakmat. A bueatiful stereo filter in only 6 hp. It completed my ambient signal path with Rings into Dual dagger into a vca into Beads into the mixer with Sealegs in the send and return. I wanted to highlight this signal path with this video and create some ambient textures and lush arps. So enjoy the music and if you like this video please consider to like and subscribe to my channel. Thank you so much!

We started around the same time with our modular journey. We met each other online here on Modulargrid! Then real life at a concert of the fabulous Suzanne Ciani. We both performed our first modular live set by coincidence next to each other in Paradiso Amsterdam at Voltage control. We became friends. We went to Superbooth and had an amazing time and now we are making music together. Please enjoy our first official jam as a duo.

Hello! Hope you are doing well. I made some changes to my case lately. I really needed a good mixer. I got te Cosmix pro by Cosmotronic. It's a great sounding mixer in a small footprint with tons of options. I also went to Superbooth this year, it was my first time. I went with my dear modular friend Estroe and we had such a great time. There is saw the Vostok modules and its maker. I was really impressed. Again in a small footprint you have 4 oscilators, 6 envelopes and VCA's and 4 filters. They sound amazing and alongside my other modules (Plaits, Rings, STO, M-32) I can create the complex melodic structures that I love! Because of the stereo send and return on the cosmix pro I can process different voices through Sealegs in different amounts for depth. Please enjoy this video and do let me know if you like the complex melodic structures in this patch!

Hello! Every day at dusk the birds in my garden sing their beautiful sunset song. I wanted to record their song and add my modular synths to their singing, to create a dialogue between the birds and my synths. The goal was to make the birds sound like a synth and the synths sound like birds. To create a beautiful duet between nature and machine. Enjoy!

I composed this ambient piece for a friend who had to be hospitalised. Instead of sending him a postcard Estroe and I decided to each create a piece of music for him. In my case this is the result. It’s called From the ground up. I asked my friend if I could share this piece with you and he immediately said: “Yes music and art needs to be shared. So please enjoy this ambient piece. May it soothe and comfort you

When I created my video Murmuration, I thought: "This patch would totally work as a generative ambient track." So I decided to try it out. I changed a few things in the arrangement, used a lot of modulation, used a different reverb and slowed it down a lot. I really liked the result so I decided to record it and post it on my channel. Please enjoy the music

Have you ever heard of murmurations? it's one of the most magical things
I have ever seen in nature. Murmurations are huge groups of starlings
that twist, turn, swoop and swirl across the sky in beautiful shape-shifting clouds. With this patch I wanted to capture in music what I felt when I first saw a murmuration. Enjoy the music!

Hi! Low pass gates can make your synths sound so beautiful organic and warm! I recently acquired the Make Noise DXG, a stereo no vactrol low pass gate and I made this jam with it. Do you like Low pass gates? Do let me know! Please enjoy this jam :)

Hello! I made a video about the new 1.10 Hermod+firmware update that turns the 16 pads of your Hermod+ into a chromatic keyboard. It's really great! If you own this module you should definitely check this out

It's important you challenge yourself musically as a musician. This video is a result of me challenging myself. One of the most defining sound shapers in modular and ambient music is reverb. We like to douse our synth sounds in luscious reverbs to create depth and space. So I thought, what would happen if I force myself to create a patch with no reverb at all. I loved the result so I decided to record it and post it for you to see and hear. Enjoy!

Hello!

I released a new video centred around the“cosmic” oscillator Laniakea by Magerit. It’s a cinematic ambient journey into space. Please enjoy :D

Today I wanted to record a video with a modular patch and singing. Unfortunately I have a bad cold and lost my voice. So I created a self generative ambient patch. Generative music can be very sooting and meditative, great when you are stressed (or when you have a cold ;) ) Please enjoy!

[]

Well done!
-- bopodoq

Thank you bopodoq!

Great set....
-- wishbonebrewery

Thank you Wishbonebrewery!

Dream come true! I performed my first live set with my modular synth at Paradiso in Amsterdam during Voltage Control Amsterdam. An evening with eight modular performances in one of the most beautiful concert venues of the Netherlands

It was a magical moment for me where a lot of things I have been doing in my music and theatre career came together in a wonderful mashup of storytelling and modular synth music. Please enjoy and do let me know what you think of my first liveset. Many thanks go out to Bart and Voltage Control Amsterdam for having me perform.

[]

Hello! At the 21st of january I am performing at Voltage Control Amsterdamin at Paradiso. So the next two weeks Im in rehearsal mode. I thought it would be fun to take you with me in the process of creating the performance. Enjoy the music!

Hi!

This is a short video about the amazing Sealegs module by intellijel. People are wandering why its called Sealegs….. More videos on Sealegs will be online soon on my YouTube channel, enjoy!

Thank you for that amazing reply...... you are so right! I think this is exactly what I will be doing, because I love the softer side of my music a little bit more than the rougher side. Oh and yes, musicians need to be free and be able to explore. Very wise words and they are apreciated!

My new video is online and the music is quite different than my previous video’s. It’s a modular techno track. I also have a question about that which I would love for you to answer. I talk about it in the beginning of the video. Please let me know what you think! Have a great day and if you like what you see and hear could you please like the video and subscribe to my channel? Thank you so much!

Raaf

Hello! My new video is online. As kid growing up in the 90's I loved playing videogames, especially rpg's like Zelda and Final Fantasy. This jam is a hommage to that music that is instilled in my heart and mind. I wrote my own " 90’s video game tune." I used the amazing Hermod+ module by Squarp Instruments to sequence my entire modular system.

Please enjoy and could you maybe like this video and subscribe to my channel if you enjoy what you hear and see? It really helps me to create more videos like this. Have a great day!

Hi everyone,

Hope you are doing well and are happy modulating and creating sounds. I just released my new video on my youtube channel Raaf Modular. I would love for you to watch and listen to it. If you like what you hear and see please concider to leave a comment there, like and subscribe. It helps me to build up my channel. Thank you so much and have a great day/night!

Raaf

Hi my new video is online. Recently I bought Rings by mutable instruments so I felt obliged to create a “Rings into clouds” jam with it. Well I don’t have Clouds but I do have Beads and since Beads is the Clouds I thought this would do! Please enjoy and if you like what you hear and see you could consider to like this video, comment and subscribe to my channel. That would greatly help to get my music heard and seen. Thank you so much and have a great time!

My new synthvideo is online and this is a special one. In the yogic tradition, in which I was brought up, when someone is nog well we sing this prayer. A dear friend who lives in the beautiful mountains of North Wales is not well at the moment so I wanted to record this prayer for her and for all the people who need healing and a sense of calm at the moment.

New video online. This jam is based on a melodic progression I composed on the Mother-32. I added a randomly created bass like melody by Plaits, clocked by Marbles. I used Delays and reverb in my DAW and on the FXaid and played on Hypha by Native Instruments on my midi keyboard. Please enjoy!

My friend Bart came by for a visit, he is a musician as well and started fiddling around on my DFAM and created this LOFI Piano sound coming from a drum synth, so creative! I had to record a jam with it. It turned into a hypnotic ambient track with a touch of LOFI. I really like it and hope you do too! If so please like and subscribe to my channel!

In this ambient jam I wanted to create an underwater world. I created waves with lfo’s and white noise of the Mother-32, sonar sounds with the dfam. Water sounds with beads, the singing of whales with Ripples and movements of bubbles and fish with Plaits. Enjoy!

My new jam is online. I used a fieldrecording of jackdaws made by a good friend as the basis and inspiration for this jam. I hope you will enjoy it!

My new video is online. It’s a melodic ambient jam. I hope you will enjoy it!

My new video is online! It is a jam with some new modules by Mutable Instruments. It starts out as an ambient piece and then in takes you to unexpected places!

There is also a question that I ask especially for the lovers of modular synth video so could you let me know what you think? I would love your feedback and grow as a content creator of modular synth video's. Thank you so much!

I'm feeling so excited because I just posted the first video of my new YouTube channel about modular synthesizers and electronic music. Let's inspire each other to create music and add a little bit of beauty to this world! If you like what you see could you like and subscribe? It's my wish to create this wonderful little community on YouTube that loves electronic music! See you there!

Raaf

EDITED Mar 1st 2023, 01:06

Thank you so much for your feedback everyone! I made some minor changes to the video and its live now on my YouTube channel:

Thank you so much for uour encouragemt! Im craating these videos with a lot of love and care so that means a lot! I will look into making the texts a little bit longer so they are easier to read. ❤️

Hello!

Hope you are doing great. I am a professional musician with a great love for electronic music. The last year I have been getting into modular synths and I love it so much that I want to dedicate a channel to this where I take you along into my dive into modular synth music. Underneath this text is the first video I have made. Its still hidden on youtube. I wan to release it in a while but I would love for you to watch it and maybe let me know if you like what you see, or not and why. Would love to receive feedback from people who are into modular synth music themselves. Thank you so much. Have a great day!

Raaf

The link to the video:

EDITED Feb 23rd 2023, 20:08