tangram80 wrote:24db wrote:Ok, a few thoughts about how TD and technology will change in the years to come. In recent years TD's equipment has been shrinking (Edgar has often said that TD don't need to take so much equipment with them anymore, but to a certain degree fans expect some amount equipment on stage). In 1996 I hear they tried to hire a number of samplers for their SBE gig in London, but they couldn't get them, so they had to take 'almost' all of their studio on tour (At the time their samplers were loading samples in live during the concert from a professional minidisc recorder). By the time of the RFH gig in 2004 TD had developed a new system where samples were loaded live into the equipment via ISDN lines from their Berlin studio, but to be honest I've no idea whether this was ever used live. Perhaps the developments in hard drive capacity now make the idea obsolete?
This begs the question, which way now for TD? less seems to be the order of the day, so how far can they go, 1 or 2 keyboards, and a computer? less? a controller with computer? virtual keyboards and 3D glasses? Touch screens? Edgar's imfamous E-Balls and Plasma units? Obviously the technology shouldn't be the main focus of the gig, but every system (however neutral) effects the music it produces, however subtlety.
Expect the unexpected!
Andy, I noticed from the Tempodrome DVD they do use software synths...also I heard Kraftwerk no longer bring their KlingKlang instruments to stage but also just the laptops. You saw them in 2004 didn't you?
In fact, considering a lot of the sounds are not produced instantly in synchronicity with the hand movement, much is just mimicking unless an actual guitar or keyboard is played. Much of the concerts that I have seen this year only have musicians clicking the mouse...
It seems to me seeing a very lively Iris playing her percussion kits is far more likely than the Moog Modulator in future... and probably much preferred
Hi Jeffrey, yes Krafwerk just use Laptops (I caught them live in London at the Royal Festival Hall Ether festival.....see TD's comments about this festival).
Back on topic, hmmm how can I put this...TD's equipment is producing the sound, how much 'user' input actually controls the timing and note information is debatable (IMHO....obviously I have no knowledge of how TD perform, so my comments should, as always
be taken with a pinch of salt). I
can except that TD perform live, but I'm not sure whether the group think they need to 'show' that they playing more than they really are; Thorsten playing several sequences by hand on DVD is stretching my imagination too far (although I might add that he has the technique to play 'if' he wanted to) as is Bernards guitar on Underwater sunlight, which in my opinion is just coming off hard drive, it's the same timing, exact guitar timbre and notes that are in Underwater Sunlight.
But these are minor technical issues and they take nothing away from TD's live presence and performance.