Haken Continuum Fingerboard - Handel's "Alla Hornpipe"

"Alla Hornpipe" from Handel's Water Music, Suite #2 in D major.

This performance is dedicated to the memory of my father Mervin Smart (1934-1991) who loved Handel's music.

In this multitrack recording, I'm using the Haken Continuum Fingerboard
(http://www.hakenaudio.com) to control a custom synthesizer built with
Native Instruments' Reaktor software (running on a Muse Receptor 2
for fast response). I used Cubase for the multitrack recording.

The left channel of the audio is the same take I'm playing in the video
(with some corrections). The Continuum surface is split in the Y
(front-to-back) direction so playing above the halfway point produces
a string sound and playing below it produces a brass sound. The
"Mono Interval" on the Continuum is set to 2, which means that when
you play notes more than 2 half-steps apart, you get two separate
notes, allowing you to play dual melody lines in thirds. But if you
play notes 1-2 half steps apart, you only hear whichever note you
are pressing the hardest, allowing half-step and whole-step trills.
So in the same take I can do the 2 Violins, 2 Trumpets, or 2 French
Horns by playing at different locations.

The right channel contains 9 additional tracks, also performed on
the Continuum driving Reaktor:

1. Violin 2 (when it's not playing along with 1)
2. Violin 3
3. Viola
4. Cello and bass (this is panned a little to center)
5. Oboe 1&2
6. Additional trumpet 1
6. Additional trumpet 2
7. Additional horn 1
7. Additional horn 2

In case you're wondering, my finger is injured and I wear a splint
on it to keep it straight. It's a repetitive stress injury from flipping
too many people off.

Haken Audio web site: http://www.hakenaudio.com/Continuum/

My web site: http://www.marksmart.net

More Continuum examples by me: http://www.marksmart.net/instruments/continuum/continuum.html

(I've given up trying to get the video and sound in synch. It's fine on my machine, then YouTube messes it up when I upload. And the synch changes when you move the playback pointer around while you are watching! Nothing I can do, sorry!)

Category:

Music

Tags:

• haken
• continuum
• fingerboard
• handel
• water
• music
• hornpipe
• reaktor
• mark
• smart

[texwest65]

I listened to this again and it is a very sensitive and well phrased interpretation.

[marksmartus2]

@texwest65 Thanks. I tried to copy the phrasing from a good orchestral recording.

[texwest65]

Sounds great Mark!!!

Is it programmed to add harmonies or did you do more than one take?

[marksmartus2]

@texwest65 The sound in the left channel is what I'm playing in the video, and the sound in the right channel is 9 more overdubbed tracks.

[alphabeets]

Very very impressive!

[peteralaric]

bravo, sir! a skillful and soulful performance to say the least!! in fact, i had to play it a 2nd time. i am perusing your video archive presently and anticipate future installments. cheers!

[marcmitchell]

great job dude..

[aguzman11189]

niiiiiice :)

[clones98]

Nice work!!