Peter Kirn

This is why you get intimate with code, line by line. Artemiy at Sinevibes obsessed over details, breaking a filter model by rewiring its internal connections -- and now, with v3, giving it precise modulation in a wide variety of shapes. Now, like kids kicking over a sandcastle, we can take that handiwork and apply it to total, absolute destruction.

Cheap handheld gaming consoles now often pack surprising processing power. But many risk ending up as e-waste. A new open-source project is turning them into powerful Linux music workstations, instead, complete with the ability to run plug-ins—and original games, too. Oh, and the project has some familiar faces involved. Here's an exclusive first look.

Daniel Schürmann of the long-running libre/free DJ software project Mixxx has a compelling proposal for uniting efforts to develop their DJ software on embedded hardware, from emerging cheap "open" hardware to DIY projects. It could mean a chance for openness to have a moment -- while avoiding the chaotic slop of countless separate forks and hacks.

If today is a day to celebrate good things happening in the USA, you better also be listening to the epic collaboration between Jlin and Chicago’s Third Coast Percussion. That puts the Gary, Indiana-born Jerrilynn Patton (Jlin) right up alongside Philip Glass and David Longstreth, where frankly, she totally belongs. And it’s touring.

You may have seen Akai tease an “open-source” MPC keyboard running vibe-coded mods. But there’s more coming—a lot more. inMusic, parent of Moog, Akai, Numark, Alesis, Denon, and others, promises that many of its 22 product launches coming in January will be open to modders and developer. That suggests a sweeping change in approach for the music gear giant. inMusic CEO Jack O’Donnell shared a glimpse of their emerging vision on modding with CDM.

Now Ocarina of Time meets up with the other big trend of the fall, with OCA, an ocarina app and soundbook for the M-VAVE FM-1. You don't even need an FM-1 to play with it; it runs perfectly in a browser, including on a phone. Developer Charles Vestal gives us a look.

Look past Logic Pro 13's new dark Liquid Glass theme and updated browser, and you'll find Apple focused on two core technologies, touch and "intelligence" -- and two very different upgrades.

Ableton Live 13 is now in public beta. That includes a lot of what you’ve asked for, like multi-band Racks, overhauled preset navigation, and ARA 2 support for tools like Melodyne. And it’s packed with new goodies: a very Ableton step sequencer, a multi-engine Drum Synth with some nice twists, new effects, a new ambient looper, and more. Also, I know some of you will like this: no mention of AI. It’s like we just get to talk about music-making tools again.

Hold on for a wormhole between different nerd universes. Steve Horelick, the prolific composer behind the music for Reading Rainbow, meets the classic Buchla 200, meets a new prototype of an official recreation of the Multiple Arbitrary Function Generator (MARF). Also, Star Trek. Let's explain what those things are for those who don't know -- and talk about how you can join a special event live online.

If you don't know her work, computer scientist Monique Byars has built spectacular, animated instruments, merging digital modeling and fabrication techniques. Flowers bloom. Guitars are reimagined as koi ponds. Sounds get transformed into wearable resin structures. It's enough to make you want to up your airbrush, math, and science games.