MIDI Kinetics Forum

Hi all Lemurites,
I decided to go public with my current development.

enChord's name is a play of words between "encore" and "chord", pronounced "äNkôrD"
enChord is defined as a harmony modular super algorithm; a 21st century MIDI control super instrument

enChord is a fully working prototype implemented in Lemur's framework, but enChord is also currently being ported to other major touch platforms, like iPad (standalone version), Android, Windows 8, etc. Plans to make enChord a standalone hardware instrument are being discussed.

I lost my day job, so, to help fund the project, I set up an eBay sale, for which you will get the full working version of enChord for Lemur as a thank you for your support.
You can acquire enChord v1 here:
http://search.ebay.com/?sass=avantgardeaudio&ht=-1

Watch it in action here in YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-jZjvJOpdo

See pic attachments to find out more exactly what does what.

FEATURES LIST:
• NoteBoard, a 108 “note canvas” for state of the art chord design and chord progression design.
• ChordLibrary, 5832 immediately available chords at the touch of one finger, featuring avant-garde (pun totally intended!) workflow and ergonomics not ever seen before… with direct audition.
• ScaleLibrary, dozens of musical scales (Major? Harmonic Minor? Gypsy? Bebop? Oriental? Hindu? You name it... they are all in enChord´s ScaleLibrary)
• Real time, generative scale “mood” audition
• One-touch chord analysis and chord progression suggester
• One-touch scale analysis and scale modulation suggester (world’s first thanks to enChord’s unique workflow)
• ChordBank feature for chord storage and direct chord audition of your stored factory or modified chords on every session
• ModBank feature: you can store your scale modulations and go back to your base scale at any time!
• TileBoard: a surface of harmonically perfect “tiles” for ultimate performance with no wrong notes; a dynamic self-regeneration-capable multi-touch instrument with expression control, channel aftertouch control and velocity control for each harmonic Tile for real-world expressivity!
• PadBoard, a dynamic pad-based board (ala MPC) that is dynamically re-built according to the user-selected scale
• MIDI channel selection enabling you to control up to 3 different external instruments at a time
• enChord is compatible with all DAWs that support MIDI
• enChord is compatible with all hardware and software instruments that support MIDI
• enChord features a state of the art, ultra ergonomic, user-friendly interface and workflow. Steve Jobs would be Avantgarde’s best friend
• enChord can be used by anyone who can install a MIDI controller; enChord’s harmony analytics and performance controllers CAN help all musicians of all genres. Musicians and composers of all skill levels will definitely find a use for enChord in their workflow. 100% certainty.
• With your support, more features coming soon...


enChord videos will keep being added here in YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/enChordVersion1


RELEASE NOTES/CONDITIONS
- Original enChord development, concept, workflow, GUI, and idea by A. I./Avantgarde Audio
- Software implementation and prototype accomplished using Liine's Lemur development framework
- All other brands and technologies are the property of their respective owners
- enChord is being ported to all major touch platforms, such as Android, Windows 8, iPad standalone, etc.
- enChord, the enChord workflow, the enChord concept, the enChord software implementation are the intellectual property and copyright work of A. I./Avantgarde Audio. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Mexico & United States & Worldwide, December 1, 2012-2050 ©
- A user licensed by Avantgarde Audio is ONLY authorized to use enChord as is. User modifications to enChord using Lemur Editor are allowed for personal use ONLY, and are forbidden for distribution/sharing/resale by any means
- enChord is not to be used, imitated, counterfeited, distributed, copied, and/or shared by any means without written permission provided specifically by A. I./Avantgarde Audio
More pics to be added.



Hope you find enChord as usefull as I have.
Spreading the word about enChord will help further development.



Thanks all, and thanks Lemur!

Avantgarde Audio


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i am intrigued but what about inversions?

Yeah, you can definitely do inversions, and expansions; you can emphasize the low notes or only the high notes or simply bloat the chord up so to speak and just do both.

Upon basic chord selection, you can approach NoteBoard (the white board of 108 notes) as a canvas for you to literally further paint in your chords based on the clearly indicated scale (also user-selectable). Then you can test your chords with the "SelectionTester", to finally store your chord when satisfied.

Designing and modifying your voicings til doomsday is really easy. You don't have memorize anything. Only Mozart didn't need a calculator

I know many jazz and higher level musicians/composers actually do schematics of their progressions. So yes, enChord is also sort of a first of a kind "harmony calculator", all within a few touches.


Further, if you take a look at the TileBoard explanation (in the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-jZjvJOpdo)
you will realize how TileBoard's harmonic concept is really a pre-made surface of multiple inversions, expansions and emphasis, and all of the above. Not to forget that TileBoard mappings change dynamically upon user interaction.

It's kind of crazy, but the interesting part (from a real-life user perspective) is that it is always right harmonically. An it always inspires to new routes.
I have made more songs since beta-testing enChord than in my entire life. Sometimes, as I start testing, I simply forget and just can't stop exploring the different progressions of the chords upon scale modulation, etc. Working on more demonstration videos now.


Appreciate your interest.
I will be delighted to answer any additional questions you may have.


Cheers!

Avantgarde Audio

so you can visually see any common tones and voice leading on the white board right

you just got another customer
i'm posting this in five12's forum

jmaz wrote:so you can visually see any common tones and voice leading on the white board right

That is exactly right, Jack, you can visualize in NoteBank plus it lets you further invert, modify, expand, bloat, you name it, til doomsday. Store to ChordBank when satisfied.
Then perhaps you can do a scale modulation analysis, pick a relative scale, maybe add a pivotal chord, and so on, for your overall harmony to truly move ala John Coltrane ; )
I am working on updating the manual with a typical enChord workflow scenario as I write this. Will upload soon, and all users will also so get several under-the-hood improvements.

jmaz wrote:you just got another customer
i'm posting this in five12's forum

A person of your caliber supporting enChord's development is quite an honor, sir.
I could picture enChord's unique workflow fitting right in Spectrasonics Omnisphere's ipad App. I'd kill to show it to Eric P.!! ; )
Best musical wishes for 2013, Jack, and thank you again!,
Avantgarde Sound

PS: I am not familiar with that five12's forum (searched for, no luck), now I am intrigued. Any links? Cheers!

i do not operate five12 i just use the brilliant modular midi sequencer that Jim makes called numerology
i use it as a plugin in live while using the launchpad as a controller for it
you'll love numerology
http://five12.com/n3.html
a very simple demo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn7gxL2OgqE

a crazy thing you can do with numerology is have sequencers sequence into other sequencers causing wild modulating patterns
in live i use a scale device to constrain everything into the scale i want

so by moving notes vertically in the white board i assume you are moving by octaves
can you you remove notes from the whiteboard as well?
like getting rid of fifths for example

Think I'll make my own and SHARE IT

wul wrote:Think I'll make my own and SHARE IT

Nice, I would be looking forward for that.

Sharing is caring

jmaz wrote: so by moving notes vertically in the white board i assume you are moving by octaves
can you you remove notes from the whiteboard as well?
like getting rid of fifths for example

Thanks Jack.
About your question, let's use a common chord design scenario:

1. You chose C4 (C 48, in NoteBoard) as your root note, then you chose C Major as your base scale.
2. Let's say you then tapped on Major 7 in ChordLibrary. Besides sounding out this chord (provided Chord Audition is ON) NoteBoard will also lid C 48, E 52, G 55 and B 59 automatically.
3. You can then tap on G 55 on NoteBoard (which effectively removes said note from your chord), and sound out your modified chord by tapping on the big blue Selection Tester button (to the right of NoteBoard)
4. Since NoteBoard permanently shows you all the notes belonging to your chosen scale, you can just add or remove any scale notes directly simply by tapping on the desired notes in NoteBoard. Ie., your voicings and custom chord modifications have really no limits. You can also do certain tasks automatically by tapping on Functions, then on Lows emphasis, Highs emphasis, Bloat, Transpose by octave or Transpose by semitone.
Store to ChordBank when satisfied.

Also useful, you can always check the voicings of your previously stored chords by simply tapping on them in ChordBank: small blue squares appear on the right hand side of each note in NoteBoard pertaining to the selected ChordBank pad (stored chord).

Hope this helps,
Avantgarde Sound