Electronic Music Studios (London) Ltd
Encyclopedia
Electronic Music Studios (London) Ltd. (usually abbreviated to EMS) is a synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...

 company formed in 1969 by Dr. Peter Zinovieff
Peter Zinovieff
Peter Zinovieff is a British inventor of Russian ethnicity, most notable for his EMS company, which made the famous VCS3 synthesizer in the late 1960s...

, Tristram Cary
Tristram Cary
Tristram Ogilvie Cary, OAM was a pioneering English-Australian composer.-Early life:Cary was born in Oxford, England, and educated at the Dragon School in Oxford and Westminster School in London. He was the son of a pianist and the novelist, Joyce Cary, author of Mister Johnson...

 and David Cockerell.

The partners had wide experience in both electronics and music. Cockerell, who was EMS' main equipment designer in its early years, was a gifted electronics engineer and computer programmer. In the mid-1960s Zinovieff (who originally qualified as a geologist) had formed the pioneering electronic music group Unit Delta Plus with Delia Derbyshire
Delia Derbyshire
Delia Ann Derbyshire was an English musician and composer of electronic music and musique concrète. She is best known for her electronic realisation of Ron Grainer's theme music to the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and for her work with the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.-Early...

 and Brian Hodgson
Brian Hodgson
Brian Hodgson is a British television composer and sound technician. Born in Liverpool in 1938, Hodgson joined the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in 1962 where he became the original sound effects creator for the science fiction programme Doctor Who...

 of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop
BBC Radiophonic Workshop
The BBC Radiophonic Workshop, one of the sound effects units of the BBC, was created in 1958 to produce effects and new music for radio, and was closed in March 1998, although much of its traditional work had already been outsourced by 1995. It was based in the BBC's Maida Vale Studios in Delaware...

. Cary was a noted composer and a pioneer in electronic music—he was one of the first people in the UK to work in the musique concrete
Musique concrète
Musique concrète is a form of electroacoustic music that utilises acousmatic sound as a compositional resource. The compositional material is not restricted to the inclusion of sounds derived from musical instruments or voices, nor to elements traditionally thought of as "musical"...

 field and built one of the country's first electronic music studios; he also worked widely in film and TV, composing scores for numerous Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever since...

 and Hammer Films productions, and is he well-known for his work on the BBC's Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...

, notably on the classic serial The Daleks
The Daleks
The Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in seven weekly parts from 21 December 1963 to 1 February 1964...

.

VCS3

The company's first commercial synthesiser, the VCS 3
EMS VCS 3
The VCS 3 is a portable analog synthesiser with a flexible semi-modular voice architecture, by Electronic Music Studios Limited in 1969....

, designed by David Cockerell, was produced in 1969. It was developed in the basement of Zinovieff's house and was nicknamed "The Putney" after the London suburb where he was living at the time.

EMS' original aim was to create a versatile monophonic synthesiser that would retail for just £100. While this proved unattainable in practice, the company nevertheless succeeded in manufacturing the VCS3 for just £330, less than its nearest American competitor the Minimoog
Minimoog
The Minimoog is a monophonic analog synthesizer, invented by Bill Hemsath and Robert Moog. It was released in 1970 by R.A. Moog Inc. , and production was stopped in 1981. It was re-designed by Robert Moog in 2002 and released as Minimoog Voyager.The Minimoog was designed in response to the use of...

 (which originally retailed for US$1495 when released in 1970) and far cheaper than Moog's modular systems, which cost tens of thousands of dollars. EMS also released the DK1, a velocity sensitive dynamic monophonic keyboard controller for use with VCS3; this included an extra VCO
Voltage-controlled oscillator
A voltage-controlled oscillator or VCO is an electronic oscillator designed to be controlled in oscillation frequency by a voltage input. The frequency of oscillation is varied by the applied DC voltage, while modulating signals may also be fed into the VCO to cause frequency modulation or phase...

 and VCA
Variable-gain amplifier
A variable-gain or voltage-controlled amplifier is an electronic amplifier that varies its gain depending on a control voltage .VCAs have many applications, including audio level compression, synthesizers and amplitude modulation....

 and retailed for £145. The DK1 was nicknamed "The Cricklewood" after the London suburb where Cockerell lived. EMS used to have a R&D department based over a DIY shop in Cricklewood Lane, Cricklewood, London, so that could have influenced the name of the mechanical keyboard. It is not widely known that EMS electronic equipment was mostly made by another company "Hilton Electronics" based in Wareham, Dorset.

The VCS3 consisted of 3 voltage-controlled oscillator
Voltage-controlled oscillator
A voltage-controlled oscillator or VCO is an electronic oscillator designed to be controlled in oscillation frequency by a voltage input. The frequency of oscillation is varied by the applied DC voltage, while modulating signals may also be fed into the VCO to cause frequency modulation or phase...

s (VCOs), a noise generator, two input amplifiers, ring modulator, voltage-controlled low-pass filter
Low-pass filter
A low-pass filter is an electronic filter that passes low-frequency signals but attenuates signals with frequencies higher than the cutoff frequency. The actual amount of attenuation for each frequency varies from filter to filter. It is sometimes called a high-cut filter, or treble cut filter...

, trapezoid envelope generator, voltage-controlled reverberation, level meter, two output amplifiers thus providing a stereo output, and a joystick
Joystick
A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Joysticks, also known as 'control columns', are the principal control in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a center stick or...

 providing 'X' and 'Y' modulation control.

A distinctive design feature of the VCS3 (and later EMS systems) was that, rather than using patch cords to route audio and control signals between modules, Cockerell employed a small matrix plugboard into which the user stuck special conductive pins that connected an input (listed on the X-axis of the matrix) to an output (on the Y-axis). This matrix patchboard gave the VCS3 a high degree of inter-connectivity, comparable to that of much larger modular systems, and far greater than similar small synthesisers like the Minimoog. It was also much easier to examine than the tangle of patch cords used to interconnect other modular systems of the day, such as the Moog modular synthesizer
Moog modular synthesizer
Moog modular synthesizer refers to any of a number of monophonic analog modular synthesizers designed by the late electronic instrument pioneer Dr. Robert Moog and manufactured by R.A Moog Co...

 and was many times smaller than the cumbersome Moog patch bays, which used patch cord leads capped with 1/4-inch 'phone' jacks.

A live performance version, the VCS4, was built later the same year but was never put into production. It comprised two VCS3s side-by-side with a keyboard, mixer and signal processing in front, all in a single wooden cabinet. Although EMS lost track of the instrument in 1983, it has survived and at last report was known to be in the United States.

The company's next project, the Synthi KB1 (1970), designed by Cockerell, also never went into production. It featured the same synthesis modules as the VCS3, but housed in a horizontal box casing, with a 29-note mini-keyboard controller and two small built in speakers. Only one prototype unit was built and this was subsequently sold to the progressive rock group Yes
Yes (band)
Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...

.

Synthi 100

EMS moved into direct competition with Moog in 1971 with the development of its first large-scale modular synthesiser, the "Synthi 100
EMS Synthi 100
The EMS Synthi 100 was a large analogue synthesizer made by Electronic Music Studios Ltd. It was released in 1971 and cost £6,500. It is estimated that fewer than 40 units were built....

", which originally retailed for UK£6,500. This unit was first known the "Digitana" but was later dubbed "The Delaware", after Delaware Rd, Maida Vale, the location of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. This system, mounted in a free-standing console cabinet, used the same technology as the VCS3, being in essence three VCS3 units combined. It was driven by twelve VCOs and featured a built-in oscilliscope, two 64 x 64 patchbays, two joystick controllers, dual five-octave velocity-sensitive keyboard controllers and a 3-track, 256-step digital sequencer. Between 30 and 40 units were built, and these enjoyed wide use in the 1970s and beyond; one model was sold to the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and was used extensively on BBC productions including Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...

, Blake's 7
Blake's 7
Blake's 7 is a British science fiction television series produced by the BBC for its BBC1 channel. The series was created by Terry Nation, a prolific television writer and creator of the Daleks for the television series Doctor Who. Four series of Blake's 7 were produced and broadcast between 1978...

and the original radio version of The Hitchhikers' Guide to the Galaxy. The sequencer module of the Synthi 100 was also made available as a separate unit, the Synthi Sequencer 256, which originally retailed for UK£1,100.

Synthi A / Synthi AK / Synthi AKS

During 1971 EMS released a portable version of the VCS3, the EMS Synthi A
EMS Synthi A
The EMS Synthi A was a portable analog synthesizer made by Electronic Music Studios Ltd in 1971....

, originally called the "Portabella", a pun on London's Portobello Road
Portobello Road
Portobello Road is a street in the Notting Hill district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in west London, England. It runs almost the length of Notting Hill from south to north, roughly parallel with Ladbroke Grove. On Saturdays it is home to Portobello Road Market, one of London's...

. Built into a compact Spartanite attaché case, this unit was even cheaper than the original VCS3 and retailed for just £198. The following year EMS released an expanded version, the Synthi AKS
EMS Synthi AKS
The EMS Synthi A, first available in May 1971, and then in March 1972 a version of it with a built-in keyboard and sequencer, the EMS Synthi AKS, a portable modular analog synthesiser made by EMS of England. Most notable for its patch pin matrix, its functions and internal design are similar to the...

, which retailed for £420 and featured a sequencer and a small keyboard built into the lid. The first 30 AK units featured a black and silver touch pad, a Spin-and-touch random note selector and a resistive touch-sensitive keyboard; these original keyboards proved difficult to use, so they were subsequently replaced with the more familiar blue capacitive touch sensitive keyboard with integrated sequencer, and became known as the KS version.

The Synthi AKS proved very popular and AKS units owned by Eno, Pink Floyd and Jean-Michel Jarre featured prominently in music by these artists in the early 1970s; one of the best-known appearances of an AKS on record is the track "On The Run" from Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in March 1973. It built on ideas explored in the band's earlier recordings and live shows, but lacks the extended instrumental excursions that characterised their work following the departure...

, and it can be seen being used by Roger Waters
Roger Waters
George Roger Waters is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. He was a founding member of the progressive rock band Pink Floyd, serving as bassist and co-lead vocalist. Following the departure of bandmate Syd Barrett in 1968, Waters became the band's lyricist, principal songwriter...

 and David Gilmour
David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour, CBE, D.M. is an English rock musician and multi-instrumentalist who is best known as the guitarist, one of the lead singers and main songwriters in the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. In addition to his work with Pink Floyd, Gilmour has worked as a producer for a variety of...

 during the recording of the album in footage included both the 1st Director's Cut of Live at Pompeii
Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii
Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii is a 1972 film featuring Pink Floyd performing six songs in the ancient Roman amphitheatre in Pompeii, Italy. It was directed by Adrian Maben and recorded in the month of October using studio-quality 24-track recorders without a live audience.The performances of...

and in the DSOTM episode of the BBC documentary series Classic Albums
Classic Albums
Classic Albums is a documentary series about pop and rock albums that are considered the best or most distinctive of a well-known band or musician or that exemplify a stage in the history of music.-Format:...

respectively (Gilmour used his to demonstrate the sequence used in the song).

EMS Synthesisers in music and the media

EMS synthesisers and their London studios were used by many prominent rock and electronic artists including Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...

 (Meddle, Obscured by Clouds, Dark Side of the Moon, Animals, Wish You Were Here), The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...

 (Won't Get Fooled Again), BBC Radiophonic Workshop
BBC Radiophonic Workshop
The BBC Radiophonic Workshop, one of the sound effects units of the BBC, was created in 1958 to produce effects and new music for radio, and was closed in March 1998, although much of its traditional work had already been outsourced by 1995. It was based in the BBC's Maida Vale Studios in Delaware...

, Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...

 and Roxy Music
Roxy Music
Roxy Music was a British art rock band formed in 1971 by Bryan Ferry, who became the group's lead vocalist and chief songwriter, and bassist Graham Simpson. The other members are Phil Manzanera , Andy Mackay and Paul Thompson . Former members include Brian Eno , and Eddie Jobson...

, Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music group founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The band has undergone many personnel changes over the years, with Froese being the only continuous member...

 (all early albums), Hawkwind
Hawkwind
Hawkwind are an English rock band, one of the earliest space rock groups. Their lyrics favour urban and science fiction themes. They are also a noted precursor to punk rock and now are considered a link between the hippie and punk cultures....

, Tim Blake
Tim Blake
Timothy 'Tim' Blake , keyboards, vocalist instrumentalist and composer with both Gong, and Hawkwind. Blake is best known for his Synthesizer and Light performances as Crystal Machine, with the French Light Artist Patrice Warrener...

, Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel André Jarre is a French composer, performer and music producer. He is a pioneer in the electronic, ambient and New Age genres, and known as an organiser of outdoor spectacles of his music featuring lights, laser displays, and fireworks.Jarre was raised in Lyon by his mother and...

 and Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...

 and David Vorhaus "White Noise 2". As noted above, the Synthi 100 "Delaware" owned by the Radiophonic Workshop was used extensively for BBC radio and television productions in the 1970s.

In late 2010 Dr Zinovieff put his original Synthi A synthesiser (serial number 4016) up for sale. This instrument, which he believes was the one featured in the "Every Picnic Needs a Synthi" press advertisement, was fully restored by Robin Wood at EMS.

EMS equipment can be seen in the film "The Shout" starring Alan Bates, John Hurt and the very beautiful Susannah York, the equipment featured includes a Synthi 256, a Vocoder 2000 and a VCS3, the film is available on DVD (Network 79527630), the equipment was loaned to "The Rank Organisation" by Dartington College in Devon, and the featured Synthi 256 was recently sold on the "Vintage Electronic Musical Instrument Auction" VEMIA a website run by Peter Forrest in April 2011.

Timeline of major products

  • 1969 - EMS VCS 3
    EMS VCS 3
    The VCS 3 is a portable analog synthesiser with a flexible semi-modular voice architecture, by Electronic Music Studios Limited in 1969....

  • 1971 - EMS Synthi A
    EMS Synthi A
    The EMS Synthi A was a portable analog synthesizer made by Electronic Music Studios Ltd in 1971....

  • 1971 - EMS Synthi AK
  • 1971 - EMS Synthi 100
    EMS Synthi 100
    The EMS Synthi 100 was a large analogue synthesizer made by Electronic Music Studios Ltd. It was released in 1971 and cost £6,500. It is estimated that fewer than 40 units were built....

  • 1971 - EMS Synthi Sequencer 256   (digital sequencer
    Music sequencer
    The music sequencer is a device or computer software to record, edit, play back the music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically :...

     )
  • 1972 - EMS Synthi AKS
    EMS Synthi AKS
    The EMS Synthi A, first available in May 1971, and then in March 1972 a version of it with a built-in keyboard and sequencer, the EMS Synthi AKS, a portable modular analog synthesiser made by EMS of England. Most notable for its patch pin matrix, its functions and internal design are similar to the...

  • 1973 - EMS Synthi Hi-Fli   (multi-effect type guitar synthesizer)
  • 1974 - EMS Spectron   (video synthesizer
    Video synthesizer
    A Video Synthesizer is a device that electronically creates a video signal.A video synthesizer is able to generate a variety of visual material without camera input through the use of internal video pattern generators, as seen in the stillframes of motion sequences shown above. It can also accept...

    )
  • 1975 - EMS Synthi E
  • 1976 - EMS Vocoder 5000
  • 1977 - EMS Vocoder 2000
  • 1978 - EMS PolySynthi   (polyphonic synthesizer)

Further reading

  • Trevor Pinch, Frank Trocco, Analog Days. Harvard University Press, 2004, 368pp. ISBN 0674016173. (Chapter 14 details EMS.)
  • "All About EMS: Part 1". Musical Matrices. Sound on Sound November 2000.
  • Mark Vail "Vintage Synthesizers 2nd Edition" Backbeat Books, 2000, 339pp. ISBN 978-087930-603-8. (Pages 110-114 British Modular Systems).
  • Peter Forrest, The A-Z of Analogue Synthesisers Part One A-M, Oct 1998. 320pp. ISBN 09524377-2-4. (Pages 111-126 EMS).

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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