Amiga Music Preservation -

Interview

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`qb ,dP'

TLb. ,dMP' all rite, now you get the chance to read

TML.dMMP some facts about some of the major amiga

,nmm`XXMPX musicians. read about their history in

,#MP'~~XNXYNXTb. the scene and their plans in future.yes,

,d~' dNNP `YNTb. that's meant to be read while listening to

,~ ,NN' `YNb their modules. read 'em over and over and over..

dNP `Yb.

,NN' `b. · i n t e r v i e w · ___________

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| _| | | _l_ | | \ / _l_ | ___|

l___/=l___|====l____/===\______|==l______|\ /l___/===\______l____/

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Handle:

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Group:

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Date of birth:

1-How did your interest for computers start? Which year was that?

Probably in the late 1980s. Started with an Apple ][e, then moved up to a
Packard Bell 286. I was always interested in technical things, so I think
this translated to an interest in the computer. Probably the thing that
fascinated me the most was online communications, BBSs and such.

2-What machines did you previously have? What did you do with them?

In terms of computers, I followed the standard route -> 286, 386sx, 386/33,
486, Pentium, then AMD Duron, which is what I've got now. I also use a Mac
G4, but I'm not wild about it--I have to use it on the job. Early on, I
mostly did programming. I ran a BBS (Data Connection BBS), and wrote
utilities that ran online, the most widely known was called DataView. Then I
got into music, and tracked for several years. Now, I'm a graphic designer.
However, I still like to do programming, mostly in PHP and SQL. I still like
to do music as well, but don't seem to have the time that it requires to do
anything serious. I'm hoping for more time in the future.

3-For what specific reason did you end up making music rather than gfx, coding?

Well, actually I ended up making graphics, but not in the demo scene. I
think music is the artform that I enjoy the most. Music has a ton of
emotional and expressive power and fills a creative niche that programming
and graphics design didn't (for me anyway). Nothing is more satisfying than
finishing a song that you've worked very hard on. Likewise, nothing is more
frustrating than struggling to start or finish a song. :)

4-Which composing programs have you been using? Which one in particular?

I used quite a few, it went in this order: Whacker Tracker, FastTracker,
CDFM (a Renaissance group tracker), Composer 669, Farandole Composer (the
first 16 channel tracker on the PC), Multitracker (MTM), Screamtracker 3,
FastTracker 2, then Impulse Tracker. Now I've got Mad Tracker on my
computer, but haven't messed with it too much yet.

5-With which module did you feel you had reached your goal?

I really liked the last two that I wrote, 'rcr' and 'Kalapaki Beach'.
Unfortunately, the best song that I think I did was lost in a hard drive
crash. I spent four months on it, and was really disappointed to lose it. I
still check old floppy discs sometime, just in case a copy of it pops up
somewhere. It was called 'The Passage of Time 2", and was the second in that
series.

6-Is there a tune you would like not to remember? For what reason?

A few that I released when I first started tracking with Whacker Tracker. I
didn't know what the hell I was doing, so they are rather funny to listen
to. They were called Raising the Sail, Ocean Sunrise, and The Motion of
Time.

7-In your opinion, what's the value of a music in a demo, game?

I've always thought that it was one of the most important pieces, especially
in a demo. You can't have a good demo without good music. Unfortuantely, you
can have a good game without good music. For me atleast, whether its a game,
a demo, or a movie, good music is key.

8-At present, are you still composing? For professional or leisure purposes?

I'm not right now. As I mentioned, its something that I really want to do,
but have been unable to find the time lately. I still experiment in the
tracker a few times every year, but haven't come up with a complete song in
probably two years. Hopefully that will change soon.

9-What do you think of today's pieces of music such as mpeg,wave,midi,etc...?

I think MP3s are great. Napster (deceased), Morpheus, etc. have allowed me
to listen to a lot of obscure music that I would otherwise not have been
able to find. Likewise, the ability to export modules to a format such as
MP3 is great since it will sound the same no matter where it is played.
Before, we always worried about what player someone might be using, because
it could screw up the song. On the other hand, I liked distribution in
tracked formats because you could study how the composer tracked it, and the
filesizes were nice and small.

10-Could you tell us some of your all times favourite tunes?

That is a tough one, but I really enjoyed music by Purple Motion, Skaven,
C.C.Catch, Dr. Awesome, Heatbeat, Dune (now Brothom States). More recently,
I thought that Stereoman (ESEM? Noisemusic), In_tense and Quasimojo (Chill
Productions), and Ceniq (Milk) do some really incredible stuff. If I had to
list all my favorite songs, I think I'd have to spend all day picking them
out. :)

11-Are you planning to make an audio cd with some of your music remastered?

No, not currently.

12-What bands are you currently listenning to?

Boards of Canada, Global Communication, LTJ Bukem, Omni Trio, John Digweed,
Stereolab, Artemis, Spacetime Continuum, Astrud Gilberto, Tim Story, Dave
Matthews Band, and whatever is playing on live streams like Groove Salad,
Neurofunk, Flaresound, or Wefunk.

13-What does/did the amiga/c64 scene give you?

Sadly, I was never involved in either scene. I started in the PC scene. I
always wanted an Amiga, but this was not something that we had access to in
the US.

14-Are you still active in the scene these days?

Unfortunately not. Though, I do try to keep up with things now and then.

15-Anyone to greet? Anything left to say? Feel free...

All old friends from #trax and from Renaissance. I'd start naming names, but
I know I'd forget somebody, as its been awhile. :) Now just a couple of
thoughts on the demo scene as a whole. Its great to see people pushing the
envelope of digital artwork, be that code, music, or graphics, and thats
what makes the demo scene great. Its a 'true' artform, where neither money
nor corporatations decide what is good art. I hope to follow the demo scene
my whole life.

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please note: this interview is ©opyrighted in 2002 by crown of cryptoburners
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