Some people might wonder why I included two YouTube videos in a post, again. I have done so to demonstrate other capabilities of Reaktor 6. In addition to offering different synthesized effects in the given control panels, the program also offers different percussive pads. In the following electronic pieces, I used the "Newscool" control panel in the Reaktor Factory Selection R2 section of the software. Like the "Space Drone" that I discussed in my last post, "Newscool" does not use the laptop keyboard to produce notes. It uses established rhythmic patterns from a rhythm bank, which the composer can adjust by changing different parameters (tempo, ADSR, Resonance, etc.).

I mentioned in my last post that the Reaktor 6 software program features multiple control panels for creating and performing music. The first track that you see here uses the "Space Drone" panel for the Reaktor Factory Selection R2 set. Unlike the Mikro Prism control panel, Realtor Factory does not rely on computer keyboard input to perform tones. The "Space Drone" uses knobs and switches to produce different musical effects. It is also a rather strange panel. It immediately begins producing tones when selected. 

​It also deserves mention that the control panels in Reaktor 6 offer a plethora of musical pads to choose from. In creating the six Sound Etudes, which I have compiled into two playlists on my YouTube channel, I chose to use pads that would not only catch people's attention. I had also thought about how this music would work if it were included in a film. Even though these pieces largely involved experimentation and improvisation, I also wanted to pay attention to the types of moods or setting that the pieces convey.

For those who are curious, I use the Unsplash website to find corresponding images for my musical tracks. Unsplash offers copyright-free images for people to use, and I always make it a habit to give credit to the photographers in the video descriptions on my YouTube channel. So far, using Unsplash has partially enabled me to produce more videos. Why? YouTube does allow not people to upload videos with music alone. A musical track has to include a static image with the music in order for YouTube to consider it a video.     

I am taking things in a different direction this time.

The track that you are about to hear consists of tones from a VST (Virtual Studio Technology) plug-in. I generated the music directly from my laptop keyboard. While experimenting with the Reaktor 6 program from Native Access, I found through experimentation that pushing certain letters and numbers on my laptop keyboard would activate notes or other sounds depending on the effect chosen in the given control panel. In this case, I applied the "Galaxy Drops" effect in the Mikro Prism control panel.

Some might also notice that the overall quality for this track sounds better than my previous works. That is because my older tracks would rely too much on MIDI playback. I have mixed feelings about MIDI in general. MIDI realizations serve more as blueprints for interpretations of acoustic or electronic musical performances. Like I said with regard to music notation software programs like Finale, composers should should avoid the temptation of using MIDI playback for publicly demonstrating new works. MIDI should not be used as a substitute for actual performance. It is for this reason that most music composition competitions do not allow MIDI realization as an option when submitting new pieces for consideration. 

Reaktor 6 serves as one of many VST software programs that I have recently acquired. These programs all consist of a steep learning curve, so I will need some practice with each to unlock more creative possibilities. Some programs can interact with my laptop. At some point, I will need to figure out how the Native Access programs that I have available handle MIDI keyboard compatibility and musical patch constructions for "live" performances.  

Videos and images from the second flight home last Thursday