Josh Story Blends Modular Synths With Analog Brass & Winds
Output’s director of audio R&D puts a modern spin on the sounds from Analog Brass & Winds with analog synths in a modular jam session.

Output’s director of audio R&D, Josh Story, puts a modern spin on the sounds from Analog Brass & Winds with analog synths in a modular jam session.

“What I love about modular music-making is how I have access to a wide palette of sounds, but there are still times when I need to add additional elements to complete an idea,” says Story. “For this track, I wanted to incorporate sounds from our new instrument Analog Brass & Winds.”

Get Analog Brass & Winds

“This track is part of an experimental series I am working on called Possible Outcomes, where each piece of music is an outcome of the materials and tools at my disposal in a specific time and space. I began by layering an atmospheric texture (Dragonfly), and an arp (Bokeh Arps) together over a simple bassline (Book of Answers). The swells (Morning Brass and Brassy Swells) lead into the beat, which is all coming from the modular,” explains Story.

“Taking things one step further, I pre-recorded the Bokeh Arps part into a tape sampler module called Morphagene by Make Noise. I used this part as a way to transition from the tracks prepared in Ableton Live into a full modular jam.”

Modular gear used

  • Sequencer: Winter Modular Eloquencer
  • Kick and sub: Make Noise STO, Make Noise Maths
  • Snare: Hexinverter Mutant Snare
  • Snare and ambient delay: 4ms Dual Looping Delay
  • Ambient sample: Make Noise Morphagene
  • Random modulation: Music Thing Modular Turing Machine
  • Clocked modulation: 4ms Quad Clock Distributor
  • Filters: Serge by Random Source VCFQ, Befaco BF-22 VCF
  • Mixer: Sputnik 6-Channel Stereo Mixer
  • VCAs: Mutable Instrument Veils, Befaco Hex Mix VCA
  • USB interface: Mutable Instruments CVpal

Audio gear used

  • Mic pres: Shadow Hills Mono Gama
  • Stereo mix: Pultec EQP-500A, API 2500
  • Interface: UAD Apollo 8p

Software used

  • Output Analog Brass & Winds
  • Ableton Live

MIDI controller used

Get to know more about how Josh Story keeps his creative juices flowing inside and out of the studio as Output’s director of audio R&D.

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