Korg’s New Acoustic Synthesizer!
And why it’s such a big deal.
One of the most impressive concepts in this year’s Superbooth was Korg’s prototype of an acoustic synthesizer. The mastermind Tatsuya Takahashi has been developing this idea in the past two years with the Korg Berlin team and we finally had the chance to get a first look and some sounds.
The prototype is called Phase5 and it’s just the start of this concept and sets the mood for what’s coming next. So what’s the idea behind this?
The instrument has an acoustic part with metal tines that are used as resonators. Once you press a key, the tines resonate and produce sound. This sound is captured through pickups and then can be manipulated and transformed. The Phase5 can just sustain the fundamental frequency and overtones and also modulate the overtones using an LFO but since it’s just an early prototype, this is just a glimpse of what can be done in the future.
The whole concept is very similar to the Fender Rhodes which is also an electro-acoustic instrument. Although I’m sure Korg does not intend to create an electric piano but a synth-like instrument based on this concept. Bridging the acoustic world to the electronic one isn’t exactly new but it never reached its potential and sonic capabilities so I’m sure this can be a platform for new types of instruments that feel more natural and organic than the ones we’re already used to and I’m excited for what’s to come!
The good thing about big companies like Korg is that they can invest in a team that designs and tests weird & ambitious projects like this one. And when you give time and room to visionary people, the results can be surprising and groundbreaking! So I hope they keep on working on this platform so that we can soon get our hands on something completely new!
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