[sdiy] Arron's Best Junior Teacher award (was: Serge way or Buchla way!)

[Michael Bacich]

On Apr 22, 2006, at 11:51 PM, Aaron Lanterman wrote:

> Oh! Oh! a happy happy thing - at the ECE picnic on Friday, I was  
> given the 2006 Best Junior Teacher award. This is given to a  
> faculty person whose been there less than 10 year (there's a Best  
> Senior Teacher award for people who have been there more than 10).  
> Unlike other deparmental awards that are decided by faculty, this  
> one was voted on by the graduating Seniors. The fact that it was  
> orchestrated and decided on by the _students_ means the world to me.

Congratulations on the award, Aaron.  Your seemingly boundless energy  
and enthusiasm for your work and for your students is the reason for  
your success, without a doubt.  I think it's safe for me to say that  
we of SDIY are all very happy for you and for the fact that someone  
-- better yet, one of us -- is actually formally teaching this synth- 
building stuff to people somewhere in the world.  It's also very cool  
that you're generous enough to share your video lectures with those  
of us who can't attend your classes.  Your students are very, very  
fortunate -- I hope they realize that!

I used to think the golden age of synth DIY was the late 70's and  
early to mid 80's, what with Electronotes, Polyphony and Synapse  
magazine, the halcyon days of Paia, Elektor, Digisound, Aries, and  
other adventurous kit makers, as well as the explosive proliferation  
of specialized IC's from SSM and CEM.  Although I will admit that I  
really miss being able to buy CEM3340 VCO's for $7.50 each, it is  
apparent to me now that due to the Internet in general and to the  
SDIY list in particular, and the attendant amazing, steady growth of  
various cottage DIY synth industries (MOTM, Blacet, Ken Stone, Ray  
Wilson, Tony Allgood, Elby Designs... the list goes on and on), the  
true golden age of synth DIY is happening RIGHT NOW.

Back in the late 70's, when i first got into this thing, meeting  
another person who shared a similar interest was a very, very unusual  
thing.  For several years, I met only one other person who cared  
anything about what went on behind the front panel of a synthesizer.   
That was Kevin Lightner, who happened to live a few blocks from my  
house at the time.  We met just by happenchance over an advert he had  
placed in a local paper.  This was about 1982 or so, and he was still  
a couple of decades and a few dozen rolls of solder away from  
formulating his General Theory of Moogey Jitter™.  He was as shocked  
and pleased as I was that someone else within 100 miles was also into  
this stuff.  Today, as a result of this awesome mailing list, there's  
a new face on the scene almost every day -- they may not be the next  
Bob Moog, but very possibly could turn out to be the next Harry  
Bissell, Grant Richter, Cynthia Webster, Paul Schreiber, Colin  
Fraser, Jim Patchell, or Juergen Haible, which would be no mean feat.

As much as we like to bitch about dwindling parts supplies for our  
projects and the headaches of RoHS and dust-speck-sized SMT devices,  
it's pretty clear that the sport (I refuse to call it a "hobby") just  
keeps getting more and more popular, and will probably continue to do  
so.  It would have been inconceivable for there to be an honest-to- 
goodness legitimate college class in synth building back in the  
previous "golden age".  Somehow, I suspect that Aaron's class,  
although unique at this moment, will not be the only college class of  
its type to spring up on this ever-shrinking planet.  I would hope  
that some of the more experienced and articulate of us might take  
Aaron's success as a cue, and attempt to do something similar in  
other corners of the world.  The time is right for it.

Again -- Good job, Dr. Lanterman!

Michael Bacich

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