Wiardgroup

I had a very enjoyable dream a couple of nights ago, and I can't get 
it out of my mind...

(some background:  My third child was born about 2 weeks ago, and my 
household has been very sleep deprived lately - leading to some 
really out-there dreams!)

Anyway, in the dream I was talking to Grant on the phone, ordering 
some more modules  (this part of the dream is great because it's 
bound to come true, yet again, very soon...)

As in life, Grant was a joy to speak with, and his excitement and 
enthusiasm for his work was so obvious...and so contageous!

I'm a chatty guy, and it's always seemed that Grant is as well, which 
is one of the reasons I love talking to him.  So in this dream, of 
course, Grant is going on about various  cool things he's been up to 
and ideas he's been having.

We talked about the difficulty in coming up with a new design that 
fits in the 300-series paradigm.  The format is really well-rounded 
in my opinion.

Then the great part started...  The Dream Grant told me that he had 
just finished breadboarding a 'magical new frequency shifter' that he 
was really excited about.

In my dream it sounded like he was beside himself with excitement, 
saying this design went places nothing in the past ever had.  It was 
a selectable lin/log frequency shifter, and using some special 
engineering tricks it doubled as a pair of quadrature sine 
oscillators, and included an 'utterly unique ringmod type effect', a 
pair of lag processors and a pair of envelope followers.  Maybe some 
other stuff as well?   Grant was really excited :)

He then started describing some patches he made with it, and this 
part of the dream is pretty hazy, but I do recall something to the 
effect of "when modulated by a pair of Envelator modules it's capable 
of the deepest, richest barberpole phasing effects the world will 
ever hear"

He then told me that the design probably wouldn't be reproduced 
beyond what was on his breadboard because he had shifted focus to 
designing something for fishtanks (?)  Somehow in the dream that made 
perfect sense, but I was still really excited about the Dream Shifter.

Anyway sometime around the fishtank comment the baby started crying 
and I woke up, really wishing I was back in my dream, on the phone 
with Grant, wrapping my mind more and more deeply into the 
Wiardness....

I think what it all means is that it's time for me to order some more 
modules :)

--- In wiardgroup@yahoogroups.com, "mufwiggler" <muffwiggler@...> wrote:
>
> I had a very enjoyable dream a couple of nights ago, and I can't get 
> it out of my mind...
> 

> We talked about the difficulty in coming up with a new design that 
> fits in the 300-series paradigm.  The format is really well-rounded 
> in my opinion.
> 
> Then the great part started...  The Dream Grant told me that he had 
> just finished breadboarding a 'magical new frequency shifter' that he 
> was really excited about.
>

Not quite a dream, here, but Grant sent me a recording recently of
music processed with a his new "hi-fi ring mod" - which was absolutely
breathtaking....  So maybe it was a balanced modulator you were
dreaming of and you are clairvoyant instead of simply dreaming!

gc

--- In wiardgroup@yahoogroups.com, "Gary Chang" <gchang@...> wrote:
>
> Not quite a dream, here, but Grant sent me a recording recently of
> music processed with a his new "hi-fi ring mod" - which was absolutely
> breathtaking....  

Talking to Grant when he is on an idea roll is always a great reminder
why I have always loved instrument designers. They are the happy
mutation of mad scientist and artist.

I've met, corresponded with and been friends with some of the great
minds of the 20th and 21st century's experimental and bleeding edge in
musical instrument design. It's always a privilege to be able to roll
around the mud with the big dogs and sometimes have an impact or win a
debate.  

You can teach a person to play an instrument and even build one but
you can't teach originality or multidimensional thinking.

TD

--- In wiardgroup@yahoogroups.com, "Gary Chang" <gchang@...> wrote:
> Not quite a dream, here, but Grant sent me a recording recently of
> music processed with a his new "hi-fi ring mod" - which was absolutely
> breathtaking....  So maybe it was a balanced modulator you were
> dreaming of and you are clairvoyant instead of simply dreaming!
> 
> gc
>

wow, you never know!  Dreams *do* operate in funny ways..

(wasn't it a dream that brough the Borg filters into the world?)

Would love to hear more info about this hifi ringmod!!  Sounds 
incredible

> Talking to Grant when he is on an idea roll is always a great reminder
> why I have always loved instrument designers. They are the happy
> mutation of mad scientist and artist.
> 
> I've met, corresponded with and been friends with some of the great
> minds of the 20th and 21st century's experimental and bleeding edge in
> musical instrument design. It's always a privilege to be able to roll
> around the mud with the big dogs and sometimes have an impact or win a
> debate.  
> 
> You can teach a person to play an instrument and even build one but
> you can't teach originality or multidimensional thinking.
> 
> TD
>

Coulnd't agree more - talking to the man can sometimes be almost as 
inspiring as using his instruments.  I think it is the fusion of design 
and art, science and heart that gives the Wiard instruments so much 
appeal, it's a big part of it for me at least.