tags: mus-407 ece-402 music synthesis

Additive Synthesis

Additive synthesis is the process of generating [sound] by adding together individual [frequency] components to create various [spectra].

• refers to a family of waveform summation techniques to create specific [timbres], usually [sine waves] summed together
• one of many types of [sound synthesis] techniques

History

Additive synthesis was used within early [electroacoustic music] for creating complex spectra by summing individual sine waves at specific frequencies

• achieved through [Fourier] synthesis
• tedious process with 1950s equipment:
  • record up to four tones on [four-track recorder]
  • use [mixer] to mix to monophonic signal and record to single track recorder
  • record sum back to four-track recorder, leaving three tracks to be overwritten Stockhausen's Studie I (1953) composed entirely from sine waves

Sources

• MUS 407 The Studio Age: Musique Concrète
• TODO: add sources