This video, via Gerard Howell, offers an impressive demo + synth jam with the Roland VP-550 vocal synthesizer.
The VP-550 uses vocal-modeling technology to let you create classical choirs, gospel choirs, pop and jazz voices, male & female ensembles, vintage vocoders, and string/vocal hybrids.
Beautiful. Its a bit on the sad side that an instrument this fine will only mean something in the hands of someone who both sings and plays keys. Its also rather pricey, due to the serious computation it surely takes to handle vocals so well. However, the sound grabs me like no vocoder ever did. I'm not wild to have multiple VA synths, but this tool is unique. Its just crying out to have someone really bond with it and develop a style that brings out its strengths.
Actually, Fungo, the VP550 has a pair of 1/4″ line-level inputs which can be processed in the same manner as the microphone input (or even at the same time mixed together). You can vary the amount of “straight through” mixed with the processed vocals; if you go 100% processed you can get a really nice chorused effect. Find a well-narrated audiobook as source material and you can do some really effective vocal trance… or just record your speaking voice and pipe it back in. 🙂
I love magic!
Something tells me that guy could make a tin can and a pump organ sound badass.