Moog Music has announced the 6th Annual Moog Circuit Bending Challenge – a contest challenging participants to take a battery-powered device and circuit-bend it into an instrument capable of creating new and unique sounds, and doing it on a limited budget.
Entrants will create and post videos on YouTube, featuring their completed instruments and documenting the process of their creation. Moog will select three finalists and invite them to showcase their creations at Moogfest in May of 2017, where judges will determine a winner of the contest.
This Year’s Contest
This year, Moog’s circuit bending contest is challenging entrants to take a battery-powered device and circuit bend it into an instrument capable of creating new and unique sounds for a total budget of $70 or less.
Contestants will circuit bend an existing device to create a unique musical instrument that can be easily recreated by others while following these guidelines:
- The device you bend must be battery-operated with a power no greater than 9 volts.
- Project must be completed for a total cost of $70 or less. This includes the device you bend and all parts you use to bend it.
- You’ll need to create a bill of materials, build instructions, and photos sequencing the build step by step.
A winner will be chosen on the basis of reliable functionality, creativity, craftsmanship, artistic appearance, overall sound, and the popularity of the device with the public.
Prizes:
- Grand Prize: Minimoog Model D
- 2nd Place: Moog Sub 37
- 3rd Place: Moog Sub Phatty
The three finalists chosen will also receive two passes to Moogfest 2017 as well as a Moog merchandise package.
See the Moog Music site for details.
Did Moog pay their engineers with synths too?
Has anyone ever heard a piece of music made on a circuit bent unit that they would listen to twice?
I hear samples of circuit bent stuff all the time. This one is really nice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltd9kXl36NY
watch Smithsonian channel special about history of modern music
rock and roll, hip hop and most modern music started by people circuit bending devices of all sorts
I did watch it, I didn’t really see a focus on circuit bending. They were using devices in way not necessarily intended, but usually because that is what they had available. It was always in the interest of making something musical, not just because they could. The overwhelming majority if circuit bent stuff I hear (and I do get exposed to it) is ‘because they can’, not because it actually makes something that appeals to me musically. Other people are welcome to disagree and enjoy it. I’m welcome to think that it is unlistenable, academic, fart sniffing music.
i agree most circuit bent is more about strange sounds than music, but once in a while something interesting does get made, and sometimes those sounds will make into a song
talk about getting bent
(this one lady i knew always said that)
Here comes the next thousand hours of YouTube videos
I made an 8 voice poly synth out of an old toaster.
how many slots?
Four slice toaster.
The contacts for the keybed were made using the springs that pop the toast up. With a four slicer, there were just enough springs. A two slicer wouldn’t have cut it.
i would used the spring for reverb of some type
One of the heating coils was used for the built in reverb.
i bet it makes a toasty mix
It provides all your bread and butter sounds, but in the end, it’s meat and potatoes we’re after…