of Microprocessors

780 MUSICAL ApPLICATIONS OF MICROPROCESSORS
resources are most likely to use a "scientific" approach in which a mathematical
analysis of related past events and current trends is undertaken.
While the resulting conclusions can then be objectively defended, such a
thinktank approach is often not any more accurate than the first two highly
biased approaches. The final method amounts to just an informal analysis of
recent history and current trends along with some imagination that might
have a chance at foreseeing major breakthroughs. This is within the power of
an individual to do without a lot of effort and is what will be engaged in
here.
The Music Technology Development Cycle
In this book, a large number of sound- and music-synthesis techniques
have been described, explored, and in many cases, applied to practical use in
equipment. Virtually all of these techniques were theorized long (20 + years)
before their use in a practical commercial product. Harmonics, harmonic
analysis, and harmonic synthesis, for example, were known about in the last
century and even played around with (using special organ pipes) but only
recently could be fully applied in a musical instrument. Experiments in
drawing sound waves directly onto movie film were performed shortly after
soundtracks were developed, but only recently has the technique proved
practical on computer graphics screens. In essence, the kinds of musical
applications discussed in this book are technology driven. It is technological
advances, usually in other fields, that allow the application of most synthesis
techniques to progress beyond the theoretical and experimental stage.
Unfortunately, the electronic music field is generally not large or lucrative
enough to drive technology itself
Just a little study will reveal a remarkably consistent development
sequence that applies to many fields besides music. First, there is the
conception followed by theoretical study and eventually publication of a new
technique in a scholarly paper. These are seldom seen, let alone understood
by anyone besides other researchers in the same field. If the technique is of
sufficient interest, it is then implemented on a one-time basis using
institutional funds in an effort to learn more about its properties. In the past,
this often meant building large, expensive, and specialized machines, but
now it might amount to writing a program to simulate the process and then
buying enough computer time to study its action. Generally, a couple of
additional papers are published outlining the results ofactual use followed by
a period of dormancy during which nothing much happens. At this point,
many ideas die, but eventually technology advances to the point where it
becomes possible to incorporate the good ones into a "high-end" product of
some sort. With further advances in technology, the new technique gradually
becomes competitive with other existing techniques in "mid-range" products
and begins to be used extensively. In the final stage, a truly good technique
will become trivialized by common usage in "low-end" and toy products.