http://disqus.com/by/hypnosapien/enWed, 31 Dec 2008 12:00:22 -0000http://stretta.blogspot.com/2008/12/2008-creative-year-in-review.html#comment-4799419<p>Hey stretta, thanks for the year-end review. I've enjoyed following your blog throughout 2008 and appreciate the time and effort you put in. I also appreciate your contributions to the monome community, as that is where I discovered your music, max patches, and this blog.</p><p>And thanks for the invitation to share the highlights of my year. For me, 2008 was a great year in terms of creative achievement. Or at least technical achievement. I've solidified my electronic music workflow into a system of hardware and software that are stable, durable, great sounding, and a joy to play. My level of technical knowledge has increased greatly, and I've created a platform from which much music will flow in 2009.</p><p>Aside from setting up the tools necessary for creative freedom, here are a few other music-related highlights:</p><p>1. Zendrum ZAP - I was fortunate enough to see this product come to fruition after pitching the concept to David at Zendrum. I originally just wanted a one-off custom built device, but David agreed that there was a larger market for such a thing, and thus the ZAP was born: <a href="http://createdigitalmusic.com/2008/01/31/let-your-fingers-do-the-drumming-new-compact-zendrum-zap/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" title="http://createdigitalmusic.com/2008/01/31/let-your-fingers-do-the-drumming-new-compact-zendrum-zap/">http://createdigitalmusic.c...</a></p><p>2. I found the time to make a couple of Monome/Zendrum videos, one of which got a positive comment on Vimeo from Vernon Reid (one of my teenage music idols) that spawned a brief and pleasant email exchange with him: <a href="http://www.vimeo.com/1160348" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" title="http://www.vimeo.com/1160348">http://www.vimeo.com/1160348</a></p><p>3. I discovered soundcloud, and managed to put a few tracks up from a musical duo I participate in called Othership: <a href="http://soundcloud.com/othership" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" title="http://soundcloud.com/othership">http://soundcloud.com/other...</a></p><p>These are all pretty small things, but between work and family life, I just didn't have much time for actual music production. Now that I have a solid setup for live performance, 2009 will be spent focusing on playing rather than experimenting and troubleshooting. Here's to a fun and productive new year!</p><p>Thanks again for all of your contributions, Stretta! And a Happy New Year to you and your family!</p>hypnosapienWed, 31 Dec 2008 12:00:22 -0000