How an Italo Disco Chorus Works
Tarzan Boy, Self Control, Boys Boys Boys - why can't you forget these choruses? A breakdown of structure, melodic devices, and the psychology of Italo Disco hooks.
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Synthesizers, BPM, vocoders, mixing, choruses - how the sound works under the hood.
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Vocoder in music: how a voice controls a synthesiser
A robot voice comes from two signals and a bank of filters, not one magic effect button. Follow the path from Homer Dudley to the Roland VP-330 and build an intelligible part.
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The Secret of the Signature Bassline
A breakdown of the legendary Italo Disco bass - what "springy" sound really means, how it was built, and why it makes the whole body move.
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Roland TR-808: Heart of the Genre
The story of the drum machine that created the rhythmic face of Italo Disco and a dozen other genres - from hip-hop to synthwave.
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Italo Disco Rhythm Patterns on the TR-808
Four on the floor, clap on beats 2 and 4, eighth-note hats - how the signature rhythms of Italo Disco were programmed on the Roland TR-808 and LinnDrum.
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Linn LM-1: the Drum Machine That Almost Didn't Happen
The story of the first sample-based drum machine that changed '80s pop and played an important role in shaping the Italo Disco sound.
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Oberheim OB-8 in Italo Disco
The American Oberheim OB-8 was a rare premium synth in '80s Italo Disco. It cost 3-4 times more than a Juno but added special solidity to larger studios of the genre.
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The Studer Multitrack Tape Machine
The story of the legendary Swiss tape machines on which classic Italo Disco hits were recorded - and why their sound is still a benchmark.
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Fairlight CMI: a Synth for the Chosen Few
The story of the legendary sampler available only to the richest '80s studios, and its role in shaping the sound of Italo Disco.
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The Synths That Built Italo Disco
Roland Juno, Yamaha DX7, Korg Polysix - a look at the instruments that shaped the sound of a whole genre and a whole decade.
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Italo Disco Harmony: Chords and Progressions
Am-F-C-G, minor keys, signature moves - a breakdown of Italo Disco's harmonic foundations. Why the genre sounds the way it does at the level of chord progressions.
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Sequential Prophet-5 and Italo Disco
The 1978 Sequential Prophet-5 - a cult polyphonic synth used by Michael Jackson and Prince. In Italo Disco it was deployed by premium studios.
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Italo Disco Mixing Secrets
Professional techniques '80s recording engineers used to build the signature sound of Italian dance music.
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Lexicon Reverb: Why the '80s Sound Like That
How Lexicon reverb processors created the signature "space" in the sound of Italo Disco and other genres of the decade.
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Italo Disco vs. American Disco
How Italian disco differed from American disco - we break down the sound, aesthetic, and philosophy of two genres that share a name but sound worlds apart.
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