It’s been a few weeks since my last blog, been recovering from my marathon and had a pretty busy schedule where music making and learning about music took a bit of a backseat.
The creative space is almost done, unfortunately delivery of some parts has been delayed so the finishing touches can’t be completed. Hopefully at the end of next week we will be finished and I can start furnishing the space. Which is about time as I am done getting everything out of storage and setting up everything if I want to do something. It’s costing me too much energy and takes the fun out of it.
A little bit of wait but then my working space is there.
Max MSP 9
The new release of Max MSP came as a bit of a surprise to me. I am nowhere near an expert on Max but this update seems like a big step forward, especially in Jitter and the addition af Ableton’s ABL library for DSP, which allows for the direct use of Ableton effects in Max.
Also there is a code box where you can work on code for Gen, javascript and other stuff in Max. I am not there yet as my skillset is lacking bit these additions seem very cool and useful.
It’s a never-ending tool for making musical productions, with visuals, instruments and so on.
Besides all this work on Max, all the learning resources and help stuff has been updated, integrated in max and redesigned on the website. It’s the perfect starting point for anyone wanting to start and learn Max MSP. I have said it before it’s a big learning curve. At least for me, but it’s very rewarding and can be used for anything you can think of. Especially for building your own musical and visual environments and in interaction with hardware in a way that is custom to you.
It is overwhelming at first, by doing it opens up more and more avenues for creativity as you go along. I am looking forward to learning more and diving into this new version.
Some other thoughts
The state of the world is not great at the moment, rising far right autocracy and the devastating effects of global warming are taking a toll on a lot of people. Not to mention the ongoing wars around the globe and the dangers of more conflict looming every day. Sometimes it’s very hard to focus on the things you want to do in life and work on. I have that exact same problem.
But as I am limited severely in energy I need to focus on what I can control and work on. For me meditation works very well. I have mentioned the benefits of meditation more often but this is as good a time as any to talk about it again.
As it brings me right back into the here and now. It’s only 12 minutes a day for 5 days per week. So you can even skip two days, and maintain this for a few months, at first you will not notice the benefits. But after some time and keep the 5 times a week going and you will start to feel a shift. And for me this was a real eye opener.
More about this and about the science behind it in the excellent book Peak mind by Amish Jha
Give it a go and keep at it, see you all next time.