The Moog Synthesizer. It was one of the pioneering modular voltage-controlled oscillators and amplifiers, developed by Robert Moog.
Robert Moog’s synthesizers were the first to wholly enable users to craft and modify electronic music. His initial prototype consisted of two voltage-controlled oscillators and a voltage-controlled amplifier. The first oscillator allowed users to alter the pitch of a generated sound by adjusting the voltage, which could then be manipulated using the second oscillator to produce effects such as tremolo.
It’s the 60th anniversary of the first Moog Synthesizer. Electronic sound synthesizers were already available at the time, but they were as large as entire rooms. Moog, a fan of the theremin – a touchless electronic instrument developed in the 1920s – experimented with adding amplifiers to the synthesizer’s oscillators to create a more portable version of the machine.
In addition to being the first portable and modular synthesizer, it was also the first affordable one. However, it was still relatively expensive, as the original Moog Synthesizer cost $10,000 in 1964, equivalent to approximately $100,000 (€90,000) today. While not inexpensive, it was significantly more affordable than the million-dollar machines its competitors sold for at that time.
The first client to be served was British-American composer Eric Siday, who had commissioned Moog to make it for him. He requested the inclusion of a keyboard to the machine. Other composers who were curious about electronic music followed suit, continuing to commission Moog and asking for added filter features. They developed new sounds such as the “wah-wah” effect that way.
Rushing to Moog’s captivating synths, it didn’t take long for the first remarkable piece of music to emerge. One of the first innovators with the Moog Synthesizer was Paul Beaver, who collaborated with Mort Garson to create the album ‘The Zodiac: Cosmic Sounds’, which is regarded as a source of inspiration for numerous future experimental musicians. Then, in 1968 the album ‘Switched-On Bach’ featured Wendy Carlos reimagining Bach’s compositions to widespread commercial and critical acclaim. It received three Grammy Awards and became the first classical album to be certified platinum.
– especially “Strange Days”, the title track from The Doors’ second album released in 1967. Beaver used his synthesizer talents to modulate the notes sung by lead vocalist Jim Morrison, resulting in an eerie soundscape for the song. Not long after, the Moog was adopted by many notable artists, including the Beatles, who used it on the album “Abbey Road”. Other early Moog users included The Monkees, The Grateful Dead, and The Rolling Stones, as well as jazz musicians such as Herbie Hancock and Sun Ra.
Modern electronic music has become widespread, with numerous companies creating synthesizers and digital music production software emulating these instruments. Nevertheless, Moog did not stop innovating.
In 1970, Moog released a new synthesizer, known as the Minimoog. This extremely portable version of the original synthesizer was a huge success. Although Moog initially expected to sell around 100 units to specialized session musicians, it sold in the thousands over the course of a decade and laid the groundwork for subsequent products like the Vocoder, Micromoog, Multimoog, and Polymoog. These moved Moog to the forefront of the music industry and it appeared prominently on progressive rock albums by Yes, Tangerine Dream, and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. The Seventies’ biggest commercial hit featuring the Moog was probably Donna Summer’s ‘I Feel Love’, which was almost entirely produced using the Moog.
As competition for Moog’s synthesizers intensified in the early 80s, the company faced financial difficulties. Digital synthesizers from companies such as Yamaha surpassed Moog, ultimately leading to the company’s bankruptcy in 1987. However, by 2002, people looked back at Moog’s synthesizers with a sense of fond nostalgia, and Moog reintroduced a new range of synthesizers in 2002. Moog passed away in 2005 at the age of 71, but his legacy continues as the company still produces synthesizers, such as the Spectravox, Labyrinth and Muse models released this year.
