Canadian Musician November / December 2019

ROLAND FANTOM 8 Roland Fantom Professional Keyboards Roland has introduced the flagship Fantom lineup, a new series of professional keyboards for music production and live performance. The Fantom 6, Fantom 7, and Fantom 8 models are designed to combine Roland’s latest synthesizer technologies with fluid operation, an intuitive colour touchscreen, and deep computer integration. A key feature of Fantom keyboards is their modeless interface, so players don’t need to worry about which features work in which mode. With workspaces called Scenes, the instrument can be fully customized and instantly reconfigured for different composition and performance setups. Fantom’s flexible and expandable sound engine provides a wide range of authentic electronic, acoustic, and hybrid sounds. Players can combine different synthesis technologies along with the onboard analog filter for new and unusual sounds. There’s also a big selection of effects available to enhance individual sounds and process entire mixes. With Fantom’s DSP engine, it’s possible to run all 16 parts with all avail- able effects at once, complete with full patch remain for seamless transitions. For more information, contact Roland Canada: 604-270-6626, www.roland.com/ca. Audiomodern Playbeat Creative Groove Randomizer Plug-In Audiomodern has released the Playbeat creative groove randomizer, which works as an AAX/ AU/VST2/VST3 plug-in and standalone application. The Playbeat plug-in generates unique beats and patterns, allowing users to load or drag-n-drop their own sounds and generate up to four patterns simultaneously to get polyrhythms. Its unique approach to pattern creation is meant to generate grooves, rhythms, and beats that users are unlikely to create themselves to inspire new songs. Unlike a regular step sequencer, Playbeat creates patterns using algorithmic and random procedures for generating notes by combining steps, pitch, volume, and more. For more information, go to www.audiomodern.com. COME TO CUBA WITH US! NOW: 2 MUSIC & CULTURE PROGRAMS Havana – March 22-29, 2020 FIESTA DEL TAMBOR Matanzas – April 29-May 6, 2020 MATANZAS JAZZ FESTIVAL Host: Aldo Mazza University credits available | US legal travel www.kosamusic.com CANADIAN MUSICIAN 65

Canadian Musician November / December 2019 | Page 65