In which sir Richard loses a band but begins a solo career, and applies his multifarious talents to the world of commercials. He also has a voice like a Nightingale (when the tapes are speeded up sufficiently). All this and more...

Peter Hook gives a breakdown on broken down gear and the lowdown on Lowlife.

This one would have been called Vangelis Odyssey Papathanassiou and Keith Spencer-Allen talk to Ralph Antidisestablishmentarianism Denyer, but there wasn't room.

From the humblest of 4-track cassette recorders to the might of 48-track digital, multitrack is the technique used for 99.9% of all commercial recordings. David Mellor looks at the background to this powerful tool and wonders how we ever managed without it.

...Beating Like This

...Beating Like This forever, and so Matt Isaacson's examination of "drum bugs" (and other nasties) and their applications for triggering electronic drum brains brings this series to a close.

The Recording of a Film Soundtrack Music

Ed Jones sits in on a major film music session in Abbey Road Studios, London, and reports on how the London Symphony Orchestra and a host of extra musicians recorded the music soundtrack to George Lucas' forthcoming prequel to 'Star Wars' - 'Willow'.

Tim Goodyer pays Genesis' legendary keyboardsman a visit to hear all about life in one of rock's most longstanding and influential bands and their 16th LP.

Guitar-to-MIDI Converter

Paul White, who's owned almost every Roland guitar synth built, puts the new GK1 synth driver and GM70 "brain" under test. Is this the first pitch-to-MIDI system that really works?

Rock 'n' Roll history made flesh, albeit somewhat decayed flesh, talks about clean living, composing, and the pursuit of happiness.

Rated as the world's top solo synth performer, Klaus explains how he composes on stage and in the studio

Roland RD1000 Piano

How does Roland's new SAS resynthesis system go about imitating a grand piano? Dan Goldstein digs deep inside the RD1000 and its modular counterpart, the MKS20, and submits a glowing report.

Six years have passed since New York's best-known performance artist leapt to fame with 'O, Superman'. Tim Goodyer finds she's still stretching technology to its limits in her new film 'Home of the Brave'.

On a Moroccan roll

Fly-on-the-wall vision of an ethnic recording expedition

In the '70s, Can paved the way for a generation of experimental electronic musicians. Simon Trask talks to Holger Czukay and Michael Karoli amidst the CD rerelease of their entire back-catalogue and a new LP for '89.

Andy McCluskey

Andy McCluskey reveals his dislike for synth programming and his penchant for the classics.

Jay Chapman sets the scene for a regular series written to help you better understand the practicalities of life with the Musical Instrument Digital Interface.

Not quite a household name, but an American jazz fusion guitarist whose attitude to improvisation and performing with new technology is starting a quiet revolution. Dan Goldstein gets the lowdown.

Frankfurt Musikmesse 1987

While for those with a taste for the European, we present a similarly in-depth account of the '87 Musikmesse. If it hit the headlines in Frankfurt, you'll read about it here.

Tubular Bells, Bayou Moon and other stories

Apart from his claim to fame as the co-producer of Mike Oldfield's hugely successful 'Tubular Bells' album, engineer/producer Tom Newman has most recently been making his mark in the New Age music field with two beautifully recorded albums. Mark Prendergast reports.

Ten years ago Incognito's first LP heralded a new British jazz funk movement; today their second celebrates a world-wide dance movement. Tim Goodyer asks Bluey Maunick if the song remains the same.

Musical Environments

Part 3: Musical environments. The final part of a short series in which Martin Russ expands, exploits and explores the Atari ST computer.

No doubting the Thomases from Elvis Costello and the Attractions.

All that was new and all that was interesting at the this year's sojourn into Germany.

Philip Glass: Glazed expression