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INTRODUCTION
 In
the last year of the previous century, I
found myself in an English Pub, drinking
from an orange juice while listening to the
techno music in the background. I was
basically enjoying this situation, kind of
exotic. The music was tight, as computer
music should be. And someone told me, how
several Techno producers were using software
called "Rebirth" to create their
tunes. And getting quite good at it, too!
The company that made Rebirth,
Propellerhead Software, was obviously aware
of what they were doing. They had made a
software version of the infamous TR808 and
TB303 machines. These machines were
originally created by Roland and out of sale
for a long time. But they were sought after
by almost every self respecting Techno
producer.
Rebirth was basically a little studio.
There was a rack with two drum computers and
two monophonic synthesizers as well as two
basic effects: echo and distortion. This
could be connected with other programs but
it worked quite good as a stand-alone too.
When I listened to the music, it became
clear to me. Indeed, I recognized the
sounds. In my mind, I went further and
imagined how Rebirth was expanded, how this
could become a whole virtual studio. And
when it would, computer based DUB producing
would definitely reach a next phase
DUB music, or actually Reggae Music, was
born on Jamaica. Before there were any
sequencers, drumcomputers and midifiles.
Well, perhaps they were there, but the
Jamaicans were not usually part of that
global upper class which could afford these
technologies.
When King Tubby first released his
"versions" and perfectionized the
Art Of DUB, the mixing board became an
instrument. The engineer became an artist,
too. Using effects, while the riddim plays:
who says a studio is for fine-tuning and a
mixing board for mixing everything together?
Reggae, because of its rhythmic
structure, is perfect for sequencing. Even
stronger, Reggae is predominantly a studio
music. It has been developed in the many
Jamaican Studio's who all had their bands
playing one riddim after another into the
multitrack recorder. We would call these
recordings "Midifiles".
In the 1980's we saw the first drum
machines entering the studios, and by the
mid 1990's computer based music was here to
stay indefinitely. Everywhere, everytime. A
new generation of artists and listeners was
born, free from the very same prejudice that
made many protest the electric guitar in the
1940's.
Music "from a box"? Only
preterists would now consider that to be
"no music". Most people dance to
the rhythm because they can feel it. And so
it was not too shocking to find out that by
the end of the first "Digital
Decade", computer based music was
filling the dance charts and the speakers of
an average English pub. But it was shocking
to realize that this little company called
Propellerhead were the first to create a
stand alone software that would enable the
producer to create music, which appeals to a
wide audience.
So here we are, in 2005. Rebirth has
already reached the same classic status as
the hardware it simulated. And the virtual
studio that I imagined that UK Pub? It's
called REASON. And Propellerhead has just
released version 3.0!
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