I Dream of Wires

Filmmakers Robert Fantinatto and Jason Amm's I Dream of Wires presents the history of the modular synthesizer, an instrument favored in both experimental music and progressive rock. Although the ethereal-toned Theremin preceded it, musicians wanted a machine that could produce a wider variety of sounds. After World War II, Columbia University's physics department created the first electronic synthesizer, which was both huge and prohibitively expensive. But student Robert Moog took advantage of transistor technology to produce something smaller and cheaper. Moog began by creating Theremin kits before moving on to the self-named Moog, which featured a keyboard. Later, he would develop the wildly popular Minimoog. In the Bay Area, Don Buchla invented his own electronic music instrument with input from Ramon Sender and Morton Subotnik. It lacked a keyboard, but did allow players to loop sounds by way of a sequencer. At $15,000 a pop, the Buchlas were hardly cheap, but they captured the imagination of well-heeled musicians who were eager to try something new (Subotnik recorded Silver Apples of the Moon using a Buchla). With Wendy Carlos's Switched on Bach (1968), the modular synthesizer enjoyed its first bona fide hit record, and other companies, like Roland, got in on the action. Those who couldn't afford the instruments, such as Throbbing Gristle's Chris Carter, would make their own. Punk was hostile to synthetic sounds, but post-punk musicians like Gary Numan built their careers around them during the New Wave in the late 1970s and early ‘80s. With the eventual rise in digital technology, modular synthesizers began to wane, but smaller companies emerged to fulfill demand to meet a resurgence in popularity in the 1990s. The documentary effectively mixes a solid historical overview with insightful interviews of musicians (including Numan, and Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails). Extras include bonus shorts, an extended interview with Reznor, and music videos. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)