ROTOR, Reactable’s new mobile application for the creation of electronic music
Launched by Reactable Systems S.L., a spin-off of the University, on 13 October. Some of its new features have been developed in the GiantSteps European project, coordinated by Sergi Jordà, researcher of the Music Technology research group.
On 13 October, Reactable Systems, S.L., the UPF spin-off company, announced the release onto the market of ROTOR , a new mobile application (app) that turns an iPad into a complete suite for creating live electronic music. ROTOR allows a tangible musical experience, the same that caught the attention of musicians such as Björk, Coldplay or Gui Boratto.
Some of the innovations the new application includes for the mobile phone are the results of the European Commission’s 7th Framework Programme, GiantSteps (Seven League Boots for Music Creation and Performance), which ends on 1 November 2016, whose scientific coordinator is Sergi Jordà, a member of the Music Technology group (MTG) with UPF’s Department of Information and Communication Technologies (DTIC). GiantSteps’s main objective is the creation of a new generation of digital musical instruments capable of releasing the creative potential of professionals, amateur musicians, and even children.
A unique instrument designed for live creation and interaction
The creators of ROTOR explain that it is not a conventional synthesizer, or a sequencer, but something more incorporating elements of both and providing the tangible experience of Reactable to the iPad for the first time. ROTOR includes dozens of modules, namely instruments, effects, modulators and controllers, all interconnectable with each other, in order to facilitate more expressive and complex creation.
The application features exclusive controllers specially designed for iPad that can be purchased separately and will be available to the public in early November. This means that while all the standard multitouch features remain, the ability to control any parameter by moving and turning the controllers on the surface of the iPad adds a further three degrees of freedom to each hand.
Always in sync and tone. From control to the most inspiring serendipity
It incorporates real time tone detection algorithms, ensuring that all loops, samples and sequences remain not only in sync, but also in harmony with each other.
It also includes dozens of multitouch control panels, such as virtual keyboards, step polyphonic and monophonic sequencers and 2D panels, which provide real-time control of every detail and nuance of the session. Moreover, it incorporates an entire universe of complex generative and unpredictable creations to provide the most inspiring serendipity. All this, combined with its live recording features makes “ROTOR the ultimate machine for creating loops”, say its creators.