Samplers and Workstations — Capturing Real Sound

The Opposite of Synthesis — Recording Real Sound

Synthesizers had been synthesizing sound from scratch (analog subtraction, FM modulation). But around 1980, the exact opposite idea became practical — record a real sound (sampling) and assign it to each key of the keyboard for playback. Piano, violin, a human voice, a dog barking — any sound that could be recorded could now be played from a keyboard.

Fairlight CMI (1979) — The Beginning of Sampling

The Australian-made Fairlight CMI was a pioneering machine that integrated sampling with digital sequencing. It was a futuristic device that let you edit waveforms with a light pen.

• Extremely expensive — priced like a house. Owned only by a handful of stars (Peter Gabriel, Stevie Wonder, YMO)
• Orchestra hits and vocal samples rang out in hit songs of the 80s

The Fairlight proved that “real-world sound could become an instrument,” but it was too expensive to be anything but a tool for the privileged few.

Akai Samplers and Hip-Hop

It was affordable samplers like the Akai MPC / S series that democratized sampling. These gave birth to a new music genre:

• Hip-hop — cutting up (sampling), looping, and rearranging drums and phrases from existing records to build new tracks
• Akai MPC — assigned samples to pads that could be played or sequenced by finger, becoming the central piece of gear in hip-hop production
• Not “performing” but “reconstructing fragments of recordings” — this changed the very concept of composition

Sampling went beyond its original purpose of imitating acoustic instruments to give rise to an entirely new form of creation built from cutting and pasting fragments. This is another manifestation of the “blurred boundary between imitation and creation” we saw in Articles 2 and 6.

Korg M1 (1988) — The Workstation Completed

Built around sampling (more precisely, the playback of PCM waveforms), an instrument emerged that let music production be completed on a single unit. That instrument was the Korg M1 — one of the best-selling synthesizers of all time.

A “workstation” is a keyboard that integrates the following into one unit:

• PCM sound source — a rich palette of realistic tones based on actual recordings, including piano, strings, and drums
• Effects — built-in reverb, chorus, and more
• Sequencer — able to sequence and record an entire song

The M1’s sounds (especially the “M1 Piano” and “M1 Organ”) were heard constantly in 90s pop, dance, and house music. With a single keyboard, you could select sounds, perform, record, and finish a track — this “all-in-one” philosophy became the mainstream approach for synthesizers thereafter.

Digital Diversification

Around the same time, manufacturers competed to distinguish themselves with digital sound sources:

• Roland D-50 (1987) — used LA synthesis, combining short PCM attack transients with synthesized tones. Its brilliant sound rivaled the DX7
• Roland JV/XP series — a staple 90s sound source line that could expand its tones via expansion boards

Electronic keyboards had thus entered an era where multiple sound-generation methods coexisted: analog (thick), FM (hard-edged), and PCM (realistic).

The Pursuit of Piano Sound — The Path Home

As the PCM sound sources of workstations grew higher in quality, one application began to take off in earnest — using sampling to precisely reproduce the sound of an acoustic piano, and selling it as a “piano” for the home.

Real pianos are expensive, take up space, require tuning, and their volume can’t be adjusted. Sampling technology became the key to meeting the enormous demand of people who simply wanted to “play the piano.”

The next article traces how this digital piano — an electronic keyboard, typified by the Clavinova, that reproduces an acoustic piano through sampling — became a fixture in ordinary homes.