Coltranius Chord Rotator – Breath Controlled Synth

There are three versions of the patch – one entirely self-contained in the Zoia (featured in the video), one that sequences external CV or midi synths, and one hybrid that sequences one external “melody” synth and layers it with the onboard synth.

Note: the external version does not have a synth voice, which frees up a lot of CPU time. I took advantage of this headroom to add two more steps to the rotator and a different fixed interval.

What is a Chord Rotator?
Jazz saxophonist Michael Brecker programmed his Oberheim Xpander to select tuned oscillators in sequence. The rotator takes a note input, adds a fixed parallel interval, and adds a third rotating interval. The rotating interval is not quantized; instead, it is just a sequence of intervals transposed from the input note.

For example, if the fixed interval is set to 7 semitones up, and the rating sequence is +3, +5, +4, +2 (a minor third, a perfect fourth, a major third, and a major second), and you play four Cs in a row, you get:

CEbG, CFG, CEG, CDG

If you play C, D, E, and F in order, you get:

CEbG, DGA, EG#B, FGC

The effect is of chaotic, unpredictable “accompaniment,” but with structure.

The three versions of the patch are available on patchstorage.

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  • Platform:
  • Category: Effect Sequencer Synthesizer Utility
  • Revision: 1.0
  • License: Do What The F*ck You Want To Public License
  • Modified: 2 years ago
  • Views: 391
    Likes: 3
    Downloads: 598
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