{"id":11033,"date":"2024-05-16T15:20:48","date_gmt":"2024-05-16T15:20:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=11033"},"modified":"2024-05-16T15:20:48","modified_gmt":"2024-05-16T15:20:48","slug":"artiphon-chorda-review-a-nifty-toy-for-non-musicians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=11033","title":{"rendered":"Artiphon Chorda Review: A Nifty Toy for Non-Musicians"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Artiphon\u2019s whole thing<\/span> is making simple musical instruments<\/a> that focus on delivering instant gratification. They\u2019re sneaky gateways to the nerdy world of MIDI polyphonic expression<\/a>, or MPE, which allows a player to give each note its own unique timbre like you might on something like a guitar. It\u2019s a technology that\u2019s gaining popularity and has been embraced by some pretty big players in the music world, but it\u2019s still kind of niche\u2014and the price of entry can often be high.<\/p>\n

Artiphon\u2019s Chorda is just $250, and requires minimal skill to pick up and start making music with. It\u2019s an instrument that vaguely resembles the neck of a guitar, with 12 capacitive touchpads and a strummable \u201cbridge\u201d across its surface. Inside is a relatively simple synth engine that covers everything from chiptune leads, to smooth bass and synth pop drums. There\u2019s even a sampler function for adding your own sounds. Plus there\u2019s a pretty decent built-in speaker, so you don\u2019t need anything other than a cheap phone<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n

The pads across the top of the Chorda are quantized to a particular musical scale, which greatly simplifies things for nonmusicians. Even with absolutely zero knowledge of music theory or scales, it\u2019s pretty easy to just pick up Chorda and make something halfway decent.<\/p>\n

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There are four modes: Drum, Bass, Chord, and Lead. Drum, obviously, plays drums. Bass gives you monophonic low end. Chord puts a full chord on each pad, and Lead gives you a polyphonic palette from which to solo.<\/p>\n

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