TOOT 13

For our final instrument, we will employ three unique synthesis methods: Physical Modeling, Formant-Wave Synthesis, and Non-linear Distortion. Three of Csound's more powerful unit generators - pluck, fof, and foscil, make this complex task a fairly simple one. The Reference Manual describes these as follows:

ar pluck kamp, kcps, icps, ifn, imeth[, iparm1, iparm2]

pluck simulates the sound of naturally decaying plucked strings by filling a cyclic decay buffer with noise and then smoothing it over time according to one of several methods. The unit is based on the Karplus-Strong algorithm.

ar fof xamp, xfund, xform, koct, kband, kris,kdur, kdec, \\
 iolaps, ifna, ifnb, itotdur[, iphs[, ifmode]]

fof simulates the sound of the male voice by producing a set of harmonically related partials (a formant region) whose spectral envelope can be controlled over time. It is a special form of granular synthesis, based on the CHANT program from IRCAM by Xavier Rodet et al.

ar foscil xamp, kcps, kcar, kmod, kndx, ifn[, iphs]

foscil is a composite unit which banks two oscillators in a simple FM configuration, wherein the audio-rate output of one (the "modulator") is used to modulate the frequency input of another (the "carrier.")

The plan for our instrument is to have the plucked string attack dissolve into an FM sustain which transforms into a vocal release. The orchestra and score are as follows: