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https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/no-loans-at-this-library-but-playing-helps-keep-the-synthesisers-alive-20221214-p5c68b.html>
"Hiding in a North Melbourne back alley, a unique library offers budding
musicians access to a living history of electronic instruments.
Melbourne Electronic Sound Studio, or MESS, houses more than 200 synthesisers,
with a further 500 stored elsewhere. The collection is constantly refreshed and
growing.
“It’s terrifying how much water is around this space,” says former studio
manager Mat Watson of the fire sprinklers in the ceiling and taps in the
basement. “There’s probably around $2 million worth of other people’s gear
here. It causes a lot of stress.”
Formed in 2016, MESS is the brainchild of Byron Scullin and Robin Fox, a pair
of high-end synth enthusiasts.
“Traditionally, those instruments were out of the hands of ordinary people,”
says Watson. “They were either behind closed doors at institutions [or] sound
research workshops, or [owned by] wealthy rock stars.”
MESS was conceived to change that. “You could walk up the laneway, knock on the
door and say, ‘I heard about MESS’ or, ‘I saw the sign’, and within a few
minutes you can have your hands on this history of electronic music
instruments.”
MESS’s collection reflects the history of electronic music, from the Yamaha
CS-80 that was used for themes to
Doctor Who and
Chariots of Fire, to Brian
Eno’s EMS Synthi and Elton John’s favourite Yamaha DX. There is also a reissue
of the legendary Australian-made Fairlight, the sound behind Kate Bush’s
recently revived
Running up that Hill."
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
