MAKEN0ISE: Strumming the Grid – A Patch Adventure Beyond Sequencing

The video opens with a confession: this patch was born from an attempt to escape the tyranny of grid-based sequencing. Instead of the usual step-by-step note triggering, the creator introduces a strumming technique as the core of the patch. This approach immediately sets the stage for a more organic and less predictable flow of notes, reminiscent of plucking strings rather than programming steps.

At the heart of the patch is a slowly cycling channel from Maths, set with a slightly exponential curve. This modulation is routed to the span input of the Polymath module, creating a downward strum across its eight channels. By manipulating the span input via a Tenuverter, the patcher demonstrates how to sweep through the full range of channels, even overshooting if desired. This strum replaces traditional sequencing with a gesture-driven cascade of notes, setting the tone for the rest of the patch.

The patch’s signal flow is a masterclass in modular choreography. The Maths channel not only drives the Polymath’s span input but also resets all channels back to their unmodulated pitch, ensuring each strum starts fresh. This reset is crucial for generating a new series of notes with every cycle, keeping the sequence lively and unpredictable.

Further complexity is added by clocking Rene with a fast pulse from Tempi, while the strum channel’s end-of-cycle output is patched to the Z mod input, changing states and thus the set of quantized notes available. This means each strum can pull from a different palette of pitches, with the actual notes sent to the Multiwave channels determined by the current state. The result is a patch that’s always in motion, never quite repeating itself in the same way.

Rather than relying on a fixed sequence, the workflow here uses the strum channel as the main driver for note generation. By patching the strum gate to the accumulate input on Multiwave, the channels only activate at the end of each strum, ensuring that pitch updates happen in sync with state changes. This guarantees that each strum delivers a coherent set of notes from a single state, rather than a mishmash from multiple states.

To further destabilize predictability, another Maths channel is introduced, patched to Rene’s XCV input with the fun add function. This allows for in-scale transpositions that can be toggled on or off per state, adding yet another layer of variation. The Maths channel’s output can also be mixed into the strum itself, subtly altering the motion and feel of the cascade. The result is a patch where every strum is both structured and surprising, with modulation woven into the very fabric of the sequence.

No Make Noise patch would be complete without a healthy dose of randomness and evolving timbre. Here, a slow random voltage from Wogglebug is sent to the exponential input of Oscillator A, randomizing its octave per channel and injecting fresh harmonic content with each cycle. This randomness ensures that even repeated gestures yield new sonic results.

Further sonic enhancement comes from tapping Multiwave outputs into Multi-Mod, which divides and multiplies the rate of the incoming signal. Since this is audio, the result is a rich stew of harmonics and subharmonics. The patcher then routes high-pass filtered outputs through Mimeophon and into the QPAS filter, modulating the filter frequency for extra movement. The spread parameter of Multi-Mod is also modulated by the strum, tying the patch’s harmonic evolution directly to its core gesture.