Reservoir deployed $120m on acquisitions and advances in latest fiscal year, as its annual revenues grew 11% YoY to $175.7mReservoir Media has published its fiscal Q4 (calendar Q1) and full-year financial results for its fiscal 2026, ended March 31, 2026.
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Song structure: How to build a song (with examples)
Learn how to turn musical ideas into full tracks with essential song structure tips, examples, and techniques.

I Tested 6 Free Kontakt Alternatives – These 2 Won
I use Kontakt, so I’m not going to pretend it suddenly became useless. The full version of Native Instruments Kontakt is still the sampler format that many commercial library developers build for. Kontakt Player, the free version, is also worth having if you want to use officially licensed libraries from developers like Heavyocity, ProjectSAM, Sonokinetic, [...]
View post: I Tested 6 Free Kontakt Alternatives – These 2 Won

SSL announce the SSL 1 The new addition to SSL's interface range is aimed at both newcomers searching for their first device and experienced producers looking for a portable system. 

ANWIDA Soft’s Stereoid Light stereo enhancer is FREE for a limited time
Stereoid Light is the little brother of Stereoid, ANWIDA Soft’s premium stereo enhancer plugin – and it is free for a limited time. Although Stereoid Light is a streamlined plugin, it’s built on the same core principles as the premium version. It uses a subtle decorrelation algorithm, a microtonal detuner, and a calibrated delay to [...]
View post: ANWIDA Soft’s Stereoid Light stereo enhancer is FREE for a limited time

deadmau5 is selling signed synths, studio gear – and giving away a space-themed mau5head – through ReverbIf you’ve ever watched a deadmau5 studio tour and thought “I need whatever strange machine is blinking behind him”, your chance may have finally arrived.
Reverb has announced the upcoming launch of the Official deadmau5 Reverb Shop, and it’s bringing a little bit of everything from the deadmau5 universe with it. The online storefront will be packed with signed synths, studio gear, rare memorabilia and assorted oddities pulled directly from Joel Zimmerman’s personal archive.
The launch also follows Reverb’s recent tour of Zimmerman’s famously overstuffed Toronto-area studio, where the producer revealed his collection of rare synths, sprawling modular rigs and enough blinking LEDs to power a small city. Now, parts of that world are officially going up for sale.

READ MORE: Take a look at the Lego prototype of Ableton Push: “It was playful and not permanent, that’s what allowed us to go through many iterations”

Alongside signed production gear such as a Korg microKORG, Akai MPC Key 37 and Moog Labyrinth, the shop also includes deadmau5 x Telegrapher Fox speakers, merch, and posters featuring the late Professor Meowingtons.
Among the more unusual items is a fully functional one-to-one pixel aspect ratio “Mini Cube” display model based on the QB3 visual design Zimmerman reportedly used at home while developing visuals for his live show.
And because this is deadmau5, there’s also a giant helmet involved.
Fans who sign up ahead of the shop launch can enter to win the one-of-a-kind “Space mau5head” helmet – a space-themed version of the iconic headpiece previously used in a Las Vegas installation.
Beyond the gear itself, part of the proceeds from the shop will go towards Toronto Cat Rescue, a volunteer-run no-kill animal rescue organisation based in Zimmerman’s hometown.

Sign up now at Reverb.
The post deadmau5 is selling signed synths, studio gear – and giving away a space-themed mau5head – through Reverb appeared first on MusicTech.

Arturia Memory V turns the rare vintage Memorymoog into a modern synth€149 / $149, arturia.com
Many consider the Memorymoog to be a polyphonic version of the ever-popular Minimoog, and while purists may point to the Memorymoog’s Curtis oscillator chips as being inferior to the Minimoog’s discrete oscillators, the two classics certainly have a lot in common: Three oscillators, the third able to flip between tone generation and LFO duties, the classic Moog ladder filter built from discrete circuitry, and even the general layout follows the same pattern.

READ MORE: Arturia Pigments 7 review: “Almost a no-brainer at $199”

The closest most of us will ever get to this super-rare beast is a digital model. Cherry’s Memorymode already scratches that itch, but now Arturia, which knows a thing-or-two about synth modelling, has joined the fun with the new Memory V. This is no slavish copy, though. Let’s take a look.

A tidier control panel
Although capturing the aesthetics and general appearance of the Memorymoog, Arturia has woven changes into Memory V’s control panel. Immediately apparent is the reduction in the number of buttons, the original having used these extensively to help with its new-fangled patch storage and recall feature.
Gone too are some of the quirkier labels printed below the controls (‘Unconditional Contour’, anyone?). And of course, given a plugin’s near-limitless patch storage, the Memorymoog’s name-defining feature – a calculator-like panel of buttons and LED displays used for patch management – has been replaced by a newly minted Unison button and Detune dial, alongside a handy oscilloscope. Touted as being context-aware, this oscilloscope switches what it shows depending on which control you’re working with. However, it can show only four sources (Main Mix, Oscillator 3, LFO, and Voice Modulation signals). I find the context-aware switching more hindrance than help.
Original presets on the Memory V. Image: Press
Does Memory V sound authentic?
Visual modifications aside, Memory V’s modelled innards are a close match to the vintage hardware, so-much-so that the synth comes with the original’s entire preset collection… all 100 of them! Sadly, I don’t have a Memorymoog kicking around my studio so can’t make a direct comparison, but the sound matches up well to the many recordings and videos that are out there. Of course, no two Memorymoogs would sound exactly the same anyway!
I’m old enough to remember the early eighties, and listening to those presets is like being transported back to that time when sounds like this were interesting and novel, but my modern ears don’t find these sounds so appealing. Yes, they’re rich and fat and cutting and creamy, and all the other things we expect from a Moog, but they’re authentic to the point of sounding dowdy and old fashioned.
Thankfully, and true to form, Arturia hasn’t stopped at recreating the original instrument, retrofitting Memory V with modern features that give the synth a thoroughly contemporary and exciting voice, all without sacrificing the unique, and sometimes quirky, qualities of the original. Some of these changes are relatively minor, such as the option to double the polyphony to 12 voices, the ability to switch the filter from the standard 24dB/octave slope to a gentler 12dB/octave, and optional bass compensation for the resonance control. But some have a far greater impact, adding entirely new synthesis tools to Memory V’s vintage core.
Envelope modulator on the Memory V. Image: Press
Memory V’s modern modulation
The first of these is the addition of three modulation slots, each able to load any of five modulators taken directly from Arturia’s flagship synth, Pigments.
Envelope provides a graphical ADSR envelope with variable curves between nodes, velocity sensitivity, and the ability to delay the attack phase by up to four seconds. The Function modulator creates a curve that can also operate as an envelope, or can be looped for a more LFO-like outcome. Curves can be intricately shaped by hand, and there’s a library of common shapes included for loading.
Random does exactly what it says, and is perfect for producing sample-and-hold effects and to apply unpredictability to synth parameters.
The last pair are essentially pattern sequencers. Voice Modulator provides one such pattern per synth voice, stepping through the sequence with successive key presses. It’s ideal for mimicking the subtle voice circuit variations of analogue synths. Finally, Mod Sequencer creates repeating patterns with which to modulate parameters.
There’re a number of real-time modulation sources too and, as with the continuous modulators, these are assigned via simple drag-and-drop. Mod wheel, keyboard tracking, key-on and key-off velocity, channel aftertouch and MPE Slide are all supported.
Additionally, there’s a set of four macro controllers. By default these use the same vague names across all presets – Brightness, Timbre, Time and Movement – but these can be changed on a per-patch basis, and you can of course use them to drive whatever parameters you like.
Function modulator on the Memory V. Image: Press
Other enhancements on Memory V
Unsurprisingly, Arturia has added a comprehensive effect section to Memory V. The four effect slots can operate in send or insert mode, and can choose from 18 effects, again taken directly from Pigments. There are reverbs, delays, a wide selection of filters, EQ, distortions, and modulation effects. The collection also includes a couple of effects modelled on classic hardware, namely Flanger BL-20 and Chorus JUN-6 (a Roland chorus on a Moog synth? What next, cats lying down with dogs..?).
Last, but by no means least, there’s the polyphonic and polyrhythmic Multi-Arp. This runs up to four simultaneous arpeggiator lines, each having its own note pattern, rhythmic pattern, gating, length and synchronisation. The novel interface breaks things down into three sections: Arp defines the note pattern (there are 30 to choose from), Rhythm the rhythmic pattern, and Note defines gate, velocity and note repeat.
Each section has its own visualisation and settings, two of which are intuitive and self-explanatory. The Arp visualisation, however, uses patterns drawn on a five-by-five grid of dots to give a loose visual representation of a note pattern. But it’s too loose, the visual pattern often bearing little resemblance to the note pattern. There’s also no means to program custom patterns, which is disappointing.
Thankfully, a more concrete real-time readout of the notes is shown along the bottom of the Multi-Arp panel and, if all else fails, individual arpeggio lines can be soloed and/or disabled so that you can focus on just the line(s) you’re interested in.
Despite my gripes, I really enjoy working with this arpeggiator. It just begs to be fiddled with, and the results of that fiddling are always fascinating, usually complex, and often inspirational. Polyrhythms are a doddle, you can dial in velocity and gate randomness, various arpeggio parameters can be modulated, and you can even force arpeggios to match a chosen key and scale.
Effects on the Memory V. Image: Press
Should I get Arturia Memory V?
Once again, Arturia has breathed new life into an old synth that few of us would otherwise get our mitts on. Memory V oozes classic synth sensibilities and delivers an authentic Moog-like sound – why, you can almost smell the heady aroma of dust being baked on hot circuitry!
Such raw authenticity may not excite contemporary ears (although synth wave producers will love it), but Arturia’s additions bring the synth bang up to date, and make Memory V a far more versatile and satisfying instrument than the original could ever hope to be.
Multi-Arp on the Memory V. Image: Press
Key Features

Plugin instrument for VST, AU and AAX hosts
100 original Memorymoog presets
200 all-new presets
3 oscillators blending square, saw and triangle waves
Option to double original 6-voice polyphony to 12-voice
Oscillator 2 to Oscillator 1 syncing
Unison mode with detune
Vintage dial for mimicking aging hardware
Model of original discrete Moog ladder filter
Optional 12dB/octave filter slope
Optional filter resonance bass compensation
Dedicated ADSR envelopes for amp and filter
4-channel Multi-Arp polyphonic arpeggiator
Effects stage with 4 processing slots
3 slots for hosting advanced Pigments modulators (Envelope,
Function, Random, Voice Modulator, Mod Sequencer)
MPE Slide support

The post Arturia Memory V turns the rare vintage Memorymoog into a modern synth appeared first on MusicTech.

Maniac Audio DarkQProDarkQPro — Flagship Parametric Equalizer. The flagship of the Maniac Audio EQ line — a no-compromise, modern parametric equalizer built for surgical precision and creative tone-shaping in equal measure. Up to 24 bands, dynamic EQ on every band, spectral dynamics, M/S processing, real-time analyzer, undo/redo, and over 30 factory presets. Band engine: Up to 24 fully independent bands — each with its own frequency, gain, Q, filter type, slope, and dynamic behavior. 7 filter shapes: Bell, Low Shelf, High Shelf, Low Cut, High Cut, Notch, Tilt Shelf. 5 slope options: 6, 12, 24, 48, 96 dB/oct (with up to 16-stage cascade for flat-top 96 dB/oct bells). Filter curve types: Digital, Butterworth, Linkwitz-Riley. Per-band Stereo Mode: Stereo / Left / Right / Mid / Side. Dynamic EQ on every band: Per-band threshold, attack (default 60 ms), release (default 200 ms), range. Upward, downward, and bidirectional compression modes. Auto Threshold for hands-free dynamic shaping. Custom sidechain frequency per band — detector listens at a different frequency than the filter. Spectral Dynamic mode — 32-band per-frequency dynamics, each frequency moves independently for transparent, surgical dynamic control. Spectral Target mode — visual frequency targeting (FabFilter-style). Phase modes: Zero Latency — minimum-latency RBJ biquad implementation. Natural — analog-matched Orfanidis prototype (musical phase response, oversampled internally). Read More

Rivian will deliver the first R2 SUVs on June 9The company has finally set a date for the first customer deliveries of what CEO RJ Scaringe has said is "maybe the most important thing we’ve launched to date."

Orca, Streamex roll out secondary trading infrastructure for tokenized securitiesAccredited investors can buy and sell the gold-backed GLDY token through permissioned liquidity pools operating on the Solana blockchain.

A Clock Inspired by Failed Cognitive Tests
One simple screening tool for cognitive impairment is the clock-drawing test (CDT): the patient is provided with a printed circle and asked to draw a clock face with the hands pointing to a certain time. Depending on how the clock is drawn, this could indicate a variety of different disorders, particularly dementia, with a particular deformity in the drawing sometimes pointing to a specific issue. These failed tests inspired [John Silvia] to create a clock with a unique, disordered face.
The numerals in this clock face are placed exclusively along the right half of the clock (in the test, this can be a sign of damage to the right parietal lobe, or of executive dysfunction caused by dementia), and out of order. The hour hand is controlled by a servo motor, and the minute hand is mounted on a separate, commercially-purchased clock mechanism on the left-hand side of the face.
The frame for the clock and the face are 3D-printed, and the servo motor is controlled by an ESP32-C3 with an RTC module. To minimize power draw, a MOSFET disconnects the servo motor from power except for the once-per-hour position update. Once per month, the ESP32 connects to Wi-Fi to synchronize to NTP time, otherwise remaining in a low-power state – even its indicator LEDs are disconnected to save power. These efforts paid off: when the servo isn’t active, it draws only about 160 µA, and a set of three AA NiMH cells lasts about a year.
Since the servo motor draws most of the power budget, it wouldn’t make much difference, but the ESP32’s co-processor can also be used for ultra-low-power projects. For a happier take on a drawing-related clock, check out one of these projects.

Korg USA’s Joe Castronovo Joins NAMM in Urging Congress to Lift Tariffs on Musical InstrumentsSEATED L-R Joe Castronovo, Jake Connolly. STANDING L-R: NY Representative Tom Souzzi, and Melissa Heche

Korg USA and NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) brought the music industry’s concerns straight to Washington this month, as tariffs on instruments and gear continue to strike a sour note with manufacturers, retailers, and educators alike.

On May 13, Joe Castronovo of Korg USA joined roughly 100 music industry professionals representing all 50 states for the 20th annual NAMM Advocacy D.C. Fly-In, a coordinated effort to meet directly with lawmakers and push for exemptions on tariffs affecting musical instruments, accessories, and essential components. Representing New York, Castronovo was part of a broader coalition making the case that these added costs ripple far beyond manufacturers.

“Each time we come back to Washington, it reinforces how important it is for our industry to speak with one unified voice,” Castronovo said. “These conversations matter—lawmakers are listening more closely, and there’s a growing understanding of how tariffs impact a highly global, specialized supply chain like ours.”

That supply chain, as industry leaders emphasized throughout the Fly-In, is anything but simple. Musical instruments often rely on internationally sourced materials and precision components, making them particularly vulnerable to shifting trade policies. But as Castronovo and his peers were quick to point out, the real impact lands closer to home.

“But the reality is, tariffs don’t just affect manufacturers—they directly impact small retailers, increase costs for customers, and make it harder for students and first-time players to access music,” he added. “That’s why it’s so important to be here: to connect policy decisions to real-world consequences and advocate for solutions that protect both our industry and access to music.”

The message from NAMM’s delegation was clear: tariff relief isn’t just about protecting business margins—it’s about preserving access. With music programs already navigating tight budgets, rising instrument costs could mean fewer opportunities for students to pick up an instrument in the first place.

For Castronovo, the Fly-In was as much about collaboration as it was about policy. “The NAMM DC Fly-In provided a critical platform to advocate for policies that protect and expand access to music education nationwide,” he said. “Engaging with policymakers alongside industry peers underscored the importance of sustained federal support and reinforced our shared responsibility to ensure music remains an essential part of every student’s education.”

That sense of shared responsibility carried through the entire event, which brought together manufacturers, retailers, and educators under one unified goal. “My experience at the NAMM DC Fly-In was both energizing and meaningful,” Castronovo noted. “Working alongside peers from across the music industry, we came together to champion music education and demonstrate, firsthand, our shared commitment to students and communities nationwide.”

While tariff debates rarely make headlines in the music world, their effects are increasingly hard to ignore. As NAMM continues its advocacy efforts, the hope is that lawmakers will begin to see instruments not just as imported goods—but as essential tools for creativity, education, and cultural growth.The post Korg USA’s Joe Castronovo Joins NAMM in Urging Congress to Lift Tariffs on Musical Instruments first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Julie Swidler, Sony Music’s EVP Business Affairs and General Counsel, to leave company after 18 yearsSwidler has held the role of EVP, Business Affairs and General Counsel at Sony Music, since 2008
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Watch Yaeji go from a sewing machine sample to a full track in Ableton Live
Watch DJ, producer, and vocalist Yaeji take a sample of her sewing machine and expand it into a full track in Ableton Live.

Get 80% off Universal Audio Studer A800 Tape Recorder at Plugin Boutique
Plugin Boutique is offering 80% off Universal Audio’s Studer A800 Tape Recorder plugin, bringing the price down to $39 until June 30th, 2026. Studer A800 Tape Recorder is Universal Audio’s software emulation of the Studer A800 multichannel tape machine. The original 2-inch tape recorder has been used on many well-known recordings, and UA modeled a [...]
View post: Get 80% off Universal Audio Studer A800 Tape Recorder at Plugin Boutique