String synthesizer

The Solina String Ensemble, an early string synthesizer

String synthesizers are specialized polyphonic synthesizers designed specifically to make sounds similar to that of a string orchestra. Dedicated string synthesizers occupied a specific musical instrument niche between electronic organs and general-purpose synthesizers in the 1970s and early 1980s, until advances in digital signal processing technology allowed the production of inexpensive general-purpose polyphonic synthesizers and samplers which made the existence of a separate type of instrument unnecessary.^[1]

The development of the string synthesizer was originally motivated by the need for a cheaper alternative to the Mellotron, which was itself a cheaper alternative to human string ensembles.^[2] The availability of string synthesizers was influential in adding string orchestration to popular music that would not otherwise be able to afford the use of a human string ensemble, and their characteristic sound, which was almost, but not quite, like that of a real string ensemble, was one of the distinguishing sounds of the era.

To keep costs down, string synthesizers typically used a frequency divider architecture similar to that of electronic organs, with the addition of specialized in-built vibrato and chorus effects to mimic the ensemble effect of multiple string instruments playing at once. Classic string synthesizers included the Freeman String Symphonizer, Eminent 310,^[3] Elka Rhapsody, Roland RS-202, ARP String Ensemble,^[1] and Moog Opus 3.

See also

• Mellotron, an analog tape-based sampler also used to imitate string ensembles

References

1. Laughton, Jay (21 March 2016). "A Brief History of String Synths". reverb.com. Retrieved 2016-09-27.
2. Reid, Gordon (February 2007). "Ken Freeman & The Birth Of String Synthesis". Sound On Sound. Retrieved 2016-09-27.
3. Reid, Gordon (May 2007). "Eminent 310 String Synthesizer". Sound On Sound. Retrieved 2016-09-27.