electrotilde

What is electrotilde? Beyond a seemingly random blending of two words that have nothing in common beyond their potential relationship in the quantum realm across the universe.

Founded by ALEXANDRE PERREAULT, out of the Eastern Townships region of Quebec, Canada, electrotilde started as an idea, just like any other projects without form. Now, for lack of wanting to continue in the 3rd person, let's have a normal conversation.

The Story

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I've always liked to tinker, since as far as I can remember in my youth, the one highlight was that I liked playing around with... well, everything. I remember sneaking around in my parent's basement to find old electronics and taking them apart, with no clue how to reassemble them (so I ended up leaving them destroyed). But now that I've grown and understood a little more about how my mind works, I think I wanted to understand how things worked.

This tinkering with electronics never really stopped, and over time I learned how things worked. My creative ideas have always kept growing, migrating to one project or the other, and now that life has settled a little for me (working at home, married - which I know is quite far from "settled") I have had time to think and... well... dream. Dreaming about what I want to do with my time and my life, at 34. I surely don't want to be bossed around until I retire and die. So why not launching my business revolving around a couple of my passions? Drawing, tinkering with electronics, programming, and audio engineering - merged to bring my ideas to life. So the project was born, to bridge the gap between these components.

I've had the chance to play with many modular synthesizer modules; VCOs, VCAs, Sequencers, etc. I liked mixing / matching modular synthesizers with the rest of non-modular gear I had accumulated over time, just for fun, like many people do on a regular basis (from signal generators, radios, vintage videogame equipment to electric pianos and synths, etc). What deeply fascinated me with modular synthesizers was how and why they interacted with each other, and that every module, every component had a specific purpose. This is the very foundation of modular synthesis - to choose a module (the tool) based on the desired vision (the work), or letting automatism take ahold and guide the patching from one module to the other.

Mechanics in modular synthesis is not driven by machine - the human component is required. There's a priceless reaction when a person first interacts with a VCO, hot with current or just a basic stable signal, the moment they turn the cutoff or resonance knobs on that module. Hearing change occur out of physical interaction with a device, seeing firsthand what "Cause & Effect" really is. For many, like myself, this is the very reason why part of them remain hooked to modular synthesizers in one form or the other - because they know that at arm's reach, at any moment, change - "Cause & Effect" - can occur again.

It's about signal path, and the nature of that signal. A quite logical and natural mechanism. Sequencers generating control voltage, feeding into Voltage-Controlled Oscillators to generate waveforms out of voltage levels - these could further be manipulated via Voltage Controlled Amplification (amplify / attenuate a signal - audio, typically - based on voltage levels), Quantizers (to align to 1v/oct musical constraints) or left unlocked and free for organic soundscapes, and even self-oscillation - and that's just a small array of possibilities in modular synthesis.

I've often dreamt of creating my own series of modular synthesizers, but no real plan or vision until recently.

I surely don't want to compare. If there's one thing I dread about the retail business, it's comparison. But if it is to be even considered, since we know comparison can be constructive if done right (versus self-pity and such), I would prefer to see comparison (or admiration) as an opportunity to make something better, unique, with an acute attention to quality and alignment with my own vision. To build carefully crafted modular synth units in limited batches, for members of the modular synth community - newcomers, collectors, artists and wigglers - alike.

Crafting sound, one component, one knob-turn at a time - that's what I want to do - this is the legacy I want to leave behind. And honestly, there's not much comparable to being the first to prototype and play with our own electronic creations - breathing life into inert electronics! With the dream coming to life, I am starting to feel fulfilled, not because this satisfaction is dependent on things, but I think it's because I am witnessing the tangible, physical reality of bringing an abstract, formless idea, to life, from conception to reality.

-AP

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