Here’s a brand new piece of microtonal music — “The Triumphal Procession of Nebuchadnezzar“:
I may make a few dozen more tiny edits — I usually do — but basically it’s ready for public consumption. The tuning is 26-note equal temperament (26EDO for you tuning geeks). I didn’t know much about Nebuchadnezzar when I thought of the title, I just knew I wanted a reference to a Babylonian king. Various things happen during the course of the procession, none of them reassuringly familiar. If you imagine teams of slaves carrying an enormous golden idol past the cheering crowds, you won’t be far wrong.
Jim Aikin's Oblong Blob 
Hello Jim!
I am an owner of a Ztar and a zboard from Starr Labs. I wondered if we could share zboard tips for use and specially, a software editor currently being developed.
I am a composer interested in macrotonality and relationships in geometry and music.
I see we are in related interests. I have been reading your articles for decades, and my father, your science fiction.
Regards from Australia,
Asher
I don’t know of a software editor, Asher. An editor would be nice. I’ve created two new maps for my Z-Board, editing one key at a time in the LCD. It’s not a speedy process. Other than that, I haven’t done much with the editing.
One of my new maps lays out a diatonic scale more or less horizontally in 19-tone. The other does the same (a bit more awkwardly) in 31-tone. I created these maps because the default map (+1 moving to the right, +5 moving up) turns a scale into a checkerboard pattern. It’s not much different from playing a scale on a guitar, but even so, it requires a different way of thinking about musical patterns than a conventional piano keyboard, which is linear.
I need to spend more time with the Z-Board developing my finger technique. The only thing I’m sure of is that a rigid, definite touch is helpful, for various reasons. Playing the piano is more fluid, because you can hold a key down with almost no pressure.
Who Else owns a z-board. I’d love to see a video of the performance. I am a ztarist with a z6 and baby z
Hi Jim!
I am beta testing editors for Mac.
If you send a line to Harvey Starr he most likely will put you in touch with Mike, the programmer. The editor is quite advanced in functionality, once it works well, it would be a breeze to do tunings and chordings.
I am more interested in intervals larger than the standard semitone. The polyphonic aftertouch is very good if calibrated with rhe synth properly… The double triggering is an issue also fixable on the threshold settings.
I put this instrument in par with the luxurius Vax 77, that I also own. Once I get great working maps, I will send them to you if you are interested.
Harvey and Mike may be very interested in your output tuning files, as it serves as a comparison to debug the editor sysex output.
Cheers
Asher
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