The Kaoss Pad is a sampler and audio effects processor launched by

Korg , founded as Keio Electronic Laboratories, is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instrument An electronic musical instrument or electrophone is a musical instrument that produces sound using electr ...

in 1999. It allows users to record and process audio and apply various effects using an X-Y

touchscreen A touchscreen (or touch screen) is a type of electronic visual display, display that can detect touch input from a user. It consists of both an input device (a touch panel) and an output device (a visual display). The touch panel is typically l ...

. It has been used by artists including

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...

Muse In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, the Muses (, ) were the Artistic inspiration, inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the poetry, lyric p ...

and

Brian Eno Brian Peter George Jean-Baptiste de la Salle Eno (, born 15 May 1948), also mononymously known as Eno, is an English musician, songwriter, record producer, visual artist, and activist. He is best known for his pioneering contributions to ambien ...

Features

The Kaoss Pad allows users to

sample Sample or samples may refer to: * Sample (graphics), an intersection of a color channel and a pixel * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of something * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample ...

and loop audio and apply

effects Effect may refer to: * A result or change of something ** List of effects ** Cause and effect, an idiom describing causality Pharmacy and pharmacology * Drug effect, a change resulting from the administration of a drug ** Therapeutic effect, ...

such as pitch-bending,

flange A flange is a protruded ridge, lip or rim (wheel), rim, either external or internal, that serves to increase shear strength, strength (as the flange of a steel beam (structure), beam such as an I-beam or a T-beam); for easy attachment/transfer o ...

distortion In signal processing, distortion is the alteration of the original shape (or other characteristic) of a signal. In communications and electronics it means the alteration of the waveform of an information-bearing signal, such as an audio signal ...

, and

delay Delay or DeLay may refer to: People * B. H. DeLay (1891–1923), American aviator and movie stunt pilot * Dorothy DeLay (1917–2002), American violin instructor * Florence Delay (born 1941), French academician and actor * Jan Delay, stage name ...

using a

. According to the ''

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unit ...

,'' while its effects technology was not new, the Kaoss Pad was distinguished by its intuitive design: "Anyone can pick one up and in a matter of seconds get the hang of it." The British producer and musician

, an early adopter of the Kaoss Pad, described it as "a way of taking sounds into the domain of muscular control" as opposed to working with computers: "It takes you into a completely different place, because when working with computers you normally don't use your muscles in that way."

Users

use a Kaoss Pad on performances of their 2000 song "

Everything In Its Right Place "Everything in Its Right Place" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, released as the opening track of their fourth studio album, ''Kid A'' (2000). It features synthesiser, digitally manipulated vocals and unusual time signatures. The ly ...

" to manipulate Thom Yorke's vocals into a "glitching, stuttering collage".

Matt Bellamy Matthew James Bellamy (born 9 June 1978) is an English singer, songwriter and producer. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and lyricist for the English rock band Muse. He is recognised for his eccentric stage persona, wide tenor vocal ...

, described by the ''Guardian'' as "undoubtedly the Kaoss rock star", uses touchscreen

MIDI controllers A MIDI controller is any hardware or software that generates and transmits Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) data to MIDI-enabled devices, typically to trigger sounds and control parameters of an electronic music performance. They mos ...

built into his guitars to control Kaoss Pads. Other users include Brian Eno, the singer

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. He became known as the frontman of the band Roxy Music and also launched a solo career. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established ...

and the beatboxer

Beardyman Darren Alexander Foreman (born 14 May 1982), better known as Beardyman, is an English musical producer, DJ, multivocalist, musician and comedian from London known for his beatboxer, beatboxing skills and use of live looping. Early life Darren ...

References

External links

Korg.com
{{Portal bar, Electronics, Music, border=yes Samplers (musical instrument) Grooveboxes

Features

Users

See also

References

External links