How To Contribute

This is an open Wiki! Anyone can contribute! Please do! (Registration required to help prevent spam)

Here are the main content page types:

Synth Article pages

A Synth Article page is a synth's 'main page'. The purpose of this page type is to make a 'readable' article. A Synth Article page should highlight the most interesting facts about the synth and its most notable users and songs. It should also have some YouTube (or similar) videos embedded to make it more interesting and immediate. A great example of this page type is Moog Minimoog.

To contribute a Synth Article page:

1. Check that a Synth Article page for that synth doesn't already exist: Synth List here
2. If there isn't yet an Synth Article page for that synth - create it! Use an existing Synth Article page as a template (eg: ARP Odyssey Article Page, and change the details appropriately.) Link to it from the main Synth List.
3. Fill in loads of great content!
   1. I'm currently using my Synth Evolution illustrations as they will give the site visual consistency. If I get time I'll set up a holding page for each synth with each illustration...if not, I'll add them later to newly created Synth Article pages.
   2. Add a brief synopsis of the synth; when it was made, it's basic specifications, etc. Nothing too in depth; we're not trying to compete with vintagesynth.com here!
   3. Embed YouTube clips to make the songs immediately accessible - link to the relevant part of the song too if you can. Add these songs to the song list page as well so the reference is available.
   4. Good songs to include on this page are interesting uses of the synth in question. Interesting could mean:
      1. The first recorded use of a synth
      2. A particularly famous song or solo
      3. A particularly virtuosic example of playing
      4. A particularly distinctive or prominent use of that synth.
   5. Up to 10 is probably ok; any more than that will get unwieldy.
   6. (And this is definitely not the place for self-promotion of your unsigned tracks either! ;-)

I think the point of this page is not be an exhaustive list (that's what the Synth Songs List Pages are for!); it's to be a more accessible read noting some of the more interesting aspects of the synth and some archetypal examples.

Synth Songs List pages

The Synth Songs List page is the main list of all the songs featuring a particular synth. These pages are just basic tables of all the songs. (Artist / Song / Reference / Media URL). If a table gets too long, consider one table per letter of the alphabet. Eg: as on the Moog Minimoog Song List page. (If a page gets too long, as it might one day, then consider a letter per page...?)

To contribute Songs and the Synths they feature:

1. Find the 'Song List' page for that synth (Synth List here)
2. Check that the song that you want to contribute isn't already listed
   1. Songs should generally satisfy the notability threshold used by Wikipedia - signed or otherwise established artists only, please. We don't need 10 million unsigned tracks on here...
3. Add the song to the table in its correctly alphabetised place (surnames first, or first letter if a band or single name ('The' is listed under 'T')
4. If there isn't yet a Synth Song List page for that synth - create it! Use an existing Song List page as a template (eg: ARP Odyssey Song List) and change the details appropriately. Link to if from the main Synth list on the Synth List.
5. Vital: Song entries will be deleted if they do not contain a REFERENCE. The whole point of this project is to list verified usages, not to repeat 'internet common knowledge'. If you can't find a linked reference or a trusted book or magazine source, don't enter it (no matter how 'sure' you are).
6. Acceptable References:
   1. Sleeve notes (often available at Discogs.com)
   2. Quotes from interviews with artists, musicians, sound engineers, producers, etc, in reputable journals and books* (*where primary sources are quoted). Magazine articles from the golden era of synths (1970s-80s) are increasingly available as scanned and linkable articles at Muzines.co.uk. These quotes should be direct citations of their own use of these synths, not quotes where they say, 'Oh I heard that Prince used a Behringer TB-3 on Purple Rain'. That is not a reference. This is a reference: Gary Numan, 'I flipping love the Polymoog and used it on my great song Cars for the high string part.' (this is not a real quote, just an example of the sort of claim that's acceptable!)
   3. Videos or photographs. Needs to be online so it can be linked to!
   4. Ads (up to a point - paid promotion doesn't guarantee usage on a song/album). Again needs to be online so it can be linked to, eg: RetroSynthAds is a great resource.
   5. Verified entries on here by the artists themselves. I haven't quite worked out how t verify an artist who may wish to do this. I think they'd have to set up an Artist page here, and link to it from the song page as the 'Reference'. Then I shall patrol such 'Artist Reference' pages and confirm the author of that page is who they say they are. (If anyone knows a better way of doing this, do let me know!
7. There is a column for Media Link - please add a link to the song on YouTube / Bandcamp etc. It's not always possible, but should be done if it can be.

Pro-tips for researching and references:

- Discogs - search here for a synth; it will usually produce results; remember to click a 'version' as that will reveal the actual sleeve notes that show the synth you've searched for.

- Muzines - an amazing resource of scanned music technology magazines such as: Sound On Sound, Music Technology, Electronics & Music Maker, and many more. Loads of artist/musician/producer interviews to trawl through there!

- Retro Synth Ads - sometimes artists endorse some synths; could be a clue to follow up

- YouTube - you can't beat a reference that is a video of a keyboard player actually playing that synth! (Bearing in mind that miming in ultra-produced pop videos or Top Of The Pops may not be reliable as a reference; playing live on Old Grey Whistle definitely is!)

Notable Artists

Some artists are particularly associated with one or more synths; they deserve a page to discuss that relationship. Suitable subjects could be: Wendy Carlos (Moog Modular, Crumar GDS), Vangelis (Yamaha CS-80), Gary Numan (Moog Minimoog, Polymoog), Billy Currie (ARP Odyssey). You get the idea. These pages should contain some good songs of theirs illustrating the point, and some great quotes to support the argument. Eg: Gary Numan.