Metallic clockwork
Trigger Clang from a sparse React pattern and tune Model and Sound towards a bright metallic voice.
Why Clang exists
Tassman from Applied Acoustics Systems was my first real encounter with physical modelling. The idea that I could hear a virtual object being struck or resonating fascinated me. That stayed with me long after those first experiments. Later, the expressive percussion of Intellijel Designs’ Plonk caught my ear too. When I started Clang, I wanted to explore that fascination for myself: sounds that suggest metal, wood, tension and impact, with controls I could play directly. Clang takes its own route, but those instruments helped me discover what I enjoy about this kind of sound.
Inside Clang
Clang uses a compact physical-modelling approach in which a trigger excites a resonant virtual object. Model changes the broad behaviour of that object, while Sound moves through its internal character. Tune defines the main resonant pitch and Decay controls how long energy remains in the model. Noise adds a less tonal excitation component for rougher, more percussive attacks.
Motion, Body and Tune Variation introduce movement without requiring a large modulation patch. Their ranges are designed to keep the result playable while allowing repeated triggers to develop into a less static voice. Clang is therefore not a sample player. Each hit is generated from the current state of the model, so small parameter changes affect the attack, resonance and decay as one connected sound.
Signal flow
- Trigger input
- Excitation
- Resonant model
- Tone, decay and motion
- Percussion output
