【コラム】 BuchlaとSerge：電子音響のもうひとつの系譜

Column en History Synth Techno

25 Oct 2025

“Introduction — What is modular?”

Text: mmr

Theme: The spiritual history of West Coast modular synths.How Don Buchler and Serge Tocheny’s ideas have been carried over into today’s sound design

Early 1970s, America’s West Coast. There were people who left their university’s electronic music studio and tried to take a device for designing sound back into their personal creative spaces. Their names are Don Buchla and Serge Tcherepnin.

Buchla and Serge are often talked about as the so-called “progenitors of modular synths,” but they actually stand out in that they sought to create philosophical tools rather than commercial instruments. Their design philosophy contained an “anti-normative” sonic perspective that is common to today’s Eurorack, Max/MSP, and even AI-based generated music.

1. Don Buchler: Poetics of Electronic Sound

1-1. From San Francisco Tape Music Center

At San Francisco’s Tape Music Center in the early 1960s, artists like Morton Subotnick and Pauline Oliveros were exploring new relationships between experimental music and technology. What they were looking for was ``an instrument that was not an extension of the piano or guitar.’’

The Buchla Series 100 (1963–1966) appeared in response to Subotnick’s request. Traditional musical operability was intentionally avoided, such as the acoustic circuit configuration using knobs and patch cables, and the touch plate keyboard (actually a voltage input device without a scale).

“No black and white keys.” — Don Buchla

1-2. Buchla’s philosophy: Performative Electronics

Buchla designed musical instruments as ``an ecosystem in which control and generation coexist.’’ Sound does not come directly from the performer’s body, but is generated by the abstract behavior of voltage changes. Therefore, the performance becomes an improvisational “act” and the sound is fluid.

flowchart LR subgraph Buchla_System["Buchla System 100/200 Conceptual Structure"] direction LR CV["Voltage Source
(Control voltage)"] --> MOD["Modulation Bus
(Modulation path)"] MOD --> OSC["Complex Oscillator
"] OSC --> LPG["Low Pass Gate
(tone/volume linked)"] LPG --> OUT["Audio Out"] end style Buchla_System fill:#f0f8ff,stroke:#003366,stroke-width:1px;

This structure symbolizes Buchla’s worldview of “catalyzing sound rather than manipulating it.” The Low Pass Gate (an element that controls both volume and timbre) later became a standard philosophical device in Eurorack culture.

2. Serge Tochenin: democratized module

2-1. Birth of “The People’s Synthesizer”

In the late 1970s, young musician Serge Tochenin was impressed by Don Buchla’s design philosophy, and while studying electronic music at UCLA, he envisioned a ``Buchla-like device that more people could have access to.’’ That is Serge Modular Music System (1974–).

While Buchler created custom machines for artists, Serge is rooted in DIY culture and the university community, with an ethos of ``open up the schematics so anyone can build them’’. This open source attitude was a conceptual revolution that preceded the later spread of Eurorack.

2-2. Serge’s philosophy: Patch Programmability

Serge’s fundamental philosophy is “One module, many functions”. In other words, the idea is that a single circuit can have an infinite number of operating modes depending on how it is connected. For example, the Dual Universal Slope Generator (commonly known as “DSG”)

envelope -LFO
trigger delay
clock divider
Chaos module The functionality changes depending on the patch configuration.

This philosophy continues directly into today’s Max/MSP patching, Reaktor Blocks, and Eurorack’s Make Noise “Maths.”

3. Comparison of Buchla and Serge: structure and ideology

Element	Buchla	Serge
Starting point	Experimental instruments for artists	Education and DIY culture
Operational philosophy	Performative (sound as action)	Functional (sound as structure)
Functional design	Dedicated module configuration	Combining general-purpose modules
Control	Abstract voltage operation	Concrete signal manipulation
Acoustic trends	Organic, dynamic, smooth	Linear, clear, fast response
Cultural influences	Art sound, installation	Noise, techno, DIY electronic music

4. Technology chronology

Year	Events	Notes
1963	Buchla Series 100 development begins	First modular commissioned by Subotnick
1966	Buchla Music Easel prototype debut	The founder of portable synths
1974	Serge Modular Announcement	“People’s Synthesizer” Slogan
1980	Introducing Serge Dual Slope Generator	Completed patch philosophy
1990s	Serge Re-evaluation Period	Analog Revival and Relapse
2004	Eurorack boom begins	Inherited by Doepfer, Make Noise, etc.
2020s	Buchla USA / Serge reprint	Recontextualization of original thought

5. Impact on modular culture

Buchler and Sarge’s philosophy redefined sound itself as a “social act.” In other words, he shifted his focus from the instrument'' to theenvironment’’ and ``interface.’’

The modular “infinite combinations” of Eurorack are not simply the freedom of parts, but the very reconfiguration of meaning. Buchla’s physicality'' and Serge'sstructurality’’ have merged, and today’s electronic music is becoming more and more ``decentric.’’

timeline title Buchla / Serge: Evolution of Modular Thinking 1963 : Buchla Series 100 development 1969 : Buchla 200 series 1974 : Serge Modular initial version 1980 : Serge Dual Slope Generator 1990 : Buchla 400 / MIDI experiment 2004 : Eurorack boom 2020 : Buchla USA / Serge re-evaluation

6. Connecting to the Modern Age: Between Algorithms and the Body

The Buchla/Serge spirit is alive and well in Max/MSP, VCV Rack, and even AI-generated music tools. It is not just a “combination of modules,” but an artistic frame that connects time, space, the body, and probability.

Modular synths are not just “tools” for creating sounds; It is a medium that generates “events” that occur between sounds and people. Buchla and Serge’s design philosophy continues to be the germ of that media philosophy.