Episode 579 – An Inside Look At Modular Synthesis With Chris Meyer

My guest this week is modular synthesizer maven Chris Meyer, who has done important engineering work at Sequential Circuits, Digidesign, Marion Systems with the legendary Tom Oberheim, and Roland R&D U.S., where he was chief engineer.

Along the way he created Vector Synthesis and worked on the Sequential Prophet 2000, Prophet VS, and Studio 440; Digidesign’s Q-Sheet; and the Roland DM-80.

During that time he also served as Technical Chairman of the MIDI Manufacturer’s Association, creating many additions to the MIDI specification, for which he received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2025.

Chris has also taught synthesis at UCLA Extension, wrote numerous articles for Music Technology and a column for Keyboard Magazine, and most recently co-authored the book Patch & Tweak [https://www.patchandtweak.com] with Kim Bjørn.

Today he runs the website, Facebook page, and YouTube channel LEARNING MODULAR, where he teaches others how to master modular synthesis.

During the interview we talked about the evolution of modular synthesis, transitioning to motion graphics and back into creating music, navigating the challenges of studio design, the future of spatial audio, and much more.

I spoke with Chris from his studio in New Mexico.

You can listen to it via Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Mixcloud, Spotify, Deezer, TuneIn Radio, or RadioPublic.

Also, a video version of this podcast is now available on YouTube as well.

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Additional Resources:

Learn more about Chris and module synthesis at: https://learningmodular.com and https://aliaszone.com/