Sigh. Another electronic music icon has died. Allen Strange died on Feb. 20. He somewhat literally wrote the book on analog synthesizers, back before we differentiated analog synths from digital ones because there weren’t any digital synths to speak of. His book, titled simply Electronic Music, one of the best references on both modular synthesizer programming and tape-based studio techniques, now changes hands for large sums of money. I first read it when I was about 15 and was reading everything about synthesizers that I could find. Later I was amused to discover that the binding on the copy in the university library was labeled “STRANGE ELECTRONIC MUSIC” with not quite enough space between his name and the title. I was lucky enough to find a copy for myself in a used book store some years later.
I never met him but was thrilled to pieces five or so years ago when he sent me a nice email after he purchased my CD. A copy of that message is still on my refrigerator.
There’s an obituary here.
