Native Instruments
| Native Instruments
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|---|---|
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| legal form | GmbH |
| founding | May 3, 1996 |
| Seat |
Berlin (headquarters), Los Angeles , Tokyo , London , Paris , Shenzhen |
| management | Daniel Haver ( CEO ) |
| Number of employees | 400 |
| Branch | Computer hardware and software |
| Website | www.native-instruments.de |
Native Instruments is a medium-sized company founded in Berlin in 1996 that manufactures products for computer-based music production, especially software instruments . NI focuses on electronic music and DJing . Some products, such as the true-to-life software modeling of the Hammond organ , set standards in international music production.
History and meaning
The company goes back to the idea of the engineer and musician Stephan Schmitt. In 1994, on the one hand, Schmitt felt that he was limited by the weight and capabilities of synthesizers ; on the other hand, he saw personal computers become so powerful that they could take on the arithmetic work of a hardwired synthesizer and be much more flexible. Together with his friend, the programmer Volker Hinz, Schmitt developed the first modular synthesizer based on software in his apartment in Kreuzberg and called it the generator . Generator ran on Pentium computers that were common at the time under the Windows operating system and impressed the audience at the international Musikmesse Frankfurt 1996 with its ability to calculate and reproduce sounds in real time , i.e. without noticeable delay. Inspired by the response from the trade fair visitors, Native Instruments was created with a team of four people.
Schmitt later developed reactor , a complex and versatile software instrument, from the generator concept . Reaktor combines the functions of synthesizers, samplers , sequencers and effects devices and is considered an industry standard for the free development of sounds.
In 2001, Native Instruments engineer Michael Kurz took on the Hammond B3 organ with a rotating Leslie speaker set . He analyzed the electromechanics of the instrument, used microphones and measuring technology and modeled the extremely heavy instrument on the computer. The software version released in 2002 under the name B4 does not use any sound samples , but is based exclusively on mathematical algorithms . Kurz set an example for the industry that you can emulate a complex electrical instrument in software without samples and with very lean programming. Kurz's similar merits include the mathematical variants of synthesizers ( Yamaha DX7 ) and effects devices (guitar racks and amplifiers such as Marshall ).
At the same time, the physicist Friedemann Becker, who has been employed at NI since 2000, designed software that enabled the synchronized cross-fading of two music tracks at different speeds. This resulted in Traktor , another industry standard, namely a software tool for DJs who were able to mix music live directly on the notebook computer as if they were working with vinyl decks. The company has now ported this technology to smartphones and tablet computers as an app .
The American musician Brian Clevinger, who lives in France, programmed a software synthesizer with three oscillators in the late 1990s and named it Absynth . Native Instruments has been marketing this software since 2001.
The company now offers a wide range of tools for digital audio production, including both software and hardware products. These include synthesizers (e.g. FM8, Massive, Pro-53, Absynth ), samplers (Kontakt, Battery) and effects processors (Vokator, Spectral Delay). In addition, a professional DJ program (Traktor) has been offered since 2001 , as well as a software-based guitar amplifier emulation (Guitar Rig). With Kore , Native Instruments has also developed a host system in which software instruments and effects can be managed. Since 2006, Native Instruments has also been offering an audio interface as the first pure hardware product (Audio Kontrol 1) and, since 2009, a groove controller (machine) . Native Instruments also offers various MIDI controllers for controlling DJ software. In 2014, Native Instruments finally expanded its software library by introducing suitable hardware in the form of MIDI keyboards (Kontrol S ##) . In addition, many modern sample libraries use NI products such as KOMPAKT, INTAKT or the Kontakt Player to make some very complex programming of the sounds directly accessible to users.
The company is headquartered in Berlin and has offices in Los Angeles , Paris, London, Shenzhen, Montreal and Tokyo .
Products (selection)
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Software instruments and effects:
- Absinthe 5
- Battery 4 , a drum sampling tool
- FM8 , a software synthesizer based on the Yamaha DX7 classic with frequency modulation
- Contact 6 , a sampler. These include Alicia's Keys (the software replica of Alicia Keys ' Yamaha grand piano), various wind instruments and strings such as Session Strings , drums such as the Abbey Road Drums and Studio Drummer , organs such as the Hammond emulation B4 and David Klavin's giant vertical piano The Giant .
- Massive , a universal software synthesizer
- Reactor with instruments included or available for purchase such as the monophonic synthesizer Monark or the simulation of plucked and wind instruments of the steam pipe
- Effects like The Mouth , The Finger and Flesh developed by Bristol DJ Tim Exile
- Emulations of guitar amplifiers like Guitar Rig 5
- Traktor , a classic in DJ software, also for iPad and iPhone
- Audio hardware:
In addition to sound cards such as the Komplete Audio 6 that can be connected externally to the notebook, there are DJ controllers such as the Traktor Kontrol series or pad controllers such as Maschine in combination with a software-based sampler / sequencer for creating and playing beats and grooves live (also as an app for iPhone ).
Former products:
- Among other things, Bandstand , the keyboard instruments integrated into the vintage organs such as the electric piano , as well as compact and intact . The vocator is one of the effects that are no longer sold .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ https://www.native-instruments.com/de/company/company-profile/
- ↑ Harro Albrecht: Orchester aus der Tose , Die Zeit January 10, 2002
- ↑ "Tractor" was the word created by Michael Kurz during a brainstorming session in 2000.
- ↑ The first version of the software was called Traktor DJ Studio 1.0 and was released in early 2001.
- ↑ Opening of the Japanese branch in May 2013