kantos Audio Controlled Synthesizer from Antares

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Antares Audio Technologies has announced the release of kantos 1.0 for MAS, VST (Mac) and RTAS (Mac).

kantos 1.0 is a software-based synthesizer that, unlike conventional MIDI synthesizers, is controlled by any pitched monophonic audio (such as voice or a musical instrument). kantos 1.0 analyzes incoming audio and instantaneously extracts pitch, dynamics, harmonic content and formant characteristics. This information is then used to control the kantos 1.0 sound engine in ways never before possible with a conventional MIDI synth. When driven by a sung vocal line, kantos 1.0's harmonic resynthesis capabilities are capable of imposing both the melodic gestures and the actual lyrics onto the synthesized sound.

kantos 1.0 provides a combination of traditional synthesizer functions and new functions unique to audio control. They include:

• 2 Wavetable Oscillators with pitch constraint and quantization control
• Noise Source
• 3 Resonant Multimode Filters
• 2 Chorus Generators
• Timbral Articulator
• 2 Envelope Generators
• 2 LFOs
• Modulation Matrix
• Gate Generator
• Noise Gate
• Delay Line
• A Cool UI (well, it's not actually part of the engine, but it gets you in the mood)

Unique to kantos 1.0 is its Articulator module that takes the harmonic content and formant information from the input signal and dynamically applies it to the synthesized signal. It can reproduce either the input signal's formant and harmonic characteristics with uncanny accuracy or, through the use of its formant offset and resonance controls, warp them into a variety of mutant forms. kantos 1.0's oscillators ship with a variety of traditional - and not so traditional - wavetables. Additional wavetables, will be made available for download from the Antares web site, while custom wavetables can be created with pretty much any audio or sample editor.

"kantos 1.0, for the first time, allows synthesists and sound designers to create unique, evocative timbres that reflect the incredible expressive power of the human voice." said Marco Alpert, Antares VP of Marketing. "Whether musicians are looking for an alternative to conventional controllers, or are looking to produce electronic music with a level of dynamic expression that's simply not otherwise possible, kantos 1.0 will, quite literally, change the way they make music."

kantos 1.0 is available now in MAS, VST (Mac) and RTAS (Mac) formats at a U.S. MSRP of $299.00. DirectX, VST (PC) and RTAS (PC) versions will be available in late Summer, 2002.

More kantos 1.0 information and fully functional limited time demo versions are available from the Antares web site.

For more information, visit their web site at www.antarestech.com.