Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith | |
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Background information | |
Born | 1987 Pacific Northwest, United States |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) |
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Instruments |
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Labels | Western Vinyl, Ghostly International |
Website | kaitlynaureliasmith |
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith is an American composer, performer and producer, originally from the Pacific Northwest [1] and currently based in Los Angeles. [2] Her work prominently employs Buchla modular synthesizers. She received acclaim for her albums Ears (2016) and The Kid (2017). She has collaborated with Suzanne Ciani and Emile Mosseri.
Smith grew up and was home-educated on Orcas Island, Northwestern Washington. [3] She left the island to study composition and sound engineering at Berklee College of Music in Boston, before returning to the island after her graduation. Smith performed in the indie folk duo Ever Isles while still at Berklee. [4]
It was after returning home that Smith discovered synthesizers, when a neighbor who shared her interest in Terry Riley introduced her to the Buchla 100 Synthesizer. [5] Having originally intended to use her voice as her primary instrument, [4] and then moving to classical guitar and piano, Smith switched to the use of synthesizer after being lent and experimenting with the Buchla 100 for a year, [3] explaining, "I got so distracted and enamored with the process of making sounds with [the Buchla's] that I abandoned the next Ever Isles album." [4] She also frequently uses the Buchla Music Easel. [6]
Smith contributed sound design work to the music video for Panda Bear's "Boys Latin" in 2014. [7] In 2015, she signed to independent record label Western Vinyl and released her first official album, Euclid. In 2016, she received acclaim for her 2016 album Ears and collaborated with synthesizer-based composer Suzanne Ciani on a RVNG Intl. release entitled Sunergy. Her album, The Mosaic of Transformation , was released in May 2020. [8]
Smith's music makes prominent use of Buchla synthesizers, specifically the Buchla 100 and Musical Easel. She stated that "there’s a lot of room for happy accidents with a Buchla synthesizer because it’s not very predictable. If you turn on a light in the room that you’re working in or if the grounding isn’t properly grounded or if you plug in something else, all of a sudden something will change. That gives me this feeling of working with a life, and that there is a biofeedback, more so than a predictable synthesizer." [9] She has stated that "I try and blend in as many different tones / timbres as possible […] I like to imagine what that sound would feel like if I were to touch it and vice versa." [10]
Year | Title |
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2015 | Bayonne - Spectrolite (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Remix) [15] |
2015 | Maestro - Darlin' Celsa (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Remix) |
2016 | Max Richter - Dream 3 (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Remix) |
2016 | The Field - Reflecting Lights (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Mix) [16] |
2016 | The Invisible - Love Me Again feat. Anna Calvi (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Mix) [17] |
2016 | D.D Dumbo - Walrus (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Mix) [18] |
2017 | Perfume Genius - Wreath (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Remix) |
2022 | King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Catching Smoke (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Remix) [19] Danny Elfman - In Time (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Remix) 2022-8-10 |
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Buchla Electronic Musical Instruments (BEMI) was a manufacturer of synthesizers and unique MIDI controllers. The origins of the company could be found in Buchla & Associates, created in 1963 by synthesizer pioneer Don Buchla of Berkeley, California. In 2012 the original company led by Don Buchla was acquired by a group of Australian investors trading as Audio Supermarket Pty. Ltd. The company was renamed Buchla Electronic Musical Instruments as part of the acquisition. In 2018 the assets of BEMI were acquired by a new entity, Buchla U.S.A., and the company continues under new ownership.
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