The coronavirus pandemic has forced workplaces, schools and other significant public gatherings to shut down, with social distancing and self-isolation being encouraged. In light of these frightening times, Moog and Korg are offering their synthesizer apps for free — to help those staying at home avoid a Jack Nicholson in The Shining kind of breakdown.
Moog is offering up it’s Minimoog Model D for iOS. “A gift to spread positivity, creativity, and expressivity,” the company shared in a statement. “A moment to slow down, appreciate our innate strength, and experience the uplifting power of sound. A chance to share the way we hear the world around us…and if it moves you, express yourself.”
Whilst Korg are offering up their Kaossilator app for IOS or Android for free for a limited time — the Android version will be free until May 20, whilst the IOS app is free until the end of March. “Schools, workplaces, and meetings worldwide have been requested to close by their respective governments and so many people are studying and working from home,” shares Korg. “To help you with a musical way to occupy your mind we have decided to make the Kaossilator app for iOS and Android free of charge for a limited time.”
It’s a really lovely incentive in a time that feels so overwhelming, daunting, and sometimes hopeless. As Rosanne Cash pointed out on Twitter, when Shakespeare was quarantined because of the plague, he wrote King Lear. Whilst I probably will be using this time to re-watch Twin Peaks for the fourth time and not become the next Aphex Twin, I’m excited to see the cultural impact that savvy, bored, iPad-wielding teens have on music when this is all over.
