The Csound Book: Perspectives in Software Synthesis, Sound Design, Signal Processing, and Programming [Paperback]

This is the site that the author, Dr. Richard Boulanger maintains for people looking to get started with Csound. It is also the place most of the really good CSound software developers and users hang out.

If you have explored synthesis on another platform, then this is the book for you. If you have explored CSound a bit, and want depth then this is the book for you.

Dr. B has compiled resources and brings together the best of the CSound community in a compilation that is really a collection of CSound essays. Many of the articles are regretably brief. A few sections are missing all together. (Most notably the midi section is not included, and is still not written)

But what is written in this book is the best information you can get anywhere on the subject of computer synthesis in ANY LANGUAGE. I need to clarify that a bit though, two new projects are on the way which will change that. Csound 5 is in developement, and MPEG 4 also has a world class sound engine. But in both cases these new technologies are based on the stuff in this book. Yes, that is right, MPEG 4 has a csound like engine in it.

Csound is first rate. Nothing beats it. I have done the plugin thing, and downloaded or bought just about everything in synthesis available from anywhere. Some tools can offer you nice canned sounds, or pretty patch chords and knobs. But for pure raw power, flexability and creative oomph nothing can equal CSound. This book will take you from the world of patch chords and knobs into the world of programming. That is where the power is baby, in programming. Where anything can plug into anything. All you need are some programming chops and any music or noise you can dream up is at your finger tips.

If it happens in any synth anywhere in the world, then eventually it will happen in CSound. And mostly it already does. And what is more, in CSound you can combine ANY methods of synthesis you want AT THE SAME TIME. No other synth can do that. Period.

BTW the CSound software is free. That is right, free on the PC, free in Linux, and free on the mac. So buy the book, download the software, and meet everyone who wrote the book, and most everyone who writes anything to do with the CSound software on the CSounds web site.

If that is not enough to convince you, consider this: Most of the sound designers in Hollywood use CSound. I know more than a few of them. The guy who invented Trance music, BH is a CSounder. Everyone in his studio owns a copy of this book! I could keep name dropping for a long while, but you get it. CSound is one of the best kept open secrets in the world.

As a composition tool, there is nothing quite as extensive or powerful as Csound, which is why there is an equally extensive learning curve for its students. I feel that this book is probably better suited as a text for a college course rather than a stand-alone guide for DIYers. But in its defense, I belong to the latter category and have fared pretty well in learning the language.

While I must criticize Mr. Boulanger for not giving thorough enough explanation to some critical topics in his book, overall--this is by and far the best resource for anyone attempting Csound. You will find the contents of the included CD-Roms to be an immense supplement to the book's chapters.

If you are getting started in electronic or computer music and have little background in the field, this book may ultimately prove frustrating. Chapter one provides a perfect example. It opens with an .orc file and uses terms like control rate and sampling rate, but it isn't until much later that we find out what these things mean. Much of the first section is difficult to work through because of this approach. I think that the book would benefit from a rewrite, and I mean truly rewriting section one from scratch so the foundation is Basics of Synthesis. A section written like a "Dummies" book would be helpful for beginners like me, while the Csound mavens could simply flip to chapter X,Y, or Z and read at their level. Otherwise, the author should dispense with the basics and focus on making this a book for those already familiar with Csound. Obviously, the author/editor put tremendous effort into this book, so it seems a pity that it is kind of poorly organized. Finally, The Csound Book would benefit from careful spell checking (the author refers to GEN21 creating "Poison" distributions).

After having spent a year with the Csound book, I can make some recommendations for someone wanting to start electronic composition. You must read Curtis Roads's Computer Music Tutorial, probably the best electronic music book written. Don't let the dry title fool you, it is great reading. It will teach you the fundamentals and will serve as a reference if you decide to tackle Csound. Or, consider using Max/MSP instead of Csound. It isn't free, but it does have a graphical interface, yet it does not sacrifice flexibility. And you can now use Csound as a sort of "plug in" for Max/MSP. If you want to make popular music, Csound will probably only prove useful if your current software can't make a sound that you want.

As I said, Csound is a work in progress. A new book called "Virtual Sound" by Riccardo Bianchini and Alessandro Cipriani, reviewed in the Spring 2002 Computer Music Journal may be a better resource.