Better known for building instruments, Moog celebrates the icons of electronic music in a new documentary series called GIANTS.
The synthesizer has infiltrated music across every genre, but there was a time — not so long ago — that it was on the frontier of new sonic possibility. Nowadays, when we interact with a synth, we stand on the shoulders of giants — and it’s those pioneers that Moog celebrates in its new series.
Few companies understand the legacy of analog synthesis like Moog and the mission of GIANTS is to preserve it. The first episode focuses on Herb Deutsch, the co-inventor of the Moog Modular Synthesizer.
The 24-minute documentary details how the seed for sonic curiosity was planted in Deutsch as a child, how he was inspired by futurist composers like Edgard Varese, and his especially poignant composition in response to a moment of unspeakable violence.
Critically, Herb Deutsch’s and Bob Moog’s collaboration was inspired by musical expression. As such, it was a historically significant meeting of the minds: Moog had the drive and electronic design expertise to create an entirely new sonic palette, while Deutsch was determined to frame the adventure within a musical context. “It was, in memory, beautiful. At the time, frightening,” Deutsch notes.
Watch the first instalment of GIANTS below:
