To make more sense of it, let’s see how granulation already affects your production. However, understanding granular synthesis in the abstract like this might be a bit overwhelming.
With the infinite audio samples that you could use as source material and the extensive manipulation that can be performed on each grain, the sound design potential here is worth looking into. We can play grains back in different orders, individual grains can be looped, grains can be layered, grains can be omitted and skipped over the possibilities are endless!Īfter creating a new sequence of grains, volume cross-fades will be applied to blend from one gain to the next in a process called “smoothing.” The shape and length of the cross-fades (called the “window”) have important roles in determining the tone of the resulting sound. Each grain can be individually manipulated, as can the overall arrangement of the grains. We as sound designers can have a lot of control over audio grains. Grains in an audio sample function the same as these frames. Played in order at the proper speed, the frames recreate the footage caught by the camera. Each frame on the tape is a snapshot of the action.
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Think of this process kind of like a movie projector playing a film off of tape. This original series, in chronological order, is called the “graintable.” Theoretically, if grains were played in this order at the speed of the original sample, the output would play back that original sample.
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The original sample is split into a series of smaller samples. These segments are called “grains.” You may see a different number from source to source, but a grain generally ranges from 1–100 milliseconds in length. Granulation is a process in which an audio sample is broken down into tiny segments of audio. The term granular synthesis is a rather unspecific one, as it can cover all systems that utilize the concept of granulation. In this article, we’ll cover what granular synthesis actually is, how it’s probably already used in your software, how it can be best used in a sound design context, and some audio examples of granular synthesis in action.
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The timbres and articulation possible through granular synthesis make it an important technique for any sound designer to investigate.Īdditionally, the concepts behind granular synthesis allow for crucial functions in manipulating audio, and because of this are already found in many software synthesizers and DAW functions.
However, it can use any sound to create a totally new one. These methods are familiar and easy to work with, making them the main focus for synthesists and sound designers.īecause it doesn’t exclusively function on oscillating waves, granular synthesis doesn’t get nearly the attention it deserves. Standard synthesis methods (subtractive, FM, etc.) mostly require the user to manipulate oscillating waves, a technique that has been used for decades.
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