Published
Wed, Dec 14, 2022, 09:00
- Deutsch and Robert Moog worked together to create the revolutionary synthesiser in 1964.
US composer, scholar and co-inventor of the Moog synthesiser Herb Deutsch has died aged 90.
The Moogseum, an interactive museum dedicated to Moog synthesiser, broke the news via Instagram on Saturday, December 10th.
"We're saddened to share that Herb Deutsch has joined Bob Moog in analogue heaven," the statement read. "It would be impossible to overstate Herb's contribution to the Moog legacy. It was Herb who approached Bob about developing a device to make new sounds for his experimental jazz compositions. Bob was intrigued, and the two men then collaborated on what would become the Moog synthesiser prototype, with Herb explaining the musician's needs and Bob designing the circuitry in response. They then worked together for years to promote the instrument and help people understand its revolutionary capabilities."
A gifted musician who began composing at a young age, Deutsch had been making electronic music using a theremin, tape recorder and single-pitch oscillator when he first met Moog at a music trade fair in 1963. Aiming to build a compact synth that was both practical and affordable, they debuted their creation at the Audio Engineering Society convention in New York the following year. The Moog synthesiser became the world's first commercial synth in the process. Deutsch was credited with its keyboard interface.
Deutsch was also a prolific composer, a cofounder of the Long Island Composers Alliance and a professor of music at Long Island's Hofstra University for 57 years.
Watch a video of Deutsch discussing the evolution of the Minimoog, and read the Moogseum's post in full.