Here’s something new and different for those of you who are interested in the Haken Continuum Fingerboard.
One of the new presets designed by audio wizard Edmund Eagan for the latest firmware version of the Haken Continuum is called TWO HANDED VOICE. As its name implies it takes two hands to control it: one hand for pitch, the other for the formant (i.e. the vowel sound you want to make - AH…EH…EE..OO…etc.) This precludes the possibility of playing another instrument simultaneously (such as a keyboard) because you don’t have a free hand to do it with. Normally, for the TWO HANDED VOICE, one hand moves from left to right on the upper part of the fingerboard (called the ‘Y’ axis), and the other from left to right on the lower part, with each hand controlling a different function.
So I devised “the FINGAH” (that’s New Yorkese for “finger”) which I cobbled together from bits & pieces I cannibalized from here & there. Never throw anything away because the minute you do you’re going to need it!!
Here is a video I made showing “the fingah” in action. The device fits snugly onto the Continuum, and exerts exactly the right amount of pressure on the upper part of the ‘Y’ axis, leaving one of your two hands free. The pressure (which is adjustable) is exerted by a roller, so there is no friction or drag on the neoprene fingerboard surface, and the formant can be modified by sliding the “fingah” along a rail that supports it from above. Everything is on roller bearings, both above and below, so it just seems to float along. Volume is controlled by finger pressure of the pitch hand. The “fingah” is hinged, like a lid, so you can easily lift it from the fingerboard when it is not in use, without having to remove it altogether from your setup.
Edmund Eagan’s TWO HANDED VOICE is the best, most versatile, and most consistently believable electronic vocal emulation I have ever heard. I love it….and it is so easy to play!