Supersaw

The ‘Supersaw’ was a unique sound waveform, created by Roland in 1997 for their new synthesizer, the JP800. The Supersaw layered 7 saw tooth waveforms, slightly detuned against each other to produce a thick and expansive sound. It was picked up on by dance producers at the time and became the defining sound of the Uplifting Trance era, being used on many of the scene’s most important tracks.

For me, it represents an interesting example of the role that technological innovation plays in catalysing a cultural phenomenon, echoing perhaps, the relationship between the creation of the electric guitar and the birth of popular music; or indeed the significance of producers experimenting with an obsolete Roland 303 sequencer in the mid 1980s, inadvertently giving birth to Acid House and the Rave scene. In the case of the Supersaw, the influence was confined to one particular sub-genre over the space of a few years.

It is this relationship I am interested in, specifically how this piece of technology and it’s sound has a history of powerful memories and experiences attached to it.

For this piece, a Roland JP800 will be set up in the gallery space, lit from above with a spotlight. Using the Supersaw sound, a chord will played by taping down the appropriate keys, ringing out continuously in the space: suggesting an infinite euphoric moment and reflecting the utopian vision the sound was so influential in creating.