[Interview] Jesse Orshan, Co-Founder and CEO of thinkplay

by Dave Mainella

Music composition and performance has always been both a reaction to and a catalyst of technological innovation. thinkplay continues that tradition by introducing the first software for building, sharing, and performing with ePedals. By combining the mapping of audio samples, video clips, and effects with real-time instrumental performance, thinkplay aims to help facilitate the future of music creation.

We had the opportunity to talk with thinkplay co-founder and CEO Jesse Orshan about intuitive music technology performance, thinkplay’s relationship with other DAWs, and the future of ePedals.

SoundCtrl: How did you come up with the idea for thinkplay?  Are you musicians and did this develop out of a technical need to stimulate artistic creativity?

Jesse Orshan: I grew up my entire life playing the guitar, and I believe thinkplay manifested itself not from a pivotal experience, but from a variety of realizations about the transformations underway in musical composition, performance, and culture. I have attended many series of concerts, most notably Phish and Pretty Lights, whose juxtaposition in performances challenged my notions of musical talent. I saw instrumental technicality on the one hand, and a man standing behind a laptop on the other; yet they both struck me as spectacular. I believe this fostered the question in my mind, what could happen if these worlds found a bridge? Why do the worlds of instrumentation, hip-hop, and electronic music feel so disparate? The more I began to search, the less satisfied I became with any of the answers.

I first typed out a paper on a new concept known as ‘thinkplay’ roughly 2 years ago in my dorm at Cornell. Following that, my business partner Brendan and I recruited a team of engineering, design and business students from Cornell to begin developing the software. Playing an instrument was a requirement for joining our team, and this allowed us to foster a group that worked on pure musical passion. The goal of thinkplay is to expand conceptions about the capabilities of instruments. We know the artistic creativity to enhance performance value is out there and we designed thinkplay specifically for this purpose.

SC: Will thinkplay be released only as desktop software?  Are mobile or tablet platforms in the works too?

JO: Beta, scheduled for a closed release by the end of the year, will be desktop software. Although we have not yet developed mobile platforms, mobile features are on the horizon once the desktop version launches.

SC: Software tools for performing through digital effects, with live sound manipulation, and by triggering samples is common practice for a lot of artists.  How do you hope to differentiate yourself from platforms like Ableton Live or Cycling 74′s Max?

JO: Quite often, we are asked “how can thinkplay compete with a company like Ableton?” The question shouldn’t be “how will we compete?” but rather “how will thinkplay leverage what Ableton and similar companies already offer?” We see huge potential for a symbiotic relationship with these types of DAWs. thinkplay will allow users to bring in audio samples, loops, beats, etc. from any source. This means a practiced Ableton user can continue using Ableton’s software, and then import creations into ours. This applies for any other program. With that said, thinkplay brings its own value to the table.

First, a team of brilliant music-tech grad students developed thinkplay’s interface with the user and the user’s instrument in mind. The resulting design is intuitive and understandable. thinkplay allows artists to drag and drop audio and video samples of any length to specific notes (on an instrument) via a virtual fretboard on the screen. The concept itself is also intuitive: when a note is hit, a clip is triggered. Once brought over, the virtual fretboard interface makes it super easy to move and manipulate the audio and video clips.

Secondly, thinkplay has a second focus on the visual performance dimension. thinkplay allows users to upload video content and set video triggers to instrument notes. An artist can drag a video, or a portion of one, onto a note and trigger it the same way as an audio clip. The concept of live, video-sync triggering is so simple but has far-reaching implications. Visual music has become a major feature of live music and is no longer just for professionals.

Finally, artists can design and brand the look of the ‘ePedal’ that house their triggers and creations. These ePedals can be shared and/or sold to other musicians of various instruments through our PedalSphere. For example, if an EDM artist assigned a sample or track to a virtual keyboard, branded it, and then uploaded the creation to the online store, a guitarist can download and us it. Although the creation was mapped for a virtual keyboard, thinkplay can automatically remap the audio/video samples to align with a guitar fretboard. We envision the ePedal will facilitate sharing music between artists, and bridging gaps of instruments and genres. With the potential for a guitarist to blend dubstep or a rap vocal with traditional playing, there is also the opportunity for new genres of music altogether.

SC: The opportunity to share and sell ePedals is an interesting draw, creating a unique marketplace.  Are there any potential issues regarding copyright and the legalities of selling samples and triggers of licensed material?

JO: Like all platforms that allow for user-generated content, copyright legalities are a potential issue. With this in mind, we are utilizing the same copyright model as YouTube. Basically, if a user uploads any copyrighted material to thinkplay’s PedalSphere, the copyright owner can contact and request we remove the content. We are currently working with record labels to allow popular artists to build and sell ePedals with their own content in the PedalSphere. Though some thinkplayers will certainly use samples for inspiration, we expect that artists who build their own samples/tracks will be the ones who shine.

SC: How do users perform using the software interface?  Is there functionality with external controllers via MIDI etc?

JO: Think of the laptop screen as a new type of pedal board. The artist connects his/her instrument to the laptop and then connects the laptop to an amp and/or a monitor. The software will also work with any MIDI controller or keyboard.

SC: You have an upcoming Beta release.  Do you have a release date, and will that be available for everyone?

JO: The thinkplay beta will be in closed testing by the end of the year. Our team members will share copies with a few musicians and producers we believe will do great things with the software. This will help us better understand our consumers’ needs and perfect the software before releasing it to the general public. In the meantime, we are exploring partnerships with several high-profile artists in hopes of giving future thinkplayers inspiration, and a preview of how awesome the product truly is.

SC: What else does thinkplay have in store?  What are your next steps moving forward?

JO: You can count on us to continue releasing videos that blow minds and demonstrate the endless capabilities of the software. We are hoping to generate a buzz and strengthen our following so by the time we go live, we will have created a community of musicians ready to unleash their talent and creativity via thinkplay. We are so amped to share thinkplay with the world, and can hardly wait to see what people do with it.

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