A Brief History of EMS
as told by EMS founder, schmooster
Once upon a Time… Earth Modular Society did not exist.
Earth is a place where many Humans are, some percentage of them have Modular synthesizers. A Modular synthesizer is a collection of devices that allow us to explore Sound and Music, some explore Visuals as well. A Society is a community of people focussed around a given topic.
Where was I? Once Upon a Time, Earth Modular Society started to want to exist. It was a calamitous time on Earth, for myself and for many others, for varying reasons. The need to be Connected to Others was extreme in some cases, mine included. A desire formulated for there to be a communal space to interact with others around the clock.
At this time, also, I had been striving to live stream my own content for some years on a 24/7 basis, and I started to become addicted to the concept of Modular. I would have a certain configuration in place, OBS running and showing _something_ along with the audio (which was mostly from VCV Rack, some midi devices, and eventually semi-modular devices). I came to realise that from an external perspective, it would be more interesting (and cost me, personally, less in hardware) if the 24/7 stream were occupied by multiple performers of the same “type”.
Bearing that all in mind – at this time, around 2020, Modular Societies and Communities online and offline _existed_, however to my mind there were not enough people live streaming their own Modular stuff, nor communities centered on that specific purpose.
EMS started “small” – a Discord server with 3 members became a collaborative space in intent, and various conversations began to happen across various other Modular forums, chat servers, and established groups.
As people joined the EMS discord, and the intent was explained, some effort was put into working out how to run a 24/7 stream collaboratively. This started to be agreed, tweaked, and documented – ultimately various protocols and procedures were established which became a set of services. We now have an RTMP server that distributes live streams to Twitch and Youtube (at present), a key management system for allowing Performers to “take over” from the hold-muzak (anyone’s system that can run for extended times and accepts being overridden), and a team of administrators who are capable of helping and encouraging the community at large through their journey,
Now, we find around 1500 performances a year! Our Youtube Playlists/Archives are among the largest bodies of work known to Youtube users [unverified fact]!
We proceed into the Future with a need for more Performers of any skill level, and we work hard to provide a comfortable and friendly environment where people can learn the Art of Streaming Modular without fear of reprise.
Testimonials:
“I wouldn’t be where I am without EMS. They brought me out of a slump in my musical journey by creating a space where I could explore, communicate, and share ideas.”
BbartokK
Influences in the creation of EMS include but are not limited to:
Alphastare, PifPaf, Colin Benders – Modular Mayhem, CV Freqs, Berlin Modular, New York Modular Society, SEA Noise, DivKid Patreon Community, Frequency Freaks, Modular World, Magpie Pirates, Golden Shrimp Guild, Server vs Server, Wiggle Room, Modular Mickey, SoCalSynthSociety, Left Coast Lights, Pittsburgh Modular Synthesizers, Podular_Modcast, Modular Houston
Authored by schmooster