Korg
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KORG Inc. (
History
KORG was founded in 1962 in Tokyo by Tsutomu Kato and
The company's first product was an electro-mechanical rhythm device, the Disc Rotary Electric Auto Rhythm machine, Donca Matic DA-20, released in 1963.[2] The name "Donca" was an onomatopoeic reference to the sound the rhythm machine made. Buoyed by the success of the DA-20, Keio released a solid-state version of the Rhythm machine, the Donca matic DE-20, in 1966.
In 1967, Kato was approached by
Keio's organ products were successful throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s. Concerned about competition from other organ manufacturers, Kato decided to use the organ technology to build a keyboard for the then-niche synthesizer market. Keio's first synthesizer, the KORG miniKORG, was released in 1973.
During the 1970s, KORG's synthesizer line was divided into instruments for the hobbyist, and large expensive patchable instruments such as the PS series. In the early '80s, KORG branched into digital pianos.
KORG is credited with a number of innovations. The key transpose function was Kato's idea after a singer at his club needed her accompaniment played in a lower key, which the accompanist wasn't able to do. KORG was the first company to feature effects on a synthesizer, and the first to use a sample + synthesis sound design. The M1 workstation, released in 1988, sold over 250,000 units, making it the bestselling synthesizer ever at that time. The M1 is still to this day regarded as the perfect workstation.[3]
Relationship with Yamaha
Yamaha Corporation has always been a major partner of KORG, supplying them with circuitry and mechanical parts.
In 1987, shortly before the release of the M1 Music Workstation, Yamaha acquired a controlling interest in KORG. The takeover of the company was amicable, with Kato drawing up the terms, and the two companies continued to independently develop their product lines and compete in the marketplace.
In 1989, KORG recruited the design team from
In 1993, after 5 successful years under Yamaha's control, Kato had sufficient funds to repurchase most of the Yamaha shares.
Recent history
KORG has since diversified into digital effects, tuners, recording equipment, electronic hand percussion, and software instruments.[5][6]
In 1992, KORG acquired
KORG was the exclusive distributor of Marshall Amplification products in the US for decades. This arrangement ended in 2010.[8]
Kato died of cancer on 15 March 2011.[9]
The new line of more accessible digital synthesizers, including the wavestate, modwave and opsix, are featuring a Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3.[10]
In September 2022 Korg bought Darkglass electronics.[11]
Products
See also
References
- ^ "L'Histoire de Korg". Musicarius [le blog].
- ^ a b "The History Of Korg: Part 1". Sound on Sound. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-918371-08-9
- ^ File:MiniKORG700S (1974).jpg
- ^ "The History Of Korg: Part 2". Sound on Sound. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
- ^ "The History Of Korg: Part 3". Sound on Sound. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
- ^ Dave Hunter, "50 Years of Vox" , Vintage Guitar, June 2010[permanent dead link]
- ^ Gordon Reid, "40 Years of Korg Gear" , Sound on Sound, Oct 2002
- ^ "Korg Mourns the Passing of Chairman Tsutomu Katoh Archived 2011-09-09 at the Wayback Machine", Keyboard Magazine, 15 March 2011
- ^ "Success - Stories Korg synthesizers". Raspberry Pi Foundation. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
- ^ Matt Parker (20 May 2022). "Korg buys Darkglass Electronics in bid to become "a leader" in the bass gear market". guitarworld. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
External links
- Official website
- "Korg Sound Make Up Museum" (in Japanese). KORG. Archived from the original on 12 November 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
- Korg Page at Synthmuseum.com
- Korg Kornucopia – Korg analogue synthesizer information, manuals and resources
- Korg museum
- korgaseries.org – A decade-old online resource hosting photos, product info, effects, mailing list and manuals for Korg's A1, A2 and A3 effects processors.
- Tsutomu Katoh Interview at NAMM Oral History Collection 16 October 2006.
- Fumio Mieda Interview at NAMM Oral History Collection (2022)