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How did the RCA Electronic Music Synthesizer use punched paper tape?

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electronic organ — electronic music Electronic organ.

The RCA Electronic Music Synthesizer utilized punched paper tape as an information input mechanism to control the generation of sound.12

Composers used a special typewriter-like keyboard to punch sets of instructions into a wide roll of paper tape, which served as the "master score" for a composition. This tape encoded various musical properties in binary form, including pitch, tone color, vibrato intensity, envelope shapes, and portamento for up to four simultaneous tones. The perforations on the tape specified these sound properties for every 1/30 of a second, allowing for a level of precision and speed in musical changes that exceeded the capabilities of traditional performers.12

During the programming process, composers could interrupt the activity to listen to the encoded material, make corrections, and edit the tape before finalizing the score. This system represented a significant technological advancement by allowing for total control over musical elements, a feature notably utilized by the composer Milton Babbitt to realize his works with high precision.12