Crumar

Crumar was an Italian electronic musical instrument manufacturer established by

Mario Crucianelli in the late 1960s,[2] which manufactured synthesizers and
keyboards during the 70s and 80s. Its name stands for "CRUcianelli and
MARchetti", the names of Crucianelli and business partner Marchetti.[2] The
company appears to have grown out of the Crucianelli accordion company and also
continued to manufacture accordions under both names.

Crumar T2 Organizer (1978) drawbar

organ
Contents
History and products
Crumar users
See also
References
External links

Crumar Digital Synthesizer DS2

History and products (1978)

Crumar started out manufacturing electronic pianos and string synthesizers, such as
the Compac-piano (1972/1973), Compac-string (1973), Pianoman (1974) and
Stringman (1974), the functions of which were combined in 1975 with the Multiman
(also known as the Orchestrator), and in 1977 with the Multiman-S.[2] The company
was also known for "clonewheel" organs made in the 70's and 80's, such as the
Organizer (1974), Organizer T1 (1978) and T1/C (1981), T2 (1978), and T3
(1981).[2]

In 1978, Crumar released their first full-fledged synthesizer, the DS-2, which had Crumar Performer (1979) analog
polyphonic ensemble keyboard
one of the earliest digitally controlled oscillators (DCO).[3] Crumar synthesizers are
comparable and contemporaneous to Moog synthesizers and other analog
synthesizers; in fact, the Crumar Spirit synthesizer (1983) was designed by Bob
Moog himself, along with Minimoog co-designer Jim Scott and Tom Rhea (who
wrote Moog manuals).[4] In 1984,[2] Crumar began producing polyphonic
synthesizers utilizing DCOs under the Bit name (Unique in the US).[4] The
Performer is a polyphonic analog Strings and Brass machine produced at the end of
the 1970s and is slightly compact with just 49 keys and is fully polyphonic (can play
all 49 notes simultaneously). Programming is simple and clearly laid-out with just
15 sliders and a few buttons. A solid black chassis and wood end-cheeks round out Crumar Spirit (1983) analog
this classic and often overlooked string machine. The Performer is best remembered synthesizer
for its Strings more so than its Brass and was used byDuran Duran.

In the early '80's, Crumar formed a design/distribution collaborative with New York-
based Music Technology (MT) in an effort to commercialize the Bell Labs Digital
Synthesizer. Crumar and the MT designers worked in conjunction with some
respected names in electronic music to produce the Crumar GDS (General
Development System)[5] in 1980, and the Digital keyboards Synergy[6] in 1981.
These synthesizers, which usedadditive synthesis technology and phase modulation,
were bulky and cumbersome, but were state-of-the-art at the time. The complexity of
this project, along with Japanese competition (notably from the Yamaha DX7)
contributed to the company's eventual downfall.

Crumar ceased trading in 1987, just as they were about to launch a high-quality
sampler at the lower end of the market. Crumar Bit One (1984) analog
polyphonic synthesizer[1]
In 2008 the Crumar brand was acquired by a new Italian company that soon began
producing new keyboards under the Crumar name, including the Baby Grand piano
(introduced at the 2008 Musikmesse), Bassman bass synth, and Mojo clonewheel
organ.

In 2018 a digital electric piano called Seven was introduced. It featured modern day
technology in a wooden vintage 1970's style case.
Crumar Bit 99 (1985) analog
polyphonic synthesizer

Crumar T2 Organizer Crumar T2 Organizer

Crumar keyboard

Crumar users
French Space Rock band,Rockets performed with many Crumar synths.
Italian band Pooh and composer Vangelis heavily used the Crumar Compac in 1973.
Liam Howe of Sneaker Pimps used a Crumar Roadrunner 2 on their Splinter album (1999).
Keyboardist Derek Sherinian records with a Multiman-S.
Space jazz musician Sun Ra occasionally played the Crumar DS-2.
Duran Duran keyboardist Nick Rhodes used the Crumar Performer, known for having a string section that rivaled the
more expensive ARP Solina.
Pioneering Berlin School electronic musician Klaus Schulze used several Crumar instruments over his career,
particularly on the albumsTimewind (1975) and Moondawn (1976); the album Dig It (1980) heavily features the
Crumar GDS.[7]
It can also be seen in the Mark Ronson'sBang Bang Bang (2010) music video.
Madness keyboard player Mike Barson used a double-keyboard Organizer T1, as well as aVox Continental
throughout 1979 and 1980.
Composer Wendy Carlos used the GDS on the soundtrack of the filmTron (1982), where it was employed to
augment badly recorded orchestra cues. She also used both it and its sister keyboard, the Synergy
, on her album
 Digital Moonscapes (1984), programming all of the sounds used on it. Those sounds were later fered
of for the
Synergy. Carlos still uses the GDS to this day.
This instrument has been heard in Latin Music as well, particularly in "grupero" bands of the 70s, 80s, and 90s, like
that of the Regional Mexican band Grupo Bronco (known for some time as "El Gigante de America") where the
Crumar "Multi-Man" Orchestrator is the notable instrument that defines the identity of the band.

See also
List of Italian Companies
Clonewheel organ
Elka (Italian synthesizer manufacturer, also established by Crucianelli family)
Bell Labs Digital Synthesizer

References
1. "Bit One/Bit 01/Bit 99" (https://web.archive.org/web/20150609083637/http://www
.soundonsound.com/sos/aug98/artic
les/crumar.html). Sound On Sound. August 1998. Archived fromthe original (http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/aug
98/articles/crumar.html) on 9 June 2015.
2. Bassi, Enrico (2005/2007),Crumar Museum (https://web.archive.org/web/20111003003628/http://www .enricobassi.it/
crumar.htm) (in Italian), archived fromthe original (http://www.enricobassi.it/crumar.htm) on October 3, 2011,
retrieved 3 January 2014 Check date values in: |year= (help)
3. Bassi, Enrico. "Crumar DS-2 Reverse Engineering"(https://web.archive.org/web/20120229191901/http://www .enrico
bassi.it/crumar_ds_2.htm)(in Italian). Ebax Sinthy Production. Archived fromthe original (http://www.enricobassi.it/cr
umar_ds_2.htm) on 29 February 2012. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
4. Reid, Gordon (2001), "Spiritual Enlightenment – Crumar Spirit Analogue Monosynth (retro)"(https://web.archive.org/
web/20111225101431/http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jul01/articles/retrocrumer.asp), Sound On Sound (July
2001), archived from the original (http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jul01/articles/retrocrumer.asp) on 2011-12-25
5. "CRUMAR/DKI GDS SYSTEM & SYNERGY"(https://web.archive.org/web/19970115154934/http://www .synthony.co
m/vintage/dkigds.html), Synthony.com, archived from the original (http://www.synthony.com/vintage/dkigds.html)on
1997-01-15, retrieved 2014-01-01
6. Aaron Lanterman, Digital Keyboards Synergy Preservation Page(http://users.ece.gatech.edu/~lanterma/synergy/)
,
retrieved 2014-01-01
7. Mueller, Klaus D. "Klaus Schulze's Instruments"(http://www.klaus-schulze.com/misc/instr.htm). Klaus D. Mueller.
Retrieved 3 January 2014.

External links
CRUMAR WEB SITE
Vintage Synth Explorer - An online vintage synthesizer archive. This site has good images and descriptions of
Crumar synthesizers.
Technical view on Crumar Performer

Performer sounds
History and technical overview of the Crumar Spirit
|webpage dedicated to Crumar performer with some sounds and pictures

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Crumar&oldid=867378302

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