Library Music Instrument

Serge Modular Synthesizer

Serge Tcherepnin's low-cost, flexible modular synthesizer, developed at CalArts from 1972.

Serge Tcherepnin leaning on an early Serge modular system, circa 1978
Serge Tcherepnin with an early Serge system, circa 1978.Source
Collections
Music
Type
Instrument
Creators
Serge Tcherepnin, Serge Modular Music Systems
Subjects
Instruments

Developed by Serge Tcherepnin with CalArts students Rich Gold, Randy Cohen, and Rex Probe from 1972 and sold by Serge Modular Music Systems, the Serge system favored patchable, general-purpose function generators over the fixed-role oscillator/filter/envelope modules of contemporary designs, aiming for a flexible instrument affordable to students and hobbyists. Its signature Wave Multiplier modules generate timbral complexity through wavefolding rather than subtractive filtering, a defining trait of the system’s sound.