Chords for Yamaha DX7 - The Synthesizer that Defined the '80s

Take a moment and picture some popular 1980s [Db] music in your head.
[Dm] _ Whether you know it or not, there's a good likelihood that what you're [E] hearing in your mind contains the Yamaha [Am] DX7 synthesizer.
Yamaha released the DX7 in 1983 [C] and it quickly [D] rose to take over the [Dm] airwaves.
From Brian Eno to Kenny [E] Loggins, from Herbie Hancock to Whitney Houston, the [Am] DX7 was everywhere.
It defined the sound of [Em] an entire decade and laid the [E] groundwork for [Dm] some of the ways that synthesizers are still being used [E] today.
Let's take a closer look.
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While the DX7 was released in [B] 1983, _ its [Ab] origins date all the way back to 1967.
That's when John Chowning, a professor at Stanford University,
[B] discovered the algorithm for frequency modulated synthesis.
As you might know, sound is caused by vibrations in [Ab] the air.
Each sound creates different waveforms as it goes through the air, which you recognize as sound waves.
[B] FM synthesis allowed for more nuanced modulation of these sound waves to create new tones.
_ Analog [Ab] synthesizers used something called subtractive synthesis, where you started with a complex wave and
added filters to [B] subtract from it until you got a sound that you wanted.
FM, on the other hand, uses the output [B] of one wavelength to modulate [Ab] another,
like how violinists use their fingers to modulate the tone produced by bowing.
The [B] implications of this technology were huge, as they allowed
synthesizers to produce a wider range of sounds with a lot more nuance to them.
[Ab] Perhaps most notably, this allowed for synthesizers to easily emulate percussive sounds like marimbas, bells, and xylophones.
For a great example of this, check out [Bm] Axel F, where the DX7 is synthesizing marimbas.
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_ _ _ _ _ [Ab] After Chowning developed his modulation, he licensed the technology to Yamaha, who would spend the next decade [B] experimenting with it.
Finally, in 1983, they released the DX7.
With FM synthesis at its core, the DX7 featured a number of
operators, which created more modulation possibilities and allowed for a wide array of sounds.
The DX7 was also the first
_ programmable FM synthesizer, [Em] meaning that people could experiment with it and create custom sounds if they wanted.
The versatility and customization of the DX7 are a big reason behind its success.
One of its most popular sounds was the electric piano.
[Gb] That sound was bright and deep and became a foundation of more 80s ballads than you can count.
Check out Chicago's Hard Habit to Break for a great example of that.
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guess I thought _ you'd be here forever
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Another illusion I [Eb] chose to [Db] create
_ _ [Abm] DX7 pianos were a favorite of Whitney Houston as well and helped her become one of the best-selling artists of all time.
Check it out in the intro of [Bb] Didn't We Almost Have It All.
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_ _ This piano setting was [Ab] so popular that many modern synthesizers have sampled [E] DX [B] electric pianos in their presets,
but it wasn't just the high end.
The DX7 could fill out the low side of a song just as easily.
Check [Ab] out the fretless bass in [Eb] Take My Breath Away from the Top Gun soundtrack.
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[Fm] That soundtrack features another classic example of the [B] DX7's bass capabilities.
Listen to the synth bass in Kenny Loggins' Danger Zone. _ _ _
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_ _ _ _ _ [Ab] Tina Turner even used the DX7 to synthesize a harmonica solo on What's Love Got to Do With It.
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[Gb] _ _ _ [B] _ While the DX7 defined the sound of its era, it was also ahead of its time in a lot of ways.
The DX7's voices could be custom programmed by users and stored into an [Ab] internal RAM storage or external [C] cartridges.
You could even get applications so that you could load [Gb] or save presets [B] onto your home computer.
This kind of programming proved challenging for many, but some musicians were able to [Ab] use it to take the synthesizer to a whole nother level. _
Probably the most famous of these is Brian Eno.
Eno was so good at programming the [B] instrument that he even took to sharing his presets with the world.
Check out this page from Keyboard Magazine where you can see the detailed [Ab] setting of some of Eno's favorite custom patches.
Eno used the DX7 as a music producer and also in his own ambient experiments.
You can [E] hear tons of it on his album Apollo, Atmospheres and Soundtracks. _ _ _ _ _ _
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Given the time it was [Ab] released, the versatility of the DX7 was astounding.
The digital technology allowed the synthesizer to hold more modulators than analog, [B] which allowed for new levels of precision in the synthesis.
This meant the DX7 [D] could be bright and punchy enough to be featured in an upbeat [G] pop song,
[F] but warm and complex enough to build [Cm] slow ballads around, and wide [Bbm] open enough to turn into spacey ambient music.
The instrument went out of production in [B] 1989, fittingly signaling the end of the decade that it dominated,
but its [Ab] impact stretched far beyond that.
FM synthesis is still being used to this day.
Yamaha's montage featured their most powerful FM engine to date, building off the groundwork that they laid with the DX7.
As for music, the 1980s pop sounds that the DX7 created are having a huge comeback.
[Ebm] Artists like LaRue, Tame Impala and [Ab] The Weeknd have all emulated pop [Bm] sounds that were created by [B] the DX.
The Yamaha DX7 is an essential part of music [Ab] history, and there's a good reason why it remains one of the most popular synthesizers ever made.
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