Vibronic Music Systems "Synthesizers?" ad version #2, Contemporary Keyboard 1976

Vibronic Music Systems "Synthesizers?" half-page black and white advertisement version #2 from page 37 in the March/April 1976 issue of Contemporary Keyboard.

This third and final advertisement from Vibronic only seems to have appeared once in the March/April 1976 issue of CK. After this ad ran (as discussed in my last blog post that featured the previous version of this Vibronic ad) I learned that owner Ken Fine made the decision that marketing dollars could be better spent by advertising directly to local musicians and educators.

The ad itself borrows the ad-title and photography from the previous ad, but the ad-copy has been reduced considerably, but those few lines carry a lot of history..

"Customized" hybrid systems: In past ads, Vibronic really focused on Moog synthesizers and Moog modifications. But in this advertisement the word Moog is curiously missing. In fact, I learned that Vibronic carried a much wider selection of synthesizers and keyboards than just the Moogs of the time. He recalls the store carry the Moog Sonic Six, Moog satellte (tough to sell), Minimoog, Modular systems, as well as EMS synths and Mellatrons, among others.

"Customized" high-intensity keyboard sound systems: If you recall from the first ad blog post, those customized systems were created by Music & Sound Ltd. And if you recall from my second blog post, they demonstrated those synthesizers to clients through their own customized sound system. Each synth was hooked into a matrix sound system like those found in today's stores, and then fed into a McIntosh amp and large speaker cabinets hung by chains from the ceiling. Not a surprise - adjacent businesses were often complaining about the sound.   :)

Even the company name and address in the ad have some good history behind it. Ken had come up with the name Vibronic by putting together the words "Vibration" and "Sonic", although there were plans to change the name to Vibronix at a future date.

The address in all three ads was actually the store's second location. He originally opened the store in Ardmore, PA, about 10 miles west of Philadephia, at 6 East Lancaster Ave. That is where the futuristic showroom and that first large custom-built sound system were located. Ken recalls that there was a Radio Shack across the street the got a lot of repeat business from Vibronics at the time. In fact, Ken still has a box of all types of cables and connectors that were originally from that store.

The second location was actually Music & Sound Ltd's address, where he moved Vibronic after the first year in operation. His partner, Marc Paturka, had left the company and moving into M&S's location would save money as well as give him more exposure since they were a well-known retailer in those parts. Moving into M&S also allowed Ken to spend more time doing consulting work with studios and schools and keep up his chops as a session player at Sigma Sound and Philly International Records.  Ken continued to own the company Vibronic, but included that "Division of Music & Sound Ltd " above the address in this advertisement as a way of creating a larger company image.

I always jump at the chance to research and talk with people who were deep in the industry during this time period. People like Marco Alpert of E-mu fame and Sequential Circuits advertising artist John Mattos. They usually have some great history to share. And Ken Fine fits nicely into this category. He was surrounded by music all his life - before, during and after Vibronic.

Pre-Vibronic

Ken remembers growing up surrounded by artists in his family. Most were entertainers in some way, always trying to find that balance between art and business. He was primarily a piano player, who then studied at the Philadelphia Musical Academy in the early 1970s. He recalled finding a Moog IIIc in the school's Music department, where students were using it to record compositions. And as an undergrad he had access.  Ken was already fascinated with, as he put it, "the crazy electronic stuff". He became influenced by many electronic artists and their music of the day, including Isao Tomita's Snowflakes are Dancing.

Upon graduation from music school in roughly 1973, he ended up working at an electronics company called Components in Minneapolis, and that's when he started to go out and visit synthesizer factories like Moog and EML. He visited the Moog factory in Buffalo, and it was around this time that he realized he really wanted to sell synthesizers. He began speaking with others in the synthesizer industry like ARP owner Alan R. Perlman (Ken recalls having an ARP synthesizer back then) and this solidified his resolve to get into the business. And after only a year in Minneapolis, he moved back to PA to get to work on that plan.

Vibronic

Finding himself back in PA, he soon found his 23-year-old-self with a new bank loan and a new business partner - Marc Paterka. They had met at the electronic store in Minneapolis, and at the time Marc was a church organist who had been playing in a lot of big cathedrals at the time.

Opening that store in their first location was a busy but fun time. Ken recalls the "high" he felt when buying all those amazing synthesizers for the store. The direct access to a wide variety of rather rare keyboards got him started doing Moog rentals sessions for studios like Sigma Sound, who were always looking for the latest sounds for their R&B artists. And soon the store expanded to offer Moog service and modifications.

Philadelphia Moog Ensemble

Philadephia Moog Ensemble set-up 1

It was during this time that he and his partner also started the Philadelphia Moog Ensemble, an electronic band that played universities and colleges. They did covers from such college favorites as Switched-on Bach and A Clockwork Orange. With just four hands, four parts, and no sequencers - everything was played live. They even cut an album. 

But he ended up spending just as much time demonstrating the gear to students and curious on-lookers after the concerts - and he found he liked the educational side of synthesizers.

Philadephia Moog Ensemble set-upd

Ken started lecturing about electronic music at different schools, and at one point was teaching a graduate class in electronic music.  

Meanwhile, bands from all over the east continued showing up at the store. Educators from schools setting up labs to teach music and sound design also popped in.

But there was a recession back in 1975/76, so sales really began to drop off. At the same time, larger stores started selling more synthesizers, buying bulk from the likes of Moog and receiving  massive discounts. Small boutique synthesizer stores like Vibronic started to feel the squeeze. By 1977, Ken decided a change was in order, and decided to returned to graduate school.

He sold his entire inventory. Ouch. 

Post Vibronic

When Ken first mentioned on the phone that he went back to school, I immediately thought he meant music school. But he decided to take his love of music in a different direction.

Psychology.

Ken became interested in how humans perceive sound, and created what he called a "musical Rorschach test".  Test subjects listened to ten pieces of music - 60 second cuts - and then were asked a series of questions to determine their emotional response. This research led him to expand his interests into biofeedback, pain control, even interfacing people with machines. Gah! Terminator!   :)

But even as graduate school pulled him away from music, he continued to keep one foot in the door, playing in bands and at clubs.  To help pay the bills he also worked part time at Guitar Center, just as polyphonics began to make their rise in popularity and come down in cost. 

In 2000 Ken left his psychology private practice in Florida and Colorado, and decided it was time for another life change. He joined a band and spent four months on a cruise ship.  This led Ken to look into becoming a booking agent. And he soon opened up a new business - Blue Moon Talent Entertainment Agency with a new partner.

Within a year the partner had dropped out, but Ken has continued to grow the roster over the last ten years or so to over 1000 acts, now booking acts for corporate events, banquets and award ceremonies all over the country. 

Ken Fine's current license plate

Before hanging up the phone, I asked Ken if he had anything else to say. Any words of advice. Without even a breathe or skipping a beat:

"Never take your art to seriously. Always have fun making money."

Good advice.

And you can see he practices what he preaches just by looking at his current license plate.  

Vibronic Music Systems "Synthesizers?" ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1976

Vibronic Music Systems "Synthesizers?" half-page black and white advertisement from page 30 in the January/February 1976 issue of Contemporary Keyboard Magazine.

Another gooder from Vibronic.

Where that first "What a combination" Vibronic ad was a lesson in simplicity with a simple line drawing and a few bullet points, this advertisement piles on the content with a large ad-title, a large photo of a large Moog modular, and a large amount of ad-copy. All in a half-page space.

And it's all in the details. The way the keyboard in the photo breaks the border of the ad to catch the eye. And the way the dotted line of the form follows the shape of the photo, also breaking the lines of the ad and catching the eye. Not sure if any of that was done specifically for that reason (often its just 'cause it looks good), but it worked out that way. And it works.

Ken Fine working hard, 1975ish
Notice all that juicy historical
synthesizer goodness hang on the
wall behind him.

In my last blog post, I mentioned that through a few Google searches I managed to track down then-owner Ken Fine, now "head honcho" at Blue Moon Talent Inc. And, after a quick email exchange, we ended up chatting on the phone about his experiences opening the "first synthesizer-only" instrument shop in America. He also sent a few photos my way, including this one of himself at the shop. Excellent!

Although not readily apparent in this photo of ken hard at work (on the phone with Bob?), Ken comes across as a fun and friendly guy. And that personality definitely played a role in the development of that first Vibronic advertisement with its most-excellent t-shirt-ready drawing of a Moog Modular, and this more comprehensive second ad.

I find that smaller companies like Vibronic can get away with a lot more fun and humor in advertisements than larger companies, but there is still that real danger of getting carried away. But Vibronic used humor well, without going over the top.

For example, take a look at the ad-copy in this second ad. "We take the fun of making music seriously."  Not over the top, but you immediately "get" where Vibronic is coming from as a company.  And then you come to the punch line found in the cut-out form section of this ad. In that form are two check-boxes.

• First check box: Send me the free Vibronic Catalog
• Second check box: I want technical expertise. Send Kenny Fine

I wonder how many people checked off that second box. :)

I pointed this second line out to Ken and he chuckled as the memories surrounding this ad started flooding back to the front of his mind, noting that there was a lot of fun and laughter around the shop during this time period.

And how could there not be humor and fun?  Not yet in his mid-20's, Ken was an owner of a 1000 square foot futuristic-looking shop full of big analog monophonic and modular synthesizers, wired together through an audio switching matrix, feeding into a custom-designed sound system that would probably have felt at home in a large auditorium.

His excuse for the large custom PA - so clients could hear that deep Moog sub-bass. I'm sure one note and that bank loan officer understood exactly why he needed this sound system.  :)

This conversation led nicely into one of the topics I was really looking forward to discussing - that drawing of the Moog modular in Vibronic's first ad. That's one nice piece of... er... fun.

Ken loves that drawing too  (why wouldn't he  :), and recalled that it, and the ad, were created by good  friend and artist Linda Chyhai based on a photo of one of the modulars in the store. He pointed out that you can make out her last name in the bottom left corner of the keyboard in the drawing.

Maxi-Korg - another example of
the Baby Teeth font
Photo taken shamefully
from a MATRIXSYNTH 2007 post

She was also responsible for the creation of the awesome Vibronic logo that can be seen in these ads. Without skipping a beat, Ken recalled that the font used was Baby Teeth. We both did a quick Google search while we talked on the phone and... sure enough... there it was. Baby Teeth! The font was designed in the early 70s by Milton Glaser. And you may recognize Baby Teeth from another appearance it made in the early synth world - on the front panel of the Maxi-Korg synth! Hello!

BTW - you may have noticed that the Vibronic logo seen in the office photo is different from the one in the ads. That original Vibronic logo was created by a high school art teacher, who Ken mentioned also created the store sign. 

Another question I asked Ken was how the heck he managed to get his advertisements into the first few issues of Contemporary Keyboard. I had three theories.

1. Cold call from CK sales guy?
2. Through his association with Bob Moog, who was a writer for CK and a guest at the opening of the store?
3. From the 1975 NAMM show that CK happened to attend prior to publishing their first issue?

I was secretly hoping for "3" since I had noticed that the first issue of CK included an article on the 1975 NAMM show. In that article, the CK author mentions that the magazine had a booth there, promoting the magazine before its first publication. And well - that would just be cool if all those little pieces fell into place to create a great little story.

I was quite happy and surprised to learn that "3" *was* the correct answer.  Ken had been there with a few Moog synths and had met magazine editor Tom Darter, who convinced him to sign-up for a 1/2-page advertisement for the first issue. And in the next few as well. He seems to recall paying approximately $500 for the ad in that first issue. There is always a cost to being a part of synth history.

So, why did Vibronic's advertising in CK suddenly stop early in 1976 after only a few ads? Ken realized that his audience wasn't nation-wide and that a national magazine maybe wasn't the best vehicle to reach his customer-base. He decided to focus his marketing and advertising dollars towards local area musicians as well as educators that were also discovering synthesizers and setting up labs to teach sound and music.

In fact for Ken, music and education played a huge role both before, during and after life at Vibronic.

But that will have to wait for the next post.:)

Vibronic Music Service "What a combination!" ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1975

Vibronic Music Service "What a combination!" half-page black and white advertisement from page 23 in the September/October 1975 issue of Contemporary Keyboard.

Have you ever been flipping through a magazine you have read dozens of times (backwards and forwards), only to suddenly fixate on a certain image or article after all that time?

That is *exactly* what happened here.

The Moog modular drawing in this ad is fantastic. I just can't look away. It belongs on my wall or a t-shirt. Or two t-shirts. Gorgeous.

And so, after picking up a magnifying glass to read every little detail in that drawing, I decided I would try and find out more about Vibronic Music Service. It wasn't a name I was familiar with outside of the magazine ads I'd seen in the early issues of CK.

And I was curious.

Naturally, when starting to look for clues in to a synth company, the first place I look is at the ads and their ad-runs. Vibronic's ads started in the September/October 1975 issue of Contemporary Keyboard. This wasn't just an early issue of CK. But THE EARLIEST issue. There seems to only be one other Vibronic advertisement, which appeared a couple of times in early 1976. This tells me either the company didn't find value in advertising in the magazine or that maybe something happened to the company. Kinda like in the fossil record when dinosaurs just suddenly dropped off the face of the earth.

This got me even more curious.

The ad itself is also a good place to build up info on a company. The ad-copy in this ad may be sparse, but those five bullet points actually say a whole lot about Vibronic. It looks like the company was part of a network of service providers that supplied Moog products (Vibronic), service (Beacon), and customization (Polyfusion - another advertiser in early Contemporary Keyboard mags). The company even provided Moog sessions for other bands and recordings by someone named Kenny Fine.

Bam!

A name. Google likes names. Especially when you can cross reference it with other unique terms like "Vibronic" and "Moog". And it didn't take long to find out more info.

The first search result led me to the Moog Music forum where the original owner of Vibronic popped up to introduce himself back in a 2005 post. According to the post, musician Ken Fine owned Vibronic from around 1975-1977 and the company was the "first all-synthesizer music store" in the United States. When it opened in Pennsylvania, it seems it was quite a big deal with already-legend Bob Moog attending, drawing curious local press to see what Vibronic was up to. From the post:

"We supplied Moog products to area college music labs, recording studios, and of course musicians. I personally laid down Moog tracks for Philly Internationally Records, Sigma Sound Studios and Gamble Huff & Bell records. My Modular Moog III tracks appear on albums by the Spinners, Lou Rawls, The O'Jays and other Philly R&B groups of the 70's. Listen to "Rubber Band Man" by The Spinners! I also performed in an all Moog band called the Philadelphia Moog Ensemble."

Later in that string (a lot later - 2010!) he provides a bit more information on what happened with the company, along with the name of his business partner.

"After I closed Vibronic Music Service, I returned to school and became a psychologist. I left psychology in 2001 and got back into entertainment. I now own a corporate entertainment agency, speakers bureau and production company in Denver, CO. www.bluemoontalent.com. I also dabble around with video and have a photo studio on the side.
...
I have tried to contact my former business partner, Mark Paturka, but no luck."

 And this next part is what I like about the Internet so much. Turns out Mark's niece had recognized a piece from the Philadelphia Moog Ensemble playing on the radio and through Google found Ken's post in this forum and responded. Unfortunately it wasn't good news:

"You mentioned in one of your posts that you had tried to find Marc. Unfortunately, he passed away several years ago, I believe it was 2005. He suffered for several years with problems related to obesity & diabetes and died from complications of pneumonia. For many years he fought with addictions which he did finally overcome. When he died, he had been sober for 5 years and living in Southern California in Ramona, a town east of San Diego, where he was director of musical liturgy for a church. He had earned Doctor of Musical Arts degree somewhere along the way, too.
...
I do remember the summer that Marc came back to Wahpeton, ND (our home town) with a (Mini?)MOOG and performed a concert in the catholic church with the pipe organ and the synthesizer."

A 2012 follow up post in the same forum provides a bit more information about the company:

"My partner (Mark Paturka) and I sold mostly Mini Moogs and modular systems and we eventually became an authorized service center."

 So, looks like Vibronic was operated by two partners - Ken Fine and Marc Paturka and the company sold mostly Minimoogs and modular systems, eventually becoming an authorized service centre for Moog. Not too shabby for a small company in 1975.

But Ken made one mistake in those forums. He left contact information. Hee hee.    :) 

So I emailed him the other day, introducing myself and rattling off a long list of questions. Ken was not only open to answering the lot of them, but took the time to talk to me on the phone for over an hour about the company, synths, bands, and even that awesome drawing in this ad.

We had a great conversation - he's a funny and engaging guy who has spent four decades with at least one foot, and often two, in the music industry. Musician. Synthesizer store owner. Audio researcher. Music lecturer and educator. To name just a few.

And his memory from 35+ years ago is astounding. Right down to the name of the font used in that awesome Vibronic logo. No joke!

But all that is going to have to wait until Thursday's post. If you want to know more about what Ken Fine is up to now, check out his current events entertainment agency Blue Moon Talent, Inc.

And while you are looking through that, I'm going to start putting all this material together!.  :D