Expressive E Osmose 49 CE

Innovative MPE controller with 3D keyboard for expressive playing techniques

The Osmose 49 CE from Expressive E is the controller-only version of Osmose, also known as the Controller Edition. The Hardware of the CE version is identical in terms of keyboard and controls (number, layout, positioning). Only the internal sound generation and the audio outputs have been omitted. What all Osmose versions have in common is the special 3D keyboard, which enables completely new playing techniques. At first glance, the keyboard looks familiar, but the technology behind it has been rebuilt from the ground up. In addition to pitch, note length and Velocity, each individual key generates a range of other controller data in a kind of three-dimensional space. With this keyboard, familiar playing techniques including polyphonic aftertouch can be implemented effortlessly, but also new articulations such as press, Pitch bend per note, vibrato, glide and strumming allow an expressive playing style that could only be created, if at all, with awkwardly arranged MIDI controllers. In its capacity as a "classic" MIDI controller, Osmose CE naturally also fulfils the MPE protocol, including an arpeggiator. Pressure Glide is a special playing technique that is known, if at all, only from synthesisers with membrane keyboards. Instead of the familiar handwheels for pitch bend and modulation, there are two sliders to the left of the keyboard for this purpose. Thanks to DAW remote integration, this luxury controller offers transport controls and volume/pan control for tracks in DAWs such as Ableton Live, Bitwig, Logic and Cubase.