Partnership between Steinberg and Sony CSL takes Backbone 1.5 to a new level

Steinberg announces collaboration with Sony Computer Science Laboratories, Inc., with its AI-driven DrumGAN development incorporated into the latest release of Backbone.

Steinberg has announced the immediate availability of Backbone 1.5, the latest version of the company’s one-of-a-kind drum re-synthesizer. This updated iteration includes a new key feature, DrumGAN, a recent development by Sony Computer Science Laboratories (Sony CSL) which employs AI-driven technology to generate unique drum samples.

Backbone is a virtual instrument which provides new ways to design primarily intricate drum sounds for every style of music. Users start off by layering up to eight samples, which can be split into individual tonal or noise elements. The individual layers can also be re- synthesized with easily accessible manipulation tools through the clearly laid out user interface.

By adding DrumGAN, Backbone 1.5 is now taken to a new level of individuality for creating sounds. DrumGAN uses Generative Adversarial Networks to generate new drum sounds with only a few smart parameters.

Available samples can also be analyzed to create similar versions. With this latest AI-driven technology, Backbone users now have options to take their sounds into previously uncharted territory, creating a wide range of signature sounds that have literally never been heard before.

Senior Marketing Manager Florian Haack says:

The cooperation between Sony CSL and Steinberg is a great example of how AI can be used in music production to drive creativity while making everything easier. The ability to generate new samples with DrumGAN for kicks, snare or cymbals, or analyze existing samples and further re-synthesize and reassemble the components gives producers unprecedented flexibility to design new sounds. And, thanks to the user-friendly interface, Backbone users can now harness this new AI-powered technology in a straightforward way.