Daily Inspiration: Meet David Soto

Today we’d like to introduce you to David Soto.

David, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Years ago, I realized how healthy it is to have a hobby. It had been years since being in bands, making beats, and being a resident DJ in Denver. I had put everything into my career and was feeling unhappy and unbalanced. I decided to get back into music and explore live electronic music. I stumbled on modular synthesizers. These instruments look like telephone operator switchboards with long wires crisscrossing across the surfaces plugged into what seems like random inputs. There are knobs, switches, and blinking lights, and usually no keyboard or anything else that resembles a standard instrument. It is mysterious at first, and the sounds they can make can be completely alien. I loved it. It was tactile, fascinating, and something I had very little knowledge of.
This was in 2018, and modular synths were having a resurgence since coming out decades earlier. Though there was a synth manufacturer in Denver, finding people who were also interested in these things was hard to find. A small local group on Facebook popped up, and I quickly became very involved. Within months, I was playing shows under the moniker Sine Mountain and organizing monthly meetups. Soon, I ran the group and created the Colorado Modular Synth Society. This is a volunteer-powered organization to help people learn, play, and share the joy of modular synth music.
What began as a small group of synth nerds sharing notes turned into a community of people worldwide participating in our forums, online shows, and events. Because of the lockdown and starting a YouTube channel, we have over 700 hundred people on our forums and great turnouts for the live events around Colorado.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
We have some of the same issues most communities centered around less popular hobbies have; we struggle to get the word out and educate the public on what we are doing. We could just let folks into this niche part of the synthesizer world find us, but I want to demystify getting into electronic music and help expand the demographic. So, we actively avoid gatekeeping and lower any barriers to joining the community. Even though some early pioneers in electronic music were women, most of my group is made up of men. I am open to ways to diversify and be more inclusive.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My work as an artist has taken on new meaning. I still perform as Sine Mountain and release music not only to express myself but also to be an example. I had no formal training; I didn’t know how to play the guitar or piano. I can point at myself as an example of anyone who can do this. Still, I spend as much, if not more, time engaging with our community on our forums, monthly meetups, and live events. I love to network within the community to help foster new friendships between members. Just setting up shows and compilations for CMSS members to participate is what people need to finally play live, complete an album, or get out of their regular routine so they can meet new people. Yes, we geek out about music technology, synth history, and synth music, but those are only starting points to building friendships and support systems.

What are your plans for the future?
The future of the Colorado Modular Synth Society will be taking on bigger events that include more learning opportunities in workshops and classes. We also have a growing number of folks building their own synthesizer companies here in Colorado. We want to explore ways to help support that business locally. I also want to find more ways of getting artists opportunities to play and maybe go on a small tour to smaller communities that don’t get live electronic music coming to their area.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://coloradomodularsynthsociety.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coloradomodularsynthsociety/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ColoradoModularSynthSociety/
• Soundcloud: https://coloradomodularsynthsociety.bandcamp.com/music
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/Sinemountain/

Image Credits
Shane Etter