Ejay Creativity Applications

As with much eJay "home studio" software, at first sight the format of this CD-ROM appears daunting and complex; on greater acquaintance it becomes clear, almost foolproof. The basic on-screen tool is a "sample selection window", with which the would-be DJ can work up the perfect party soundtrack using the provided solos, loops, riffs, paradiddles and so forth. The already synchronised (140 bpm) and harmonised (A minor) music samples include drum grooves, bass sounds, piano and organ trills, plus more complicated but rewarding chunks of proper melody. Utilising the sample manager you can mix, warp and weave together these uncopyrighted bars of music into an endless and seamless wall of funkadelic sound; simply fiddling around with the onscreen knobs is pretty cool, too.

Other features, some unique to Ibiza eJay, include an Animator, for your own visual effects, an FX Studio, that allows you to mix in your own sounds, a Time Stretcher, that ensures those imported samples hit the right beat, and a "Hyper Generator", a kind of on-disk synthesiser, for when you want to emit some truly left-field noises. There are also links to the eJay website, which offers still more opportunities for Mediterranean-style musical mixology. Ay carumba! --Sean Thomas

Music Director Gold features 9,000 samples that can be mixed and melded onto 256 slickly organised on-disk tracks. The relatively foolproof interface allows you to swiftly locate just the right groove or lick, which you can then drag 'n' drop into your budding meisterwerk. As with all eJay products, the software automatically matches up the tempos and timbres, so there are no jarring musical mismarriages. The same goes for the effects, such as solo/mute, panorama and so on. One interesting add-on allows you to do funky stuff with Wave Editing and Time Stretching; another feature allows you to import or export your tracks as MP3s and data files. You can also make your own digital videos, and export them too; moreover, everything you make can be automatically backed-up to CD-ROM or hard disk.

So what's the catch? Well, there's nothing truly revolutionary about this kit, despite what some might claim; what is gratifying is seeing it all in one comprehensive package. --Sean Thomas

The eJay Sound Selection Hip Hop Special allows you to sample myriad wave grooves from the 5000 hip-hop, old skool, R&B, ambient, funk and techno licks stored on disk. These samples are compatible with any other eJay software you might have, as well as a multitude of other music creation programs. The traditional and potent eJay browser allows you to sort licks into styles, instrument, tempo or key. When you want to drag and drop that perfect bass lick into your song, it's there, ready and waiting. That said, even with all these samples at your fingertips you may still lack the perfect guitar twang or hi-hat razzle. Fear not: included on disk is a simple to use wave editor and a tempo adjusting "time-stretcher" that will let you rework any of the digital 16-bit sounds and loops until they suit your mood.

Of course, as with all home music software, there's a slight lack of romance: twiddling the knobs at home just ain't the same as pumping your sax at the Blue Note. But for a beginner's intro into the groovy world of computer music, this software is tickety-boo. --Sean Thomas