Music creation takes shape in a myriad of ways. For some it’s a seat at the piano or other keyboard while for others, the process happens in a variety of recording studio environments. As music technology advances, it enables creativity while simultaneously fostering much greater freedom. For Justin Holt, the creative process takes place in the great outdoors—thanks to the compact size and versatility provided by the Portacapture X6 6-channel 32-bit float Portable Audio Field Recorder from TASCAM.
Holt has been composing music for the past 15 years. Sometimes, the focus is on making beats while other times his synthesizer takes him down an entirely different path. Living in the country, he has easy access to the great outdoors, and these surroundings inspire him in a variety of ways. But regardless of where his inspiration takes him, his work is all part of The Pink Lady Apple House (https://www.youtube.com/@ThePinkLadyAppleHouse).
By visiting his website, music enthusiasts can expect to see and hear a wide range of creative exploration. “I like to use a Minimoog outside to practice being present among nature—all while escaping the concepts and ideas of traditional music,” Holt explains. “The Portacapture X6 helps me escape the more common approach of studio recording, which provides me more creative freedom. I like to go outside with my Minimoog and practice being present among nature. The X6 enables me to capture what I am doing as if I were in the studio, but without computers and a bunch of cables. It’s just me and my instrument, so I can focus on the music as opposed to the technology that captures it.”
Reflecting on how the Portacapture X6 has opened opportunities for him, Holt says, “The X6’s easy operation lets me focus on the music. The color touchscreen makes it a snap to operate during the recording process and the 96 kHz, 32-bit float recording lets me capture high quality, studio-grade audio more commonly associated with the traditional recording studio. My setup runs the output of the Minimoog Model D into the Portacapture X6 and the output from the X6 into a monitor speaker. The Portacapture’s user interface is super simple and gets you up and running quickly.”
This clean, uncluttered setup is what really inspires Holt. “Even when I am in the lab and have the Model D hooked up,” he explained, “I can quickly record an idea or improvisation without having to turn all my other gear on or open a session in Pro Tools. The Portacapture’s portability and feature set is like having a much bigger studio setup right in your hand—except that I can simply grab and go, much like taking my phone.”
With many musical electronics, questions inevitably arise, so responsive and capable customer / technical support services are crucial to keeping a project on track and on schedule. Here too, Holt had some positive thoughts, “While I haven’t needed technical support with the Portacapture X6, I did have questions during the pre-sales period. I was able to call in, get through to a TASCAM representative quickly and get the information I needed. For me, that’s an important consideration whenever I am about to make a purchase.”
Before turning his attention back to the business of the day, Holt offered these final thoughts regarding his experience with the TASCAM Portacapture X6, “Using the X6 keeps me in touch with nature, which is the best kind of inspiration to me. I make a lot of beats and spend quite a bit of time in the lab, so it’s nice to have the X6 for stuff that the lab won’t allow. Musical Improvisation outdoors is therapy for me and the Portacapture X6 makes it super easy.”
To learn more about Justin Holt, visit https://www.instagram.com/thepinkladyapplehouse/ or https://www.youtube.com/@ThePinkLadyAppleHouse.
