Five of the best ‘out there’ synths

Taika Systems Photophore $4.99 AB/IAA | iPAD | N/S PRESETS, 6-VOICE, ARPEGGIATOR

This ‘Flock Synthesiser’ uses animal modelling behaviour, as you do, to create sounds. They take the form of 100 oscillators that move through a virtual three-dimensional environment with you controlling sonic properties to shape the results. taikasystems.com

Yonac RoxSyn $19.99 AU/IAA/AB/AL | iPAD/iPHONE | 500 PRESETS, N/S-VOICE, ARPEGGIATOR

If you fancy plugging a guitar into an iPad and using it as a springboard for metamorphic synthesis – and we did when we got up this morning – look no further. Convert vibrato, slides, bends and dynamics into polyphonic synth sounds via a powerful engine. yonac.com

iMusicAlbum SynthScaper $14.99 AB/IAA | iPAD/iPHONE | 130 PRESETS, N/S-VOICE

Here’s something a little offthe-wall in terms of sound design. SynthScaper creates atmospheric ambience, drones, melodic pads or atonal soundscapes with lots of morphing and hands-on control for stunning results. motion-soundscape. blogspot.com

BorderLands Granular $19.99 AB/AL | iPAD | N/S PRESETS, N/S-VOICE

With support from artists like Arovane and Cristian Vogel, this is one of the best experimental music apps out there. It includes gestural interaction and, get this, the ability to ‘sculpt sound with gravity’. “I’m just sculpting sound with gravity dear.” “OK Hun, you carry on…” borderlands-granular.com

BitShape TC-11 $29.99 AB | iPAD/iPHONE, 160 PRESETS, 8-VOICE

This is a programmable modular synth with multitouch and iPad Device motion control. Plenty of presets demo a diverse set of sounds: from pads and synth through huge basses and bells, but really experimentation is key with a huge number of parameters to shape. bitshapesoftware.com