Max Mathews
Video
Oral History Information
Interview Date
Birth Date
Deceased Date
Job Title
Computer Designer
Company Name
Bell Laboratories
Max Mathews was working as an engineer at the famed Bell Laboratory in 1954 when he was asked to determine if the computer Bell was designing could create music. The landmark Music 2 and later Music 4 projects put the two concepts together as early as 1957-–the computer and music had a future and Max was there for the birth. Max had moved on to musical programming when Don Buchla and Robert Moog created similar electronic music in the form of the synthesizer. As a Stanford University professor, Max worked with his close friend John Chowning for several decades on a number of programs including the technology used for Yamaha’s DX7.