🗺️ How the Periodic Table Works
Imagine a big poster of little boxes, like a box of crayons. Each box is one sound-idea from a year in music. Slide the years from 1950 to 2026 and the boxes change. There are 30 year-windows.
The colors tell you what kind of sticker you picked. Mix up to four of them and you have a recipe.
1
Styles
The clothes the song wears. Motown Soul, Delta Blues, Shoegaze, Hyperpop.
2
Instruments
The toys that make the noise. A TR-808 drum box, a Minimoog, a Fender Stratocaster guitar.
3
Notes & grooves
The ladder the melody climbs. Dorian Mode, 12-Bar Blues, a lopsided beat.
4
Studio tricks
The kitchen where the song gets cooked. Tape warmth, a Fairchild hug, a metal-plate echo.
🧪 The Sonic Alchemy Prompt Engine
Music apps like Suno and Udio are like a chef who only knows the words you say. If you say “make a nice song,” you get plastic food. If you name the real toys, the chef copies those toys.
Sonic Alchemy stacks four layers so you do not have to write a fancy sentence: style, gear, notes, studio.
Motown Soul Style,
authentic Roland TR-808, Minimoog,
Dorian Mode harmony,
Tape Saturation production, warm analog room harmonics, 120-132 BPM, highly detailed mix
That list is one recipe: old Detroit soul clothes, a boom-box drum kit, a cool-not-sad scale, and tape warmth so it does not sound like a phone speaker.
1
Pick stickers
Tap a box, then “+ Add to Recipe” (or hold Shift and click). Up to 4 stickers.
2
Open the kitchen
Tap 🧪 Sonic Alchemy up top, or the little pill in the bottom-right corner.
3
Copy the list
One tap copies the whole shopping list. Paste it into Suno, Udio, or your music app.
4
Save (optional)
Sign in with Google if you want a picture of the recipe and a shelf to keep them on.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Why type old machine names like “Fairchild 670” or “TR-808”?
The computer learned music by listening to real records. Those records were made on named boxes. If you say the box’s name, it copies that box’s personality — a warm hug, a boom kick — instead of a flat beep. Type the real name when you want that personality.
Is the Periodic Table of Music free?
Yes. Look at all 30 year-windows, open any box, build a recipe, and copy the list. No account. No card.
What do I get if I sign in with Google?
Two extra toys, that’s it:
- A square picture of your recipe (1200×1200) ready to post.
- My Crates — a shelf where you name, save, and reopen recipes.
What are MINY Vinyl cards?
A tiny real record you can hold. The song lives on the card, and a tap can open the stream for fans. That is MINY. More at
minyvinyl.com.
Can I send someone one year-window?
Yes. Tap Share Era next to Play and Print. It copies a link like minyvinyl.com/pt#1970s-mid, or opens your phone’s share sheet.