Music 307
Introduction to Computer Music
FALL 2008
Dr. W. Andrew Schloss
Office: MacLaurin A177
Local: x7931 Office Hours: Weds 4:30-5:30 pm or by appointment
email: aschloss at finearts dot uvic dot ca
TA: Ruth Guechtal
Office: MacLaurin A172
Office Hours: Thursday 1-3 pm
email: undirtowed at yahoo dot com
Classes: MacLaurin B120, B008, and the Laboratory for Extended Media
(LEM)
(default location: B120)
Tues 2:30-4:20 and Fri 2:30-3:20
TEXT: Coursepack, available in the bookstore. It contains:
1. Jean-Claude Risset, foreward to Electroacoustic Music: Analytical Perspectives, Thomas Licata, editor
2. K. Stockhausen, Four Criteria of Electronic Music, from Stockhausen on Music: Lectures and Interviews
3. Charles Dodge and Thomas Jerse, Computer Music: Chapter 2, pp 25-61
4. John Chowning, The Synthesis of Complex Audio Spectra by Means of Frequency Modulation, Computer Music Journal 1977
5. David Jaffe, Ten Criteria for Evaluating Synthesis Techniques, Computer Music Journal 1995
6. Gareth Loy, Musicians Make a Standard: The MIDI Phenomenon, Computer Music Journal 1985
Texts on Reserve in the library
Electric Sound by Joel Chadabe
Foundations of Computer Music edited by Curtis Roads and John
Strawn
The Music Machine edited by Curtis Roads
Twentieth Century Music by H.H. Stuckenschmidt
Computer Music by Charles Dodge and Thomas Jerse: Chapter 2 and pp 80-85, 322-329
Articles on reserve in the library
A Tutorial on Digital Sound Synthesis Techniques by Giovanni De Poli
The Dysfunctions of MIDI Computer Music Journal 12(1): 19-28.
1988 by F. R. Moore
Communicating with Meaningless Numbers Computer Music Journal
15(4): 74-77 by David Zicarelli
Grading:
| Labs (5) | 40% |
| Midterm | 30% |
| Final Project | 30% |
Week 1 Introduction, goals, expectations. A brief history of the
Twentieth Century.
Technology vs. aesthetics in computer music and
contemporary music in general. What is music? What is computer music?
The distinctions have as much to do with aesthetics as with technology/tools. Art vs. Technology: as old as the human race.
Music synthesis/analysis. CCRMA and IRCAM. Cahill, Theremin, Moog,
Buchla, Mathews, Boulez, Cage, et alia.
Sept 5 A brief history of Musique concrete. Henry, Schaffer,
et alia. Electronic vs. Electroacoustic vs. Computer Music.
LISTENING: Messiaen, Quartet for the End of Time, Oraison Pour Quartout D'Ondes
READING: Risset's foreward to Electroacoustic Music
Week 2 Electronic/Electroacoustic/Computer Music. Non-destructive editing, EDL, what does real-time really mean? The "psychic" editor.
Sept 9 Musical examples of analog vs. digital synthesis.
LISTENING: Cage, Second Construction ("electronic aesthetic" but entirely acoustic music)
Week 3 Multitrack digital recording/editing using Pro Tools.
Field recording with portable DAT machine and transfer to disk.
Sept 16 Lab 1 Electroacoustic
presentations (continue for next several classes). [Due: Ongoing,
beginning on Sept 16]
LISTENING: Schaeffer/Henry, Symphonie pour un homme seul; Beatles, Revolution 9, Koonce, Walkabout
READING: Chapter 2 of Computer Music (pp 25-61) by Charles Dodge
Week 4 MIDI protocol, binary
and hexadecimalumber number systems.
Analog synthesis, the Buchla synthesizer, VCA, VCO, Ring modulation, how to record session directly to disk.
READING:
Loy's article on MIDI
Sept 23 Lab 2
Musique Concrete using digital techniques [Due: Oct 7]
Week 5 Creating spatial/psychoacoustic effects, Binaural hearing,
masking, mp3.
Sept 30 Altering sound files using DSP plugins.
Week 6 Digital recording chain, Nyquest theory, Aliasing, Compositional
Techniques.
Oct 7 Lab 3 Buchla
synthesizer [Due: Oct 24]
READING: Stockhausen's article on electronic music techniques
Week 7 Additive Synthesis, MSP demo. Chowning's FM article.
Oct 14 Overview of synthesis Techniques, Fixed-waveform synthesis, additive, subtractive, non-linear (FM)
Waveshaping, Physical Modeling.
READING: Chowning's FM article
Week 8 Synthesis, cont'd
Oct 21
READING: Jaffe's synthesis article
Week 9 Introduction to MAX (object-oriented programming).
Oct 28 Computer Music performance videos (Suite from the Seven
Wonders, UNI, etc)
Lab 4 FM synthesis, Fourier Analysis, 3D spectra [Due November 18]
Week 10 More Max, using tables, creating your own sequencer
using the seq and multi objects.
November 4 Editor/librarians for synthesizers using system exclusive data (the "trap-door" of MIDI)
Week 11 Using Pro Tools and Max/MSP to combine MIDI and digital
audio, introduction to Detonate, piano roll notation, score
following.
November 11 Reading Break
MIDTERM: NOVEMBER 18 , TIMELINE of Music Technology
Week 12
November 18 Lab 5 Programming MIDI
using Max, creating your own MIDI environments. [Due November 28]
Week 13 Max/MSP continued
November 25 Final
Projects [Due: December 9]
Week 14 Review
December (Last Class December 2)
Final project due December 9th by 4 pm
Note: for all lab assignments, you must HAND IN A WRITTEN PAGE(s)
DESCRIBING YOUR WORK
(Musical materials, tracks, problems (if any), strategy, etc.)
You won't get a grade if there is no writeup!