Eclectic I

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

CC Wk 11





Monday, October 23, 2006

Week 11 - AA - Doppler

Does anyone else find the word "Doppler" kind of funny?

Doppler

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Forum wk 11

Forum

Luke Harrald



As you can see, Luke was hard at work attending conferences during his stay in Paris.


After having spent 7 weeks on a grant funded trip to Paris, Luke has returned with some interesting tales of his time there. He was there to attend a major event in Paris called 'nime' (new interfaces for musical expression) held this year at Pierre Boulez’s IRCAM- Centre Pompidou and to go to the ccmix summer intensive course at Xenakis’s EMF institute.




The CCmix website... pity thats all there is. The rest is just PDF documents. A program based around technology.. and they don't have a functioning website?


I felt very self conscious when Luke relayed the incredible things people presented at ‘nime.’

Firstly was a room with movable baffles to alter the resonance of the room. The possibilities for cutting out all resonant frequencies of a room or targeting specific ones would have incredible creative outcomes. I could imagine changing the resonant frequencies of a room in real time as part of a performance; it would put an EQ and mixing desk to shame with the possibilities.

The installation for 10 snare drums sounded interesting. The idea behind the installation is the use of little Piezzo speakers to excite the skin of each drum in a different way. I think something like that would have worked well in a very resonant space, so different frequencies could ring out and interact with each other. Maybe I just have the room with the movable baffles on my brain. :P

The earthquake simulator seemed interesting, although other than using sub sonic frequencies, I'm unsure as to the musical application of it. Still cool though.

"The Bent Leather Band" also seemed interesting. I can understand their view point of creating controllers that are artistic and interactive for creating music with technology, yet I feel that there approach limits what technology can do, because their trying to make it conform to a historical standard. Any interactive technological device should think outside the box, addressing the specific functions which they wish to achieve. Although on a performance level, it would be a lot more engaging to see them play than someone crouched behind a computer screen. But devices that offer a performance aspect with out being based on standard instruments are still possible. Another point to make is that things like timbre of acoustic instruments are something that is a great thing to explore on the technological side of things. I might just have to sit on the fence on this subject.

Tying into this idea creating musical interfaces which offer a performance aspect without being based on an instrument was Adachi Tomomi's Jacket controller. It basically manipulated his voice as he sung. It was quite incredible to see, but aesthetically the sound wasn’t all that interesting. It had its moments, but overall got a bit tedious. I also had this awful thought of the latest commercial pop acts AKA Britney spears or some terrible boy band using these jackets in there performances to trigger certain sounds etc. I really hate that type of 'music.'

Luke’s intensive summer CCmix course at Xenakis’s EMF institute herald the production of his piece “monuments” based on the monuments around Paris. To create the sounds he used a combination of the programs Max and Jitter and then sequenced them within Pro Tools. I really enjoyed the piece though. It had a very subtle and emotional mood. It reminded me of soft eerie strings being played in a minor key. My only criticism was that it could have been a bit shorter, or introduced other materials. It was really well done though. The use of dynamics in particular worked really well.

Xenakis’s Upic system at the EMF institute seemed interesting, but I think it would take a long time to master, and I would prefer a different approach to utilising the sound possibilities of wave table synthesis.

The last thing I would like to comment on in this ridiculously long blog is a Poem Luke read us which were part of a paper talk presented at the ‘nime’ conference. I really liked the sentiments about moving past the consumerist attitude. Firstly it relates to idea that mastering a program is paramount to constantly upgrading before you can use something to its full potential. And secondly in our current environmental situation, consumption is a big issue we all need to be aware of.

Enhancement Vs Interaction

References
Luke, Harrald. "My trip to Paris." Lecture presented at University of Adelaide, 10 October 2006.

Pic References in order of appearance
1. Luke,Harrold. "playing guitar in france."
2. CCmix. "CCmix page." 20 october 2006.

Sunday, October 15, 2006

CCWK10

I know how to use this stuff, heres the proof.



MOO!.

Week 10 - AA - Spectral Water

It could sound better, but I was running out of time. I think if I got rid of the beeps so it was more a wash of noise then it would sound better.



Water

Thursday, October 12, 2006

Week 10 forum

For Forum/workshop we spent the whole 2 hours having a jam. It was enjoyable, but ultimately I'm feeling a bit limited on the Jupiter 4. I know how to achieve certain sounds now and I don't feel challenged anymore. As I was discussing with David, it is like the previous weeks were all building up to the improv jam with Dr Sardeshmukh. Now I have had such and incredible experience where everything came together and we created something amazing, there’s nothing new to do. Seb brought in his game boy in this week, giving him something different, new and interesting to work with. I on the other hand was still doing what I perfected a couple of weeks ago.

I think one of my major focuses in the creation of music, is using new and varied sounds and textures, and discovering new ways to layer them which produce something entirely new and different than before. If I can’t do this I get bored and frustrated. I accredit this to being major factor as to why I didn’t get as much out of jam this week.

So to counteract this problem, I plan to bring my FX station in next week and hopefully experiment and explore the possibilities it offers. It should hopefully add a whole new dimension to what I create and thus regenerate my enthusiasm.

I had considered using my FX station from the start, but came to the conclusion that I should discover the best way to utilise the Jupiter 4 first. Adding in too many variables would have created too many options, detracting from understanding the core element of the sound I produced and thus limiting me from creating and expressing to the best of my ability.

A good example of what I am trying to say is that if you were to learn to run before you could stand, ultimately you wouldn’t be able to run forever and would fall over because you couldn’t keep balance. By learning to stand you have the foundation to then run but stop again when necessary. Similarly, I now have a good understanding of how to use the Jupiter 4, so the extra options are welcome additions that create interest and excitement to the sound, but I can still take them away when necessary.

My group has decided to try and play along to a movie. This means as a group we need to be conscious of what we are doing in relation to what is on screen. This added a new challenge. Rather than judging when to add more or to take away from the group sound by ear, what we saw became the guideline for sounds. Certain sections needed to be stark and suspenseful, some needed to mimic the excitement of the action on screen, and other moments needed to be relaxed and un-intrusive.

From the small amount of time we spent trying to accompany the film it seemed to re-spark my interest. So with both the use of my FX station and the accompanying movie, I think next week should be a good step into re-kindling my involvement and enthusiasm within the group.

Sunday, October 08, 2006

CC Wk9

Here is some picures of Will, Jake and I setting up my "Draw My Bar" Bidule so that the paramaters could be controlled remotely by 2 other computers. Jake is playing the Keyboard and Will is playing with a Flanger put on the end of the patch, while I am changing the Paramaters of each harmonic.







And here is how it sounds.

Playing with Jakes bar remotely

Week 9 - AA - Tone Wheel Patch

This week’s exercise began with me employing the simple concept of multiplying the fundamental frequency to create the harmonic and sub harmonic series. Then Ben reminded me that I needed to add the resulting frequencies together so that they were the one sound. From there it turned into a group effort between Ben and I to create the most dynamic and interesting sound while keeping the Bidules simple and neat, employing the idea of Bidules within Bidules to help in the organisation department. I am very proud of what has been accomplished and I think I will use this Bidule within my main Creative Computing assignment, as Ben and I have made it possible to alter many parameters to get a diverse sound. The sound we recorded was based on the readings we were set this week. Shortening the length and Decay of the sound progressively to achieve the stereotypical Hammond Draw Bar Organ Sound.

This is a picture of the Bidule from the outside



This is inside the Bidule.



Inside One of the Harmonic Bidules. It's similar to a Basic FM Synth but with a constant multiplying the fundamental to create the desired harmonic.



And all of the controll parameter windows opened set to achieve the Hammond Draw Bar Organ Sound.




And finally....how it sounds...

Draw My Bar

p.s. - I just listened to it and it has a heap of pops for some reason, but when we were playing it and the original recording sounded fine. I did 192 MP3 encoding in iTunes so I don't know whats going on. But I'm tired So I'm going to go home and go to bed.

Friday, October 06, 2006

Wk 9 Forum

Tyson Hopprich. Aka DJ TRIP



I am very disappointed to have missed this forum presentation as I have seen Tyson perform before and I really appreciate what he does musically. Thankfully Christian has been able to provide me with a recording of the session.

Tyson describes himself as an "electronic musician composing using 'obsolete technology.*1" I think he proves that no technology is truly obsolete in the creation of music, so long as you are willing to be creative in your application of it.

He has been composing for about 10 years. In 98 he released his first EP, and has worked on numerous projects over the span of his career. From independently recording and releasing his own cd's, to running workshops on composing and Dj'ing even working on a film score, all this in amongst his steady DJ sets around Adelaide and the multiple groups he has been a part of.

Tyson utilises a specialised pallet of tools for composing which identify his unique musical sound. The Commodore Amega being the principle instrument he employs. Its low sample rate and general Low-Fi sound is paramount to his style. On this he uses a tracker program called optamed that he describes as a cross between Pro Tools waveform editing and Super Collider with its coding and value approach.

He also uses a secret music program within a game on his game boy that has a distinct Low-Fi video game sound to it. The next instrument he employs is a CD turntable that he feeds into his computer. He feels offers freedom as only using computers for sound creating and manipulation can be a bit to rigid and not free enough. And finally he uses a Dr Sample to manipulate sound from all of these instruments.

Although he has now upgraded to PC and runs Fruity Loops for its on the fly beat making compatibilities when working with choreographers and Adobe Audition for mastering a final product, the previously mentioned tools are still his main tools for music creation.

Listening to the recording of the improv jam session just made we want to get up and dance. The group sounded as though the fed of each other brilliantly. Offering a diverse pallet of textures and knowing when to come in and out of a mix and even doing brilliant changes of style without falling out, and keeping it flowing smoothly.

Tyson’s opinion that less is more again seems to be echoing what I have commented on in previous blogs. His exact words “a smaller box to work in makes it more possible to get ideas out*2” express my idea precisely! I like having certain limitations to work against to use to my creative example and I am finding more and more, this is a trend a lot of good musicians seem to be doing.

I think Tyson what Tyson had to share and his approach to music was extremely relative to me and I have learnt a lot from listening to him talk and the jam session. The fact that he has spent all his energies on specific tools (such as the Amega) and not tried to continually update, and the mastery that he has gained from this really pin points the need to specialise and create self limitations to find your own style and approach when creating music using technology.

References
*Tyson, Hopprich. Week 9 Foruum Presentation. DJ trips appraoch to Improvisation Lecture presented at University Adelaide 6 October 2006.

Pic Refrence

#1 John Delaney. Week 9 Forum presentation. John Delaneys blog. www.intangent.blogspot.com 5 October 2006.

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Week 7 Movie

Here is my belated movie file with Audio attached. (It's late due to attachment issues which needed to be resolved using Quicktime Pro)

Support your Communist government!