~ICMC 2015 - Sept. 25 - Oct. 1, 2015 - CEMI, University of North Texas
signed 5 channel spatialization system, a small spring reverb
mounted inside a soap dish by David Tudor for his Bandoneon!, and a four channel "stirrer" designed by Lowell
Cross. The box to the far right that resembles a Macintosh
plus is an enclosure for a spark gap built for Pauline Oliveros' piece In Memorium Nikola Tesla which was commissioned to accompany Merce Cunningham's dance Canfield.
2.2 Recording Studio
The recording studio offers a space for students to document
performances and create original music. The studio is linked
to two adjacent rehearsal spaces, and is frequently used for
multitrack recording with MOTU, Allen and Heath, and
PreSonus hardware. Most recording is completed using
Logic, which is also available in all computer labs on campus. This studio is highly used by both graduate students
and upper level undergraduates.
2.3 Art Workshop 112
This workshop space is used for classes, demonstrations, as
well as rehearsals for live-electronics. Fourteen Isobel Hemispherical Speakers are also linked to the classroom, allowing for easy rehearsal for laptop ensembles and liveelectronics. Additional stationary computers flank the room,
providing access to Logic, SuperCollider, Max, and Ableton
Live.
2.4 Performance Spaces
Performances of computer and live-electronic music occur
throughout Wesleyan's diverse spaces, including less conventional spaces such as the library and network of tunnels
that link classrooms and concert halls. The most highly used
performances spaces include Memorial Chapel, Beckham
Hall, World Music Hall, CFA Hall, and Crowell Concert
Hall.
Memorial Chapel is one of the oldest performance spaces
on campus, and has a MIDI controlled organ. The annual
Musical Singularity concerts begun by Carl Testa and Brian
Parks feature computer controlled works written specifically
for these features of the organ. Beckham Hall and World
Music Hall both allow for flexible speaker and audience
arrangements, and have often been the site of performances
by the Toneburst Laptop Ensemble, as well as installations
and multimedia performances, such as John Cage's
HPSCHD (Beckham Hall). The striking acoustic of Beckham Hall made it an ideal octophonic performance space for
the SEAMUS 2014 National Conference. The CFA Hall and
the World Music Hall provide intimate performance environments equally suitable for formal and informal concerts,
and have been the site of a recurring Tuesday night concert
series in experimental music. The Crowell Concert Hall is
the most formal of these spaces, and is often used for instrumental performance with and without electronics. For all
concert spaces, the WUEMS studio supplies eight QSC
speakers and a subwoofer for multichannel configurations
and to augment the permanently installed sound systems in
those spaces.
2.5 World Instrument Collection
In 1998, the World Instrument Collection (WIC) accepted
the donation of the David Tudor's electronic instruments.
This collection includes a vast array of homemade electronics, instruments built by Don Buchla, Hugh LeCaine, Tony
Gnazzo and others, and an equally vast collection of effects
pedals that were all used in Tudor's compositions. Recent
work by Michael Johnsen (composer and designer of modules for Pittsburgh modular) and You Nakai have made
enormous strides in identifying the connection of specific
modules to specific pieces. A symposium is being planned
for February 2016 that will present that research together
with work by others on the complex and poorly understood
career of Tudor.
In December 2014 WIC received a donation of instruments from composer David Behrman, who has a long and
rich history with David Tudor from his time as a musician
in the Merce Cunningham Dance Company and with Alvin
Lucier from their days as members of the Sonic Arts Union.
In addition, Peter Blasser of Ciat-Lonbarde and Shbobo is
donating a set of his early instruments to the WIC, many of
which have been used in the workshops and performances
that have been a focus of his graduate work at Wesleyan.
The resurgence of idiosyncratic analog electronic circuitry
has made Wesleyan a dynamic environment for exploring
these instruments and their potential interrelation with contemporary computer music performance practices.
3. PERFORMANCE AND CREATIVE
WORK
Performance and creative work are intertwined at Wesleyan.
Graduate and undergraduate students play in the wide range
of ensembles offered on campus, and perform their own
work as well as that of their peers. The following discusses
aspects of performance related specifically to liveelectronics or computer music on campus, and the coursework that supports these creative efforts.
3.1 Coursework
Wesleyan currently offers a B.A. and M.A. in music. The
core undergraduate courses are taught by Ron Kuivila and
Paula Matthusen.
Introduction to Experimental Music (MUSC 109) has
been offered at Wesleyan for approximately four decades,
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