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Showing posts from June, 2007

Char Davies Article on "Virtual Space"

I thought this was an interesting article on Virtual Spaces by Char Davies. Check out her website for more interesting information. http://www.immersence.com/ Virtual Space by Char Davies Published in SPACE in Science, Art and Society. François Penz, Gregory Radick and Robert Howell, eds. Cambridge, England: Cambridge Universty Press (2004), pp. 69-104, illus. PLEASE SEE THE ABOVE LINK FOR THE FULL ARTICLE

Notations 21

Theresa Sauer Tisano from the American Musicological Society is currently compiling innovative scores for a contemporary graphic notation anthology called "Notations 21". The website and submission guidelines can be found at: http://www.notations21.net/composersinfo.html Mission for Notations 21 1. To globally promote innovation and creativity in music composition. 2. To create a public awareness and interest in the works of contemporary composers. 3. To explore the natural and necessary relationship between music and the visual arts. 4. To celebrate the composers who take risks, ask questions, and further the progress of the arts.

'Write' of Passage: Deconstructing the BMI and ASCAP Young Composer Awards

Barbara Jepson writes an article comparing ASCAP's and BMI's adjudication process, especially in regard to possible gender bias. Check out the article at: http://www.newmusicbox.org/article.nmbx?id=2588

Video Game Music Composer Winifred Phillips

Video Game Music Composer Winifred Phillips Winifred Phillips is an Interactive Achievement Award winning composer of music for video games. Working alongside her award winning music producer Winnie Waldron, Winifred writes music for video games, radio and TV. Check out the interview done by Bella Online at: http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art50912.asp More information can be found at Phillips' website: http://www.winifredphillips.com/

Lesson Plan: Mixing Board and Electronic Instruments

Sound, Noise, and Electronic Music Group 1: Ages 5-7 Group 2: Ages 8-10 Group 3: Ages 10-13 Objectives Group 1&2: Recognition of various sound waves, ability to construct simple compositions using sound waves, training the voice to imitate sound waves, using the body to imitate sound waves in musical movement, learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation with instruments, continuation of Primer Level in Keyboard playing. Group 3: Recognition of various sound waves and noise types, ability to construct compositions using graphic notation, understanding the music history behind electronic music (John Cage, Futurists, noise, early electronic instruments, etc.), learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation and experimentation with instruments and various sound producers, using the voice for sonic imitation of sound waves, creating vocal compositions with graphic notation (vocalizations), continuation of Primer Level and Level 1

Lesson Plan: Graphic Notation

Sound, Noise, and Electronic Music Group 1: Ages 5-7 Group 2: Ages 8-10 Group 3: Ages 10-13 Objectives Group 1&2: Recognition of various sound waves, ability to construct simple compositions using sound waves, training the voice to imitate sound waves, using the body to imitate sound waves in musical movement, learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation with instruments, continuation of Primer Level in Keyboard playing. Group 3: Recognition of various sound waves and noise types, ability to construct compositions using graphic notation, understanding the music history behind electronic music (John Cage, Futurists, noise, early electronic instruments, etc.), learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation and experimentation with instruments and various sound producers, using the voice for sonic imitation of sound waves, creating vocal compositions with graphic notation (vocalizations), continuation of Primer Level and Level 1

Lesson Plan: Sound Orchestra

Sound, Noise, and Electronic Music Group 1: Ages 5-7 Group 2: Ages 8-10 Group 3: Ages 10-13 Objectives Group 1&2: Recognition of various sound waves, ability to construct simple compositions using sound waves, training the voice to imitate sound waves, using the body to imitate sound waves in musical movement, learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation with instruments, continuation of Primer Level in Keyboard playing. Group 3: Recognition of various sound waves and noise types, ability to construct compositions using graphic notation, understanding the music history behind electronic music (John Cage, Futurists, noise, early electronic instruments, etc.), learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation and experimentation with instruments and various sound producers, using the voice for sonic imitation of sound waves, creating vocal compositions with graphic notation (vocalizations), continuation of Primer Level and Level 1

Lesson Plan: Intro to Sound and Noise

Group 1: Ages 5-7 Group 2: Ages 8-10 Group 3: Ages 10-13 Objectives Group 1&2: Recognition of various sound waves, ability to construct simple compositions using sound waves, training the voice to imitate sound waves, using the body to imitate sound waves in musical movement, learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation with instruments, continuation of Primer Level in Keyboard playing. Group 3: Recognition of various sound waves and noise types, ability to construct compositions using graphic notation, understanding the music history behind electronic music (John Cage, Futurists, noise, early electronic instruments, etc.), learning concepts of timbre and noise as music, encouraging improvisation and experimentation with instruments and various sound producers, using the voice for sonic imitation of sound waves, creating vocal compositions with graphic notation (vocalizations), continuation of Primer Level and Level 1 Keyboard playing. Sound, Noise, and

IMANI Wind Quintet Artist Profile

IMANI WINDS I recently heard some musical clips from the Imani Winds on National Public Radio. They have a unique sound and mission that truly make them the wind quintet of the 21st century. From their webite http://www.imaniwinds.com/about.html "Since its inception in 1997, the Grammy-nominated Imani Winds, comprised of five unabashedly adventurous yet delightfully accessible musicians, has been enriching the traditional wind quintet repertoire with European, African, Latin American and American music traditions. Just as the name Imani denotes in Swahili (faith), the ensemble closely follows its mission over nearly a decade, carving out a distinct presence in the classical music world for their dynamic playing, culturally poignant programming and inspirational outreach programs, which they have brought to many communities throughout the country."

Composer's Essential Music Book List

As a composer, I have found these practical books to be invaluable to me. The Study of Orchestration Samuel Adler A great resource covering all instrumental writing, with sections on contemporary writing techniques. The appendix in the back is a quick reference guide. The Essential Music Reference Library Alfred Publishing Complete with an essential dictionary of music, orchestration, music notation,and rhyming dictionary, this quick reference guide has been a godsend. Dictionary of Percussion Terms Lang/Spivak I think one of the weaknesses of the contemporary composer is the inability to write exciting and appropriate percussion parts. This quick reference helps with defining the proper terms for techniques, mallets, instruments, etc., and will open up the possiblities of the compositional palette. Schirmer Pocket Manual of Musical Terms Another great quick reference guide. Tonal Harmony Kostka and Payne I swallowed this music theory book whole. It is a must for serious composers. Ea

Working with Adobe Imageready

For my current video piece, I am using Adobe Imageready to edit each frame individually. The original material consists of video and animated imgery in Bryce (pretty user-friendly 3D animation software). Using the ACTION palette in Adobe Imageready, I can create effects used in Photoshop, but not common in video editing software such as Final Cut Pro. Here is a clip, slightly morphed: I used a combination of the Watercolor effect, the Plastic Wrap effect, and some changes in color and contrast to change something like this: To something like this: One frame at a time. The ACTIONS palette allows you to set up your effects and assign them to a single key, like F7. Then it is a matter of selecting each frame and clicking F7. I wish there was a way to apply these effects to the entire layer palette, but it seems to work only with styles (like shadows, embossing, etc.). I am composing the tracks using live recording, my Malletkat, Garageband, Finale, and Apple's built-in voices. Should

Women in Multimedia Bibliography

THIS IS AN EXCELLENT LIST OF BOOKS USED FOR MY 2005 THESIS ON WOMEN IN MULTIMEDIA. SELECT BIBLIOGRAPY Ahtila, Eija-Liisa, Vanessa Beecroft, Willie Doherty, Douglas Gordon, Aernout Mik, Tony Oursler, Sam Samore, Georgiana Starr, and Gillian Wearing. ID: An International Survey on the Notion of Identity in Contemporary Art. Eindhoven: Stedelijk Van Abbemuseum, 1996. Ammer, Christine. Unsung: A History of Women in American Music. Portland: Amadeus Press, 2001. Anderson, Laurie. The End of the Moon. Gusman Center for the Performing Arts, Miami, 23 October 2004. Armstrong, Simon and Joan Rothfuss. In the Spirit of Fluxus. Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1993. Berberian, Cathy. Stripsody. New York: C.F. Peters Corporation, 1966. Born, Georgina. Rationalizing Culture: IRCAM, Boulez, and the Institutionalization of the Musical Avante-Garde. Berkeley, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press, 1995. Bortez, Benjamin and Edward T.

We are all Creatures of Moisture - Review

REVIEW: We Are All Creatures of Moisture Kevin Patton/Maria Del Carmen Montoya Concert 1 SEAMUS 2006 A young woman, dressed in a traditional Mexican skirt and elaborate costume, enters the darkened hall. Hiding her face behind a handmade skull mask, she approaches a semicircle of oversized glasses filled with water. With each step, a forceful stomp and a whirlwind of bells fill the air. She sits and begins her ritual, a casting of spells of castigation and forgiveness for misogynistic sins against her foremothers. In hushed dialect she tells the story of her grandfather who chose his wife for her lithe figure, not because of his attraction for her but because he could purchase cheaper clothes for her at the market. Above images of a blindfolded woman spitting out water reflect the young woman, an ancient spirit, who continues to pour out the tales from the past. With purpose she drops magic stones into the water and in a trancelike motion uses her nails to force sound from the stagnan