BLURRING THE LINES: AN INTEGRATED COMPOSITIONAL MODEL FOR DIGITAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT DESIGN

CIM14 9th Conference on Interdisciplinary Musicolog

Loop: A Circular Ferric Memory in Slow Decline

The author describes the manipulation of time and memory in LOOP, a tape-based sound installation started in 2004. Many of my artworks are hybrid assemblages of obsolete and contemporary technology. The use of the obsolete is most immediately apparent in LOOP, a long-running (2004-present) sound installation built out of a Fostex X-34 four track recorder and C90 cassette tape. The Fostex X-34 is in many ways unexceptional: its sound and build quality are adequate at best. Indeed, most notable is perhaps that, by the time of its release in April 2000, it was arguably already rendered obsolete by the rise of MiniDisc recorders and audio-capable home computers. Nevertheless, the X-34 fitted the modest budget of a Birmingham schoolboy, and I acquired a lightly used and moderately discounted ex-demo unit about three months after its launch. The accessibility of the cassette tape was also key: while its popularity had significantly diminished after its late 1980s peak, blank tapes remained readily locally available

Wiring the ear: Instrumentality and aural primacy in and after David Tudor’s Unstable Circuits

The early 20th century saw a spate of innovative electronic musical instruments. For instance, the theremin (1919) and Ondes Martenot (1928) not only offered new sound generation techniques, but married them to similarly innovative means of interaction. However, by the late 1920s, the development of novel performance interfaces had stalled, and the familiar organ-type keyboard re-appeared on many electronic instruments of the 1930s (Manning 2004, pp. 4-6). Moreover, as the era of the tape-based studio began postwar, the link between electronic music and live performance seemed to recede (Ibid., pp. 19-74). Compared to the limited timbres of most earlier electronic instruments, the sound creation and manipulation possibilities of tape were more sophisticated. However, splicing together even a short piece could take months of toil. Thus, by the mid-1960s, a number of real-time alternatives had emerged, from Stockhausen’s electronic processing of acoustic instruments, to the modular synthesizer, and the live electronics of David Tudor

MAMIC: a visual programming library for amalgamating Mathematics and Coding through Music

The role of computing within the National Curriculum framework has changed dramatically in recent times. Traditionally, the computing curriculum in schools focussed on software competency and proficiency in common but basic tasks such as word processing, delivered through the subject of Information Communication Technology (ICT). In other words, students became perfunctory but perhaps uninspired end users, closely tied to ubiquitous commercial packages such as Microsoft Office. However, in September 2014, then Education Secretary Michael Gove made significant changes to the National Curriculum that affected both primary and secondary education in the UK. This has consisted in essence of an enforced shift from the prior ICT model to one that, at least in theory, embraces coding as a fundamental tenet of computing (i.e. active creation rather than end use, closely related to Rushkoff’s notion of “programmed or be programmed” [7]) and promotes computational thinking more broadly [1]. For instance, Key Stage 1 now asks that students actively consider program structure and sequential design as well as demonstrate core competency [2]. The inclusion of computational thinking seems particularly prescient and important: if the ability to cheaply outsource the drudgery of basic software development (particularly to the far east) may mean that the ability to code is, in and of itself, becoming less important from a UK labour perspective, it could be argued that students able to adopt a computational mindset, may be better prepared to apply computing principles to a range of scenarios

Embracing openness: music technology pedagogy and curricula after the decline of the studio

Conference presentation; 'Learning On/With the Open Web'. 25th October 201

Soundtrack as Auditory Interface: Exploring an Alternative to Audio Description for Theatre

Conference paper presented at Reproduced Sound 2017 - Sound Quality by Design, organised by the Institute of Acoustics in collaboration with ISCE, AES, ABTT, APRS. - 21-23 November 2017 at Nottingham UniversityTheatre conventionally relies heavily on the visual, for instance to convey narrative and context, and to set the scene. This reliance can significantly hinder the experience of blind and visually impaired people, and can in some cases exclude them entirely. Audio description for theatre attempts to make performances accessible for blind and visually impaired patrons by translating the visual aspects of a performance into a spoken commentary that fits between the gaps in actors’ dialogue. However, while 40% of UK theatres have offered at least one recent audio-described performance,1 its methods remain largely untested and potentially problematic. We describe the use of an ambiently diffused soundtrack as an alternative to audio description for theatre as part of a recent research project at the University of Wolverhampton. Informed by conceptualisations of the soundtrack posed by theorist-composers Michel Chion and Stephen Deutsch, our approach is to use an assemblage of informative and emotive sounds to provide a kind of auditory interface or "way in" to the performance. Crucially, the soundtrack evokes and implies but, contrary to audio-description, does not enforce a single rigid or fixed interpretation. Additionally, use of the house sound reinforcement system also removes the need for specialised and potentially othering personal equipment. The remainder of this paper provides background to the project and related work, outlines the theoretical basis of the project, discusses two trial performances and initial findings, and finally offers suggestions for future work.University of Wolverhampton Early Researcher Award Scheme (ERAS

Development and assessment of digital interfaces for performance

This project focuses on evaluation of current digital interfaces for performance. To identify the issues that make these not fit for purpose and to design, production and evaluate new digital interface methods for musical performance. This research also focuses on the use of these as formative assessment tools for this area.HEFC

Demonstrating the SIDSYNTH: an 8-bit synthesizer combining obsolete and open hardware

Paper from conference 'Learning On/With the Open Web' 25/10/2018 Coventry UniversityAfter the introduction of programmable sound generator integrated circuits (ICs) in the 8-bit video game hardware of the 1980s, the industry quickly moved on to more sophisticated sound generation methods such as frequency modulation (FM) synthesis and CD-quality audio file playback. Nevertheless, if once largely forgotten, the last decade has seen a significant and sustained revival of interest in the early video game sound technologies, and the rise of a vibrant ‘chiptunes’ community intent on exploring their distinctive musical possibilities. Developed by Rob Hassell between May 2017 and May 2018 as part of the BA (Hons) Music Technology programme at the University of Wolverhampton, SIDsynth is a multi-voice chiptunes synthesizer based around the use of obsolete MOS Technology 6581/8580 Sound Interface Device (SID) chips; a specialised IC originally found in the Commodore 64 computer. Despite the age of the SID chip, the SIDsynth draws heavily on contemporary developments and could arguably not have existed until relatively recently. Online marketplaces enable increasingly scarce and revered second-hand ICs to be sourced from individual sellers worldwide. Dedicated enthusiasts have made crucial but previously rarely accessible technical documentation freely available in online repositories such as SIDmusic and archive6502. Additionally, by using open source and low-cost Arduino microcontrollers to interface otherwise disparate elements (three SID ICs, contemporary computer hardware and a physical user interface), the project has been able to benefit from the Arduino platform’s extensive documentation and community expertise

Technology inspired design for pervasive healthcare

Pervasive healthcare technologies are increasingly using novel sensory devices that are able to measure phenomena that could not be measured before. To develop novel healthcare applications that use these largely untested technologies, it is important to have a design process that allows proper exploration of the capabilities of the novel technologies. We focus on the technology-inspired design process that was used in the development of a system to support posture and provide guidance by nudging people, and how this has lead us to explore pervasive healthcare applications