Research regarding liveness and embodiment in electronic music has tended to explore
the relationship of bodies and instruments, audience perception, interfaces, and shifting
definitions, less theoretical and empirical study has considered network situations, perhaps
given their relative cultural novelty. Network music has seen many advances since
the time of the Telharmonium, including the invention of the personal computer and the
widespread proliferation of internet connectivity. These advances have fostered a unique
approach to live electronic music that facilitates collaboration in a field where solo performance
is perhaps more common. This thesis explores the design of network music
interfaces, and how those interfaces mediate collaborations.
Three new network music system interfaces, each using different a different paradigm
for interface design are presented in this study. One an instrument for creating modular
feedback lattices. Another is a three dimensional virtual pattern sequencer. And the last
is a web based collaborative live coding language. Accompanying each system is an evaluation
using quantitative and qualitative analysis to frame these instruments in a larger
context regarding network music. The results highlight important themes concerning the
design of networked interfaces, and the attitudes of musicians regarding networked collaborations
