Workshop: New Instruments

Abstract

The development of musical instruments has been heavily dependent on the technological capabilities of their time period. Keyboard instruments are no exception, having undergone many developments from the earliest organs in antiquity to the sophisticated 88-key synthesisers we are familiar with now. Traditional keyboard instruments have a limited set of producible pitches because they, for the most part, can not make adjustments to tuning while playing like some other instrument families. Therefore, they were usually restricted to whatever fixed system they were tuned in, each of which had to make concessions to certain intervals or in certain keys (Ripin 1989). Because performers had the desire to play some of these intervals and expand the possibilities of the keyboard, as early as the 15th century, keyboards were developed that allowed enharmonic capabilities, such as through the addition of split keys (Barbieri 2008). These keyboards did not end up becoming as ubiquitous as the 12-note per octave keyboard we are familiar with. Digital technology has made the development of enharmonic and microtonal keyboards much more possible in the last several decades and thus allowing for wide dissemination; however, many of the devices are developed for specific and personal use or are restrictive due to cost and performability (Georg Vogel 2023, Roli 2023).

The authors of this paper have developed a prototype enharmonic extension controller that demonstrates successful proof of concept, called the Frescobaldi2. This prototype attaches to a MIDI organ, resting on the upper half of the manual, replicating the placement of a straightforward split key system familiar to many during the 16th century, and through custom-built but transportable software and hardware, allows the performer to play pitches that are not present on the MIDI keyboard. While the first iteration of this device is designed to reproduce the capability of performing all pure thirds in an octave as in some of the initial split key systems, the idea behind the Frescobaldi^2 is to eventually enable complete customization and expandability of the device, leading to a robust enharmonic extension for MIDI keyboards without the need to purchase an additional, specialised keyboard.

Biographies

Organon has four members: Alyssa Aska, Klaus Lang, Pablo Abelardo Mariña Montalvo, and Martin Ritter, and it exists as a research group functioning within the University of Music and Dramatic Arts Graz. The purpose of organon is to provide explanatory materials for contemporary organ music, specifically for composers. These materials include texts, images, short video tutorials, concert recordings, as well as a list of works. Their materials demonstrate the general structure and operation of the organ as well as general playing techniques. Contemporary playing techniques are presented and explained in greater depth. In addition, the group continuously pursues ways to expand current compositional tools for organ by researching playing techniques and expanding the instruments and interfaces themselves. 

Abstract

Between 2000 and 2005 a technological revolution took place in music performance and production. The development of powerful and stable laptops running innovative software such as Ableton Live have made this machine the dominant live instrument in many popular genres. The sonic possibilities of the laptop are essentially limitless, fulfilling the vision of early 20th century futurists, such as Luigi Russolo, who predicted that in the coming century music would expand beyond the limited orchestral timbres of his time and “conquer the infinite variety of noise sounds.” The early 21st century digitalization of live performance has, however, presented artists and instrument designers with challenges and this presentation would like to explore three of them. Firstly, since a laptop essentially consists of four sonic tools (instruments, samplers, sequencers and audio effect processing) how can we create an interface that seamlessly integrates them? Secondly, a laptop, like other electrophones over the past century, breaks with thousands of years of traditional instrument building in that the sound generation capacity of the instrument has nothing to do with physical construction of a controller. This disconnection poses challenges in that future instruments should ideally control the four components of the laptop while physiologically enabling the development of virtuosity. Lastly, how can future instruments be environmentally sustainable so that they do not contribute to the “landfill economy” nor rely on increasingly unstable supply chains? Can they also be readily accessible to the areas of the Global South that have historically had much greater difficulty acquiring cutting-edge music technology. As a Latino who has spent years living and teaching electronic music production in Central and South America, this last point is personally very relevant to me. This presentation will also include a performance on a new instrument I am currently developing known as “Blinky.” Blinky is a prototype of a digital live performance interface which strives to integrate an instrument, sampler, sequencer and audio effects processor into a coherent whole and to move laptop performance away from any use of the visual while exploring virtuosity and greater use of the body.

Biography

Dan Freeman is a producer/bassist and music technologist based in Brooklyn, New York. He is an Assistant Professor at Berklee College of Music as well as on the faculty of The Juilliard School and New York University’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music. 

Born in Boston to generations of musicians in his mother’s native land of Nicaragua, he attended Harvard College, graduating in 1997 with an A.B. in History. After graduation, he moved to New York City and worked for over fifteen years as a session bassist performing in a myriad of venues ranging from underground Brooklyn loft parties to Broadway pit orchestras and Carnegie Hall.  

Since 2005 he has specialized in integrating laptops using Ableton Live and acoustic instruments and this has led to performances and workshops globally at venues, festivals and universities. In 2018 he designed a prototype instrument for digital live performance known as “Blinky” which combines a sampler, a sequencer, audio effects processing and a grid interface.

Abstract

PrismaSonus is an artistic research initiative exploring the relationship between microphone placement, technique, and perception. By placing sensors inside the body of the instrument, this project highlights timbres and microtechniques that are otherwise hidden to performers and listeners. PrismaSonus examines how technology, technique, notation, and listening interact and converge in electroacoustic collaborations, proposing novel ways of creating immersive auditory experiences.

This presentation features the research element of Morphés for Flute and Electronics, presented at Thursday evening’s concert. Project creators Alexander Ishov and Theocharis Papatrechas will:

• Demonstrate and analyze the musical and acoustical findings of PrismaSonus using pre-recorded material and live demonstrations;
• Discuss methods for describing and notating electroacoustic flute techniques;
• Share musical applications of technical research;
• Present their collaborative model as a potential option for other performer-composer duos.

In June 2023, the team will expand the live performance version presented at this conference into Morphés II, occupying the 32 loudspeakers of the Experimental Theater at UC San Diego’s Music Department. Morphés III will be an online version of the project, mixed binaurally for headphones. Later in 2023, PrismaSonus will unveil an interactive database of electronically-mediated flute techniques that will serve as a modern, interactive resource for flutists and composers taking upon electroacoustic collaboration.

Biographies

Alexander “Sasha” Ishov is an innovative flutist specializing in 20th and 21st century music, devoted to the co-creation of new acoustic and electroacoustic works, as well as showcasing repertoire that challenges perceptions of the historical canon. As a committed researcher, he explores the intersection between interface design, pedagogy, and electronics, engaging with issues of design in the practice room, the classroom, and the concert hall. He is currently a DMA Candidate in Contemporary Music Performance at the University of California San Diego, and holds the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble flute fellowship position.

Theocharis Papatrechas is a composer and sound artist interested in utilizing technology to expand sonic possibilities and engage listeners into immersive artistic experiences. Having obtained a Ph.D. in Music from UC San Diego, he is currently holding the position of Postdoctoral Scholar at Qualcomm Institute of CalIT2. Converging research on environmental science, acoustic ecology, and audio arts, through data-driven sonification, his work investigates the impacts of extreme events on the acoustic signatures of underwater and remote terrestrial environments.