Mdw in May 2024: Dustin Zorn and Corazón de Robota
International Collaborations
Vienna, 2024
“Études for live-electronics is an artistic research project that aims to re-define the western classical music-influenced concept of études, by applying it to the diverse practices in the field of electronic music performance, where most live-electronic practitioners (LEP) are simultaneously instrument developer, interface designer, composer, and performer.“
Études for live-electronics is an artistic research project that aims to re-define the western classical music-influenced concept of études, by applying it to the diverse practices in the field of electronic music performance, where most live-electronic practitioners (LEP) are simultaneously instrument developer, interface designer, composer, and performer. Practising études is a fun method to gain skills on acoustic instruments. However, with electronic instruments, the interface and the sound generator are decoupled, interchangeable, and instrument parts can even be driven algorithmically. Thus, the skills required by each LEP are unique, and research on knowledge transfer in electronic music performance is subsequently needed, a shortcoming, that is often discussed in the community for New Interfaces for Musical Expression.
Collaborator during our third research cycle is DIY hardware hacker and sound artist Constanza aka Corazón de Robota. She visited us for a in-depth research meeting with discussions on live-electronics, setups, repertoire and performance techniques.
The results of our collaboration will be presented at the Hanover University of Music in November 2024.
From 19.-22.11.2024 we held a live-electronics workshop at HMTMH Hannover ‘Incontri’, within our PEEK ‘Études for Live-Electronics’ Project. Workshop Presenters:
The participants of the workshop at the HMTM-Hannover were all composition students. They had programming experience on various platforms such as Csound, Max/MSP and Pure Data, as well as knowledge of sound synthesis algorithms. This provided the opportunity to share and discuss an in-depth analysis of the setup that was used in 1966 by Pauline Oliveros to create “I of IV”.
Two different interfaces, created in this research cycle and the prototypes that preceded them, were shown to the students. First, a presentation on the historical roots of the ‚Khipu’ and the aesthetic and tactile design choices made by Constanza Piña provided valuable insights into the design process of the Khipu interface. The second interface, inspired by LeCaine’s touch-sensitive keyboard, was offered for the participants to play with in order to gain tactile experience that accompanied the theoretical input about the artistic work of Pauline Oliveros. In this way, two different methods of interaction using the same sound synthesis algorithm were discussed, played and presented in the workshop.
In the concert, Constanza Pina gave a demonstration of the Khipu interface, Marijana Janevska played “Metastasie”, a piece written by Zorn in this project, derived from the artistic research on the FM algorithm and the composition “Stria” by John Chownings in 1977. Finally, Dustin Zorn performed with the touch-sensitive keyboard interface following the traces of Pauline Oliveros’ “I of IV”.
