daemon@BARTOK.ENG.SUN.COM (10/31/89)
Music-Research Digest Mon, 30 Oct 89 Volume 4 : Issue 67
Today's Topics:
Information
Institutions (3 msgs)
Request for info: Risset book, spectral composition
spectral composition
Two papers on cognitive aspects of music
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Date: Thu, 26 Oct 89 21:50:56 N
From: robbian <robbian%ch.epfl.elsic@edu.cuny.cunyvm>
Subject: Information
To: music-research@com.sun.eng.bartok
I would very much appreciate hearing from anyone who can send me information on
journal, magazine, books and anything else about computer music, especially
about drumming & percussion and jazz/fusion composition.
I'am particularly interested to combine research in parallel computing system
and music.
L. Robbiani, SIC. Swiss Institute of Technology. 1015 Lausanne. SWITZERLAND
ROBBIAN@ELSICB.EPFL.CH
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Date: 26 Oct 89 16:09:38 GMT
From: Marc Sabatella <hpfcso!mjs@com.hp.hplabs>
Subject: Institutions
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
>Berkely supposedly has something coming due to David Wessel,
^e
>but I haven't gotten any details.
There is also the work of David Anderson - a Forth-based music programming
language (and associated multitasking quasi-real-time OS) called Formula,
on which I did my Master's work. So far it has stirred little interest among
UCB grad students, so it kind of remains a toy project of his.
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Date: 27 Oct 89 00:33:07 GMT
From: Gene De Lisa <convex!iex!ntvax!gene@net.uu.uunet>
Subject: Institutions
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
>17. Systems Complex for the Studio and Performing Arts (SYCOM): University of
>North Texas.
I've been here at UNT (formerly North Texas State Univ) since 1982. I
have no idea where you got SYCOM from. Our name is the Center for
Experimental Music and Intermedia (CEMI) There are graduate (MA, DMA
and PhD) degrees in computer music media offered here.
The school is fine but Denton TX is a pit.
--
Gene De Lisa
gene@dept.csci.unt.edu
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Date: Mon, 30 Oct 89 14:10:05 GMT
From: Bernard Bel <BEL@EARN.FRMOP11>
Subject: Institutions
To: music-research@UK.AC.OXFORD.PRG
I would like to append the list of Computer Music Intitutions:
There are three intitutions in Marseille:
Laboratoire MIM (Musique et Informatique de Marseille): email bel at frmop11
-- research institution mainly, associated with the Dept. of Music,
Aix-en-Provence University, and with the Conservatoire National de Region
in Marseille.
GMEM (Groupe de Musique Experimentale de Marseille)
-- creative institution mainly, not associated with University.
LMA (Laboratoire de Mecanique et d'Acoustique)
-- a research team of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
(CNRS) with University links like most CNRS institutions.
The heads of the three institutions are Marcel Fremiot, Georges Boeuf and
Jean-Claude Risset respectively.
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Date: 26 Oct 89 14:11:43 GMT
From: Cornicello <elbereth.rutgers.edu!cornicel@edu.rutgers>
Subject: Request for info: Risset book, spectral composition
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
I have been looking, rather unsuccessfully, for a book published in
1968 by Jean-Claude Risset, "An Introductory Catologue of Computer
Synthesized Sounds." I am willing to pay for a copy of this, but I
would much rather try to get a copy on Inter-Library Loan (I'm at
Rutgers and have not had much success with that here. It seems that
copies of this book cannot be located). If anyone has any information
as to a possible location where I could buy or borrow a copy of this
outstanding work, please post or email me this info.
The Other Request:
I have been recently getting into the music emanating from France,
i.e. Murail and Grisey. I am basically aware of their concept, which
is to use the spectre produced by acoustic instruments as the basis
for the harmonic aspect of thier pieces (I think), but I am not
totally aware of the entire process. I would like to know if anyone
has seen any articles relating to this topic, or knows of any sources
one could go to in reference to this.
Thank you......
--
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Date: 27 Oct 89 18:10:18 GMT
From: William Alves <usc!merlin.usc.edu!aludra.usc.edu!alves@com.apple>
Subject: spectral composition
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
I'm afraid I can't help you too much on the sources, but I thought I'd ven-
ture what I know (as well as an opinion). *Research* in acoustics as a basis
for art seems to be a foundational idea for the Boulez school (whence IRCAM),
and one way they have come up with realizing this is by attempting to repro-
duce complex acoustic spectra orchestrationally or using the spectral content
as the basis for pitch sets. The pieces I've heard which do this do it one
of two ways: 1) by analyzing complex timbres such as bells (as in Jonathan
Harvey's IRCAM piece), gongs, etc., but not those with harmonic spectra, as
that would yield a static pitch set (theoretically); 2) by recreating orches-
trationally electronic effects such as ring modulation.
Now, I think these are great ideas, especially the first, but, personally, I
think they went about it all wrong. In order to reconcile these spectra to
equal temperament and hence twelve-tone music and serialism, the works I've
heard "round off" the frequencies to the nearest semitone. I brought this
question up briefly to Marc Batier of IRCAM when he was here, but he didn't
see the contradicton that I did.
To my ear, the "fusion" of partials that is so fascinating in these complex
timbres is ruined by restricting it to semitones. The tuning is crucial to
this effect. Of course, that is very difficult to achieve in a standard or-
chestra, but worth the effort to me. Or else you can get a tunable Yamaha
synth and leave the orchestra and parts-copying behind.
Let's hear it for just intonation!
Bill Alves
USC School of Music / Center for Scholarly Technology
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Date: Sat, 28 Oct 89 08:05:16 PDT
From: Stephen Smoliar <smoliar@edu.isi.vaxa>
Subject: Two papers on cognitive aspects of music
To: Stephen Page <sdpage%uk.ac.oxford.prg@uk.ac.nsfnet-relay>
[ I asked Stephen Smoliar, who some readers will be aware has written a number
of interesting papers which led the way in some new directions in AI and
music, to contribute a couple of recent papers. These can be obtained from
the archive - send a message containing the word "help" to archive-server@
uk.ac.oxford.prg if you are in the UK, or archive-server@bartok.sun.com
elsewhere. The relevant files are called smoliar-listening and smoliar-
herring. - Stephen Page, Moderator ]
I shall attach "on-line" versions of two of my papers to this message. You can
put them into your Archive. I hope to get them both published, so what I send
you should not be taken as final drafts. However, in both cases I had attached
a date to the title heading.
Enjoy,
Steve
*********************************************************
COGNITIVE ASPECTS OF LISTENING TO MUSIC
Stephen W. Smoliar
USC Information Sciences Institute
4676 Admiralty Way Suite 1001
Marina del Rey, CA 90292-6695
213-822-1511
19 October 1989
ABSTRACT: The mind may approach music in a variety of ways. At one
extreme, it may view music as an element of the ambient environment,
while at the opposite extreme, such as may be found in a concert hall,
music is a primary focus of attention. Assuming that a major objective
of musical performance is getting listeners to pay attention to what is
being performed, how may such attention be controlled? Two
contributing factors will be considered: the ability to recognize
sound stimuli as familiar and the association of those stimuli with
emotional states. Both of these factors support a hypothesis that the
essence of paying attention to music lies in the ability to retrieve
other memories in the course of listening. A model of such mental
activity, based on Roger Schank's theories of "dynamic memory," will be
proposed; and approaches to testing such a model will be discussed.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction 1
2. Music and Mental Activity 1
2.1. Mental Approaches to Music 1
2.1.1. Ambiance 1
2.1.2. Physical Release 2
2.1.3. Ritual 2
2.1.4. "Concert Hall" Attention 2
2.2. Combining Approaches to Music 2
2.3. Paying Attention in the "Concert" Environment 2
3. Factors Which Control Attention 2
3.1. Familiarity 2
3.2. Emotional State 3
3.3. The Effect of Performance 3
4. Reminding and Attention 3
4.1. Listening to Music 3
4.2. Attention and Non-Musical Experiences 4
5. A Model of Paying Attention to Music 4
6. Testing the Model 5
7. Summary and Conclusion 6
Acknowledgments 6
REFERENCES 6
**********************************************
MUSIC NOTATION:
COGNITIVE RED HERRING?
Stephen W. Smoliar
USC Information Sciences Institute
4676 Admiralty Way Suite 1001
Marina del Rey, California 90292-6695
Internet: SMOLIAR@VAXA.ISI.EDU
25 August 1989
Table of Contents
1. The Tyranny of Music Notation 1
2. Mental Models of Music 1
3. Why Get Away From Notes? 2
4. An Alternative View of Memory 2
5. What Do We Do With Our Memories? 2
6. Conclusion: What the Mind Experiences 3
REFERENCES 4
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End of Music-Research Digest