[microsound] post-laptop era?

[MSC Nelson]

I think that the laptop will stay at the core as a processor that computes,
but that controllers other than the keyboard are being used more, especially
in live performance.  Another interesting thing is when the laptop becomes
the agent of two people, where one manipulates the sonic signal (futzes with
the sine wave, in simple terms) and sound space while the other shapes and
triggers it with a controller like a guitar or another keyboard.  Recently
saw a great opening act performance by a solo tuba-ist who used the tuba as
a controller and only occasionally mixed in the acoustic signal of the tuba,
using only digitally generated sounds.  He used the laptop for processing,
as well as the keyboard for triggering, but most of his control was with the
tuba.

Another laptop trend that falls outside of the traditional musician's focus
on acoustic elements is the integration of visuals triggered using the same
controllers as the sounds.  This really changes the feeling of performances,
including the use of live video.  This is especially a hot topic in art
performance, where people often have at least as much interest in the visual
rather than sonic part of the performance.  

What is an even more interesting development to me is that there is a
"popular" audience for laptop-"experimental" music.  Granted, I live in a
university town, but the concert that included the tuba-ist was attended by
over 500 people, and last week I attended a small venue laptop
code-manipulated concert performance during a snow storm with an audience of
over 50 people.  Perhaps the plethora of musicians is a response to an
enlarged audience, which at the same time might indicate laptop's movement
to the mainstream and its death (or at least geriatricization) as an
experimental form.

Mark

M.S.C. Nelson
Associate Professor
Design Studies Department
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Room 235
1300 Linden Drive
Madison, WI 53706
608-261-1003
mnelson2 at wisc.edu
 

-----Original Message-----
From: microsound-bounces at or8.net [mailto:microsound-bounces at or8.net] On
Behalf Of Kim Cascone
Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 11:38 AM
To: microsound_list
Subject: [microsound] post-laptop era?

over the past couple of years I've noticed interesting developments in 
new music
one is the seemingly sudden plethora of laptop musicians
the other is the death of laptop music

interested in hearing opinions regarding the state of new music culture 
and .microsound


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