Re: [chuck-users] [livecode] granular music recommendations?

Hello, I'll add my voice to the chorus (cloud? swarm?) recommending Roads' Microsound. Although I must admit that I've never really managed to properly listen to and enjoy any of his compositions, finding them a bit on the cold academic side, but that may reflect a lack of time and effort on my part more than anything. Hey, who said music had to be about 'feeling', anyway? ;-) Also, Tim Blackwell has done some good work with swarms / flocking behaviour simulations mapped to granular synthesis: http://www.timblackwell.com/ Actually, I've done some similar things too FWIW, but nothing online etc at the moment. I think it's an interesting approach as one has lots of data that might otherwise be generated randomly / stochastically that can be mapped quite naturally to granular synthesis. At the same time, it is possible to interact with the system quite intuitively using a device with a few degrees of freedom (like analysis of a normal acoustic instrument, in Tim's case). To me, that kind of interaction is more interesting than total 'control'; that may be getting off-topic in a way, but given the sheer volume of numbers that are required to drive granular synthesis, the mapping and interaction tends to be particularly important. Even straight randomness can be have its place, though and often, 'randomness' is stochastic in a way that is informed by physics equations etc; I think that was the case with Riverrun, for example. I suppose that may be where one starts getting into chin-stroking territory... Cheers, Peter p.s. there is another list called microsound; might be of interest. http://microsound.org/ On Mon, May 19, 2008 at 1:45 PM, Kassen wrote:

2008/5/19 AlgoMantra :

...

Yo All....I'm trying to download and study some of the best music out there which features granular synthesis. I haven't heard much yet beyond Iannis Xenakis, but I'd love to know what your favorites are.

Replying on the ChucK list since it seems more topical (?).

Mostly I'm not so into either the "6 speakers, grains, stroke your chin while sitting on a chair, debate afterwards" style or the "pull a amen through the latest hottest VST" thing. I heard a bit too much of that and to my ear most of it lacks feeling, probably because grains are often quite hard to control. Many times I feel randomness plays a too large role as well.

What I really like though is Michel Waisvisz's performances which are based on Steim's "LiSa" which in turn uses grains and controlled in realtime using his "Hands" controler. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIfumZa2TKY

I'm not sure how much of his music was recorded at all, I think he stuck to live performing for years. Since he lives in (I think) Amsterdam and me in The Hague (45 minutes by train) so I got to see him play a few times. I think the main thing that atrackts me in his work is how much of it is done directly and in realtime with very little (if any?) randomness.

Oh, and AGF's song "Piano's", I like that one a lot as well.

Yours, Kas.

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