Re: [microsound] MAX/MSP

[jonah dempcy <jdempcy@xxxxxxxx>]

that was a joke, or at least i read it like a joke.
also it's absurd to suggest that tweaking sounds is anything identifiable,
let alone definable. to me, a "tweak" is the same thing as a sound. it's all
about decisions, and in this modern form of composition, essentially the
only imposing/limiting factor is that something be audible, whether it is
"tweaked" or not.
another interesting thing i see in this conversation & in modern electronic
music/DJ culture in general is the notion of ownership over music being
expanded into new realms. namely, whereas historically a musician might say
"this is derivative of that melody, hence this musician should not receive
credit" we are now saying (in a clearcut example:) "this DJ is mixing that
musician's record hence the DJ receives less credit" or in the case of
experimental sound, "this musician isn't tweaking the sound enough, or the
microphone is doing all the work" or something even more subtle, the
connotation that in the realm of modern electronic music, what you hear
_might_ be "real" virtuosity and expressiveness or it _might_ be a sample of
something, which would then shift the musical worth away from the piece in
question. so there is this obscure and underlying tone of questioning what
we hear, searching for holes, inconsistencies, irrealities. whereas in jazz
or another advanced style of music, there is a definite sense of reality,
consistency, and overall expressiveness which itself implies a set of
concepts different than what is expected from modern experimental electronic
music.

of course we can all get past this and just listen to and love the music,
and as music evolves the expressiveness and improvisational abilities of
sound will continue to expand, and this point will become more irrelevant.

but also what about the trend of signal/noise being the defining factor in
content-viewing experience IE: on the web, searching for files etc? this is
another interesting factor, which if continues will put the DJ (or the web
record label, or compilation etc) on a higher and higher pedestal, as it is
harder and harder to find quality music. ok off to lunch, if any of this
interests you please respond.

-jonah

----- Original Message -----
From: "--|.TWINE.|-- >" <twine_sound@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <microsound@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, June 01, 2001 11:16 AM
Subject: Re: [microsound] MAX/MSP


> I hope you are all joing.  That seems like a very narrow view of pushing
> possibilities and experimenting with sound.  IF you are trying to write
> polished pop music, then I see your point.  But if you are working in the
> field of electronic sound, than this view is a hinderance.
>
>
>
> --Chad