Re: [microsound] performance techniques

[tobias v <tobias@xxxxxxxxx>]

I think Ben is getting at the iTunes factor
more than wiggling one's arms about to attract
attention, which is no more indication of a true
live set than a completely still performer. Kim
is getting at the lack of *gestural* theatre,
not a lack of live/not-live performance.

Personally I have to agree with Ben. The sets
I enjoyed most were the ones that I knew were
live and had an element of risk involved in
their production. Some I was not sure, such
as Stephan's set. However, people like Janek
Schaefer, Helen of Troy, Dandy Jack, Ricardo
Villalobos, Ben Nevile all did more or less
live things (ironically, Dandy + Ricardo all
played Ableton LIVE, but their live jam showed
that, they were actually playing and sequencing
live, as Philip notes in his column).

Herbert was of course live but I've seen him
so many times that it has become old hat. He's
not quite a one-trick pony, let's just say he
has perfected what he does, which is one-one-of-a-
kind, quite well.

AGF was doing live vocals, of course; that was
cool, and Sue Costabile her live visuals. Hellothisisalex
was playing oldskool sequencer style, so the beats and
bars were all set up but the organ washes etc were
live -- which counts as "live" for me in electronic
music.

But as Ben notes, not many people in the _laptop_
world have moved on. All of the exciting things this
year happened outside of the laptop. Ben was the only
person I saw, perhaps beside Chris Sattinger, who was
using his own Max patch which called for live variation
and manipulation of sound -- he had his screen projected
all big at Metropolis, so people could see exactly
that. OH -- I am forgetting someone -- Alexandre Burton,
who created live Max patches totally on the fly from
an initial sample, all projected on screens so we could
see. It was wild; then his machine crashed, and that
was it ... that was quite cool.

tobias

> all the music I heard in
>> Montreal was of the highest calibre, but I'm focussed on performance
>> techniques and I was almost uniformly disappointed in the methods
> employed.
>> if you are trying to do
>> something truly different you just have to work harder.
> 
> 
> I have to agree, not concerning Mutek(haven't been there
> :( ), but many of exprimental electronic performances I've visited left me
> somehow only partly satisfied  - I enjoyed the music, but felt that the
> performer has to try a bit more to justify his presence in the room. I
> realize this opposes Kim's notion of laptop musician not having to "put up a
> show", but even though I understood there's work being done by the performer
> ( unlike the "naive listener", who might feel
> fooled not seeing a lot of movement from the man behind the screen) I wished
> the performer gave me a little, even tiny indication of appreciation of the
> fact that I'm there, that I came to see him, instead of just pretending he's
> still sitting in his bedroom at night , tweaking his machines.
> I think this can be achieved by including some performance techniques that
> are more evidently live, by trying a bit harder to surprize the listener who
> is present here and now, to involve the public, to interact... after all a
> lot of experimental music is about improvisation, and improvisation and
> interaction go beautifully together.
> But maybe you meant something totally different, Ben?
> 
> ant
> 
> 
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tobias c. van Veen -----------
http://www.shrumtribe.com
http://www.targetcircuitry.com
------------- tobias@xxxxxxxxx
---McGill Communications------



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