Re: [microsound] Re Positionality (re)positioned

[Kurt Ralske <kranning@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>> Is it possible for a performer to improvise while at the same time
>> initiating processes prone to the generation of error, from within the
>> sealed of space of the laptop?
> 
> Sure, if during a performance you put one of your audio files through a plugin
> that randomizes parameters , and you have no idea how it will sound, then you
> are taking a risk.  It's improvising and it could generate unexpected errors.
> It's what we usually do when composing before we commit to an idea, in the
> privacy of our studios.

Yes. But there's a small but definite distinction that should be made:
"randomness" is a human definition, and "randomized parameters" are created
deterministically by an algorithm in your computer that someone wrote.

It's difficult to get the computer to generate a sequence of numbers that
don't have an obvious pattern. The best randomness they can provide is
still bound to patterns.

"Error" in nature is something different: it's the interaction of an
infinite number of forces in unexpected and inexplicable ways.

"Randomness" is a mental construct. Something like chaos theory gets closer
to what actually occurs in the world. But it's still only a model. Real life
is elsewhere.

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