Re: [microsound] acousmatic music

[devslashnull <dev@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

I had similar experiences in Baltimore in the late 70's /early 80's at 
recitals/shows at the Peabody Conservatory of Music. Ussachevsky would 
present works as well as others whose names I do not recall. I was 
young and it had the same effect on me. Amazing to sit and listen to, 
and in that context this "performance" works...

I think the problem arises when laptop performers expect that kind of 
attention from the audience in more "club" or "entertainment" venues.

I'd also like to add that my reference to "novelty" was intended to 
illustrate the way a club-going public "consumes" culture... the 
"Laptop thing" (as does all other cultural icons) has a certain amount 
of novelty value, which allows it to command space in the minds of 
cultural consumers. This created a market for laptop perfromers in 
those venues, many times without any relationship to the quality of 
their "performance" and/or music for that matter. Promoters of these 
kinds of shows want to be hip, and be presenting the latest cool thing 
(ie. high novelty value). My comment was that this novelty value has 
quickly faded (relative to location to some degree) and that just being 
a "laptop act" doesn't get you in the door as easily anymore. In fact 
to some extent I would argue that promoters have become wary of booking 
these acts, precisely because of these "performative issues" we are 
discussing. In short many audiences make it known that laptop shows are 
boring, and so promoters don't book them anymore. No promoter of this 
kind of show gives a damn about trying to "educate" the listeners, or 
re-formulating a gestural language or anything else... they just wanna 
sell tickets to happy throngs.

Again, I am to some degree generalizing... but I still think it is 
valid.


On Friday, March 18, 2005, at 09:05 AM, bruce tovsky wrote:

> which brings to mind a show which totally changed the way i thought
> about music...
> this was in 1971, when i was a freshman in college at indiana 
> university
> in bloomington, indiana. as some of you may know, iu has a well -
> respected music program, one of the best in the country. in addition to
> the usual suspects - classical and jazz programs - there was a thriving
> avant-garde scene as well. i saw some fantastic cage prepared piano
> recitals there. the "recital" that i am recalling, though, was of an 
> entirely
> different nature. iannis xenakis was a composer-in-residence at iu at
> this time, and he gave a faculty recital of his well-known 
> electroacoustic
> piece "bohor" in multichannel
>
> On Mar 17, 2005, at 5:41 PM, Kim Cascone wrote:
>
>> let's not forget the rich and deep legacy of acousmatic music as 
>> practiced in electro-acoustic circles for over forty years now...nor 
>> should we forget that often times novelty=spectacle=pop=emphemeral 
>> which I don't think holds much value for most acousmatic composers 
>> AFAIK...
>>
>
CommTom
Communications of Tomorrow
"it's only a day away"

unique electronic music for the adventurous ear.

http://www.commtom.com