RE: [microsound] Laptop, etc as Performance device

[David Powers <dpowers3@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Ok, first off, to answer another poster's point, it's true that laptops
are not very interesting anymore from the viewpoint of novelty. 
However, I highly doubt that is why people use them.  They are used
because they are simply the best tool for achieving certain things, and
because people can afford them where they can't necessarily afford the
hardware to accomplish similar aesthetic goals.

More interestingly, why this irrational fear of labor?  The fact that
laptops are icons of labor is POSITIVE as far as I'm concerned.  The
fact could be exploited to demystify the musical/artistic process.  Art
IS work - although not necessarily labor, which is a term associated
with alienation of a worker from their own activity when they are
working solely to earn income, with no investment or enjoyment of the
work activity itself, as in Marx's Economic and Philosophical
manuscripts of 1844 (the concept is also used by Hannah Arendt and Erich
Fromm, among others).  

Perhaps people would prefer not to dwell, especially in their "leisure"
time, on the fact that our society is founded on alienated labor.  They
would prefer their entertainment be escapist mysticism.  One could
speculate that audiences these days could use a good dose of
"alienation" in the Brechtian sense, by being exposed to performances
that undermine the romantic mythology of the performing arts and the
performer as some kind of supernatural being channeling divine forces.

I did a laptop+bassoon performance where I tried to exploit the idea of
laptop/labor, by pushing the idea even further.  I was led into the
performance, and forced to set up and perform on my laptop, at gunpoint
- as was the bassoon player.  The bassoon player also set up the bassoon
in very deliberate, methodical manner, in an attempt to show a
connection between the two kinds of machines, bassoon and laptop, as
both are very much technological forms, and tools.  Bassoons don't grow
on trees any more than laptops do!  The guns, besides providing a slight
novelty from the audience point of view, were intended to call into
question the supposed freedom of the artist and the conditions under
which artistic activities take place, including the overall social
context in a time of war.  I think much more elaborate performances
could be created based on these types of premises.

To sum up, I think there are millions of ways to use the laptop, and we
should not fear them as icons of labor, nor should we be concerned about
a departure from the supposedly venerable tradition of the performing
arts.  Instead we should exploit their unique characteristics (including
cultural associations) and find creative ways to successfully present
laptop performances.

~David

David Powers
Secretary
DePaul University, School of Education
Department of Leadership in Education, Language, and Human Services
773-325-4806

>>> chthonic@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 03/16/05 06:51PM >>>
>It seems the limitations of laptop performance come from two
directions.
>One is that the laptop is an icon of labour. I work on a computer
>interface most days. When I get home, I often find it difficult to
>"re-see" my laptop as a a creative environment.

THANK you.  exACTly.  this is why i keep my music off the computer 
for the most part.  i only use it to process sounds or do complex 
edits impossible otherwise.


>The second is the expectation of the performative. An expectation
that
>has been discussed previously by Cascone.

yes, even though i know it's possible to make a great sound without 
moving a muscle, i still expect and desire to see/hear cause and 
effect in a performance.  if the music's good wnough i can get over 
it, but usually there's some kind of visuals going on too.


d.

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