Welcome to electro-music 2009
The electro-music festival is now in it's fifth year – having moved from the Cheltenham Art Center in Philadelphia and the Renaissance Center in Kingsport, Tennessee, to the Star Lake Camp in Bloomingdale, New Jersey. We have seen an increase in participation each year, until electro-music has become the premiere event of its kind in the world. This year we have many old friends returning, and even more new artists appearing for the first time. The diversity of talent and expertise is outstanding. We have high expectations for three days of innovative music, fascinating seminars, demonstrations and rousing jam sessions.
In organizing this event, we have tried to give opportunities to participate and perform to as many people as we can. In order to accomplish this, music and seminars will run almost continuously without breaks. Several events have been scheduled to run simultaneously. It will be impossible for anyone to see and hear everything. A primary purpose of this meeting is to renew old friendships and make new ones, to share ideas and experiences - to network. We expect that people may not attend all of the sessions as they take opportunities to participate in jam sessions, or just to schmooze.
The musicians presenting at electro-music 2009 are generously sharing the gift of their music. But live music involves both the performers and the audience, and there is generosity in being a listener too, especially when the music is experimental and not mainstream. Most of the music presented in these three days is not a commercial product to be purchased and consumed, but rather a personal expression done strictly for the joy of it. At this event, all of the performers are also listeners, and listening is just as important as performing.
The electro-music festival is an outgrowth of the electro-music.com internet community, which has grown in six years to more than 12000 members. This event provides a unique opportunity for the community to support and nurture each other as we explore new ideas and develop our music. We hope that electro-music 2009 will be a positive and fulfilling experience for all who attend. Everyone working on this event is a volunteer. All of the performers, speakers, the graphic artists, and the event staff are contributing their time, skills and resources because they believe in our community and they want to be a part of it. Every piece of equipment we use is loaned as well. We can't possibly thank you enough. This is indeed a community event. Thanks to everyone, we will all be stronger for it.
Howard and Greg
Artists
1undread
1undread
takes electronic music to the extreme without alienating the
audience. Elements of Trip Hop, Glitch, Nu-Jazz, Drum n Bass and
Dubstep are combined together providing the listener with an intense
groove. Then sultry, bluesy vocals are added seducing the listener,
and taking them to nirvana.
http://www.sonicbids.com/epk/epk.aspx?epk_id=135924
Ace Paradise
Ace
Paradise is currently a Freelance DJ, Musician, and Producer,
specializing in the production of Electronic Music. Ace, having a
background of 35 + years in music, plays several instruments,
acoustic and electronic. He has merged his background of classical
music and theory, with that of his background in Electronic Music and
recording and now approaches Electronic Performance from the
perspective of his many years as a DJ. He has developed his own
technique for combining and mixing several electronically produced
elements, enabling him, along with guitarist Jeff Mitchell, to
produce a spectacular and unforgettable sound. Ace now collaborates
with other DJ's and musicians to preserve and promote the genre of
Electronic Music. Currently working for the past several years with
long time friend, Jeff Mitchell ( guitar / effects ). Together,
having a shared mutual love for such historical and epic musicians,
such as Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk and countless others, they have
developed a powerful and unique style, all their own. Jeff, a
veteran guitarist with more than 40 years experience, spent the early
part of his musical career during the 70's and 80's playing Classic
Rock and Original material in bar and club bands. However, he has
always had a love for electronic music. Jeff, now collaborating with
friend, Ace Paradise, has made a graceful and eloquent transition
from his Rock and Roll roots. Although not departing from his
classic Gibson guitar sound, he has left the Marshall amp behind.
The majority of his guitar playing now includes the use of an EBow,
glass slide and POD.
Acoustic Interloper
Acoustic
Interloper, a.k.a. Dale Parson, has been finger picking 5-string
banjos and guitars and programming computers for the last 38 years.
He has developed his own intervals-over-drones method of three-finger
picking for the banjo, unifying the modal harmonies of Appalachian
folk music and modal jazz. Starting in 2005 with the encouragement of
the Electro-Music community he began to integrate his musical and
computing activities. All of his processed music has roots in
acoustic finger picking, with the computer and effects processors
transforming compositional, rhythmic, harmonic or timbral qualities
of each piece at performance time. In this performance he will start
out using live digital sampling to allow him to play rounds with
himself on banjo, then deconstruct the banjo samples via timbral and
rhythmic transformations into multitrack accompaniment patches over
which he will improvise on MIDI guitar. He is also preparing a folk
song that uses pitch shifting for the live generation of three-part
vocal harmonies.
http://www.virb.com/dparson
æther generator
:
a machine as medium for converting sky into energy.
: a machine,
purported to be invented by Nikola Tesla (inventor of radio,
fluorescent light, the tesla coil, and whose initial work with
electromagnetism led to AC current and the modern electric grid),
that infinitely generates electricity out of thin air.
: two
pseudo musicians who make sometimes delicate, sometimes brutal shifts
and schisms and beats and ambience with various electronic hardware
in an improvisational manner. see also effect/affect.
Alphacore
I'm
a producer and experimentalist of computer music, studying the
theories and concepts behind generative, fractal, and text_2_midi.
I'm also a Ruby programmer and ChucK user, creating everything from
soundscapes to noise art. I have personally designed a few
experimental audio and midi applications that I use to create music
and art.
http://www.jamendo.com/en/artist/alphacore
Azimuth Visuals
Azimuth
Visuals is the artistic partnership of Greg and Hong Waltzer. They
create video performance art to accompany musical events. Using a
combination of computer-generated abstract images, animations, Greg's
artwork, Hong's nature photography and video clips, these images are
processed and mixed in real time by various effects software and
video hardware. The intent is to provide a colorful and dynamic
visual experience that is inspired by and complements the
music.
http://gregwaltzer.com/azimuth/azimuth.html
Brainstatik
New
Jersey-based Brainstatik is best known for their
completely-improvised live concerts, where they perform long-form
jams combining ambient, world, progressive rock, and space music,
liberally shifting and mixing genres within each piece. Every song is
a spontaneous exploration of diverse musical themes, with nothing
rehearsed or planned beforehand, so Brainstatik always sounds
completely different each time they play. Brainstatik has been
together for 14 years and performs smaller shows in galleries as a
duo or trio, and in larger concerts with the current full lineup of
five members. Everyone in Brainstatik is a certified electronic gear
junkie, each choosing from a huge sonic palette from which to make
sounds. Armed with this complex musical toybox, guitars can sound
like drums, keyboards can make guitar sounds, and drums can play
keyboards, which often can confound audience members (and sound
engineers) who can't quite tell who's playing what part.
Brainstatik's current lineup of multi-instrumentalists includes
founding members Robert Burger and Ken Palmer, along with Mike
Hunter, Glenn Robitaille, Jim Silvestri and George Mahlberg. The
music heard at their live shows is always organic, with each piece
constantly evolving and morphing into something new. Brainstatik can
sound ethereal and quiet, complex and orchestral, or experimental and
edgy. The resulting performance often sounds rehearsed and composed,
but in reality the band has no explanation for where the music takes
them at any live show... it all just happens at that moment, almost
beyond their control. The risk of a creative "train wreck"
is always there, but the members of Brainstatik thrive on taking
their music right to the edge every time they perform. They'd be
quickly bored doing it any other way.
http://www.brainstatik.com/
British Invasion
Three
of our guests from across the Atlantic will collaborate for a
performance. Jez Creek, Andrew Capon, and Paul Harriman may be joined
by others as well.
Casperelectronics
Peter
Edwards builds hand-made custom electronic instruments for musicians
and collectors. His work has been seen on the stages of Mike Patton,
Negativland, Danny Elfman, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Auto Von
Schirach and more. He has taught creative electronics at Hampshire
College, NYC based Harvestworks, and has shown his work in New York,
LA, Iceland, and Norway. He will be performing live music on a
selection of his instruments.
http://www.casperelectronics.com/
Delicate
Monster
“Four
legs and two voices: a most delicate monster!” —Shakespeare,
The Tempest. Both Art Cohen (guitar) and Steve Bowman (synths) love
to argue about what makes good music. They argue with each other and
with anybody else who feels passionate about music. Through Delicate
Monster, they make their arguments in sound. (Delicate Monster
performed at Electro-Music 2007 as Available Space. Same band.) Art
and Steve do agree that live music should be truly live, so Delicate
Monster performs without the aid of computers, samplers, or recorded
tracks. Loopers, delays, effects, arpeggiators, and an occasional
sequencer—yes. But no laptops. All sounds originate from
fingers on strings or keyboards. Art and Steve agree that music
created in the flow of the moment is the ultimate experience —
tempered by the paradox that structure and planning are necessary to
keep the music real. They agree that music is about ideas, not
covering other artists or showing off technology. Delicate Monster
leads the listener through wild extremes of musical language, from
delicate (open modal harmonies, tuneful melodies, precious sounds) to
monstrous (extreme dissonance, brute cacophony, noise). When Art and
Steve disagree it’s a consequence of their divergent musical
backgrounds. Art is rooted in psychedelic guitar, Berlin-school
spacemusic, and American folk. He’s been a fixture on the
Philly music scene for 30 years—you may know him as one half of
The Ministry of Inside Things (with Chuck van Zyl). Steve has a
degree in Music from Harvard, where he first encountered the Buchla.
He draws inspiration from classical music and radical composers like
Ives, Stockhausen, Bach, Palestrina, and Ligeti. (Art and Steve do
agree on the Grateful Dead and Captain Beefheart.) Art pushes Steve
to create music that is clear and simple, to groove on repetition for
its own sake. Steve pushes Art to surrender to his weird side and
luxuriate in complexity and dissonance. Playing together off and on
for 20 years, Art and Steve merge their stylistic differences into a
kinky musical language that is Delicate Monster. Audiences share in
the musical adventure as Art and Steve reach for the ultimate
agreement—the magical space where two prepared and practiced
musicians connect in musical conversation.
Dewanatron
Dewanatrons
were created in order to make music in real time, suitable for
concert performance, live recording, or to be broadcast over the
airwaves. The special purpose of Dewanatrons, which are modern
solid-state analog instruments, is to grow music live in
collaboration with the operators who guide them. While inherently
musical in their impulses, the machines have no discipline and
require governing by judicious overseers. Some instruments are
components, or appliances, which used in tandem with other appliances
become part of an electronic chamber group. Other instruments are a
self-contained chamber ensemble in a single housing. The operators
begin a process which develops into a shape beyond their authorship;
the operators become gardeners, watering and pruning, mulching and
composting sound. The music becomes a contrapuntal morass, twining
and climbing, chirping, buzzing, blinking, snapping. The operators
guide the instruments, and the instruments carry the operators and
others through an ever metamorphosing landscape. The Dewanatrons have
delighted young and old, and have been welcome in radio stations, art
galleries and the concert hall.
http://dewanatron.com/index.html
dRachEmUsiK
dRachEmUsiK
is the most recent project by international award winning electronic
musician, sound designer and producer Charles Shriner. The current
sound of dRachEmUsiK has been described as "glitch-groove
ambient beats with a strong modal jazz influence". Simple
melodies swirling in mixed tempos and undulating textures. Dense,
erotic, evocative, emotional, spontaneous and sometimes very noisy,
dRachEmUsiK blends improvisation with structure and is performed in
real time using software, Electronic Wind Instrument and various MIDI
controllers. The music is fresh, innovative and eclectic while
maintaining enough familiar elements to remain accessible without
compromising creative integrity.
http://www.drachemusik.com/
dubathonic
dubathonic
is headed by Chad Boutin, who played guitar in band and solo settings
before discovering electronic music and now composes ambient techno
incorporating both sound sources. dubathonic, whose roster often
expands with collaborators, performs in cafes and clubs in the DC
area.
http://www.myspace.com/dubathonic
Duet
for Theremin and Lap Steel
Duet
for Theremin and Lap Steel is Scott Burland (Theremin) and Frank
Schultz (Lap Steel). Together they create waves of ambiance and
dreamy drones in an improvised back-and-forth with a disregard for
traditional styles. Their rich textures, swooning collages, and
hypnotic pulses weave into one another to form a spectral web of
sound. Duet for Theremin and Lap Steel have been performing together
for three years. Some highlights include: southeastern US and
European tours, participation in Moog Music's EtherMusic Festival and
induction into the New York Theremin Society. "...like
smokestack lightning rolling through the subconscious..."
-Dave Keifer "...a great example of contemporary sound art."
-Thomas Gaudynski
http://duetonline.net/
Earthgirl
Earthgirl
is the musical persona of Jeannie Allen, an experimental electronic
musician based in Indianapolis, Indiana. She combines analog
synthesizers, digital analog modeling, field recordings and vocals to
create a sense of traveling through space and time. Inspired by
musicians who use sound to evoke feelings and thoughts, she
continually explores all genres of electronic music. Jeannie is
currently working on several ambient and electronica projects, with a
focus on raising awareness for the needs of the earth and all who
live here.
http://www.myspace.com/earthgirlvibes
FULCRUM
FULCRUM
aka Ajax Beatphreaker, is a live electronic artist from the NYC area
residing in the Harrisburg, PA area whose music covers practically
all of the electronic music genres - electro, techno, dance, drum and
bass, ghettotech, hardcoretech, IDM, glitch, illbient, industrial,
EBM, experimental, freestyle, house, hip-hop, trip-hop, rave, trance,
ambient, breakbeat, minimal, loops, noise, downtempo, broken beat,
synthpop, new wave, etc... Armed with drum machines and synths, those
who are in the know will hear all of these elements and unexpected
combinations of genres in his sometimes minimal compositions
performed live without a laptop
computer.
http://www.myspace.com/fulcrumthebeatphreaker
Hong
- GuZheng
Hong
Waltzer creates a modern interpretation of traditional Chinese music.
Hong has been a familiar face at previous electro-music festivals,
doing photography and visual art. The ensemble includes Don Slepian,
Klimchak, and Greg Waltzer. The GuZheng, or Chinese Zither, is one of
the most ancient musical instruments, dating back more than 2500
years.
In
The Loop
What is "In
The Loop"? ...simply put, it is a different concept in solo
music performance. Equipped with an electric guitar, synthesizer and
laptop, Matt Dickey interacts in real time with multiple layers of
sound. Blending mostly spontaneous electro-musical creations with
some pre-arranged samples and loops, "In The Loop" takes
you on a unique sonic journey. Groovy funk, spaced out jazz,
improvised remixes and original mashups collide in an electronic
realm. Matt Dickey is a guitarist, composer/arranger and engineer
based in NYC. As an undergrad, he studied with Dave Stoltz (of the
Dickey Betts Band) and Bob Carabillo at Trinity College in Hartford,
CT. Currently, he is a grad student in NYU's Music Tech program. Over
the past few years he has been developing his audio skills and adding
more electronics, effects and technology as a creative approach, thus
resulting in the ever evolving one man band, "In The Loop".
Steve
Jolliffe
Born
in England on 28th April 1949, Steve Jolliffe has been an active
composer for forty years. His extraordinary career started in 1967,
when he met Rick Davies and formed a group called The Joint, which
evolved into Supertramp. Jolliffe's interest in classical music led
him to the "Berlin High School for Music" in 1968. He was
the first student to be accepted who could not read music. While at
the school, he met Edgar Froese, and together with Klaus Schulze
toured Germany for a year as one of the earliest incarnations of
Tangerine Dream. Steve left Tangerine Dream and returned to England
where he joined a blues/rock band called Steamhammer, and began
touring throughout Europe. In 1973 Jolliffe left the group and began
working on scoring and composing music for several films, including
the award-winning documentary Tatoo. Steve rejoined Tangerine Dream
in 1978 and together with Froese, Christopher Franke and Klaus
Krüger, recorded the album Cyclone. The quartet toured Europe
that year and played to crowds of up to 100,000. Shortly afterward,
Jolliffe left TD for the second time and went back to England to
pursue a solo career. He recorded several albums in the 1980s. Two of
those are "Journeys out of the Body" and "Beyond the
Dream", (both available through Horizon Music). In 1983 Steve
released "Japanese Butterfly" and in 1984 Beyond the Dream.
Steve also collaborated with Klaus Schulze on a Wahnfried album
called "Miditation". Jolliffe spent the rest of the decade
recording library discs, for use in films. In 1990 Steve moved to
America and released thealbum "Escape" the following year.
During this time Jolliffe partnered with Horizon Music to distribute
many of his CD's and, after releasing "Warrior" in 1992,
became Horizon's first signee. Steve moved back to England in 1994
and released "Alien", which was less electronic than
previous efforts and featured extensive use of flute and saxophone.
Then Steve explored a new musical direction with the ambient/trance
CD "Zanzi". He took this title from a French game of
chance, and the disc was chosen by the nationally syndicated radio
program Musical Starstreams as one of its Top Ten albums of 1996.
Jolliffe also found the time to work with the group Eat Static- Merv
Peplar and Joie Hinton (formerly of Ozric Tentacles) on their album
Science of the Gods and has also created a duo with peplar entitled
The Hi Fi Companions (released in February 2004), on the label
Twisted Records. 1998 saw the release of Omni, a logical follow-up to
Zanzi and in 1999 Deep Down Far. Like much of his varied work, this
CD draws on elements of traditional electronic, ambient and classical
music structures. The opening track has been used in advertisements
on the Discovery Channel. A year later, Jolliffe put out a
compilation CD called Invitation, which features music from each of
the aforementioned albums. One of his latest albums, "Space"
and "The Bruton Suite" were both released in 2003. This
album has a stronger accent on classical themes. In 2004 Steve
celebrated the release of his 25th album, "THE DOUBLE ALBUM"
which coincided with the start of his European Tour in September 2004
in Poland and the UK.
Kingdom
of Sharks
Kingdom of
Sharks is the audible exploration of the psyche of Christopher S.
Feltner. The goal is to elicit an emotional response from the
listener. Various thematic elements and concepts are present, but
emotion is always the premise. Layers of sound form compositions
meant to make you feel something. This "something" varies
from person to person. Many describe these pieces as dark, which is
accurate. But, darkness doesn't necessarily equal evil or
negativity. You decide.
http://www.myspace.com/kingdomofsharks
Kevin Kissinger
Kevin
Kissinger is a classical organist, composer, and electronic musician
from Kansas City, Mo. His most recent interest is to compose and
perform works for the theremin -- an instrument that was invented in
1919. Kevin composes tonal music for theremin that utilizes the
theremin, laptop-based looping, effects, and surround-sound. He
creates both live-looping works and works for theremin and
pre-recorded tracks. Kevin's theremin compositions can be described
as neo-classical, minimalist, and mildly avante-garde. Kevin
explains: "I want to create tonal compositions that are
intellectually challenging yet accessable to many listeners. I find
the theremin to be a haunting and expressive instrument. In my
imagination, I can hear its "voice" echoing from all
directions. My surround-sound looping compositions are an attempt
to realize the sound that is in my head." Kevin's program for
2009 includes works from previous years and a newly-composed
surround-sound live looping work that builds upon techniques from
previous works. Kevin plays a Moog Etherwave Pro theremin. Many of
Kevin's theremin compositions are written specifically for this
theremin and utilize its wide range and timbres. Kevin earned a
Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Kansas City
Conservatory of Music in 1981. He majored in Pipe Organ
performance. During his time in college, he built a large modular
synthesizer (an Aries synthesizer) and studied electronic music with
Gerald Kemner and Jim Rothwell. Kevin is active in the
Electro-music.com, Thereminworld.com, and Loopers-delight.com online
communities. His theremin performances include the Electro-music,
Y2K International Live-Looping, and the Ethermusic
festivals.
http://kevinkissinger.com/
Klimchak
Klimchak
lives at the intersection of chaos and order. His
composer/percussionist side builds elaborate structures of
interlocking melody & rhythm. Then his performer side takes over
and obliterates those structures with bursts of noise, random drones
and slabs of spontaneous improvised sound. This battle is usually
played out on a Don Buchla Marimba Lumina. This allows Klimchak to
use 4 mallets and 2 feet, all of which can play separate instruments.
For variety, throw in a breath controller, a theremin & a variety
of ethnic acoustic instruments & you've got the makings of an
exciting unpredictable experience. As a composer, Klimchak's
credentials include performing his live music for over 15 shows for
Georgia Shakespeare, where he is an Artistic Associate & numerous
shows for Emory University, Seven Stages Theater & the Center for
Puppetry Arts. Some fave compositions for dance/theater include Three
Bagatelles for the Righteous, performed at NYC’s Joyce Theater
by Jane Comfort and Co, Malinche performed at the Bovenzaal
Stadsschouwburg in Amsterdam and No Exit at Le Neon Theater in
Washington, DC (nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for best sound
design). Next up is a theremin & toy piano-laced score for Tales
of Edgar Allan Poe at the Puppetry
Center.
http://www.myspace.com/klimchak
Andrew
Koenig
Andrew Koenig
is a computer scientist and (originally) acoustic musician who has
come to electro-music through the classical, rock, and folk worlds.
He started playing recorder as a child and guitar and bass as a
teenager, and studied music theory in college. He is a member of an
early-music ensemble (www.earlymusicplayers.org)
and a folk/country band (www.storynsong.com/musictown).
His music often starts with traditional melodies and musical forms,
which he then twists around, such as by using a looper to help sing
an Elizabethan round, writing what sounds like a polka in 7/8 time,
or using a sampler to build a drum kit from the sounds of doors
closing and flatware jangling.
Kribophoric
Kribophoric's
music is an evolving blend of the free improvisation,
electro-acoustic, and creative music genres. Their performances are
ever-changing and dynamic, vacillating between intense and high
energy assaults of improvisational sound, to subtle, thought/mood
provoking, and intriguing musical dialogues. Listeners have called
Kribophoric's music "intelligent and creative," amazing,"
and "different, but still earthly." Kribophoric developed
as a result of an online recording collaboration that began in 2007
and continues to flourish today. Hartung (guitar, alto flute,
laptop, Max/MSP) and Sterling (percussion and electronics) expanded
their recording collaboration to live performance with their debut
appearance at the 2007 Boise Experimental Music Festival, and then
added the 2007 and 2008 Y2K International Live Looping Festivals
(Santa Cruz, CA) and the 2008 Boise Creative and Improvisational
Music Festival to their repertoire of live performances. They have
released three CDs, including their latest "Beyond the
Fringe."
http://www.kribophoric.com/
Richard Lainhart
Richard
Lainhart is an award-winning composer, author, and filmmaker - a
digital artisan who works with sonic and visual data. Lainhart
studied composition and electronic music with Joel Chadabe at the
State University of New York at Albany. His compositions have been
performed in the US, England, Sweden, Germany, Australia, and Japan,
and recordings of his music have appeared on the Periodic Music,
Vacant Lot, XI Records, Airglow Music, Tobira Records, and ExOvo
labels. As an active performer, Lainhart has appeared in public
approximately 2000 times. Besides performing his own work, he has
worked and performed with John Cage, David Tudor, Steve Reich, Phill
Niblock, David Berhman, and Jordan Rudess, among many others. He has
composed over 100 electronic and acoustic works. Lainhart's
animations and short films have been shown at festivals in the US,
the UK, Canada, Germany, and Korea, and online at ResFest, The New
Venue, The Bitscreen, and Streaming Cinema 2.0. His film "A
Haiku Setting" won awards in several categories at the 2002
International Festival of Cinema and Technology in Toronto. In 2009,
he was awarded a Film & Media grant by the New York State Council
on the Arts for "No Other Time", full-length intermedia
performance designed for a large reverberant space, combining live
analog electronics with four-channel playback, and high-definition
computer-animated film projection.
http://www.otownmedia.com/
Lonely Robot Audio
Lonely
Robot Audio presents MUS EXCELSIOR, a film by Kevin Meredith. An
eleven course scientifically formulated meal of moving images and
music, MUS EXCELSIOR outlines the causes, symptoms, and treatment of
quotidian schizophrenia. An incredibly broad sonic palette, enhanced
by special binaural effects, fuses classical, rock, concrete, jazz,
new age, new wave, and pastrami! Witness the hilarious, terrifying
antics of hypernormal humans, Venusian warrior women, and the
sinister Martian Mice who control them all! All this and more, in
just 35 minutes.
http://lonelyrobotaudio.com/em2009.htm
Mayakara
Mayakara,
a Sanskrit word for Conjurer of Illusions, is an acoustic/electronic
duo consisting of Bill Fieger and Mike Hunter. They weave acoustic
elements such as Bill's custom built "Lunatar" and Mike's
Didgeridoo stylings with various electronic instruments and
processors. Together, the unworldly sound invites the listener to
join the shaman's dance and see through the illusion that is
"reality." Bill can also be heard performing with "Stares
To Nowhere" and solo as "Oblivious Solitude." Mike
performs solo as Ombient, with Brainstatik and also hosts the WPRB
103.3FM Ambient/Electronic/Experimental music show called "Music
With Space" out of Princeton, NJ.
Terrence McManus
Born
in Brooklyn, New York, guitarist Terrence McManus grew up in New
Jersey and Connecticut. He has performed with John Zorn, Bill
Frisell, Tim Berne, Ellery Eskelin, Herb Robertson, Mark Helias,
Gerry Hemingway, Anthony Cox, Kermit Driscoll, Russ Lossing, Marty
Ehrlich, Mat Maneri, Billy Mintz, Michael Sarin, and Gene Bertoncini.
He has performed at Carnegie Hall, the New York Guitar Festival,
Ellis Island, and the inaugural month at John Zorn's The Stone. In
2006, Terrence formed Flattened Planet, a record label dedicated to
the promotion of new, creative, and improvised music. Terrence is
currently a member of the Gerry Hemingway Quintet, the Kermit
Driscoll Group, the Herb Robertson Ensemble, and the
Hemingway/McManus Duo. His own project, The Terrence McManus
Ensemble, is unique in that the ensemble is comprised of several
small groups with shifting personnel. One variation, the chamber
ensemble The Dream of the Ants, with Ellery Eskelin and Gerry
Hemingway, recently premiered a new sixty minute, multi-sectional,
through-composed work entitled, The Machine. Also an accomplished
solo guitarist, Terrence performs his own compositions and
arrangements, and has developed a unique style of improvisation,
drawing on extended technique and prepared guitar. Terrence's solo
improvisations were featured in the New York City debut of the Fermin
Cabal play Disappeared (Tejas Verdes). The play's month long
residency took place at the Richmond Shepard Theatre in September,
2006. In 2008 Terrence was featured in the book, State of the Axe:
Guitar Masters in Photographs and Words, by legendary photographer
Ralph Gibson. The book, published by Yale University Press, was
produced in conjunction with The Museum of Fine Arts, in Houston, TX,
where the book's images were on exhibition. Also actively involved
in education, Terrence has taught at William Paterson University, the
University of Nebraska, and The New School in New York
City.
http://terrence-mcmanus.com/
The Megadrives
The
Megadrives began with K-Rai and DJ Sheephead joining forces to create
a new original style of psychedelic dance music. Combining laptops,
mixers, keyboards, effects, and turntablist techniques, they quickly
went on to play out live with intense energy and found a raving
response from audiences all over North America. All tracks are
produced live, mixed, and tweaked through the tracking software,
Renoise. The styles range from acid, house, trance, drum & bass,
breaks, IDM, & down tempo - all brought together with an ever
changing, fluid, non-stop mix. The team has also expanded to include
VJ Chroma who provides live, customized & self-produced,
psychedelic visual projections. Be prepared for a rocking experience
of mind blowing sounds that will force your body to be in tune with
the rhythm.
http://www.themegadrives.com/
Kurt
Michaels
2009
marks the 4th appearance by Chicago guitarist/composer Kurt Michaels
at Electro-Music. Taking a break from the recording of his upcoming
release "Soaring Back To Earth", Michaels once again brings
his unique brand of "fourth dimensional" guitar based
electronic soundscapes to Electro-Music, accompanied by keyboardist
Jim Gully. Michaels' recorded works include Inner Worlds part one on
Eitux Records released in 2003 and Outer Worlds on Umbrello Records
released in 2007.
http://www.myspace.com/kurtmichaels1
Logan Mitchell
I'm
really looking forward to performing at electro-music 2009 as this is
my first ever live solo performance. I truly enjoy exploring the vast
multitude of sounds that several of my synthesizers & effects
pedals produce as I truly enjoy creating a very expansive synthesized
wall of sound that will be both exciting yet soothing to the soul. I
really like performing with my Doepfer A-100 series mini modular
analog synthesizer, Paia 3740 Gnome analog synthesizer, Roland SH-101
analog synthesizer & newly acquired MoogerFooger MF-107, MF-101,
MF-102 & CP-251 synthesizer
pedals.
http://sites.google.com/site/synthtechproject/Home
Modulator ESP
Modulator
ESP produces improvised experimental music using analogue and digital
synthesis, analogue sequencers and processed sounds to create strange
worlds of sound somewhere between '70s space music, prog rock and
dark ambient drone Pieces are like abstract journeys into the
imagination. Jez is also a member of Astrogator, Cerberus and Quadra
and does stuff for Awakenings, Neusonik and the Hampshire Jam
'Jam'.
http://www.modulator-esp.co.uk/
Shane
Morris
US
multi-instrumentalist, Shane Morris carves atmospheric poly-rhythms
and ethereal soundscapes in the ambient / tribal / space music
domains. Inspired by trance-inducing rhythms, deep textural
harmonies, and the juxtapositions of the natural and urban worlds,
Morris’ music is a dynamic sojourn through textural
sound-fields that glide across dark glacial valleys and soar along
transforming hyper-groove peaks. Morris’ compositions are a
balance of both structured and improvised explorations that evolve
rhythmically and harmonically through a continual immersive mix.
Shane’s ethno-electronic sound comes from a blend of analog and
digital synthesizers, acoustic and electronic percussion, winds,
samplers, field recordings, and effects processing. An avid live
musician and improviser, Shane Morris has played at Electro-Music
2008, KC Regional Electro-Music Festival 2009, City Skies 2009, among
other venues locally and regionally, as well as several online
streaming concert events. Shane also hosts a weekly net radio program
called, Space Port Zero Nine at electro-music.com. SP09 features live
performances by Shane and other ambient electronic
artists.
http://www.myspace.com/shanemorrismusic
MyOwnYoKo
"MyOwnYoKo"
is an exploration of Dub Inspired, Electro-Improv Live Sound Looping.
Performances are always improvisational, featuring multi-instrumental
layering of sound on sound loops creating a spontaneous soundscape
portrait unique in it's originality, and a reflection of the time and
the place of creation. The result is music unique to the moment and a
true interactive collaboration between artist and audience.
"MyOwnYoKo" originated as a member of the Philadelphia
based performance arts troupe, "TRIBAL KNOWLEDGE".
Influenced by Dub Reggae, Trip Hop, Progressive Rock, Electro-Music,
and gadgetry of all shapes and sizes. "MyOwnYoKo" offers a
relaxed but compelling journey of musical creativity and joyful
noise.
NEOREV
Michael
Matteo, a.k.a. Neorev, is a music producer from Long Island, New York
specializing in his own blend of electronica. Taking a seat behind a
drum kit, Mike first experienced performing with alternative rock
bands. It wasn't until 2000 when he first started dabbling with
electronic music and has spent nearly a decade developing his own
signature sound. Combining big beats and dirty synths with woofer
thumping bass and a rock n' roll attitude, Neorev self-released a
full length album over the summer titled "Lines & Shapes"
through his own website neorevmusic.com. He has also formed Midi
Bear Records with fellow musicians Kid_Sputnik and Kid Versus
Chemical showcasing Long Island's own electronic music
scene.
http://www.myspace.com/neorevmusic
Joker Nies
Joker
Nies (Cologne, Germany) is a musician, sound-designer,
sound-engineer, photographer and technical editor for the German
Sound & Recording and Keyboards magazines. Recent activities
include software synth-design in MAX/MSP for the german Keyboards
magazine, and production and sound design for radio-plays for the
German WDR radio-broadcast. Joker is known for his energetic
improvisations on unusual electronic instruments and re-built
electronic toys all over Europe and the US. He has played with many
established improvisors and is part of the trio Die Schrauber. Joker
is a leading expert in circuit bending and has conducted many
inspiring circuit-bending and DIY workshops in the whole of Europe
and the USA.
http://web.me.com/klangbureau/DIY/Workshop.html
Northern Valentine
Hailing
from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Northern Valentine is an
experimental ambient/post-rock group that consists of husband and
wife, Robert and Amy Brown, and a number of multi-instrumental
musicians who collaborate with them from time to time. A typical
Northern Valentine live performance often features band members
switching instruments several times and plenty of improvisational
collaboration. They blend traditional and non-tradtional electric and
acoustic elements, and span the gap from quiet and meditative drones
and sound-scapes, to loud and fuzzy instrumental post-rock. They also
have an ongoing habit of turning up and playing in remote locations
and natural settings; from abandoned buildings and ruins to fields
and forests. They have been playing live since 2006, having toured
periodically throughout the Eastern US, as well as in Iceland in
2008. Their music has drawn comparisons to a wide range of artists;
from Labradford, Windy and Carl, Flying Saucer Attack, Fennesz and
Eluvium, to Mogwai, Seefeel, Earth, Godspeed You Black Emperor! and
Spacemen 3. Writing about their 2008 Silber Records debut album, The
Distance Brings Us Closer, Jeff Penczak (from Foxy Digitalis)
says..."Northern Valentine’s music delivers a sense of
floating in space or a communion with nature where the listener is
enveloped in clouds of billowing sonics. The listener’s
imagination can run wild creating images to accompany this ambient
soundtrack...much of (which) could easily serve as a post-modern
soundtrack to David Lynch’s underground classic, Eraserhead. In
sum, an awesomely hypnotic listening
experience."
http://northernvalentine.com
Project
Ruori
Project Ruori is
based in Athens and Columbus, Ohio. For this performance, it
consists of Beth Binkovitz, Steve Mokris, Berae McClary, and Chris
Wright. It is conceptual, experimental electro pop digressing into
ambience. There will be untrained vocalists performing spoken and/or
toasted word in the key of four and a half. It is a story of love,
loss, betrayal and The Space Needle. The mood ranges from maudlin
pessimism to oblivious optimism to ominous ambiguity. Eerie
visualizations provide a backdrop.
http://ruori.org/
RDK
Davis
White and David Rickert met in the early 1980s through common friends
in the Washington, DC hardcore punk scene. In 2001 they decided to
join the city's emerging electronic noise community and formed the
duo RDK. Bachelor pad music, outer space sounds, and industrial noise
were first explored. RDK were quickly labeled as "retro-future"
owing to the evocative nature of their simple synth melodies and
counterpoint noise effects. Later material settled into abstractly
organized patchworks of sound, influenced equally by 1970s synth
pioneers, spacemusic and modern noise improvisation. The Zero Moon
label released their well-received “Undisturbed” online
e.p. in 2006. More recently, Rickert's modular synth kits, which he
wires himself, have joined his boutique noisemakers and vintage Moog
Rogue to become an important element in the RDK palette. White relies
on the Moog L.P. and an assortment of software synths and sequencers
to enrich his abstract melodies. Different compositional techniques
are employed, pentatonic scales, 12-tone interludes and just playing
by ear. Conversely, the equipment is sometimes put in charge. Being
at the mercy of RDK's machines produces plenty of random chaos, but
occasionally creates something much more intriguing than the two men
alone could imagine.
http://homepage.mac.com/daviswhite/rdk.htm
Ricochet Gathering
Led
by Vic Rek, veterans of the Ricochet Gathering events perform a
collaborative improvisation. The ensemble includes Steve Jolliffe,
Bill Fox, Jeannie Allen, Howard Moscovitz, and
others.
http://www.ricochetdream.com/
safe
2
"safe 2"
is the solo project of david vosh (maryland / washington,d.c.).
Primary interests are modular synthesizers, random processes, radio
and improvisation. My usual approach blends processed radio and
self-generating modular synth sounds with improvised manual
interaction via gestural controllers. Exploration of random,
psuedo-random and eccentric control voltage generators is central to
my approach to electro-noise creation. I have been involved in
electronic music since the early `70's. primary influences include
stockhausen, subotnick, douglas leedy and all those great `60's e.m.
records by folks like varese, mimralogu and the like. While
"surfacing" briefly during the early `80's cassette tape /
newsletter scene, I have mostly just created music for my own
enjoyment in isolation until discovering a vibrant local scene in
Wash., D.C. After attending a couple of events, I found myself
thinking, "I can do that, too" and I inquired and found
myself playing live and before people for the first time in 25+
years 2 months later. Since then, I have played in a duo, "safe"
(now on hiatus), several solo efforts and with the s.d.i.y. / balto.
variable ensemble. Since e-m 2008, i have been busy with various duo
projects including one with Logan Mitchell, Sr. (also playing at e-m
this year as a solo), a one-off reunion with my former partner as
"safe" and more solo efforts. I`m happy to return to e-m
2009 this year.
http://www.myspace.com/safe00
Siebert
and Lepre
Bob Siebert,
playing a circuit bent SK1 keyboard & Bob Lepre, percussion/sound
design artist, performing on a custom programmed Roland HD-15, will
be performing a set of experimental jazz improvisations. Bob
Siebert’s music is influenced by the prepared piano pieces of
John Cage & the birds in his neighborhood. “In the
tradition of an expert programmer or B-3 master, he varies the
circuit-bent sonic tapestry in perfect synchronization with the music
he creates.” (Keyboard magazine - Michael Gallant) Bob Lepre’s
extensive career and visionary concepts began by providing sounds for
Tennessee Williams utilizing altered magnetic tape.
Don Slepian
One
day in 1960 my father brought home "Music From Mathematics,"
the first Bell Labs computer music record. From that moment, even
though I was only 7 years old, I knew that Electronic Music was what
I wanted to do. Twenty years later I was Artist in Residence at Bell
Labs and produced some of the first ambient electronic space-music,
the 1980 release "Sea of Bliss". I was a hardware hacker
with the Casio M10 and Ensoniq Mirage digital sampler and worked with
the ARP and MOOG modular systems as a teacher and composer. I
currently improvise ambient stream-of-consciousness music in a
variety of styles using the Kurzweil keyboard instruments. I
interview and promote many musicians on my "ArtMusic
Coffeehouse" webcast show.
http://donslepian.com/
Space Port Zero Nine
Based
on the Friday night streaming radio program on electro-music.com,
this ambient collaboration is led by Shane Morris. This set will be
an unrehearsed and improvisational journey into the dark side of
ambient/space music, beginning at midnight on Halloween with some of
the finest musicians of the craft. Space Port Zero Nine promises to
be full of aural surprises!
Spinning Plates
Spinning
Plates is an electro-improv duo based in Stamford, Connecticut,
comprised of a drummer (playing eDrums) and a guitarist who doubles
on keys (playing virtual instruments). Both musicians use laptops
running Ableton Live (looping software) to record and playback…in
real time! The spinning Plates sound is eclectic and evolving; from
chilled-out, ethereal soundscapes to funky experimental grooves. The
duo begins each piece with a clean slate; improvising, looping,
remixing, layering sound on sound, resulting in a unique sonic design
every time. Chris Mariner: (guitar/keys/laptop) is a professional
musician and teacher. He performs in a wide range of jazz ensembles
and is a founding member of Spinning Plates. Tracey Kroll:
(eDrums/laptop) is a professional photographer. He plays drums in
the rock group Ice Brothers and is a founding member of Spinning
Plates.
http://www.spinningplates.us/
SPITZNAGEL
James
Spitznagel has been spending years (and dollars) trying to make his
performance gear more and more compact. This year, at Electro-Music
2009, Spitznagel will debut his latest set-up: The new Nintendo DSi,
a Tenori-on from Yamaha and two Dave Smith synths (the Evolver and
the Mopho). The music will be a combination of glitch-tech rhythms,
galactican ambience and improvised melodies. Spitznagel's work was
described by novelist J. Robert Lennon as "making the ordinary
seem alien and alienation seem ordinary". With 30 years
experience in music, Spitznagel brings a broad perspective to the
worlds of electronic, experimental and sample based music. CADENCE,
the world-renowned music magazine, has stated: "Spitznagel
negotiates a unique solo performance using electronics as his
paintbrush and an extra-wide soundstage on which to splatter his
creation".
http://www.levelgreen.com/
State
Machine
Bill
Manganaro, also known as “State Machine”, an electronic
musician from Long Island, New York, has found joy in electronic
music listening for over 32 years. Bill has been producing electronic
music for nearly nine years resulting in four CD releases of his own
original compositions ranging from melodic dance and IDM styles to
experimental noise and drones. Recently relocating to Medford New
York has allowed Bill to put together his third, and largest,
electronic music studio to date. Using a combination of handmade
analog and digital instruments and computer technologies, Bill
produces his music and hosts a two hour biweekly radio program live
from his studio on “electro-music radio” entitled “The
Soldering Musician Show” where the music has special emphasis
on “do it yourself” electronic instruments and upbeat
“chip” music. You can expect Bill’s music to be
melodic and rhythm based using a variety of software instruments and
hardware controllers. The opening number will be a celebration of
“numbers” as inspired by the pioneer group Kraftwerk with
music that will leave no part of the frequency spectrum untouched.
The set will then move into darker, unknown territories, leaving the
listener in suspense as they encounter randomly shifting time
signatures and cinematic style musical scores that swell and pan
across the listening space. We genuinely hope you enjoy this 30
minute set by “State Machine”.
Ben Stohr
Ben
Stohr is a Chapman Stick player and MIDI-guitarist. Groups that he
has performed with in the past include power rock trios, café
duets and an improvisational collaborative using a Zorn technique.
The music was mostly rock with jazz and improvisational
sensibilities. Ben has since taken this past experience to solo work.
Using MIDI interaction with a laptop, he fleshes out compositions
with software. The approach is "as close to live as possible".
Most sounds originate from or are triggered by stringed instruments.
The result is something a bit more organic than pure electronic
music.
http://benstohr.com/
Symmetry
Symmetry
has three different manifestations: as a solo, duo or trio. As a
soloist, JEM dabbles in many different styles, including ambient,
experimental, and space music. As a duo, JEM and JR blend these
elements with more conventional styles and, as a trio led by Sisco
Kid, they alternate between a fusion of Funk, Jazz, Techno and
Hip-Hop. With the exception of Sisco's voice and alto sax, they
consistently remain true to their form as electronic musicians. John
Rivera (JR), has periodically collaborated with JEM since they
established Symmetry in 1978 at the LaGuardia High School of Music
and Art. He currently works as Senior Engineering Technician at
Curtis Instruments and frequently contributes creative, technical and
logistic support to Symmetry. His musical interests and influences
are wideranging and his primary efforts are focused on Christian
music composition and sequencing.
Tamul and Mosc
Composers
Jack Tamul and Howard Moscovitz combine for an improvised set.
The Tara Experiment
The
Slow Motion Ecstasy of Sound – Welcome to the World of the Tara
Experiment. Analogue synthesizers, tape loops, homemade devices, Vox
organ, tremolo fuzz guitars, Rhythm Ace clicks and blips, reverb,
echo, old vinyl and found sounds. These are some of the ingredients
that go into the making of the sonic landscapes created by the Tara
Experiment. A blend of Musique Concrete, drone and ambient
atmospheres fed through a tape echo that has its controls set for the
heart of the sun. Reared on the music of the BBC Radiophonic
Workshop, old horror and sci-fi soundtracks, LaMonte Young, Brion
Gysin, William S. Burroughs, Spacemen 3 and Cluster the Tara
Experiment mine otherworldly soundscapes in the comfort of their ever
growing electronic studio affectionately known as Electronic Music
Studio 425. Inside, no sound is sacred. Analogue synths are blended
with bells and treated guitar. Old vinyl is meshed with found sounds
and organ drones. A tape loop of something as commonly simple as a
submarine sonar ping can be the basis of a new track that will be
labored over for days by these sonic boffins until every detail is
complete and the track comes alive as a warm living breathing,
although sometimes dark entity. The Tara Experiment blend old with
new in a future retro cocktail spliff of sound. So skin up and drift
away.
http://www.myspace.com/thetaraexperiment
Technicolor Travel
Agency
Technicolor
Travel Agency is the musical duo of Greg Waltzer (synthesizers and
sequencers, mandola, flute) and Johnny Doyle (guitar). Their
improvisational excursions take the listener on a journey of the
mind, fusing world motifs with psychedelic guitar and spaced-out
electronics.
http://technicolortravelagency.com/
Thin Air
“
… all spirits are melted into air, into thin air.”
—Shakespeare, The Tempest. Thin Air is the solo act of Steve
Bowman. Steve will also be performing Friday night with Art Cohen as
Delicate Monster. Art and Steve performed at Electro-Music 2007 as
Available Space. Steve uses looper, delays, effects, and
arpeggiators, but no laptop computer, no samplers, no recorded
tracks. All sounds originate from fingers on synth keyboards (and an
occasional sequencer). How to describe the music of Thin Air?
“Writing about music is like dancing about architecture.”
Steve refuses to claim his music is “a voyage in sound”
or “taps spiritual dimensions.” Music is sound and Steve
makes sounds Steve likes. Steve likes dissonance and noise. He likes
Renaissance counterpoint, string quartets, and Shpongle. The sounds
he makes are filtered through 50 years of listening and playing
piano, a degree in Music Composition from Harvard, 96 Grateful Dead
shows, and 20 years of tutelage in spacemusic from Art Cohen. Come
hear Steve’s Thin Air set and afterwards tell him how you would
describe what you hear. His hope: the sounds you hear will be good
enough to call, simply “music.”
Tintinnabulation
Tintinnabulation
is Michael Sperone's electro-acoustic solo project. With an
instrumentation of glockenspiel, cymbal and/or gong, computer, and
electronics (sometime adding autoharp, timpani, or toy piano),
Tintinnabulation offers a new sound. Tintinnabulation combines
radical atonal melodies and bass lines with a tonal harmonic
structure and "pop" music influence. Michael Sperone's
other musical endeavors are just as ambitious and wide ranging. His
current work includes several new commissions for Peter Jarvis and
iKtus Percussion, as well as a solo pop album. Michael is a founding
member of New Music Unit, On The Cusp New Music Ensemble, and
Composers Anonymous as both composer and performer. He has had his
works premiered by the New Jersey Percussion Ensemble, Joe Bergen,
New Music Unit, and Justin
Wolf.
http://www.mikesperone.com/tintinnabulation/
Transistor Club
Mel
Morley - Keyboardist, Bassist, Zendrummer and Music Producer.
Miami,Florida/Zurich,Switzerland. "Part of the pleasure of doing
what I do is working around the world with some of the finest artists
who groove like crazy." I have performed and recorded with Paul
Schaeffer, A Flock of Seagulls, Ron Wood,Yngwie Malmsteen, Inner
Circle, Pretty Ricky, Buddy Miles, Pablo Moses, The Cornelius Bros
and Sister Rose, The Platters, Drifters, Coasters, Bronski Beat,
CCCP, and am one of 2 American Artists to perform at the entire
Montreux Jazz festival.
http://www.midimel.com/
The Tronic
Formed
in 2008 as an improvisational live jazz-tronic band w/ DJ
sensibilities and instrumental proficiency. Gregg Jarvis (nyc) on
drums and electronics and Thomas Bell (nyc) on basses and
synthesizers create soundscapes, grooves and other worldly nastiness.
Gregg and Thomas have been exploring live improvised instrument
looping since they began playing together in 2003. Their unique
approach to improvisation blurs the lines between the live musician,
the composer and the dj. The Tronic is truly a forward-thinking
modern jazz ensemble.
http://www.oxygenmusiccollective.org/
Waked Lunch
Waked
Lunch is the side-project of Rosemary Haskins, featuring Josh Esref
Guntel. Born from the ventromedial frontal cortex of the brain, Waked
Lunch is an experimental project that utilizes atmospheric sounds,
samplers, strings, and other more common instruments such as drums,
guitar, and synths. Inspired by William Burroughs, David Lynch and
Angelo Badalamenti, the music is dark and melancholy, though somewhat
frenzied, and often edited using Burroughs' writing technique "the
Cut-Up Method." The live show features experimental video
sequences, costumes, masks and laser lights, the perfect
accompaniment to the ever hypnotic music. It's deliciously dark,
haunting and manic... the perfect soundtrack to All Hallow's
Eve!
http://www.rosemaryrocks.com/WLEPK
Jeremy Winters
EM
2009 will be Jeremy's first performance on the East Coast where he
now resides in New York City. Jeremy will perform using the
Tabletar... a custom tactile interface he constructed so that he
could spend more time manipulating computer generated sounds with his
eyes closed, as opposed to looking at the screen. Expect to hear
fragmented melodies stretched and folded into themselves... some
sound intimate and small while others convey galactic scale travel.
Jeremy has been making electronic music for 15 years, sometimes under
the names "the mood channel" and "schizothermic".
He has also collaborated with collectives "The Perpetual
Madness Machine", "Lullabelle", and "Sonicabal".
In addition to recording and performing music, he has produced
soundtracks for short films and children's theater, as well as sound
and light installation work as part of the Seattle Dorkbot "People
Doing Strange Things with Electricity" exhibition
series.
http://www.themoodchannel.com/music.html
xeroid
entity
xeroid
entity is constantly exploring new musical territory by going beyond
the barriers of standard conventions while still drawing upon
classical influences. Their music ranges from light and whimsical to
dark and aggressive, often within the same piece. Much of it is
ambient in nature; without a discernible beat. When they do play
rhythmically based music, there are often complex counter rhythms
giving the music a poly-rhythmic flavor. The results can be subtle
and spacey without being boring, noisy without being harsh, dynamic
yet continuous. The members of xeroid entity are Howard Moscovitz,
Bill Fox, and Greg Waltzer. Combined they have more than 80 years of
experience making electronic music. They all program their own
sounds, and refuse to be bound by conventional scales or rhythms. The
parts are freely improvised, though they occasionally have structures
based on the concerto forms of Mozart and Bach. This allows for
maximum expressiveness and interaction between group members, while
avoiding predictability.
http://xeroid-entity.com/
Internet
Marketing and Promotion – Rosemary Haskins
Making
the Most of Worldwide Web
Are you still looking for a major record deal? Are you still hoping somebody else is going to make you a star? If so, stop it! The days of label superstars are drawing to a close, and the major record companies are packing their bags. Don't worry, the dream hasn't ended, it's only just begun. With indie music rising in popularity and indie artists' CD sales soaring, there is plenty of room for you on the world wide web. This seminar will discuss digital distribution, digital promotion, social networking for the musician, and how YOU can get your music out there. We will explore how to get your songs/CDs available in iTunes, Amazon, Napster and other online retail outlets; the importance of an EPK; how to get your band on facebook, myspace, reverbnation and other online music hosting sites; as well as why you should be hosting your own website. There will be time for a short Q&A afterwards, so have your questions ready.
Performance
System – Richard Lainhart
Multi-Dimensional
Control for Realtime Analog Synthesis Performance
The promise of electronic music has been, from the beginning, to provide the composer with the means to create his or her own unique sounds and musics without the need for intermediaries like performers and technicians. And the problem with electronic music has been, from the beginning, to endow synthesized sound with the same organic expressivity found in acoustic instruments and natural sound while making synthesizers viable performance instruments in their own right. There have been many attempts to integrate the unlimited potential of modular analog synthesis with practical performance capabilities, and to provide the electronic music composer/performer with the kind of expressive musical control available in advanced acoustic instruments. Among the most successful and creative of these efforts are the Buchla 200e analog modular synthesizer and the Haken Continuum Fingerboard. Buchla's 200e is the first modular analog synth with patch memory and the ability to re-route patchcords on the fly, making it an ideal instrument for performance, capable of both the highest and lowest levels of control. The Continuum is a unique multidimensional controller keyboard that senses direct finger movement in three dimensions (X, Y, and pressure) for each of up to 16 fingers, making it one of the most advanced performance controllers available today. Together, the 200e and the Continuum make for an electronic music performance system of unparalleled expressivity and sensitivity.
Scrabble
- to - MIDI – Dale Parson
Dr.
Dale Parson and his Java programming students at Kutztown University
spent the 2008-2009 academic year writing an interactive composition
generator in the form of a computer Scrabble game that generates up
to 16 channels of MIDI music from a game's rules and state. Scrabble
tiles map to notes and words map to chords using scales,
letter-to-note mappings, variable-length arpeggio and accent
patterns, sustain, pan, patch number, and other mapping configuration
parameters. One or more players make music by playing Scrabble and by
manipulating 16 channels of graphical configuration parameters during
play. Statistical properties in Scrabble words map to statistical
properties in generated music. Participants in this seminar can load
the free Scrabble software and Java Development Kit onto their
laptops, and/or peform ensemble pieces with other players.
Ten
Years of the Ricochet Gathering – Vic Rek
Ricochet
Gathering is a unique collaboration event for electronic music. This
name applies to the event and also the group of musicians involved in
the event, where a group of musicians and a usually small group fans
gather at unique locations throughout the world. The event happens
approximately once each calendar year. The first gathering occurred
at the Okefenokee Swamp in April 2000. Each gathering event has a
theme tied to the Berlin School of electronic music pioneers
Tangerine Dream. The type of music that is created at these event
varies from old-style retro to new contemporary electronic music.
Musicians and fans usually have to make an effort to reach the exotic
locations. Once there, the setting and atmosphere allows fans and
musicians to live in a communal setting for a few days to
inspire/create/enjoy electronic music. All music created at each
event is live, unrehearsed, and improvised - and captured in one
take. The music at and by the Ricochet Gathering is recorded and
eventually published by the Ricochet Dream music label, which is
dedicated to releasing music from this event and its associated
musicians.
Vic Rek is the organizer and producer of the Ricochet Gathering and the owner of the Berlin School influenced EM label Ricochet Dream (ricochetdream.com). He also is involved in concert promotion, artist management, sales and marketing of contemporary electronic music. Vic will present a film about the Ricochet Gathering, and will be joined by Tangerine Dream member Steve Jolliffe for a short performance.
Interactive Video Software –
Project Ruori
Steve
Mokris and Chris Wright of Project Ruori give a
presentation/demonstration about their work on Apple's Quartz
Composer.
http://kineme.net/
Experiments in Synthesis – Don Slepian
Creative
Instrument Design – Peter Blasser
I
am interested in the invisible space around instruments and what can
be done to reveal it sonically. Thus my instruments have antennae
that create sounds from gestures and movement within the space. Also
the antennae can be part of the architecture. This project is thus
about architecture, invisible space, and the proper
projections/insertions into it. I hereby name this project
“Deerhorn”, which is also an esoteric reference to
masculinity, protrusion, philosophy, and sexuality. The portable
manifestation of this idea is my piece, it is a sort of electronic
tapestry which involves circuits, fur, canvas, and aluminum deerhorn
antennae. The tapestry will roll up into a duffel bag and that is
why it is art for art handling, because touring with it is breezy.
Peter
Blasser was born in Connecticut, 1979, and has a Bachelors in
Chinese and TIMARA (Technology in Music and Related Arts) from
Oberlin College, 2002. He will present his business Ciat-Lonbarde.
Ciat-Lonbarde is a neologism sounding like the name of a French Organ
builder in the 18th century. Ciat has come to stand for CIA,
crystalline structures, air-conditioning, excel workbooks, etc.
Lonbarde is related to the african word "nbara" which means
roots, of plants or of dreadlocked humans. Lonbarde is also related
to the Spaniard word for a type of royal purple, Lombarde, which is
also a secret circle in the Flemish lands. The business has a three
rayed strategy tactic. One, true electro-acousticism, two, to be an
Organ-maker, three, to esotericize/eseroticize the synthesizer
concept.
http://www.ciat-lonbarde.net/
Modular
Synthesis Basics – Kevin Kissinger
The
Aries Modular Synthesizer
Kevin will introduce concepts of modular synthesis including oscillator syncing, sample/hold, voltage-control, module patching, and pitch-to-voltage conversion. He'll use an oscilloscope so that attendees can relate the sounds to visual waveforms on the 'scope.
Introduction
to Circuit Bending – Casperelectronics
Peter
Edwards of Casperelectronics will introduce the concepts of circuit
bending and illustrate them using some of his own inventions.
Classic
Circuits for Audio Synthesis – Rebecca Mercuri
The
fundamental concepts of electronic music have not changed much over
the last half-century. This is partly because, as RCA's Dr. Harry
Olson described "the properties of a musical tone ... remain the
same" but also due to the fact that although circuitry has
migrated from analog to digital, the latter is largely a simulation
of the former using computer technology and integrated circuit chips.
This talk examines some classic audio synthesis circuits that can be
constructed using simple components (resistors, capacitors,
oscillators, etc.) in order to provide insight on more complex sound
generation concepts (such as AM and FM waveshape generation, as well
as pitch and intensity control).
Rebecca Mercuri <notable@notablesoftware.com> is the President and CTO of Notable Software, Inc., where she provides expert witness services on intellectual property, forensic audio/multimedia, and other legal matters. She will be assisted in this talk by Kevin Meredith <robot@lonelyrobotaudio.com>, owner and operator of Lonely Robot Audio, L.L.C., a recording and post production studio in Princeton, New Jersey. Rebecca and Kevin are currently conducting research at the David Sarnoff Library on RCA's contributions in audio engineering, particularly those of Dr. Olson, and have digitized and reviewed over 15,000 pages of laboratory documents, covering work from the 1920's through the 1970's.
Anbiophonic
Sound – Howard Moscovitz
This
talk explains the basics about a wonderful new system for playing
back stereo recordings. Ambiophonics involves a novel placement of
the two speakers (close together in the front) and a relatively
simple signal processor that creates a wide spacial field with
precise localization. Ambiophonic playback offers many advantages
over the traditional 60 degree speaker separation now used almost
universally for stereo. A new ambiophonic processor co-developed by
Robin Miller and Howard Moscovitz will be described and demonstrated
with a small playback system. The Ambiophonic DSP Processor VST will
be premiered and made available for the first time at electro-music
2009 at a special discounted introductory price.
Multiple
Looping Mechanisms – Thomas Bell and Gregg Jarvis
Thomas
Bell and Gregg Jarvis of The Tronic will explain their live setup and
demonstrate how they incorporate multiple looping mechanisms within
Ableton Live simultaneously.
Music
Publishing – Rosemary Haskins
Getting
your Songs Placed in Film/TV
What is a music publisher exactly? What are they supposed to do? Can they help me get my song placed in a film? These are some of the topics that we will be covering during this seminar. We will explore the basics of publishing, the role of the performing rights organization (BMI, Ascap, SESAC), how you can protect your music, and what you can do with your music. We will discuss some basic principles in licensing your songs for use in film, tv, radio, video games and various other media outlets. There may be time for a short Q & A afterwards, so have your questions ready.
Topics
in DIY – Rob Hordijk
Rob
Hordijk (The Hague, The Netherlands) Originally a sculptor and
jewelry designer, Rob has established himself over the years as an
expert in sound synthesis techniques. In the last couple of years he
specializes in hand-built analog electronic instruments that have
distinct sonic signatures, instruments that are somewhere between
musical instruments and objets d’art. His instruments are used
in live performances by a number of established improvisors all over
the planet. An example of an instrument designed by Rob is the
Blippoo Box, featured in the upcoming 19th issue of Leonardo Music
Journal. Rob has been teaching, lecturing and conducting workshops
since 1983 at a number of institutes in The Netherlands, and
occasionally in other places on this planet.
Sampling
and Looping with Nintendo DSi – James Spitznagel
James
Spitznagel will be demonstrating the recording and music making
capabilities of the new Nintendo DSi.
Generating Sound and Music
with Brainwaves – Michael O'Bannon
Physiological
signals from the human body can be used in many ways to modify and
generate sound and music. This seminar explores hardware and
software that make it possible to control music with the brain, as
well as reasons why an electronic musician may want to do so.
Several methods will be demonstrated hands-on in real time, so
participants should bring an active cortex. Recent low-cost
alternatives will be explored as well as traditional approaches.
Michael O'Bannon is an Atlanta, Georgia, based psychologist with a background in psychophysiology, neuropsychology, biofeedback, and artificial intelligence. He is also a basement experimenter who builds EEG hardware and electronic music devices.
Thursday:
Joker Nies - The Zeitgeist (fee = $40)
The
Zeitgeist uses a chip with a sigma-delta converter and internal delay
memory, plus external filtering and limiting to give it a sound that
is close to a vintage tape delay. The delay time can be modulated by
a sensor, e.g. a light or pressure sensitive resistor. The kit is
well suited for beginners in DIY but also of interest for the more
experienced builder. The delaytime is modulated with a pot, a LDR
(light dependent resistor), or an external control-voltage.
Friday:
Rob Hordijk - The Benjolin (fee = $80)
The
Benjolin is a ‘noise box’ that is ‘bent by design’,
meaning that it always has a definite amount of unpredictability
while it is still intuitive to play. The Benjolin features two
eighteen-octave range voltage controlled oscillators that drive a
‘rungler’ circuit, circuitry that in essence uses a
special interference technique feeding back into the oscillators to
force them into wild chaotic behaviour. A special slightly chaotic
filter is both excited and modulated by the signals from the rungler
circuitry processes, producing sounds between fat drones to grungy
noise havoc. The kit is somewhat more challenging to build compared
to the Zeitgeist, but with a little patience and accuracy a beginner
in DIY can definitely build it successfully.
Saturday:
Peter Edwards - Mini Sampler Circuit Bending (fee = $25)
New
to circuit bending? Want to learn more? Want to build a tricked out
30 second sampler? Peter Edwards of casperelectronics will show you
how to modify a pre-made 30 second sampler. Mods include the
addition of a pitch adjustment, loop switch, in, out and through
jacks. This workshop introduces participants to the the basics of
circuit bending from opening housing and examining circuits to
identifying and replacing components.
Deerhorn Project installation – Peter Blasser
ChucK
– Les Hall
ChucK
is a music programming language that we "ChucKists" use to
create all kinds of music. Never mind the style, it's all about
being creative and generating the wildest music code possible. In my
ChucK collection I have a variety of programs in various styles that
I can play for you. I'm also showing a guitar invention that is a
new way of getting the sound from an electric guitar. It sounds so
smooth and mellow, stop by and have a listen!
The
ZONE: A.C.I.D.S – Chris Mandra
Autonomous
Collaborative Interactive Dance Situation
SteamSynth – Doug
Slocum
Doug
Slocum began torturing electronic components at the early age of 11,
when he and his father built a "siren" for his home-brewed
"Bat Bike". Doug soon became interested in early radio,
WWV (don't ask), rockets to the moon, strange sounds, Jazz &
Classical music. During high school around 1970, he regularly
embarrassed himself by dragging his cardboard cigar-box modular
"Moog" into the band room to show off his patch cord
prowess. Needless to say, there were few disciples. After attending
an Audio Engineering Society convention and meeting Bob Moog, he
found his niche when he bought an Electro-Comp 100. After getting it
home, he disassembled it, traced its circuitry, and discovered the
"secrets" it held. Other musicians heard he was dabbling
in this new medium and looked him up, among them David Sancious,
Chick Corea, and Manfred Mann. At their request, Doug began
modifying these machines to perform feats of grandeur for which they
were not originally designed. Doug's company Synthetic Sound Labs
was born! Doug left the field in the early 1980's, but has recently
returned and begun to create his own Victorian styled "Steam
Punk" analog modular synthesizer, likely to result in some
unique, commercially available products. But we'll have to wait to
see.
Weird
Blinking Lights – Steve Lerner
Modcan
A and Aleatoric Sequencing
Jam Sessions
Those who have attended electro-music festivals in the past know that the jam sessions can be one of the highlights. This year we have two rooms for jam sessions – the lounge has seminars in the afternoons and jam sessions in the evenings, and the common room of Cabin 1, which is open for jams and rehearsals until 10pm each day. All attendees are invited to participate in the jams - you don't have to be a performing artist. As you can see on the schedule, there are a few time slots ( two hours) set aside for jams with themes. The themes are not meant to restrict anyone from doing what they want, but only to serve as a guideline that might help bring like-minded participants together at the same time. The themes are: Space Music, Noise Jam, iPhone Jam, and Drum Circle/Acoustic Jam.
Laptop Battle
The Laptop Battle is a judged competition, where anyone is invited to participate and play a short (10-15 minute) set. It's not restricted to laptops - you can play something else but you should be able to set up and start playing in 5 minutes. The winner will be awarded a featured performance spot on Saturday night. There are three sessions scheduled for the laptop battle – each day at 6pm. You can sign up for a time slot at the registration desk.
Swap Meet
The swap meet is a new feature at electro-music this year. On Friday and Saturday mornings from 10am to Noon, we'll have an area where people can set up to buy, sell, or trade their musical gear. Everyone is invited to participate – tables will be provided.
Special Thanks to:
Howard Moscovitz – organizer
Greg Waltzer – organizer
Juli Moscovitz – staff coordinator
Kevin Kissinger – sound engineering
Dale Parson – sound engineering
Tim Lofgren – T-shirt and program graphics
Hong Waltzer – photography
Project
Ruori, Charles Shriner, Chris Mandra,
Rosemary Haskins, John
Dugan, Bill Manganaro,
Andrew Capon, Shane Morris, Laura Todd,
Jez
Creek, Andrew Koenig, Chad Boutin,
Kevin Meredith, Bill Foeger,
John Rivera,
and Michael O'Bannon - equipment and assistance
Donna Vary – Star Lake Camp
and everyone who has volunteered their time, equipment, energy and talent to help make electro-music 2009 a success!