THE SCREAMboard A Hands-free Digital Processing Solution for Acoustic Improvisers by HUNTER PORTERFIELD EWEN B.A., Case Western Reserve University / Cleveland Institute of Music Joint Music Program, 2007 B.S., Case Western Reserve University, 2007 M.M., University of Colorado at Boulder, 2009 Research Document Project TMUS 8329 A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Colorado in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts College of Music 2013 This thesis entitled: The SCREAMboard: A Hands-free Digital Processing Solution for Acoustic Improvisers written by Hunter Porterfield Ewen has been approved for the College of Music ___________________________________ (John Drumheller) ___________________________________ (Michael Theodore) ___________________________________ (Dan Kellogg) Date______________ The final contents of this thesis have been examined by the signatories, and we find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline. iii Ewen, Hunter (D.M.A., Music Composition and Theory) The SCREAMboard: A Hands-free Digital Processing Solution for Acoustic Improvisers Thesis directed by Instructor and Director of Music Technology John Drumheller While many devices offer electronic musicians opportunities to digitally record, augment, and modulate their sounds, there is a gap for acoustic, instrumental performers. Two primary problems that acoustic instrumentalists experience when using electronics is that either that the suite of hardware elements required for looping, effects, transposition, and panning are too cumbersome and require too much computer expertise to setup or the programming interface requires them to use their hands to operate. The SCREAMboard (Soloist Controlled Real-time Electronic Audio Manipulation Board) was devised as a way to provide improvising acoustic soloists a standardized solution for performing with sophisticated digital recording and processing techniques, using a single piece of hands-free hardware. The device provides the performer with a set of thirteen foot-controlled joysticks, each with independent X-axis and Y-axis movement as well as a pushbutton on the Z-axis. The signals from those pedals are routed to a computer, where they control electronic processing of the original live sounds. The computer records, plays back, loops, and spatializes any sound procedurally for up to eight speakers. The pedals also control fourteen unique filters, as well as four-octave polyphonic transposition, which can be altered, automated, and applied to any or all of the twelve unique audio channels in real-time. Loops can be recorded with any length and can match exactly or by a ratio the length of any other loop. The software provides a visualization of each user- selected mode, option, and automation, and the computer monitor displays feedback iv related to recording length, filters, spatialization, and timbre. Critical data is also visualized by thirteen multi-colored light emitting diodes, which are mounted on the pedal board itself. An application programming interface was coded in Max/MSP, which gives performers the ability to create their own software interfaces based on the hardware design. The design objectives for this project were seven-fold: to be hands-free, to not require that performers have programming expertise or computer training, to use a single piece of hardware, to work in real-time, to make every option quickly accessible, and to not require any custom manufacturing processes. The device has been successfully tested with a variety of instrumentalists, in several different performance settings. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank John Drumheller, my committee chair, for his advice, critique, and support during this project. For your insights and vision, thank you Jeremy Smith, Jeff Nytch, Dan Kellogg, and Michael Theodore. This dissertation was written with appreciation for Carter Pann, Alan Fletcher, Kevin Beavers, Lisa Rainsong, Gary Ciepluch, Monica Houghton, Dan Visconti, John Richardson, Amy Berryman, Joan Monsen, and especially Greg Banaszak and Lee Patrick for years of musical guidance. My outlook on music and life would not be the same, and certainly not as well-rounded, without you all. To my family–Mom, Dad, and Bret: thank you immensely. You gave me pressure when I wanted it, space when I needed it, and love regardless of whether or not I deserved it. Your emotional, physical, mental, and financial support knows no bounds. I love you all. And most importantly, to my wonderful wife Megan: thank you for being with me on every step of this journey. I couldn’t ask for anyone better with whom to share my life and my music. Love you! Encouragement, feedback, love, and whip-cracking from other family, friends, collaborators, and colleagues was greatly appreciated. And to my cat, thank you for being my sounding board during the times when my musical creativity reached levels too extreme for even my wife to tolerate. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I. ABSTRACT .................................................................................. iv II. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................ v III. LIST OF TABLES .........................................................................ix IV. LIST OF FIGURES.........................................................................x V. INTRODUCTION.........................................................................1 Purpose of the Study.................................................................5 Historical Context....................................................................9 VI. METHODS AND MATERIALS ..................................................18 Hardware ...............................................................................20 Component Specifications.................................................21 User Interface....................................................................24 Hardware Selection ..........................................................27 Implementation ................................................................30 Software .................................................................................36 User Interface....................................................................37 Recording and Looping.....................................................39 Filters................................................................................43 vii Effects ...............................................................................46 Transposition....................................................................56 Spatialization ....................................................................58 Serial Communication.......................................................66 APPLICATION PROGRAMMING INTERFACE ...........75 VII. RESULTS.....................................................................................77 Functionality ..........................................................................79 Loop Mode .......................................................................85 Color Group Mode ...........................................................95 Loop Ratio Mode..............................................................97 Effects Mode.....................................................................98 Pan Mode........................................................................104 Transpose Mode .............................................................107 Performance Scenario ...........................................................112 Device Testing ......................................................................115 VIII. DISCUSSION.............................................................................117 Design Advantages ...............................................................118 Design Limitations................................................................121 Summary ..............................................................................124 Future Studies.......................................................................125 IX. REFERENCES...........................................................................129 X. APPENDICES............................................................................134 User Guide............................................................................134 viii Installation Guide.................................................................139 Example Code ......................................................................140 XI. SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION .........................................160 ix LIST OF TABLES TABLE 1. Speaker positions for one through eight total speakers......................60 2. Default θ for channels associated with each pedal .............................64 3. Base 10 translations of binary bits.....................................................67 4. Serial transmissions order from Arduino to Max...............................74 5. Title labels and associated MaxM colors...........................................88 6. Functionality of dials.........................................................................94 7. Upper row filters .............................................................................101 8. Effects for individual pedals in the lower row..................................101 9. Visualization of the