ARRAY2020 – Archiving array2020 archiving
The International Computer Music Association
President:Tae Hong Park Vice President for Membership: Michael Gurevitch Vice President for Conferences: Rob Hamilton Vice President for Asia/Oceania: -- Vice President for the Americas: Eric Honor Vice President for Europe: Stefania Serafin Vice President for Preservation: Tae Hong Park Music Coordinator: PerMagnus Lindborg Research Coordinator: Christopher Haworth Publications Coordinator: Tom Erbe Treasurer/Secretary: Chryssie Nanou
BoardofDirectors 2018/2019 At-Large Directors Miriam Akkermann MarkBallora (+) Lauren Hayes John Thompson Americas Regional Directors Rodrigo Cadiz Charles Nichols Asia/Oceania Regional Directors PerMagnus Lindborg Takeyoshi Mori Europe Regional Directors Kerry Hagan Stefania Serafin
Non-Elected Positions: ICMA Administrative Assistant: Sandra Neal array2020 archiving
Index...... p. 3
Editorial ...... p. 4
Introduction Miriam Akkermann...... p. 6
The electroacoustic repertoire: Is there a librarian? Serge Lemouton...... p. 7
Preserving Hardware History: Archiving the Studios at Columbia University Seth Cluett...... p. 1 5
The Electro-Acoustic Music Mine Project (EAMM) Collecting, Archiving, Sharing, and Exploring Tae Hong Park...... p. 21
Musings on computer music perennity Kevin Dahan...... p. 31
Preservation strategies for mixed music: the long tail and the short tail Guillaume Boutard...... p. 36
Main Editor Array: Miriam Akkermann Published by International Computer Music Association ICMA 2020 1819 PolkStreet, San Francisco, California 94019, USA DOI: 1 0.25370/array.v2020 https://journals.qucosa.de/array/ www.computermusic.org 3 array2020 archiving
Editorial With this issue, arrayis welcoming you to the newvirtual home ofInternatio- nal Computer Music Association ICMA’s journal: https://journals.qucosa.de/array.
Atthis point– and againstthe back- ground ofthe topic“archiving”ofthis current issue – it is reasonable to briefly lookbackat the history ofarray, which is interwoven with the historyof the ICMA, and also to thinkabout Ar- ray’s own archive. The ICMAhas been co funded by Curtis Roads, John Strawn and Thom Blum in 1978/79.Thom Blum, the first First page Array 1 (1 ), 1 980 editor of Array, started the journal in 1980 as the organization's quarterly ICMA members with information on newsletter, explaining that he came up computer music events, announce- with the name Array“[…] becauseit ments and reviews, as well as with a could be interpreted both as a data small sell-and-search section. As Blum structure that's fundamental to our art remembers for the very beginning: as well as a description ofthe open, di- “Everyissue was handmade and put verse information that members could together, much like a Tape Music piece, contribute and expect in the (roughly) byphysical cutting and pasting, pho- quarterly issues.”(Thom Blum, Email to tocopy layout iterations […], then tak- M. Akkermann 2020) Designed as a ing the masterto a photocopyshop member’s counterpart to the MITPress and finallyaddressing, stamping, and Journals’Computer Music Journal dropping the issues at my post office.” (CMJ), Array was intended to serve the (Blum 2020) 4 array2020 archiving
Jennifer B. Merkowitz (2008-11); Scott McLaughlin (2011-13) Christopher Haworth (2014-17); Patricia Alessandrini, Shelly Knotts &Christopher Haworth (2018) Miriam Akkermann&Rama Gottfried (2019). Manyissues have been published, and notall havefound theirwayin a digital documentation ofarray yet. Being hosted on musiconn.publish, an information service specialized for musicologyfunded byGerman Re- search Fund, which is jointly operated bythe BSB Munich and SLUB Dresden offering amongst others long-term archiving ofmusicological literature, ICMA has nowthe possibilityto provide a sustainable open access for Front Cover Array 1 7(3), 1 998 upcoming issues ofarray, as well as the possibility to retrospectively in- Overthe last 40 years, Array changed tegrate former issues. its appearance and frequency several Thus https://journals.qucosa.de/ time. editors and co-editors were: array will become array’s new virtual Thom Blum (1980-88); representation and it’s new archive. John Worthington (1988) With thisin mind,I wish you both a Carla Scaletti&Kurt Hebel (1990-92) good read ofthe currentissue and a Brad Garton&Robert Rowe (1992-95); lot offun browsing through the past Katharine Normann (1996-98); issues, which will be putonline on Mara Helmuth&Jøran Rudi(1998-04); the platform bit bybit. Margaret Schedel (2004); Margaret Schedel&Jennifer B. Special thanks to:T. Blum, C. Harris, Merkowitz (2006-08); C. Haworth, M. Helmuth, C. Roads, R. Rowe, M. Schedel, and T. Erbe. 5 array2020 archiving
Introduction several years (e.g. such asThe Music by Miriam Akkermann Encoding Initiative MEI, https://music- encoding.org, last access Sept 20, This issue ofICMA’s array is dedicated 2020), and itis assumable thatthey to the topic“Archiving”and presents a may increasingly replace traditional variety ofperspectives, approaches, printed forms ofpublication in the and projects related to archiving, pre- coming years. In contrast, the 20th serving, and re-performing ofelec- and 21st centuryborn field ofelec- troacoustic and computer music by troacoustic music and computer mu- researchers and practitioners. siccan –yet–lookbackneitheron a Archiving cultural objects ofcon- tradition ofstandardized documenta- temporary history plays an increasing tion nor common initiatives for role in current research.This includes strategies on archiving and preserva- also a constant reflection ofthe hand- tion.The need ofvaluable strategies, ling ofarchives, their structures, and however, becomes more and more their accessibility. Preserving music obvious. faces both a long tradition ofmusic libraries, instrument collections and Besides qualitative debates about compilations ofsound recordings em- an adequate technical configuration ploying different media one the one ofthe data to be preserved, itis also hand, and new challenges deriving necessary to communicate about new from digitization and new media approaches to archiving strategies. formats on the other. Especially for di- This includes dealing with the com- gital (media) data, preserving existing position’s basic information as well as works becomes increasingly urgent, the question ofhowto deal with in- the more the loss ofcontentis im- volved (digital) technologywhich is pending.The spirit ofthe continuously practically bound e.g. to obsolete faster developing field ofdigital tech- hardware systems and connected nologies also causes a fasterdecayof software compatibility problems. its children. Projects on digital forms Hereby, archiving can aim for several ofarchiving and editing music nota- different purposes, ranging from a tion have been ongoing alreadyfor pure preservation oforiginal content 6 array2020 archiving
to collecting and keeping information The electroacoustic repertoire: Is updated for (re-)performances ofmu- there a librarian ? sical works (cf. e.g. Lemouton/Gold- bySerge Lemouton szmidt 2016, hal-01944619).This is particularlyrelevant in so far as the Introduction information archived concerning a musical workcan strongly influence Until proven otherwise, our civiliza- its possible future appearance (cf. tion is still a civilization ofthe Book. Akkermann 2019, http://doi.org/ Libraries are the places where books 1 0.5281 /zenodo.3484546). are transmitted over time.Works of plastic art, paintings, sculptures, are The presented articles in this issue exhibited, preserved, restored in mu- ofarray mirror discussions that have seums, with the specific difficulties alreadybeen tackled at the ICMC pan- posed bythe materials and tech- el sessions on“computer music herit- niques used. Cinematographic works age”2018 in Daegu/KOR, hosted by have their cinematheques, but seem Kevin Dahan, and“archiving”2019 in more difficult to preserve when we NewYork/USA, hosted byTaeHong realize that some films have already Park, involving also the other authors completely disappeared. We can con- and the editorofthis issue.The panels sidera musical workas a text: musical haveshown thatthereis a broad in- works in the form ofwritten, printed terestin the communityand a need or handwritten scores also have their for more discussion. In the following, libraries. But what happens when some ofthe mentioned aspects are music, since the advent ofpossibilities now connected to most recent reflec- opened up bythe means oftechnical tions, considerations, projects and reproduction, includes elements that debates, providing a broad and sub- are not strictlynotated in form of stantial starting point for a future de- text? We are interested here specific- bate on archiving approaches and allyin music ofscholarlyorexperi- projects. mental tradition (real-time electronic music) using newinstruments such as synthesizers, samplers, effects, pre-re- 7 array2020 archiving
corded sounds, amplification devices Who should assume this role? Is it and spatial sound diffusion as well as the composer, the performer, the all kind ofsound devices orcomputer publisher, the musicologist, or the music system. music historian? Is this responsibility Paradoxically, digital resources need collective or individual? more care to be preserved than infor- mation written on paper.The inherent Composers fragility ofdigital materials leaves only a small windowoftime during which We can thinkthat the first actorin- they can be preserved before being volved in the preservation ofmusical erased forever. The electro-acoustic works should be the author. First of music works considered therefore all because it seems obvious that pose specific problems oftransmis- composers from the Western tradition sion and diffusion; these problems, of write music for the posterity. Second- various natures, are beginning to be ly, because it seems that theyare the recognized and studied.This reper- firstones to have the moral dutyto toire has grown throughout the last preserve their productions. In prac- centuryand is veryimportant both in tice, however, we observe that this terms ofthe numberofworks and of responsibility is rarely assumed by interest in the historyofmusical art. the composer. And it became so important that these Here we can question the notion new instruments and digital means ofthe workofart as artefacts built will infuse the vast majorityofcurrent for the posterity. Is writing for future musical creation in all directions. centuries historically situated, is it a Within the frameworkofa recent notion born with romanticism? Music working group, we were interested is an ephemeral art, but isn’t the urge in the methods of“how”to preserve, to leave a trace consubstantial with and in the inscription and the dis- all artistic practice since the origins semination ofthis repertoire, but not ofhumanity? reallyin the question of“who”is pre- In the specific case ofcontempor- serving: who has the responsibility, arymusic, we observe a paradox: the the dutyto ensure its conservation composer notates the instrumental for future generations? part more and more precisely, while
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the electronic part (in general, no standardized notation for elec- however, so essential to the workthat troacoustic devices which could play one cannot envisage to playthe piece a similarrole as traditional music the- without) is not fixed (at least very orydoes for the notation ofinstru- rarely by the composer himself). mental music)? Is it simplyforprac- While some composers have been tical reasons (preserving software actively engaged in documenting, data requires an appropriate infra- preserving and transmitting the elec- structure)? Itcan also be due to a lack troacoustic part oftheir works, this is ofknowledge on the developments not generallythe case.We can cite the oflanguages and computer systems case ofKarlheinz Stockhausen, a com- —butwhoin thisarea can claim to poser characterized by an extreme master the complex issue ofobsoles- control on his works, who himself cence and prophesyabout the evo- produced a critical and complete lution ofcomputing? edition ofhis scores.This edition is Whydo composers not have the so exhaustivelydetailed that we will to write the electronic part of can predict that its preservation is as- their works? Do they consider that sured. But this case seems ratherthe the electroacoustic part oftheir work exception in the context ofcontem- is secondary, accessory, less noble porarymusic.What we learn from this than the instrumental part? particularcase is also that we must The electronic part can also be the not neglect the role ofthe artist’s result ofa collaborative work, it is family in this question ofpreserving sometimes co-composed or co-pro- an artistic heritage. duced bywhatis generallycalled a One can wonderabout the reasons "computer music designer". It can also for this fairly constant lackofinterest sometimes be entirely produced by among composers for the documen- the latter; in this case one maywon- tation ofthe electroacoustic part of derwhetheritis reallyup to the com- theirpieces. Is it because ofa theo- poserto include it in the score. retical difficulty or a practical impos- The question ofsafeguarding this sibility? Is it an educational problem? repertoire is all the more crucial today Is it due to the lackoftheoretical as the first generation ofcomposers means (itis well known thatthere is to use the means ofexpression 9 array2020 archiving
offered by computer music are slowly to the“design”ofthe computer part but inevitably disappearing. Ifthey are ofthe musical works in which they the ones who should store theirown collaborate, but also encompasses computer archives, what is left after? Is (among others) interpretation, docu- it up to theirpossible heirs orbene- mentation, archiving, and updating ficiaries to preserve their archives? We the pieces from their personal reper- can cite Pierre Henryas a successful toire. example, whose home studio and do- The computer music designers are, mestic sound libraryare saved for the byvirtue oftheir activityas per- future, finally supported by both the formers, experts in the question ofthe National Library ofFrance (cf. https:// evolution ofcomputer music environ- www.bnf.fr/fr/toute-loeuvre-de- ments.Theirjob and the rapid devel- pierre-henry-la-bnf) and the Philhar- opment ofcomputer music tools re- monie de Paris (cf. https://philhar quire them to always be in "technolo- moniedeparis.fr/fr/musee-de-la- gywatch" mode. Indeed, among the musique/collection/parcours#studio- manytasks implied bytheir position pierre-henry, last access Sept. 14, as Réalisateur en Informatique Musicale 2020), thanks to the commitment of (or RIM, french for Computer Music its beneficiaries. After the passing of Designers), porting (migration ofthe Jean-Claude Risset, his archives were electroacoustic part ofa musical work finallytaken care ofbya CNRS labora- from one material system to another) tory (cf. https://musinf.univ-st- due to a change ofthe computeren- etienne.fr/SiteRisset/archives.html, vironment, new software versions, last access Sept. 14, 2020). operating system evolution (etc.) is probably the activity which occupies Computer Music Designers the most oftheirtime and energy. Consequently, computer music de- Although there is some recent work signers have empirically developed on the position ofcomputer music knowhow, methodologies and sys- designer in electroacoustic music tems to facilitate the porting ofworks (Zattra 2016), the nature oftheir in order to ensure their playability activity remains largely unknown. In- over time. Among these systems, deed, their activityis not limited we can cite the Sidneydatabase
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developed and hosted at IRCAM ers realized the importance ofthe (Lemouton 2016), allowing the opera- technological developments in mu- tional backup ofdocuments created in sical practice. Historical publishing the institute since its creation in 1977. houses have not equipped them- Nevertheless, the computer music selves to respond to technological designers' as well as the instrumen- developments in the field ofdigital talists' knowledge on howto playa distribution ofmusic online, and even particularworkand howit should less to the distribution ofworks in- sound, remain stronglyoral and seems volving hybrid or heterogeneous me- to be passed on from person to per- dia.This means that when performers son. The preservation environment order scores ofmixed works, they re- developed atIRCAM is also an attempt ceive elements ofthe electroacoustic to make this knowledge explicit, to part, but rarely they receive usable transmit and preserve it (through material. “performance notes”, interpretation In short, ifpublishers have the mis- notes). sion ofdisseminating and preserving Even ifthe performers have an es- the works ofcomposers in their cata- sential role to playin the transmission log, itseems thattheyhave notgiven ofworks, preserving the piece for fu- themselves the technical means to do ture generations seem not to be their so. responsibility, and neither is distribu- tion. Creation Centers
Publishers Many works from the 20th century electroacoustic repertoire have been Traditionally, this role would fall more produced in and/or commissioned by to music publishers. From the very institutions (radio studios, laborato- beginning ofmusical printing in the ries, research institutes, creation cen- Renaissance, publishers have as- ters, etc.).These institutions, at least sumed this role ofcommercialization some ofthem, mayhave the mission ofthe scores and therefore ofdissem- ofpreserving the works created on inating works. Unfortunately, during their behalf. the 20th century, few music publish- Institutions are not eternal and when theyclose their doors, their 1 1 array2020 archiving
archives can disappear. Among the State important institutions ofthe 20th centurymusic historythat have dis- The Bibliothèque Nationale de France appeared, there are, for example, the is the depositaryofall thatis pub- studio ofthe Westdeutscher Rundfunk lished or distributed in France: (WDR) (Hermes 2020) in Cologne, “Established in 1537 by François Ier, which operated until 2000, orthe In- ‘Depot Legal’allows the collection, stitute ofElectroacoustic Music in conservation and consultation of Bourges (IMEB), closed in 2011 (cf. documents ofall kinds, in order to https://misame.org/). Many other im- constitute a collection ofreference, portant centers have closed, and an essential element ofthe collective many archives have been for ever lost memory ofthe country. It is conceived when they could not have be saved in as the memory ofthe cultural herit- extremis by researchers or enthusiasts. age disseminatedon the national Even in creative centers still in oper- territory and therefore includes for- ation, it can be quite difficult to find eign works published, produced or archives as can be seen forexample in disseminated in France.“ (https:// the investigative workofKevin Dahan www.bnf.fr/fr/quest-ce-que-le- on the Center For Computer Research depot-legal, last access Aug. 2020) in Acoustics and Music at Stanford (Dahan 2018). ‘Depot Legal’also includes printed During a recent survey (Bonardi music and is suitable fordigital media 2020), it was observed that works cre- that appeared in the 20th century: ated within the French National Cen- legal deposit ofaudiovisual docu- ters ofMusic Creation were very rarely ments, digital documents, websites accessible because they were not (net archives). archived.This surveyshows that the National archives based on state cycle ofdocumentation, storage, and institutions and legislative texts (in updating involved in the preservation this case Article L131-2 ofthe Code ofcomputer music systems require du Patrimoine) seem to be the most human and financial resources that capable ofguaranteeing reliable her- the majorityofcreation centers do not itage conservation over the long have. term. Nevertheless, it must be con-
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sidered that the repertoire in question fort ofall these actors.This common is internatinal. Works created in France commitment will not emerge without can be reinterpreted in other coun- a unifying project and a common tries, or be the fruit ofcollaborations preservation environment. This pro- between studios and composers of jectmustalso be based on a perenni- different nationalities. al institution that can ensure its own sustainability. United Nations We have also identified the difficul- ties inherent in preserving this reper- As earlyas 2003 in its Charteron the toire.There are pitfalls to be avoided Preservation ofthe Digital Heritage, for the preservation to be effective, UNESCO affirmed that and to prevent the historical period “Unless the prevailing threats are ad- we are living through from disappear- dressed, the loss ofthe digital herit- ing in what some authors orhistori- age will be rapid and inevitable. ans ofthe future maycall the“digital MemberStates willbenefitbyen- blackhole ofthe 20th century”. Un- couraging legal, economicandtech- fortunately, most repertoire preser- nicalmeasures to safeguard vation initiatives have failed on these the heritage. Awareness-raising and pitfalls, as evidenced bythe long list advocacy is urgent, alerting policy- ofmissing projects identified by the makers andsensitizing the general AFIM working group. In fact, many public to both the potential ofthe di- preservation projects rely on unsus- gital media and the practicalities tainable funding or institutional sup- ofpreservation.“ (UNESCO 2009) port.This leads to the following paradox: preservation projects fail to Conclusions preserve themselves and evaporate We have mentioned (probably non- when the project ends.What I call exhaustively) various actors owning “metapreservation”is the preserva- responsibility regarding the preserva- tion ofthe preservation projects in- tion ofelectroacoustic music works. frastructure. It is vital for preservation Butitseems thatnone ofthem can projects to thinkfrom the start of properly fulfill this mission.We believe finding technical, financial and hu- that the solution lies in a collective ef- man means to ensure their survival. 1 3 array2020 archiving
This goes through the need to build œuvres musicales du répertoire de trusted digital repositories as defined l'IRCAM: Présentation du modèle Sid- in RLG-OCLC (2002). ney et analyse des dispositifs temps The need for such structures is ur- réel", in: Journées d'Informatique Mu- gent, because the longerwe wait, the sicale,Albi,2016. more musical pieces will be lost and RLG-OCLC (2002). "Trusted Digital Re- the more difficult will be the taskof positories: Attributes and Responsib- finding or interpreting documents to ilities". re-perform the music from the end of the 20th century. UNESCO (2009). "Charter on the Pre- servation ofthe Digital Heritage," References http://portal.unesco.org/fr/ev.php- Bonardi, Alain et al. (2020). Archivage URL_ID=1 7721 &URL_DO=DO_TOPIC collaboratifet préservation créative - &URL_SECTION=201.html, last access rapport final du groupe de travail. As- Aug. 2020. sociation Francophone d'Informatique Zattra, Laura (2016). Collaborating on Musicale. composition: The role ofthe musical Dahan, Kevin (2018).“(Re)discovering assistantatIRCAM, CCRMA andCSC. Sounds ofCCRMA -Towards Com- Routledge Francis &Taylor. puter Music Preservation”, in: Proceed- ings ofthe InternationalComputerMu- sic Conference ICMC. Hermes, Ida. (2020).“Was wird aus dem WDR-Studio für elektronische Musik?”, https://www.deutschland funkkultur.de/eingemottet-in-keller raeumen-was-wird-aus-dem-wdr- studio.21 77.de.html?dram:article_id =468464, last access Aug. 2020. Lemouton, Serge and Samuel Gold- szmidt (2016). "La préservation des
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Preserving Hardware History: ing condition? Should this equipment Archiving the Studios at Columbia be refurbished, maintained, or pres- University erved?The RCA MarkII synthesizer, by Seth Cluett which has been well-documented in the historical literature on electronic Otto Luening and Vladimir music, was just one technology Ussachevsky began their first among manyparticipating in a 70- academic experiments with studio year history ofengagement with electronic music in the United States electronic music at Columbia. By in the early1950s atBarnard College understanding the development and and Columbia University. Since that use ofhardware assets, custom tools, time,atwhatis nowknown as the and bespoke electronic devices, we Computer Music Center at Columbia hope to raise awareness and provide University, storage closets and boxes critical evidence for researchers and filled with paper files, media artifacts, composers to understand the creative and numerous pieces ofcustom process and technological affordances electronic equipment have associated with historical studio accumulated, which are nowin need practices. ofpreservation and safekeeping. Inter- The first formal facility dedicated to linking histories ofpeople, facilities, sound experimentation on Columbia and technologies present complex University’s 116th-Street campus in challenges for conventional archival the late 1940s was known as the approaches, collection management, Columbia Experimental Music Studio; and storage.While personal papers of with the acquisition ofan Ampex400 personnel, studio documentation, and tape recorderin 1951 (Monroe, Mary audiovisual media fall within estab- 1996), it became the Columbia Tape lished practices for archival collections Music Studio. After moving to 125th in the arts and music, the technolo- Street in the late 1950s, the facility gical holdings—hardware devices grew substantially with the acquisition unique to each studio—raise a compli- ofthe RCAMarkII and the founding of cated set ofquestions:What criteria do the Columbia-Princeton Electronic we use to determine whatis kept? Is it Music Center(CPEMC) in 1959 (Gluck important that the devices be in work- 2007).When the collaboration with 1 5 array2020 archiving
Princeton ended in the late 1980s, it including photographs, paper-based became the Electronic Music Center materials, and recorded media.While (EMC). In 1996, occupying the same individual composer archives remain footprint, the facility was renamed the spread out between the NewYork Columbia University Computer Music Public Library for the Performing Arts Center (CMC). Because ofthe long (NYPL), the Library ofCongress (LoC), history, changing locations, and ex- and other repositories, archival collec- panding academic and cultural impact tions related to the CMC facilityare ofmultiple generations ofelectronic now housed at Columbia’s RBML, and experimental music facilities at whose music holdings are separate Columbia, archival efforts have fo- from the main Music Library. cused on saving at-riskpaper records and audio and moving image media. While there are numerous com- Until recently, the hardware history mercial releases ofworkcreated at and documentation surrounding the Columbia, these documents represent technical infrastructure have remained onlya fraction ofthe workproduced largelyunaddressed. In the past 10 in the studios.Verylittle ofthe rich years, significant workto consolidate earlyaudio historyofthe studios has archival materials related to the CMC’s been easilyaccessible, until, in Mayof historyhave been made through the 2018, the Columbia University Library efforts ofBrad Garton, Director, and was awarded a majorGrammyFoun- Terry Pender, former Associate Direc- dation grant to digitize approximately tor, ofthe CMC.We have worked 400 hours ofrecorded electro-acoustic closelywith Elizabeth Davis and Nick workcurated from 1000 ofthe roughly Patterson from the Music &Arts 5500 reel-to-reel tapes in the studio Libraryat Columbia to assess hold- archival holdings (Lovell, Abigail ings and safelystore and transport 2020). In July2020, these recordings materials to the Rare Books and were made publiclyavailable in the Manuscripts Library (RBML) at University’s online catalog and pub- Columbia’s main Butler Library lished to the Library’s Digital Libraries (Patterson 2011).The focus has been Collection. The recordings reveal to centralize decades ofhistorical hours ofpathbreaking experimen- materials from each ofthese facilities, tation with technology, documenting 1 6 array2020 archiving
the creative process and practice of ledgers, correspondence, manuals, hardware exploration in the studio. In and photographs, remain to be pro- addition to these audio holdings, 312 cessed. With the highest-riskmaterials linear feet ofpaper documents, rang- safelycared for, the CMC is now work- ing from equipment receipts, budget ing towards gaining intellectual con-
Equipment racks, oscillators, custom tape machines, Room 324 Prentis Hall, Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center (c. 1960). Photographer: Unknown. 1 7 array2020 archiving
trol ofthe remaining technological RCA MarkII Synthesizer, drawn from holdings in storage in our facility. the archives atNokia Bell Labs and the CMC. In January2018, I curated Sounding The wonder, curiosity, and passion- Circuits: Audible Histories at the New ate engagement ofexhibition atten- YorkPublic Library for the Performing dees encountering early sound exper- Arts at Lincoln Center (Cluett 2018). imentation technologies for the first This exhibition explored the networks time revealed the urgency ofarchiv- ofcomposers and engineers—as well ing, maintaining, and in some cases, as the groundbreaking facilities and renovating the extant historical revolutionary technologies—that equipment stored at the CMC.We played a crucial role in the expansion have begun the process ofstabiliz- ofelectronic sound from the 1950s ing physical storage, creating an to the present. Drawing together pri- inventory, and assessing the opera- mary source materials, including tional viability oftechnologies rang- personal correspondence, historical ing from custom mixers made in the recordings, technical documentation, early1950s to one-of-a-kind and rare and musical sketches and scores from equalizers and delays from the 1960s across the NewYorkPublic Library for and synthesizers and sound process- the Performing Arts’rich archival col- ing units from the 1970-1990s.While lections, this exhibition highlighted some devices have been in continu- the significant contributions ofpio- ous operation and maintained since neering composers like Otto Luening, theywere initiallyinstalled, manyhad Pauline Oliveros, EdgarVarèse, and been placed into long-term storage as Charles Dodge to the then newly-de- each new incarnation ofthe facility veloping practices ofelectronic and adopted current, innovative techno- computermusic during the last cen- logies and expanded its resources for tury.These materials were placed in creative applications.The CMC is now dialog with electronic sound process- cataloging, cleaning, and testing ing equipment, oscillators, an early stored equipment with the long-term mixing console, a full-scale photo- goal ofcreating technologies to inte- graphic reproduction ofthe Columbia- grate historical pieces into contempo- Princeton Electronic Music Center's rarystudio spaces for creative use and
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scholarly study. Columbia’s RBML, including circuit Manyare not aware that the RCA schematics, photographs ofmodules MarkII Synthesizeris still installed at taken before Columbia received ship- the CMC today. First assembled in ment, as well as electronics textbooks Prentis Hall at the founding ofthe and manuals from the time ofits CPEMCin 1959and in continuous use design and construction.We have through the 1960s and 70s, the MarkII started the process ofreaching out has been the subject ofhundreds of to historically-important synthesizer pages ofscholarly writing on electron- designers, electrical engineers in- ic music.The MarkII was operational vested in the historyofcircuit design, until 2015, when an electrical malfunc- former technical directors for the tion caused staffto discontinue its use. Center, and decades ofgraduate Last year, after more than 60 years in students who have completed re- Prentis Hall, CMC staffreceived notice search on the MarkII and its users. from Columbia University that we Peter Mauzey, who installed the MarkII need to begin planning forthe possi- in 1959and was both a longstanding bility ofrelocating the facility.While I staffmemberofthe CMC and on the am confident that the important work faculty ofColumbia’s electrical engi- we are doing to gain intellectual neering department, has agreed to control over the hardware history of participate in an oral historyinter- the Center is valuable and indispens- viewand engageourteam in a dialog able, this plan would necessitate mov- about the original installation, in ing theMarkII -a process which will hopes that his extensive experience require additional careful planning, might guide its renovation, disas- archival research into the operation sembly, and reassembly.We plan to and design ofthe technology, and make all ofthese materials publicly scholarly engagement from electrical available so that scholars, students, engineers, historians, and composers and practitioners can engage actively alike. with the renovation process. By shar- ing schematics, images, design To thatend,we have begun to documents, and manuals, alongside identify useful materials about the conversations, annotations, and MarkII from the CPEMC archives at collaborative brainstorming, we aim
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RCA MarkII Synthesizer, Room 317 Prentis Hall, Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center (1959). Photographer: Unknown.
to leverage the archival holdings of audio, and moving image holdings so the Center as a catalyst for stimulating robustly represented in archival hold- future engagement with the disci- ings for studios worldwide, to better pline.We hope that this process can understand the role played bymate- serveas a model forlinking thetech- rial conditions on the formation of nological history ofelectronic and individual creative workand commu- computer music with the paper, nities ofpractice.
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References: The Electro-Acoustic Music Mine Cluett, Seth (2018),“Sounding Circuits: Project (EAMM). Collecting, Audible Histories”, The New York Public Archiving, Sharing, and Exploring Library, 201 8. www.nypl.org/events/ by Tae Hong Park exhibitions/sounding-circuits-audible- histories, last access Sept. 14, 2020. Introduction Gluck, Robert J. (2007),“The Columbia Electro-acoustic music (EAM) is a tech- -Princeton Electronic Music Center: nology-driven genre ofart music that Educating International Composers”, began to develop during the 1950s. ComputerMusic Journal 31 (2): 20–38. With the advent ofthe computer, the Lovell, Abigail (2020),“Libraries field ofEAM has since grown signific- Digitizes Columbia-Princeton antly. EAM has established itself, in Electronic Music Center Collection”, avant-garde and academic commu- 2020. https://blogs.cul.columbia.edu/ nities, as a significant field ofartistic spotlights/2020/07/29/columbia- creativity, research, and intellectual princeton-electronic-music-center- inquiry that includes composers, per- collection/, last access Sept. 14, 2020 formers, scholars, researchers, engi- neers, scientists, and music practi- Monroe, Mary(1996),“Music at tioners. Due to the verynature ofthis Columbia: The First 100Years”, Music at work– including its heavyreliance on Columbia: The First 100 Years, 1 996. new technologies, multi-format audio https://exhibitions.library.columbia.ed files, idiosyncratic scores, computer u/exhibits/show/music-centennial/ code, and schematics that describe electronic-and-computer-music, last complex performance setups – an ap- access Sept. 14, 2020. propriate and reliable method ofpre- Patterson, Nick(2011),“The Archives servation is needed. For EAM, there ofthe Columbia-Princeton Electronic are currently no such preservation Music Center”, Notes 67 (3): 483–502. systems that can effectively preserve the musical works and the software systems, models, and knowledge that engendered those works. Although many ofsuch works are presented, performed, and temporarily stored 21 array2020 archiving
during the submission, review, and conference. Every year, ICMC and production phases ofconferences SEAMUS program approximately 200 where such works are typically (~12% acceptance rate) and 100 presented, once the event is over, ar- (~20% acceptance rate) works re- tifacts are relegated to physical and spectively. Each conference produces digital attics ofthe organizers.The a single audio CD with abouteight EAMM project aims to take advantage works each: 90% to 95% ofworks pre- ofexisting conference music collec- sented at the conferences are lost. tion workflows that loosely resemble Since the inception ofthese organiza- music curating and archiving prac- tions, both conferences have utilized tices in an effort to collect, archive, vigorous peer-review procedures (de- share and create portals for exploring veloped over the past 40+ years) EAM. to curate the“best”pieces for pre- sentation. An estimated 7,000 ICMC Motivation and 2,500 SEAMUS works have been lost, or are at best, inaccessible, since EAM is typicallypresented in academ- the establishment ofthe conferences ic settings including conferences and in the mid-1970s. music festivals. Upon conclusion of The mere fact that this music from the conferences, however, both the a cadre ofsignificant international music and attendant data are either composers (conveniently provided lost, or ifarchived, verydifficult to ac- and stored digitally at conference cess and“slowly disappearing” databases at the curating phase) is (Cuervo 2009). In cases when frag- being lostis an issue in itself. Con- ments ofarchived data do exist, they cerns are further heightened as the remain typically offline, making access music being lost difficult for researchers, and virtually (1) has significant musical and cultural invisible to the average information value and is ofhistorical importance, seeker. Two ofthe most significant (2) plays a central role in contributing, EAM conferences are the International informing, enriching, and expanding Computer Music Conference (ICMC) our experience ofcontemporary mu- and the Society for Electro-Acoustic sical thought and Music in the United States (SEAMUS) a diverse musical heritage, and
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(3) has little chance ofbeing available ample, there is the case ofpopular for general public programming as music group Radiohead, who created musical traces are erased after the one oftheir most successful songs completion of events. Idioteque (2000) after fortuitously Internationally recognized composers coming across Princeton University typicallycreate much ofthis music, Professor Paul Lansky's EAM compo- but it does not readilyfit into existing sition mild und leise (1975). According music industry models and preserva- to Lansky: tion mechanisms.This situation re- “The piece [mild und leise] came out sembles highly theoretical scientific on a Columbia/OdysseyLPin 1975or research papers, which oftentimes so as a resultofa contestrun bythe yield no immediate and practical ap- International Society for Contempo- plication and neither seekrecognition rary Music (ISCM). It was called Elec- from industry, noraim to be finan- tronic Music Winners (I've occasion- cially successful. The difference is that allyseen itforsale on Ebay), and for such research, reliable preserva- JonnyGreenwood[one ofRadio- tion models do exist. head's songwriters] came across it in Preservation in itself, however, is a usedrecordshop when theband just part ofthe problem; the materials was on tour in the United States re- have to be both archived and accessi- cently. Ithinkitsoldabout7,000 cop- ble. Conferences that temporarily cre- ies, which is a lot for a classical ate databases with complicated ac- recording.” (www.music. prin- cess mechanisms are designed for ceton.edu/paul/radiohead.ml.html, review purposes; as such, they not last access Sept. 14, 2020) onlyseverelylimit and discourage ac- cess, but also negate the fundamental Radiohead has sold well over30 purpose ofsuch digital archives – to million records in total.There are, of allow the general public to explore, course, other interesting examples learn, and utilize materials for re- where EAM has had considerable search, education, or to simply facilit- artistic influences on popular music ate the enjoyment ofart.There are cultures. For the band Matmos, EAM also more“inspirational”reasons for became influential upon their discov- providing access to EAM. For ex- ery ofmusique concrète techniques,
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which theyhave adapted as a funda- esoteric EAM resource, whether by mental fabric oftheir music – utilizing chance orwhetherbeing in a privi- everyday sounds via standard record- leged position ofaccess.The affective ing devices. It is no coincidence that impact ofEAM that ignited innova- both band members, Drew Daniel and tion and creativity amongst these Martin Schmidt, have theirroots in prominent musicians, and its contri- academia and are also well versed in bution ofmusical culture, is immeas- the historyand literature of musique urable. concrète (Daniel is currently a profess- The affective role that EAM has had orofEnglish atJohns Hopkins Uni- is notonlyfound in artisticand musi- versity). For FrankZappa, the shaping cal spaces. Due to the multidisciplin- ofhis music was also highlyinfluenced arynature ofEAM, innovative re- byEAM. His exploration ofart music search and development, and seeminglybegan when he found the creation ofnew technologies are also album The Complete Works ofEdgard key aspects ofits very existence. Varèse,Volume One after a year-long Technological innovations are often LP searching quest (Zappa and Oc- originally expressed in, and tightly chiogrosso 1989).Towards the latter coupled to, the compositions them- part ofhis career, Zappa focused selves and documented in concert much ofhis signature workaround program notes. A plethora ofex- the Synclavier, a digital sound syn- amples exist including pioneering thesizer developed by Dartmouth research and development ofsound College EAM composer Jon Appleton. recording techniques with early tape In another celebrated example, the recorders, invention ofmusical Beatles wrote their infamous“sound synthesizers, and the first computer collage piece” Revolution 9 after being language created byMax Mathews exposed to the works ofEdgard who is widelyregarded as the grand- Varèse, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and father ofcomputer music. An espe- Yoko Ono (MacDonald 1994; Sheff cially impactful example ofthis 2000).The distinctive artistic and mu- cross-disciplinary narrative can be sical paths ofall these artists could found in EAM composer John Chow- have been very different (perhaps for ning's invention and patenting of the worse) iftheyhad no access to an frequency modulation (FM) sound
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synthesis. In 1994 FM was the“second ent biases due to practicalities that most lucrative licensing agreement in mayare not necessarilya function of Stanford's history”(http://news. artistic or cultural significance. stanford.edu/pr/94/940607Arc4222. Existing “professional”EAM-related html, last access Sept. 14, 2020). archives include the Digital Anthology ofRecorded American Music (http:// Existing Models for EAM Preserva- www.dramonline.org, last access tion Sept. 14, 2020), International Electro- Acoustic Music Archives (http:// There are a numberofexisting EAM on1 .zkm.de/ zkm/e/institute/media- preservation models today, including thek/ideama, last access Sept. 14, professional archival services, com- 2020), and Ubu-Web (http://www. mercial recordings, artists' personal ubu.com, last access Sept. 14, 2020). websites, and other Internet-based DRAM is a non-profit resource (paid sites. Artist websites are ubiquitous subscription) with 3,000-album but have limitations as preservation archive ofrecorded American music, models including some EAM.The anthology (1) distribution: sites are randomly is compiled from recordings provided spread over the Internet; to DRAM byindependent record la- (2) sustainability: hosting is often tem- bels. Although DRAM is a valuable re- poraryand maintained bythe artist; source fornewmusicand EAM, itis and worth noting thatitis limited to (3) accessibility: the user has to sift American music recordings and works through an ocean ofdata as the great already available through record la- majority ofmusic recommendation bels.The limited repertoire is the research in MIR is focused on popular most significant issue – searching the music. DRAM anthology for EAM pioneers Fewrecord labels publish EAM at all, John Chowning, MaxMathews, and and the ones that do operate within BarryTruax yields no results, for ex- a frameworkofeconomic viability, ample. which can be atodds with artistic A second archive, IDEAMA was cre- merit.This typically involves a curat- ated in 1988 in an effortto preserve ing system thatcan also be attimes the“most endangered early [EAM] sensitive to political factors and inher- 25 array2020 archiving
works”up to around 1970. In 1990 the scan asmanyold booksaswecan get project developed into a collaborative ourhands on; we post essays as fast project between Stanford University as we can OCR them.”(http://www. and the Zentrum fürKunst und Medi- ubu. com/resources/index.html, last entechnologie Karlsruhe (http://on1. access Sept. 14, 2020) YouTube, in the zkm.de/zkm/e/, last access Sept. 14, present context, could be considered 2020); 570 works, selected byan“in- a gigantic, crowdsourced version of ternational advisory board,”are now UbuWeb. As preservation repository, archived.These are valuable collec- however, it fails to measure up with tions in MP3 format.The database, respect to audio quality(often sub- now maintained byZKM, has grown standard), stability ofits content (here since the 1990s to include newerEAM today, gone tomorrow) and intellec- works under the
existing technologies and models of practical, infeasible, and undesirable digital archiving methodologies. In to archive every submitted work.The establishing protocols that are effect- AP module consists ofthe archival ive, efficient, sustainable, and scalable, database that contains all media data, EAMM attempts to address issues metadata, and anyother data associ- concerning peer-reviewing, metadata ated with a composition, including standards, technological currency, in- performance and performer history. terface design, development oftrans- Lastly, the CBA module provides a ferable technologies, scalability, the baseline platform for the develop- building oflow-riskstructures, and ment ofnext generation exploration adaptability to changing digital interfaces ofthe EAMM archives by archive environments. utilizing digital signal processing Structurally, EAMM comprise of (DSP), visualization techniques, and three modules at various develop- music information retrieval (MIR) as ment stages: further described below. (a) the filtered crowdsourcing module We are currently working with NYU (FCS), Libraries and the International Com- (b) the archive/preservation (AP) puter Music Association (ICMA), and module, and the NewYork Electro-Acoustic Music (c) the content-based analysis (CBA) Society (NYCEMS). ICMA, in particular, module. has a preeminent international repu- The FCS module provides a stream- tation in the field for its sponsorship lined crowdsourcing model for data ofannual EAM conferences since collection that is subjected 1974; and there is ample evidence to a“credentialed filtering”process via through these 46+ years ofexperi- peer-reviewed jurying.“Filtering”the ence that ICMA conferences will con- crowd-sourced submissions provides tinue to strive and attract the best a mechanism forselecting the most EAM works for the foreseeable future. significant works as determined by At the same time, the cultural value an internationally recognized peer- ofEAM extends far beyond the aca- reviewing system. This mechanism demic communityalone and we hope helps to control the number ofworks that academics, music enthusiasts we can reasonablyarchive, as itis im- and the general public will benefit
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from EAMM outputs which will ulti- that this, in turn, will greatlycontrib- mately include: ute towards creating an inter- nation- (1) a permanent, sustainable, and ex- ally recognized EAM metadata pandable EAM preservation repository standard. For the retroactive initiative housed at the NYU Library; we will use the camera-readyFCS (2) interfaces for discovery and inter- sub-module – interface used to col- action with the material; and lect conference accepted data – to (3) access to otherwise unavailable streamline and crowdsource the col- EAM resources including audio files, lection ofarchival quality media files, metadata, computer code, digital additional metadata, and other data conference booklets, details about a types that we have identified as ne- composition, performance history, cessary for our EAM metadata and musical scores. schema.
Retroactive Archival Efforts Intellectual Property and Author Permissions To laythe foundation for EAMM, we will build a historical archive that will Since our EAMM collection is interna- salvage what is left ofthe recordings tional in scope, aim for its accessibility and related data for works presented is to be as open as possible.The level at the ICMC conferences – including ofrestriction for access to the material high qualityrecordings and concert can be, however, individually modu- performances whenever available – lated according to each contributing up through 2020.We have thus farse- artist’s preferences depending on cured the2011,2012,and 2018data- enduser types: general public or sets and are working on collecting the individuals who formallyapplyto us 2020 dataset. The retroactive collec- as researchers, for example. Other tion program will not onlypreserve mechanisms that we are considering this important legacy, but it will also is access limited to those physically contribute in developing and tuning on the premises. All works is ac- our EAM metadata set byresearching companied with authorial permission and analyzing metadata structures and all rights ofthe archived works in used in the conferences.We anticipate ourEAMM database will remain with
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the author. Each submitter to the physical inaccessibility ofEAM for the ICMC conference is provided with a expert and wideraudience is an issue digital agreement form where authors in itselfas its current outlet mechan- can choose to participate in archiving ism limits its exposure to the aca- their works. As EAMM’s collection demic community, which in turn mechanism is primarilybased au- inhibits growth in musical diversity thorial crowdsourcing paradigms, in- and the wideraesthetic and ped- tellectual property, copyright, and agogical potential for the general licensing issues are greatly simplified, public.The musical inaccessibility and the EAMM archive (byvirtue ofits further diminishes accessibility ofthis metadata structure) will itselfbe the workto a greater audience, a problem place where intellectual property (IP) exacerbated by inadequate explora- agreements with authors are docu- tion platforms for“art music”in gen- mented. eral.These factors contribute to the difficulty offitting EAM to existing Conclusion preservation models. The Electro- Acoustic Music Mine (EAMM) at- EAM explores and pushes artistic, tempts to address the aforemen- aesthetic, and technical boundaries tioned issues bycreating an EAM and is typically presented by special- preservation and exploration portal ists at academic conferences. Unlike based on: the majorityofpopularmusic, it is not (1) a semi-automated crowd-sourced economically-driven, nor reliably pre- music collection module curated served bymarket mechanisms or through credentialed peer-reviewing archival projects sponsored by indus- systems, try, libraries, or museums. Further- (2) a comprehensive archival and pre- more, all ofthe EAM data thatis care- servation module, and fully and painstakingly collected is (3) an analysis module based on the typically lost after a conference con- timbre-centric Electro-Acoustic Music cludes.When and ifthe musicis Analysis (EASY) Toolbox providing an archived, the burden to create a pre- online platform for interactive visual- servation system falls on conference ization, navigation, and discovery of organizers unprepared to build and EAM. maintain a dependable archive.The 29 array2020 archiving
This third module exploits Music Infor- ParkTae Hong, et al. (2011).“Towards mation Retrieval (MIR) and content- a comprehensive framework for elec- based analysis baseline to extend and tro-acoustic music analysis.”in: Pro- enhance traditional text-based in- ceedings ofthe International Computer dexical discovery and delivery sys- Music Conference ICMC, Huddersfield tems. No similar credentialed, 201 1 . peer-reviewed preservation system Park,Tae Hong, et al. (2014). "Towards exists for EAM, and no MIR-based EAM Soundscape Information Retrieval exploration interfaces exist for any (SIR)." in: Proceedings ofthe Inter-na- kind ofmusic archival system. tional Computer Music Conference Pro- ceedings ICMC, Athens 2014. References Teruggi, Daniel (2007).“Technology Cuervo, Adriana P. (2009).“Ephemeral and musique concrète:The technical music: Electronic music collections in developments ofthe Groupe de the U.S.”in: Proceedings ofthe Society of Recherches Musicales and their im- American Archivists’2008 Research For- plication in musical composition.” Or- um - Foundations andInnovations. ganisedSound, 12(3): 213–231. MacDonald, Ian (1994). Revolution in Zappa, Frankand P. Cocchiorosso the head: The Beatles’records andthe (1 990). The realFrankZappa book, sixties. New York: Henry Holt. Touchstone, pp. 30–33. ParkT. H, Zhiye Li, and Wen Wu (2009). “EASY does it:The Electro Acoustic Music Analysis Tool.”in: Proceedings of the International Conference on Music Information Retrieval (ISMIR). ParkTaeHong, et al. (2010).“SQEMA: Systematic and Quantitative Electro- Acoustic Music Analysis.”in: Proceed- ings ofthe InternationalComputerMu- sic Conference ICMC, NewYorks 2010.
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Musings on computer music store anything beyond the output of perennity the computing process, losing essen- byKevin Dahan tial information on the means ofpro- duction. On top ofthat, the deterio- Introduction ration ofmedia on which these compositions were recorded and Itshould come as no surprise that, at stored is a known issue which has more than sixtyyears ofage, the been acknowledged and partially computer music field starts to ponder addressed since the 1990s (Bauman, its legacy: what started almost as a Dienerand Mathews, 1991; Goebel, ‘challenge’(Chasalow, 1998) is now a 2001; Battier, 2004). Since the mid- well-established academic practice 2000s, more initiatives emerged to which has had a profound impact over safekeep early computer music the whole music and entertainment masterpieces using reengineering industries. More often than not, break- techniques, often prompted by the throughs in our field were initiallyes- rediscovery ofcompositional sources tablished through pursuing musical or (Zattra, 2015): unfortunately, while im- aesthetical, rather than purely techni- portant sources maystill exist some- cal, goals: this is especiallythe case in where in one form or another, exten- ‘early’computer music. Clearly, it is sive documentation is quite hard to nowtime to reflect on the numerous come by. Currently, there are initia- techniques (manyofwhich make the tives to document, archive, preserve foundations ofcurrent music soft- and present important computer mu- ware) that have been initiated over sicworks being setup in manyre- the years. Perhaps one ofthe best search centers worldwide. This article ways ofexamining these is through posits that understanding the history in-depth multimodal analyses of ofour field and criticallyevaluating its computer music works: this approach findings from a musical perspective would constitute an initial effort to- will guide preservation efforts more wards a critical evaluation ofcom- effectively. It is also through the inte- puter music history. However, for a gration oftechnological advances long time, composers, researchers and made in data science and machine institutions did not have the means to learning that long-term preservation
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ofcomputermusic will be a reality. algorithms developed thereafter. Like- Hence, this article proposes a three- wise, there has been little effort to es- step approach to computer music tablish a working typologywith the preservation: frame computer music musician in mind: rather, the referenc- theory, consider its ecosystem, and ing ofthese techniques is primarily assimilate newer technologies. done through technical descriptions, which may prove problematic (and Computer music technologies lead to confusion) for the non-techni- cally proficient music analyst, or for Digital technologyhas this innate future generations, for which the quality ofpotentially being extremely technological environment will be malleable, leading to novel and sin- largely different. It is already the case: gular properties in artifacts created the concept ofnon-real-time sound through its means. In computer music, synthesis – let alone that oftime-shar- the most obvious examples are of ing on mainframe computers… – is course digital synthesis techniques remote to many current students. (Smith, 1991), which are central to the computer music composition process. Framing computer music theory From additive to granular synthesis, and from waveguide to adversarial This constitutes the first step we need neural audio synthesis, numerous al- to take towards computer music gorithms were used in compositions preservation: (re-)invest in establish- to strikingly different end results (FM ing a working musical frameworkof synthesis, for example, is especially computer music theory, which would flexible with regard to the wide range take precedence over and guide tech- ofpossible sounds achievable with a nological developments.This is, es- single algorithm). However, it is inter- sentially, going backto the roots of esting to note that, since the initial computer music to reevaluate what efforts ofJean-Claude Risset (Risset, has been produced in terms oftech- 1969), there has been no workunder- niques, notablyover the past thirty taken to establish an expanded cata- years ofcomputer music: this, inciden- logue that would provide baseline tally, corresponds to the densification ‘recipes’using the multiple synthesis ofpersonal computing, which saw
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composers and researchers move along with surrounding documenta- away from mainframes to personal, tion and data. From there, two ways then mobile, computers. are possible, each requiring a different skillset: Computer music ecosystems a) adaptation, where a computer music workis‘transcribed’to a new Another possible approach is to con- environment, and sider computer music production pro- b) virtualization, where the environ- cess as ecosystems, which needs to be ment is emulated. Both approaches’ preserved. Instead ofexamining, cata- aim is the reconstruction ofthe orig- loguing and labelling the musical arti- inal work(Dahan, 2007), but with facts created through technologies – different means and results. In both which is what music analysts mostly cases, extensive data and documen- do – the focus switches backto the tation are needed, and access to the production chain. An initial impulse original (and working) creative envi- would be to considerstoring the pro- ronment would tremendously help duction means ofthe composition the efforts. process (e.g. hardware and software), butthen we would be losing these Consider computer music ecosystem technologies altogether. An interest- ing alternative to this‘cold’storage is This constitutes the second step: to to develop emulation ofworking en- achieve effective computer music vironments, while we still have access preservation, we need to consider to sufficient documentation.This has the whole ecosystem in which music been done, for example, for the Sam- research takes (or took) place: produc- son Box (Schottstaedt and McNabb, tion means (including, but not limited 2012; Loy, 2013), which however to, computers, controllers, operating needs binary.SAM files to work.This systems, software), products (e.g. exemplifies the ecosystemic approach tests, compositions), but also by-prod- that has to be followed when consid- ucts (e.g. documentation, sketches). ering preservation ofcomputer music: Ofcourse, an established framework it is simply not sufficient to safekeep ofavailable techniques, both at the and store previous technologies, it has time ofthe original creation and at the to be preserved in working order, 33 array2020 archiving
time ofthe recreation, is needed, high- Integrate newer technologies lighting the importance ofa properly This constitutes the third step: to inte- framed computer music theory. grate the latest technological devel- opments and make use ofthem in the Conclusion: towards computer music process ofpreservation. Since an es- perennity? tablished framework and sufficient We all have witnessed thatthe many multi-modal data would be available, technological mutations experienced itwill make sense to use machine overthe last seventyyears did not learning techniques to develop ap- provide a large amount ofdirect pro- propriate storage approaches, to tection to computer music works: design functional virtualized environ- hardware were abandoned, software ments, or to achieve reconstructions. evolved,data misplaced,and as a Ultimately, it could help bridge the result, compositions and musical gap between musical perception and works have been lost. However, we are computing techniques by – circularly nowliving in an age ofmature digital – enhancing and refining both the technology: the resources, techniques, theoretical framework and associated and more importantly, the perspective techniques. we have gained on digital obsoles- And perhaps, along the path ofpre- cence, allow us to contemplate the serving its legacy, it would paradoxi- preservation ofour field less as an callyhelp us discovernewways of emergencyand more as a focused, achieving what computer music is selective, and informed exercise. about: expressing inherently human Obviously, urgent actions are still emotions and feelings through needed: data sources need to be machines and algorithms. found, recovered and transferred to better media for medium term pur- References poses. However, there is some time Battier, Marc (2004),“Electroacoustic to plan and develop strategies forthe Music Studies and the Danger ofLoss”, long-term preservation – perennity – OrganisedSound 9 (1), pp. 47–53. ofcomputer music.
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Bauman, Marcia L., Glenn R. Diener mmcnabb/sam, last access August and MaxV. Mathews (1991),“The Inter- 2020. national Digital Electroacoustic Music Smith, Julius O. (1991),“Viewpoints Archive”, in: Proceedings ofthe Inter- on the History ofDigital Synthesis”, national ComputerMusic Conference in: Proceedings ofthe International ICMC, Montreal 1991, pp. 501–4. Computer Music Conference ICMC, Chasalow, Eric (1998), "TheVideo Montreal 1991,pp. 1–10. Archive ofthe Electroacoustic Music". Zattra, Laura (2015),“Génétiques de Dahan, Kevin (2007),“Reconstructing La Computer Music”, in: Genèses Stria”, in: Proceedings ofthe Internatio- Musicales, Presses Universitaires de nal ComputerMusic Conference ICMC, Paris-Sorbonne: Paris, pp. 213–38. Copenhagen 2007,pp. 165-168. Goebel, Johannes (2001),“IDEAMA – The International Digital Electro- acoustic Music Archive”, JournalofNew Music Research 30 (4), pp. 375–80. Loy, D. Gareth (2013),“Life and Times ofthe Samson Box”, ComputerMusic Journal 37 (3), pp. 26–48. Purwins, Hendrik, et al. (2019),“Deep Learning for Audio Signal Processing”, in: IEEE Journal ofSelected Topics in Signal Processing 13 (2): pp. 206–19. Risset, Jean-Claude (1969), An Intro- ductory Catalogue ofComputer Syn- thesized Sounds, Bell Telephone Laboratories: Murray Hill, N.J. Schottstaedt,William G., and Michael McNabb (2012),“Samson Box Emula- tion Software”. https://github.com/
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Preservation strategies for mixed Responsibility, User focus, Sustainabil- music: the long tail and the short ityand Technology(TRUST) is nowa tail fairly widespread theme in research byGuillaume Boutard data management and digital archiv- ing (Wilkinson etal.2016;Lin etal. Introduction 2020).These notions provide an over- arching frame for best practices in I have recentlyargued (Boutard 2019) each domain. that preservation ofdigital technology Discussing these notions may entail in mixed musicshould build upon the shifting the discussion from similar- workdone forthe past ten years in ities to differences between the digital preservation in relation to preservation ofmixed music and the cultural heritage institutions, namely preservation ofdigital collections, libraries, archives and museums archives and newmedia art pieces. In (LAMs). From this premise, I have this paper, I would like to pointat discussed several hypothetical these differences and to continue the directions based on a broad and wide- discussion about the conceptual level ly discussed distinction between three ofpreservation in relation to docu- levels ofpreservation: bit-level preser- mentation methods. vation; logical-level preservation; and conceptual-level preservation. The Repositories goal ofsuch a paperwas to emphasize the similarities in the management of Tools digital objects among various cultural Across institutions, a focus has heritage institutions at each one of emerged on the analysis ofingest these levels, whether these institu- and pre-ingest phases ofcuration tions manage complex objects (e.g. lifecycles, leading to the development museums), research data (e.g. aca- ofcomplex digital forensics software demic libraries), or more generic dig- distributions such as BitCurator. ital artefacts (e.g. archives). Molenda (2020), in her recent survey The promotion ofFindability, Acces- ofpractices among twenty-seven sibility, Interoperability, and Reusabil- dutch heritage organizations with ity (FAIR) as well asTransparency, a digital repository, reviews sources 36 array2020 archiving
including“archive creators (such as Molenda (2020), continues:“[...] as governmental institutions, other much as 64 percent ofthe respon- institutional or private actors), dents reported that theyonlyhave suppliers (for example publishers, partial influence and cannot set hard broadcasting organizations or radio requirements, and 9 percent reported stations), makers (artists, researchers)” thattheyare notin the position to set (p. 12).The surveyfocuses on the use anyrequirements at all”(p. 13).To my oftools during pre-ingest and ingest knowledge, no digital preservation because it is not part of‘end-to-end’ tools –thatis to say, within the set digital preservation solutions and it is currently provided by the digital underspecified within the Open preservation community and used Archival Information System (OAIS) byLAMs, whetherat the‘end to end’ model (pre-ingest being completely digital preservation system (DPS) level outside the model). Pre-ingest em- orin relation to the broad range of phasizes the lackofstandardization phase-related tools documented in among producers in terms offile for- projects such as Community Owned mats, complex objects aggregates, Digital Preservation Tool Registry and metadata production:“only about (COPTR) and Preserving digital Ob- a third ofthe interviewed heritage jects With Restricted Resources organizations can set requirements (POWRR) – are used in relation to and therefore has influence on how mixed music preservation (at any the collections they receive are pre- level ofpreservation). Arguably and pared and delivered”(Molenda 2020, to a certain extent, this absence of 13).These issues are well-known in our digital preservation tools in current context ofcreative practices with preservation and curation practice digital technologies where the for mixed music relates to the inabil- breadth oftechnology-laden practices ity to set hard requirements. may seem overwhelming (arguably less than in the context ofdigital Contributors artefacts collected by museums).The linkbetween repositories and produc- In a less recent publication (Boutard ers is thus critical and relates to the 2018), I advocated for the broadening ability to foster best practices. ofstakeholders in digital preservation ofmixed music–building on a previ- 37 array2020 archiving
ous study(Plessas and Boutard 2015) fication ofpreservation management. – including live electronics musicians The relevance ofversion control (LEMs) in relation with participative systems (VCS) for digital preservation repositories.This idea comes from the has gained research attention in rela- acknowledgement that we have seen tion to software heritage, but also many preservation initiatives coming limitations:“[...] the taskoflong term directly from practitioners (often from preservation cannot be assumed by performers) during the last twenty entities thatdo notmake ita stated years in terms of, primarily, migration priority: for a while, preservation may ofcontemporary works which do not be a side effect ofother missions, make it to anykind ofrepositoryand butin the long term itwon’tbe”(Di thus disappear from the scope ofcul- Cosmo and Zacchiroli 2017, 3). tural heritage and best practice in dig- In their comparative analysis, Barok ital preservation. It also builds upon etal. (2019) showthe use ofCVS for Plessas and Boutard’s (2015) definition complex artworks preservation along ofinterpretation by LEMs ofa work, four categories, which they relate which includes practices relating to more orless preciselyto the OAIS adaptation to performance context, model, namely debugging, or updating to state-of- 1) file and storage management, the-art technological environnement. 2) metadata and provenance, The academic historyofmixed music 3) context, presentation, curation, and preservation is built upon use cases 4) collaboration and usability. and yetthese use cases also fail to be They further discuss the elements part ofthe sustainable technological lacking in CVS environments, in rela- trajectory ofmixed music. tion to their four categories, for digital preservation best practice. As Baroket The inclusion ofmultiple contribu- al. (2019) bring up, as a premise,“[...] it tors or stakeholders in the production is generally acknowledged that exist- ofdigital expressions (according to ing digital archiving and documenta- the definition ofexpression in the tion systems used bymanymuseums Functional Requirements for Biblio- are not suitable for complex digital graphic Records - FRBR model) ofa artworks”(p. 94). Still, current practice mixed music workbrings a complexi- in notable institutions such as the
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MOMA ortheTate Galleryshowhow Ifpreservation needs to build upon museum are able to connect digital its communities ofpractice and be preservation best practice and tools grounded in production workflows, and the management ofcomplex then we need to make a distinction digital artworks. Merging these ap- between the short tail and the long proaches with VCS principles (which tail ofperformance distributions for are alreadypart ofcollection manage- mixed music works. Plessas and ment systems fornewmedia arts to Boutard’s (2015) study ofthe histori- some extent, this should come as no cal performance trajectory ofPhilippe surprise) seems inevitable as far as Leroux’Voi(Rex) is one ofthe few mixed music (re-)production is con- longitudinal studies ofmixed music cerned.The emphasis. I would argue, performance (another one would be should be on provenance, context, Akkermann 2017).They tracked about and usability. fortyconcerts from 2003 to 2015, with four versions ofthe software (see Strategies Boutard 2018) that are registered in the repository at Institut de Recherche Short tail or long tail et Coordination Acoustique/Musique Not all works face the same preser- (IRCAM). Voi(Rex) is partofthe short vation risks. Lemouton (2012) ex- tail, that is to saythese pieces that are posed it clearly: already part ofthe repertoire, pieces “[...] si l’on veut qu’un répertoire thatare played on a regularbasis and puisse se constituer et faire histoire, il therefore are migrated to up-to-date fautavanttoutqu’ilpuisse être software environments. However, not conservédans un temps assezlong all mixed music pieces are as success- avec la possibilité d’être rejoué sans ful in terms ofperformance rate for trop de difficulté, [...] et comme on ne multiple reasons, for example the peutpas prédire quelles serontles complexity ofthe production process oeuvres qui ‘feront répertoire’,soit il or the reputation ofthe piece. faut tout préserver et c’est trop coûteux, soit on ne fait rien, et alors il The second part ofthe performance n’ya plus aucune chance que cela rate distribution is the most at risk, devienne un répertoire” (p. 77). thatis to saythe long tail,those 39 array2020 archiving
pieces that are not played at a suffi- “one ofthe most persistent challenges cient rate.When the rate ofproduc- to software preservation has been tion and performance falls below the legal uncertainty. Practitioners fear schedule for major version update of that legal structures developed to software development environments, regulate software in the commercial technological obsolescence becomes marketplace (like restrictive licenses more prevalent to the point where and so-called‘anti-circumvention’ migration becomes a more difficult rules) somehowmayimpinge on their strategyto apply(putting aside the work.They also know that core preser- supplementary question ofexpertise) vation activities almost inevitably do without the preservation ofthe trigger copyright concerns”(Aufder- original technological environment. heide etal. 2019, 2). Legal battles At this point, the strategychanges around circumvention for software from the preservation ofthe work’s preservation are exemplified in the implementation to broader software US bythe temporaryexemptions to preservation strategies. the Digital Millennium Copyright Act The growing interest in software (DMCA) provision by the Library of preservation led to several initiatives, Congress. such as the ones alreadymentioned (see Di Cosmo and Zacchiroli 2017) With the advent ofsoftware li- as well as more global strategies like braries and the maturing ofemulation the software preservation network on demand,we mayalso have appli- (Meyerson et al. 2017). Software is cable strategies for the long tail. now collected either for digital foren- Indeed, we can nowthinkabout sics, digital archeology or digital emulation (not virtualization) as an preservation – for example, the access strategy, which can support National Software Reference Library migration when funds orhuman (NSRL) at the US National Institute of ressources are available. Rather than Standards and Technology (NIST).The migration triggered by the monitor- question offair use in relation to soft- ing oftechnological obsolescence, ware preservation is a core element of the more realistic idea ofmigration these strategies, as emphasized by the on request could support the long tail. US association ofresearch libraries: This strategy requires a participation
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ofthe music technology community documentation ofmixed music, either in the development ofcurrent and at the conceptual level orthe logical future software libraries (These level (e.g. Boutard 2019), most of software libraries are about software them discussing methodological environments required for running propositions to capture knowledge of the pieces and must include commer- human agents relating to the creative cial solutions.They are independent processes, whether from a composi- from the repositories needed for the tional or interpretational perspective. archiving ofthe pieces themselves). In parallel, proposals for software- The preservation ofthe long tail is related preservation exacerbate also, primarilyand the most directly, context :“ideally, one might want the part ofthe repertoire requiring to archive software source code‘in the broadening ofcontributors that context’, with as much information we emphasized in the previous about its broader ecosystem: project section. Institutions holding digital websites, issues filed in bug tracking repositories do not have additional systems, mailing lists, wikis, design resources for complex pre-ingest in notes, as well as executables built for relation to this part ofthe repertoire various platforms and the physical but they may support semi-automatic machines and networkenvironment ingest and archiving with minimum on which the software was run, [...]” costs and expertise needed. (Di Cosmo and Zacchiroli 2017, 4). A significant part ofthese elements Documentation may be automated during pre-ingest/ ingest (I thinkspecifically about auto- As EscobarVarela and Lee (2018) put matic analysis ofpatches and, in it, in the context ofperformance parallel, a significant part could rely archives :“however, there are still on generic functionalities ofthe CVS) relatively few archives and many of and the remaining elements should them are not yet equipped to realize be included in future hard require- the full potential ofdigital documen- ments. tation; theyhave been slowto adopt standards for data reusability, findabil- On the otherhand, itis worth not- ity and interoperability”(p. 17). ing that museums have recentlyput Several proposals have been made for 41 array2020 archiving
specific efforts in the documentation for sound-art installations. ofimmersive media artworks. One SAD-SASKbuilds on the workof example ofthese projects is Preserv- Boutard on tacit knowledge docu- ing Immersive Media atTate Gallery, mentation and Guastavino’s workon which started in 2018. I would argue sensory experience ofcomplex audi- that these projects and their out- tory scenes and perceptual evalua- comes are relevant for mixed music tions ofspatial audio (Boutard and preservation. Based on this idea, in Guastavino 2012; Guastavino and Katz 2020, we started the project Sound 2004;Tarlao, Steele, and Guastavino Art Documentation: Spatial Audio 2019). In terms ofstakeholders, the and Significant Knowledge (SAD- project targets not only sound artists SASK), funded bythe Canadian Social but also time-based media conserva- Sciences and Humanities Research tors and curators, and sound engi- Council (SSHRC), in collaboration with neers. Building a documentation museum conservators and academics frameworkfor sound art may benefit specializing in sound art and/or spa- installation and curation processes tial audio in North America and Eu- but also analysis as well as dissemina- rope. SAD-SASKaims at investigating tion to a largerpublic. the relevance ofstate-of-the-art spa- The methods coming from such tial audio capture and virtual environ- projects maybe injected backin the ment rendering technologies for the preservation ofmixed music which documentation ofsound art.The faces similar questions ofdocumenta- goals are to: tion in relation to technologies and 1) identify significant knowledge room acoustics as well as perfor- associated with sound art installations mance. Building relevant methods with an emphasis on sensory for documenting mixed music works experience; should complement the technology- 2) specify best practices for driven and the creative process-ori- documentation ofsound art beyond ented documentation with perfor- technical specifications; and mance knowledge relating to the 3) acknowledge the relevance and sensory experience ofa piece. benefits ofcross-fertilization of Documenting immersive environ- expertise to conservation processes ments is yet another direction of
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collaboration with various cultural artworks. Still, without dedicated heritage organizations. funding, there will be no proper preservation for mixed music. Discussion I would argue thatthe question of With these propositions in the back- preservation ofmixed music has to ground, I would like to come backto become a large-scale project – the the organizational level ofpreserva- idea ofa consortium ofsome sort tion.The principle oftrust for digital with various types ofinstitutions – repositories entails organizational in order to reach for organizational infrastructure and sustainability for sustainabilityas well as having these organizations. In my previous enough impact to be able to propose paper, I emphasized the need to have and build upon existing software trained professionals in digital preser- libraries, to define processing work- vation, similarlyto LAMs, to manage flows (especially in relation to pre- repositories, which, ofcourse, requires ingest/ingest phases), and to define institutions and funding. Promoting and enforce hard requirements. FAIR and TRUSTprinciples relies on I believe that without hard require- relevant frameworks, in terms of ments the long tail is bound to disap- repositories and in terms ofwork- pear (it is difficult to quantifyhow flows. But organizations involved much has already disappeared). in mixed music production and Ifwe have to accepta wide range dissemination are not LAMs and while ofcontributors – as opposed to most some LAMs have clear mission state- situations in LAMs –then we mustbe ments in relation to digital preserva- able to askfor best practices in terms tion, organizations and institutions of, as stated previously, file formats, involved,atsome level,in mixed complex objects aggregates, and music do not, especiallyin relation metadata production.The subse- to the long tail. Ithas sometimes been quent aspect ofthe discussion on argued that digital preservation is best practices relates more directly to more ofan economic problem rather preservation at the conceptual level than a technical one, which maybe and requires documentation proto- a little bit too extreme a statement, cols relating to sensory experience especially in the context ofcomplex 43 array2020 archiving
and performance knowledge whose persistence ofits service”(Lin et al. outputs maybe evaluated at ingest. 2020). Transparency,“about specific Conclusion repository services and data holdings that are verifiable by publicly acces- Going backto FAIR and TRUST, we sible evidence”(Lin et al. 2020), should maythinkabout the impact ofour be targeted, especially in relation to propositions. Findability, Accessibility, the long tail. And finally, Sustainability and Interoperabilitywill be greatlyim- is ourmain goal, supported byrele- proved by the coordination ofefforts vantTechnology and documented at the inter-organizational level. workflows. Reusability will be greatly improved bythe subsequent abilityto establish References hard requirements and processing workflows, and participate in the Akkermann, Miriam (2017),“Com- building ofsoftware libraries. posing an Instrument - Improvising a Composition: David Wessel Contacts The U ofTRUSTis UserFocus, thatis Turbulents”, in: Alain Bonardi et al. to say,“to ensure that the data man- (eds.), AnalyserLa Musique Mixte. agement norms and expectations of Pensée Musicale, Delatour: Sampzon. target user communities are met" (Lin Aufderheide, Patricia et al. (Eds.) etal.2020).Itisnotdoing a U-turn to (2019),“Code ofBest Practices in Fair say that U is bidirectional. Specifying Use for Software Preservation”(2019), what is expected is also meeting the www.arl.org/ resources/code-of-best- expectations ofthe target user com- practices-in-fair-use-for-software- munity(a question that emerges preservation/, last access August regularly in discussion with practi- 2020. tioners in mixed music production), especiallysince we want to achieve Barok, Dušan et al. (2019),“Archiving Responsability“[...] for ensuring the Complex Digital Artworks”, Journal of authenticity[in the archival sense of the Institute ofConservation 42 (2): the term] and integrityofdata 94–1 1 3. holdings and forthe reliabilityand Boutard, Guillaume (2018),“La
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Médiation et La Conservation Col- Media 14 (1): 17–33, https://doi.org/ laborative et Distribuée: Le Cas de 10.1080/14794713.2018.1453242. La Technologie Numérique Dans La Guastavino, Catherine and Brian F. G. Performance Musicale”, in: Anne Klein, Katz (2004),“Perceptual Evaluation of Martine Cardin (eds.), Consommer Multi-Dimensional Spatial Audio l’information: De La Gestion à La Reproduction”, The Journalofthe Médiation Documentaire, Presses de Acoustical Society ofAmerica 1 1 6 (2): l’Université Laval: Québec, QC, 57–75. 1 1 05–1 5. idem (2019),“IsThere a Digital Lemouton, Serge (2012),“Vingt Ans Archivist in the Room? The Preser- de Pratique de La Réalisation En vation ofMusique Mixte”, in: Proceed- Informatique Musicale: Enjeux, ings ofthe InternationalComputerMu- Perspectives et État Des Lieux d’un sic Conference (ICMC), ICMA: NewYork. Métier En Devenir”, MasterThesis, Boutard, Guillaume and Catherine Université Paris-Est. Guastavino (2012),“Archiving Electro- Lin, Dawei et al. (2020),“TheTRUST acoustic and Mixed Music: Significant Principles for Digital Repositories”, Knowledge Involved in the Creative Scientific Data 7 (1): 144, https:// Process ofWorks with Spatialisation”, doi.org/1 0.1 038/s41 597-020-0486-7. Journal ofDocumentation 68 (6): 749–71 . Meyerson, Jessica et al. (2017),“The Software Preservation Network (SPN): Di Cosmo, Roberto and Stefano A Com-munity Effort to Ensure Long Zacchiroli (2017),“Software Heritage: Term Access to Digital Cultural Why and How to Preserve Software Heritage”, D-Lib Magazine 23 (5/6), Source Code”, in: Proceedings ofIPRES https://doi.org/1 0.1 045/may201 7- 2017: 14th International Conference on meyerson. Digital Preservation, Kyoto, Japan. Molenda, Ania (2020),“The Use of EscobarVarela, Miguel and Nala H. Lee Preservation Tools among Dutch (2018),“Language Documenta-tion: A Heritage Organizations”, Dutch digital Reference Point forTheatre and Per- heritage network, www.netwerkdigi formance Archives?”, International taalerfgoed.nl/wp-content/uploads/ Journal ofPerformance Arts and Digital
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2020/06/NDE-The-Use-of-Preservation -Tools-among-Dutch-Heritage-Organi zations-juni2020-2.pdf, last access August 2020. Plessas, Peter and Guillaume Boutard (2015),“Transmission et Interprétation de l’instrument Électronique Composé”, in: Actes Des Journées d’Informatique Musicale 2015, OICRM: Montreal, QC. Tarlao, Cynthia, Daniel Steele and Catherine Guastavino (2019),“Investi- gating Factors Influencing Sound- scape Evaluations Across Multiple Urban Spaces In Montreal”, in: Proceedings ofInternational Noise, Madrid 2019. Wilkinson, MarkD. et al. (2016),“The FAIR Guiding Principles for Scientific Data Management and Stewardship”, Scientific Data 3 (1 ): 1 –9.
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Authors ofthis issue:
Miriam Akkermann is musicologist, Serge Lemouton works as a sound artist and musician. She holds computer music designer at IRCAM, a junior professorship for empirical collaborates with researchers to musicology atTechnische Universität develop computer tools and has taken Dresden. part in the production and public performances ofnumerous musical Guillaume Boutard is an associate projects. professor at Université de Montréal. His research interests include digital Tae Hong Parkis associate professor preservation/curation and creative at NYU Steinhardt’s MusicTechnology process documentation. program, Music Audio Research Lab, and the Composition program and Seth Cluett is a composer, artist, chiefarchitect ofCitygram – a and writer. He is Assistant Director comprehensive, real-time, scalable, ofthe Computer Music Center and and cost-effective sound-mapping Sound Art Program at Columbia project based on fixed and crowd University and Artist-in-Residence at sourced sensor network paradigms. Nokia Bell Labs.
Kevin Dahan is professor ofmusic sciences at De Montfort University, holding also diplomas in classical piano and jazz guitar, electroacoustic composition, and jazz arrangement.
All copyrights remain with the authors.
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