First Max/MSP Project in a LONG time.

So, I've been tasked with composing for a 16 note input system for the Maker Faire. A pendulum will swing, generating MIDI, and it has been by job to do something nice with this MIDI. Also part of the challenge is to make the installation fit within the remit of a faire. It will be busy with people walking round from stall to stall, so sometimes it will be active and sometimes it will not be. I needed something that can be left running unattended, and will not be too irritating, yet when it is being used, it will be engaging enough to be interesting.

This has lead me to a two tier application. After seconds of un-use, the system will merely play nice atherial samples, MIDI triggered, the program will be randomly changed every 2 minutes.

To activate the system, the user will speak into the microphone in front of the pendulum. this will trigger the system to begin recording sound up into the 16 buffered. Once the voice has stopped, the 16 buffers will be played in sequence with the MIDI In, coupled with the "Glitch" VST cyclically stepping though it's effects, this should be enough to keep the public entertained.

With this done and under my belt, I can start thinking more about chaos (in the hope I can produce some true algorithmic based sounds for the project!)

Note: Max/MSP and LabVIEW are definitely NOT the same thing, although they may look like it... spent a lot of the day getting my syntax out of a mess! ;)

Got My Work Cut Out

OK, so now the defeatism is being driven away for new years, a handle on the music industry needs to be restored. Especially with the advent of the brand new music tools available to the consumer side of the industry.

Let the Research begin!!
Last.fm and Spotify are the first tools given to us by the Phonex that is the music industry, and I seem to have been missing out during this turbulant period, so in an effort to catch up, I have compiled the following:

From the Picadilly Records end of year review, here are singles from one of almost all of the artists on the top albums of 2009, Available as a Spotify Playlist.
Just for thoes wanting to catch up also, the BBC 6 Music top 100 of 2009 has some good avenues to explore too.
I will be sampling the Drowned In Sound top 50 of 2009, and at some point attempting to compile some kind of list, at least of things worth checking out, from The Wire 2009 Rewind Review.

*phew* should bring me up to date, and if i'm not lucky, completely destroy my critical listening faculty, just in time for the festival season :)

The Ultimate Manchester Gig Guide

Now available, a complete guide to all music events over the whole of manchester, in calender (ical) format.. OK, not for the caveats. This is only a guide of stuff that has been placed into last.fm, and it's not for the whole city, it's for the best (in my opinion) 26 live music venues.

So it does give you a general idea of most things that are happening, but the odd one might slip through the net!!

GO!! ---> http://pipes.yahoo.com/pipes/pipe.run?_id=d803712e5c927e910469414456b46105

This calander was created with a thing called "Yahoo Pipes" which allows you to get data from several bits of the internet and compile them and way you like! Really handy, especially since i'm now trying to pipe info from the web straight down to my phone so I don't have to worry about "Looking" for it every time. Genious!

Venues as follows:
Ritz, Central, Bridgewater Hall, Warrehouse Project, Life Cafe, RNCM, Academy 1, 2, 3 & Club, Night and Day, Islington Mill, Roadhouse, Jabez, Star & Garter, Moho, Sankeys, Deaf Institute, Mint Lounge, Ruby Lounge, Dry Bar, Apollo, M.E.N., Satans Hollow (yes, honestly), Joshua Brooks, Music Box, Retro Bar, Band

Fractals

There is something so ornate about Fractals. Rebecca was watching a simple program on telly outlining the basics of mathematics, fractals and quantum physics, which got me interested again. Through a little research I have uncovered a fantastic application called Aphopysis, an application which generates fractals based on three overlapped geometric shapes, the X, Y and Z of all three are then plotted in the X, Y and Z of three dimensional space. These shapes are chosen on a random basis and assigned a random pallet, the emphasis being placed on art as apposed to science (hence the blase use of the word random). Fractals are one ofthe first things that got me interested in science as an art form when I was little, designing an algorithm that would extract the 'picture' out of an equation whilst in high school.

The problem with such a pass time is as nice and serene as your time spent doing such things is, it doesn't really lead you on to anything, leaving your head stuck in a bit of a wonderland of visuals. Hence my reason to blog this, not really knowing what else to do with this little pastime of mine!