Greg Shakar

The course focus is on the design and creation of digital musical instruments. Music in
performance is the primary subject of this class. We approach questions such as “What
is performance?” “What makes a musical interface intuitive and emotionally
immediate?” and “How do we create meaningful correlations between performance
gestures and their musical consequences?” Over the semester, we look at many
examples of current work by creators of musical interfaces, and discuss a wide range
of issues facing technology-enabled performance – such as novice versus virtuoso
performers, discrete versus continuous data control, the importance of haptic
responsiveness as well as the relationship between musical performance and visual
display. Extensive readings and case studies provide background for class discussions
on the theory and practice of designing gestural controllers for musical performance.
Students design and prototype a musical instrument – a complete system
encompassing musical controller, algorithm for mapping input to sound, and the sound
output itself. A technical framework for prototyping performance controllers is made
available. Students focus on musical composition and improvisation techniques as they
prepare their prototypes for live performance. The class culminates in a musical
performance where students (or invited musicians) will demonstrate their instruments.
Prerequisites: ITPG-GT.2233 (Introduction to Computational Media) and ITPG-GT.2301
(Physical Computing).