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Computer music is music generated or composed with the aid of
computers. It also refers to a field of study that examines both the
theory and application of new and existing technologies in the areas of
music, sound design and diffusion, acoustics, sound synthesis, digital
signal processing, and psychoacoustics. The field of computer music can
trace its roots back to the origin of electronic music, and the very
first experiments and innovations with electronic instruments and techno
music at the turn of the 20th century.
Much of the work on computer music has drawn on the relationship between
music theory and mathematics. The world's first computer music was
generated in Australia by programmer Geoff Hill on the CSIRAC computer
which was designed and built by Trevor Pearcey and Maston Beard.
Subsequently, Lejaren Hiller (e.g., the Illiac Suite) used a computer in
the 1950s to compose works that were then played by conventional
musicians. Later developments included the work of Max Mathews at Bell
Laboratories, who developed the influential MUSIC I program. Vocoder
technology was also a major development in this early era. In the 1980s,
Music Construction Set gave the average computer user the ability to
compose music using standard notation, though its abilities were
limited. Recently, MIDI technology has allowed personal computers to
interact with synthesizers through a standardized interface, which has
widened the use of computer technology.
Throughout the world there are many organizations and institutions
dedicated to the area of computer and electronic music study and
research, including the ICMA (International Computer Music Association),
IRCAM, GRAME, SEAMUS (Society for Electro Acoustic Music in the United
States), and a great number of institutions of higher learning around
the world.
Nowadays, modern computer and web technology such as MIDI and mp3 give
enthusiasts and composers unprecedented power to compose, manipulate,
and play or perform music. |
