Postgraduate program in Sound Creation and Performance with Technologies
Date : 2016 May 19 at 8:21:48 AM GMT-4
The Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya (ESMUC, Barcelona – Spain) is now accepting applications for the Postgraduate program in Sound Creation and Performance with Technologies.
Over the last years computers have readily been incorporated into the vast majority of creative processes. With regard to music, they promoted the development of novel methodologies in sound synthesis, algorithmic creation and real-time control of musical processes, to mention just a few. The increasing availability of digital technologies, both in terms of cost, size and portability, broaden such creative possibilities in music and sound up to the extent that the very concepts of musical instrument, sound creation and live performance need to be redefined.
These are precisely the three main areas to be covered in the Postgraduate program :
– Design and development of new musical instruments, interfaces and interactive music systems for live performance.
– Sound creation with digital technologies with a focus on real-time processes.
– Live performance with digital technologies.
Incorporating computer based into the creative processes of different artistic disciplines (be it dance, video, photography, sculpture, etc.) asks for a highly cross-disciplinary profile, in which technology becomes de facto a lingua franca. The Postgraduate program in Sound Creation and Performance proposes a space for learning and reflection on the diversity of musical art forms which interrelate sound creation, performance and technology. To this end, it offers a curriculum which promotes critical thinking to allow the student to go a step further in sound and music creation. For that reason the curriculum is structured around creative and collaborative projects, to be undertaken by students throughout the course.
Our methodology will therefore combine:
– Theoretical sessions to provide an overview of the historical landmarks in sound creation, sound creation paradigms and key features provided by creation support tools (both software and hardware).
– Practical, collective sessions, where the students will be asked to design simple musical instruments and interfaces and interpret classic or own works. In such sessions, students should be prepared to explain their proposals and justify all decisions taken.
– Collective tutoring to address issues raised during the creative process, by means of debate, encouragement of a critical attitude and promotion of the creator’s own view.
– Lectures and practices will take place entirely at the ESMUC, which will provide the facilities of a Higher School of Music with a multidisciplinary vocation, complemented with key infrastructures such as recording and post-production studios and electronic lab, among others.
Enric Guaus
Professor at Dept. of Sonology
Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya
Barcelona, Spain