electronic music, sound sources, performance

Uwe Schmidt, one of the most interesting musicians of our time, stated a few years ago that when electronic music was born, both the sound and its source were identical (1). However, things started to change with time. Surprisingly enough, digitally sampled hard disk music can sound totally organic even with a totally electronic sound source.

From the Musique Concrète in France and the group of Die Reihe in Germany, leaded by Eimert and Stockhausen, to the vast group of electronic musicians who are seriously interested in sampling techniques, we can realize that there was an interesting change. Nowadays, we cannot be absolutely sure about the real source of sounds. Maybe your favourite guitar solo was never played by a guitar player, and it is all about a carefully sampled guitar and a computer.

The big change comes when we think about music perception. When we listen to music, all these aspects are present, in an effort to organize our musical experience. The study of the particular way in which we interact with electronic music and its experience is exciting. We are aware of a whole new world in terms of performance coming to our musical universe.


(1) Estela, Paulino: File Managers - Mutek 05

Bach's music is revealing. While listening to the Musical Offering I can say that his music allows me to travel around different places, which are not only filled with enjoyment but also with desire. That's the magic that Bach gives to us: it is absolutely great, but it makes you want to create something on your own.
Thus, a masterpiece can be described as a marvelous but humble work. The best thing to listen, but still a great path to new works. Maybe beauty is always present when something is great but also tells you that nothing is totally achieved. Desire can breath in such a work.

Bach was probably interested in new sounds. It is impossible to deny that he was a sort of designer. He was an architect of harmony, as in his famous canon a 2 per tonos (Musical Offering), which delighted Douglas Hofstadter. Bach was an architecht who would probably have loved the new timbres that we can use today with a simple computer. Wendy Carlos did a great job by giving Bach a moog to tell us the same wonderful story. Most of the works that Bach made are stories which contain a personal and unique sense to each listener and each performer.