History of Electroacoustic Music

The course objectives include a systematic study of the history of electro-acoustic music with respect to precise geographic areas, as expressed through various models of production and musical practices. The term electroacoustic music embraces a number of genres that developed between the 1950's and today. Developing the student's knowledge and recognition by listening of the musical canon from that period is particularly important.

Survey of historical and aesthetic concepts. General characteristics of 20th-century music. Precursors of new musical materials: Busoni, Vare'se, Messiaen. Futurists and "The Art of Noise". Electro-acoustic technological inventions in the 19th and early 20th cCentury; recording and audio-playback technologies. Radiophony.
1950's. Cage and Ussachevsky: American Tape Music. Radiophonic studies in Europe. Pierre Schaeffer, GRM and concrete music: technological research and theoretic systemisation. Electronic music at the WDR in Cologne. Eimert and Stockhausen. Serial principles underlying electronic music.The Studio di Fonologia at the RAI in Milan: Maderna and Berio: aesthetic conceptions with respect to design and technologicaly specifics: aleatoric music, open work, and interactive composition.
1960's. Luigi Nono and Paccagnini's artistic direction at the Studio di Fonologia. Stockhausen: moving beyond the tape music and acoustic music dichotomy, historical and geographic universalism of musical material. Xenakis and stochastic music. The birth of computer music: Max Mathews and Jean-Claude Rissett. Computer-assisted composition. Analogue synthesizers and voltage-control technologies.
1970's. Technological paradigm and development of musical resources and genres: acousmatic music, Tape Music, Computer Music, Live Electronics, electronica in Rock and Popular Music. Bayle's direction at GRM, and acousmatic music with Ferrari, Malec, and Parmegiani. Opening of various research centres and the musical production of computer music: models and software environments for synthesizing and digitally processing sound. Spatialisation systems. Xenakis's research.
1980's. The new technologies: personal computers, digital synthesizers, MIDI standard workstations, personal-audio workstations, software environments. Paris IRCAM. Luigi Nono's live electronics, Risset's Computer Music, Chowning and other composers. Concert tradition and digital technologies: Smalley, Wishart.
1990's. Technologies: digital systems and personal workstations in real time. Control systems for Live Performance. Different models of conceiving and constructing sound. Automation. Multi-modal interaction and interfaces. Rock and electronica. Disco, house and techno music. Digital systems in producing experimental music: research centres and individual studios.
2000's. Post-Schafferian electronica; Microsound, Drone, Techno and Noise; Field Recording, Ambient and Soundscape.