Art as Experience

At a Digital Arts and Humanities lecture a couple of weeks ago, the topic of what is art came up, with an example of programming code being discussed as possibly being art.  Some mentioned that they did not consider it art, while others discussed that some it may be art. I had contributed my own thoughts at the time, that art might be in the eye of the viewer rather than as a property of the object itself.

Thinking back to that discussion, I still think that art is less an object but more of an experience.  I don’t think that everything is inherently art, but instead, that anything could be art, and that art as an experience has the possibility of emerging from an object.  It depends then not only on the object but also the person perceiving the object.

For example, a person who may not be familiar with paintings may call something “art” because they understand that to be so, but not ever feel any impact or draw to anything they see.  Yet, they may very well see beauty and elegance in something from their daily life, or may be consumed to look and ponder deeply at something usually considered outside the realm of “Art” (i.e. a fine sports vehicle).  Yet, their experience of these objects may very well be just as strong and evocative as any trip to a gallery or concert hall, and perhaps they may call these other things art as well.  I would like to believe that these experiences are every bit as much art as any other.

This has been a fascination of mine, to see art emerge from daily life, to see the tragedy or beauty or other depths of human experience not only in objects classically categorized as art, but elsewhere as well.  This view may perhaps be at odds with other definitions of art, I don’t know, and I’m sure these thoughts are not new either.  All I do know is that this view has served me well and that when I have not been distracted by other things, the days have been fascinating.

Published
Categorized as General

Peaceful Breathing – Android Application

Yesterday I finished porting my Deep Breathing application to Android and made an ad-supported, fully functional free version as well as paid application.  The application is called Peaceful Breathing and can be found on the Android Marketplace here:

Peaceful Breathing
Peaceful Breathing Lite

I have been using this application for some deep breathing sessions and have been enjoying it for relaxation and calming the mind, as well as to help open up the body.  If you give it a try, I’d love to hear your feedback!  Enjoy!

Published
Categorized as General

Ph.D. Programme in Digital Arts and Humanities at NUI Maynooth

Life has certainly been interesting of late… after attending this year’s Linux Audio Conference, I returned home to my work life to realize both how little time I had been spending on music and music software programming, as well as how much passion and joy I had for both. It is perhaps serendipidty that on the trip home I had seen an announcement for a new Ph.d. programme at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth (NUIM) for Digital Arts and Humanities. When I first read about the programme, I thought to myself that it certainly looked interesting. However, I was never really looking to go to graduate school, and as attractive as it appeared, I set it out of my mind.

A couple of days later, while in conversation with Rory, he made the suggestion that I should apply for this programme. After thinking about it and realizing just how incredible and opportunity it could be, I began inquiries into the programme and set out to work on the application. A little over a month after submitting my application I received the good news that I had been accepted into the programme.

I had waited to publish this publicly until after I had worked out the details and notified my current company that I would be leaving. Now that things are settled, I can now say that one month from now, I will be flying to Ireland to begin a Ph.D. programme in Digital Arts and Humanities at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. I will be focusing my work on my music software blue, and by necessity (and of course interest) I will also be working on Csound. I will be working with Victor Lazzarini, a professor whom I have long known and appreciated for his wonderful music and contributions to the computer music community, and someone whom I consider a good friend.

While there will certainly be some interesting things to work out–becoming a student again after 11 years as a professional, being separated for months at a time from my dear Lisa, living in another country–I am overwhelmed by the incredible opportunity to devote myself for the next four years to my passions: my music software and my music. I have been completely inspired and overflowing with ideas for things to build and explore. I look forward to pushing myself and these projects as much as I can and can not wait to see where it all goes.

As for what will happen after this programme, I do not really know. I will focus on my work and I have faith that things will work out as they should. Whatever happens, I am positive that the next four years will certainly be an amazing experience and a time in my life that I will always remember.

Published
Categorized as General

Max V. Mathews (1926-2011)

I was very sad to read on the Csound mailing list that Max Mathews passed away this morning.  It is hard to imagine how computer music today would be without his pioneering work in creating the first computer music software and work with composers and others. His contributions are truly immeasurable.

Beyond the work he contributed, he was a truly inspiring with his joy and passion for computer music.  I don’t believe I have ever met Max Mathews in person, though I was at a number of events where he was featured in some way or another (a fond memory is from last year’s Bohlen-Pierce Symposium, seeing Max on the big screen performing and giving talks over Skype…).  I always got the impression that he was a person of great character, passion, and joy…

From the people I’ve known who have known him personally, Max seems like someone who truly gave a lot of himself to others.  I will always have nothing but kind words to say about him, and if that is any barometer by which to measure a man’s life, then I would say he was as successful a human being in life as one could be. I will certainly miss his presence in this world, and hope only to be able to learn from his great work and life and maybe be a better person for it.

Prelude to Spring

This morning was beautiful.  Waking up to brilliant light always sets a good tone for a day… I took a nice walk this morning to get coffee, listening to synth pop on the way and back.  I’ve started to take more walks in the morning and have found that it has be great for me, giving me time to listen to music, to think, to move, to immerse myself in contemplation.

The morning light was temporary though, and now the sky is gray and there is a light drizzle of rain.  The temperature is still in the 30’s but the days are getting noticeably longer and longer.  A lovely morning, a brief prelude to Spring…

Published
Categorized as General

Birds in the Sky

I watched a group of birds flying high up in the sky and for a brief moment I felt free from all my burdens. The sky is a rich hue of blue and without a cloud in sight. The light is full though the day is cold and winter will soon be here.

The moment was certainly a gift, as was the morning’s brief meditation. I felt–if even for just a few moments–again connected with both a part of my self and with the world. I will be thinking about these moments throughout the day.

Published
Categorized as General

The Audio Programming Book – Ed. Boulanger, Lazzarini

I was very excited to hear today that “The Audio Programming Book” edited by Richard Boulanger and Victor Lazzarini is now available for pre-order!

This book has certainly been a long time in the making, and I’m very proud to have been a contributor of two chapters (one in print, “Modeling Orchestral Composition”, and one on the DVD, “Developing Music Software Interfaces”).  I also would like to thank Dr. B and Victor for their amazing work as editors, as well as the other authors for contributing such wonderful material.  I am excited that the book will be available soon and hope that the contributions I made as well as those of my fellow contributors help out those working to understand and get into audio programming!

Published
Categorized as General

A Peaceful Morning Walk

This morning I awoke with the brilliant light of the sun coming through the window.  It was strange to see such bright light as it it has been quite some time since I last remember experiencing it like this.  I think I will always associate this kind of intense sun and deeply rich blue skies with California…

Out of coffee at home, I walked across the street and picked up a coffee and sat outside briefly just to sit and take in the sun. The temperature was cool but refreshing and paired nicely with the warm light.  Wanting to move a little bit before having to start work, I decided to take a small, slow walk around the block before returning home to start my work day.

Walking slowly, the gentle breeze was a stark contrast to the gusting winds of the weekend.  The leaves and the grass were a a vivid green.  It was very a very peaceful morning walk.

Published
Categorized as General