Category Archives: Compositions

Sum and Difference (2021)

Compositions, Teaching

Link to Score (Google Doc)

Sum and Difference is a collaborative composition guideline for music technologists. Each member of the ensemble joins in an online meeting platform to process audio files according to the score. The result is new sample-based compositions that share similar characteristics. The pieces are also different due to the variety of the original samples and the ensemble member’s improvised parameter changes.
For participants, Sum and Difference is more about the process of making it than the result. In the pandemic-influenced time, the joy of creating music together, the joy of creating something from nothing in an ensemble, is severely limited. But the current situation forces music technologists to experiment with collaborative methods best suited for online interaction. Sum and Difference works best when each member is on the Internet, physically alienated from the rest of the world.

by Joo Won Park

Performers 

Number of performers: 4-10  

Needed technology

  • A web folder accessible by all performers
  • An audio editor or DAW for each performer

Needed skills

  • Experience and knowledge in digital audio editing and processing
  • Data organization and management skills

Preparation

  1. Make a sharable web folder
  2. Upload recordings of non-musical sound with the file names shown in the score (A0.wav, B0.wav, etc.) 
    • The number of uploaded audio files should equal the number of performers
    • Each audio file should be 2-5 seconds long 
    • Each audio file should be distinct from the others 
  3. Each performer should plan a processing or editing technique to change an audio file
    • Use any DAWs or apps
    • Establish a short and repeatable process. The performer should be able to execute it within 5-10 minutes

Execution

Step 0. Gather using a remote meeting platform such as Zoom or Google Meet. Assign one performer to one Processor. 

Step 1. Download, process, and upload the audio file from the web folder according to the score. 

Each cell in the score has ▼FileName-P-▲FileName.  Here’s an example of how to interpret it

If the cell has ▼A0-P-▲B1

  1. Download file named A0.wav from the web folder
  2. Process the sound according to the plan
  3. Export the sound with file name B1.wav, and upload it to the web folder

Step 2-10. After 10 minutes, repeat the download-process-upload procedure described in Step 1. 

  1. Vary the processing parameters (i.e., move knobs, use different settings)
  2. Strive to add a few more seconds of sounds
  3. Edit and polish the sound if possible (i.e., delete the silence at the beginning, normalize, etc.)
  4. Be consistent with the file format. Use a format readable by all platforms, such as .wav and .aif

Last Step. Share and listen to the resulting sounds. The number of final tracks should equal the number of performers.

Score by Ensemble Size 

Link to Google Sheet Template 

QuartetStep 0Step 1Step 2Step 3Step 4
Processor 1A0▼A0-P-▲B1▼A1-P-▲B2▼A2-P-▲B3▼A3-P-▲B4
Processor 2B0▼B0-P-▲C1▼B1-P-▲C2▼B2-P-▲C3▼B3-P-▲C4
Processor 3C0▼C0-P-▲D1▼C1-P-▲D2▼C2-P-▲D3▼C3-P-▲D4
Processor 4D0▼D0-P-▲A1▼D1-P-▲A2▼D2-P-▲A3▼D3-P-▲A4
QuintetStep 0Step 1Step 2Step 3Step 4Step 5
Processor 1A0▼A0-P-▲B1▼A1-P-▲B2▼A2-P-▲B3▼A3-P-▲B4▼A4-P-▲B5
Processor 2B0▼B0-P-▲C1▼B1-P-▲C2▼B2-P-▲C3▼B3-P-▲C4▼B4-P-▲C5
Processor 3C0▼C0-P-▲D1▼C1-P-▲D2▼C2-P-▲D3▼C3-P-▲D4▼C4-P-▲D5
Processor 4D0▼D0-P-▲E1▼D1-P-▲E2▼D2-P-▲E3▼D3-P-▲E4▼D4-P-▲E5
Processor 5E0▼E0-P-▲A1▼E1-P-▲A2▼E2-P-▲A3▼E3-P-▲A4▼E4-P-▲A5

Score for larger ensembles are available in the Google Doc Version

Demo/Example

Link to all files made in a 10-piece ensemble version

Made  by Electronic Music Ensemble of Wayne State (EMEWS) on Jan 20, 2021

Matthew Banka, Maxwel Bourgeois, Garrison Briggs, Daniel Kozlowski, Logan Macka, Benjamin Schornack, Alec Segel, Mark Whalen, Daniel Yates, Michael Younger

Compare and listen to the process

J0, A1, B2, C3, D4, E5, F6, G7, H8, I9, J10 (one sample going through ten processes) 

Forms to Ponder

Collaborators, Compositions, Research

Forms to Ponder is a collaborative EP with Theodosia Roussos. The nine tracks in the album relate to each other in many ways. It is a culmination of my musical practice for the last six months.

Program

A form in music connects what we hear now to what we heard before. When we notice the form, we can also expect what may come next. Tracks in this album have forms best expressed with recorded sounds and digital music technology. Amidst the unfamiliar electronic sounds, I hear delightful relationships unfold. Creating and listening to this album was a fun memory game for me, and I hope to share that feeling with you.

The included bonus item is a production map that connects one track to another. More information and an explanation of how and why I made this album is available at www.joowonpark.net/cmpe.

Computer Music Practice: Forms to Ponder

Tracks in Forms to Ponder features audio apps and processes I developed for Computer Music Practice Examples (CMPE). CMPE’s goal is to show how and why I use technology to make music. The only way I know how to create the sounds and forms featured in this EP is by using digital technology. There are musical expressions only possible when sounds turn into data. The video below elaborates this idea with the usual block diagrams and Google slides.

Piano Triplets – Park & Starkey

Collaborators, Compositions, Uncategorized, , , ,

My friend and musical role model Starkey released a collaborative album. In technical terms, it is a project extended from ISJS. In aesthetical terms, the project is about restraints and forms. Personally, and most importantly, it is two friends saying ‘hey!’ to each other.

Starkey joins friend and composer Joo Won Park for an EP entitled “Piano Triplets” on NOREMIXES. The release showcases Joo Won Park’s unique supercollider processing over Starkey’s production samples. Three unique pieces, each consisting of only three samples: hardware and software synthesis meets piano in these short bursts of experimentation.

Bandcamp album description