Contact Made (2008)

Cover of Deep Purple's Contact Lost. "Commissioned" by Robert Backer ;)

Granular Synthesis Pumpkin (2006)

For my final project in Bill Verplank's mus 250 class, I attempted to build a "unified computer music instrument," which brought control, synthesis, and display of computer music algorithms together in a compact, portable, and integrated physical device - much like a traditional musical instrument.

Short video performance here, and short paper here.

Reel to Wheel (2005)

(collaboration with Jennifer Carlile, Jesse Fox, and Sasha Leitman)


Reel to Wheel is an interactive sound installation that uses old, abandoned bicycles to control reel-to-reel tape machines and play 1/4" audio tape. The work explores the intersection between found objects and found sound. It is meant to be a playground environment where people can interact with common objects in new combinations that create interesting sounds and novel associations.




Installation:
- 2005 CCRMA mus 154 project; video here
- 2006 New West Electro-Acoustic Music Organization (NWEAMO) Festival
- 2007 Maker Faire; Create Digital Music article here

Main web page here; more information here; some pictures on flickr here

Down by the River Jam (2005)

Cover of Neil Young's Down by the River
Improvised guitar tracks (unedited) over a generic drum loop - more or less in time

Yeahh (2005)

Some sort of looping madness...

Future Returns (2005)

(for Electromagnetically-Prepared Piano)

All of the sounds heard in this piece come from only a piano. Crescendos, misty, bell-like sounds, and even a human voice emanate solely from the vibration of the piano's strings. Although this work seems wholly acoustic, the piano's strings are driven by a custom built electrical interface that utilizes a Max/MSP software patch to control 12 electromagnets placed inside of the piano. This short piece came from a quest to demonstrate a new variety of possible piano sounds, and served as grounds for further experimentation with the instrument following its debut in Per Bloland's original composition. In hopes that subsequent performers and composers will continue to create new music through this technology, the piano exclaims:

The future is ever a misted landscape, no man foreknows it, but at cyclical turns
There is a change felt in the rhythm of events. [Robinson Jeffers]

Performed at the CCRMA Summer Concert in Frost Amphitheater, July 2005. Program Notes: 1 2 3 4
Recorded at The Knoll, June 2008. wav file, mp3 file. Pics: 1 2 3 4
Max/MSP patch here

Electromagnetically-Prepared Piano (2005)

(collaboration with Per Bloland and Ed Berdahl)

Vibration of piano strings using EM waves as an aid to synthesis and composition.

Short paper accepted and presented at ICMC 2005 :
If I Had A Hammer: Design and Theory of an Electromagnetically-Prepared Piano

EMPP web page here; some pictures here

beep (2005)

Lisp glissando synthesis and processing
CLM code and more notes here

unlabeled (2005)

Granular resynthesis of mus 220b student's works
More notes here

Played as part of Encounter:Merce happening (Musicollage) on March 8th, 2005. Nice article here

myGhost (2004)

Quick improvisation on PHiSH's Ghost theme
Improvised guitar tracks (unedited) over a generic drum loop

mix1 (2004)

Quick one-shot improv on guitar (unedited)

F6 (2004)

Study of "1/f" noise
Matlab code here. Scheme code here. More notes here

Theremin Feedback (2004)

Theremin improvisation (with Ed Berdahl)
pd patches and more notes here

Shade of Evening (2002)

Short work for piano trio. Performed 11/03/2002
soundfile coming soon...

Pensive Dance (2002)

Study for a piano trio. Performed 11/03/2002
Original Score
soundfile coming soon...

3-D MIDI Controller (2002)

Gestural controller for sound processing applications
Senior design project in Computer Engineering at NCSU
Final project report here

Decomposition No. 0 (2001)

Tape piece using additive synthesis methods in Cmusic to generate multiway complimentary sets of sounds across four movements. When all four movements are mixed together, all sound cancels to silence.

Played 11/03/2002. Program notes here.
Listen: Part I - Part II - Part III - Part IV
CSound Score Files