FREE VJ Clips!!!

First of all, thanks for the patch that Tim provided, which saved my life. It's really AWESOME !

This blog is about the link of FREE VJ Clips.

You can download without uploading new one.

Check it and have fun :P

http://www.archive.org/details/ANALOG_RECYCLING_VJ_LOOPS

Link Update

Sorry, links didnt load on last post:

LandEscape Teaser 2011 from John H. King on Vimeo.

After Effects PLugin Similar to Rutt Etra

Here is a cool After Effects plugin similar to the Rutt Etra plugin used in Jitt.

A lot more control with this plugin but it is an additional $500 smacks to purchase as well as the $900 price tag for AE. Gets a little pricy:) But, Some cool stuff can come out of this app.

http://vimeo.com/25597708

http://www.redgiantsoftware.com/products/all/trapcode-form/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6C-YNMXxG8&feature=related

Enjoy

-Tim

The Contrary of the Movie Theatre Response and Vasulka

I should not have been surprised that this article would somewhat bash movies by just the title alone. Like Pat said in class, Menotti pretty much defines projection design aka VJing, by everything movies aren't. For instance, movies and projections are both art form and they both have a performer, but unlike VJing, movies have a negative performance where the audience coherence depends on the story. Also the medium in which projections are displayed also contradicts movies. Menotti believes that movies are perfect for theaters because they contains the audience and enables them to keep focus. Projections on the other hand, can illicit a variety of mediums because setting can actually be part of the piece or provide an intimacy that a movie can't.

Vasulka Art of Memory

So, I watched a few vasulka clips and I still don't understand what is going on on this site. I mean I get they are mutations of videos with unique filters, but I feel they lack substance. It seems like they all were just experiments on how to use this tech at the time. The one thing I did notice that most of the clips had, were there synthesia aspects. The works flow with the sounds but the sounds are just that; Sounds. No musical quality of about them.

CONTRARY OF THE MOVIE THEATER

CONTRARY OF THE MOVIE THEATER

The reading presented an interesting point, contrasting VJs and traditional cinema roll projectionists. The author believes that the main difference is in improvisation vs. following a score (or script), as well as the performance emotion involved. In the first case, Menotti discusses the meticulous task of loading and connecting film roll for cinema. The projectionist needs to work within a confined time frame to allow the cinema to continue to roll without flaw or blemish. No one can argue that this requires a special skill and can be viewed as an art in it self, a performance if you will. As for VJs, the roll is less scripted and more along the lines of improvisation, where the arts has more freedom to create and manipulate inside their artistic influence. The two contrasting views can be akin to classical music vs. jazz improvisation. One if scripted and the other is free form.

Another point the author makes is the emotional result of the performance. A cinema projectionist invokes a negative emotion with their performance because the only time they are noticed is if they screw up. The film needs to run perfectly. A VJ has the ability to create and explore which creates a positive emotion. This point is interesting to me.

I also created several design in Jitter using the Etra Rutt plugin. This effect is very very very similar to After Effects inside a plugin called Red Giant, Form. It pretty much does the same thing with particles. It is pretty stinkin amazing.








This one is blown out using a thing called threshold: I tried to get different exposures.. not a fan of this one:(




Here is a duely video mixer I made with two chroma keyers and some graphics I made in After Effects:

The Contrary of the Movie Theater Response and the Rutt-Etra Synthesizer

This week’s reading by Gabriel Menotti delves further into the theory behind VJing by looking at the history and evolution of audiovisual performance. Gabriel Menotti looks at the metamorphosis of cinema into the digital medium, and compares its implications with VJing’s precursors such as “cinemas of attractions” and traditional cinema. One thing that I noticed about Menotti is his disappointment with the traditional cinema’s stiffening and prevention of digital cinema’s true potential. This potential is what Menotti’s whole arguments is mainly about, which is that traditional cinema seeks to force the audience into a frame, while VJing and digital cinema allows the audience freedom to interact and find their own narrative. Ultimately, Menotti is defining the projection specialist as a old, ridged model of cinema and the projection designer as a new, almost performer-like, free model of cinema.

As for the Rutt-Etra Synthesizer, it took a while to get it working, but I was able to get it to run with a properly formatted video. Whatever the case, this patch is amazing and it definitely creates some amazing images that could be used for other designs. Personally, I liked this tool. I’m still trying to get it to work with other examples, but the one I got to work so far is a with a video of machinery. I would like to find a video that doesn’t have too many black spaces for a later test, but so far this is a great patch.


-Nathan D

The Contrary of the Movie Theater and Scan Processing

I enjoyed this week's reading as the theorist (Gabriel Menotti) had a concise conveyance of opinion on the presentation of VJ projectionists. Menotti notes the improvisational, non-narrative form of VJ material, and contrasts it to the highly planned and produced works of the cinema. Lastly, Menotti notes the similarities between the highly technical roles of the VJ and the film projectionist, offering one large difference: he assigns the role of the VJ as a "positive performance", in which the VJ creates coherence from imagery. Menotti conversely assigns the role of a "negative performance" to the film projectionist, as it is the projectionist's job to avoid incoherence during the film.

I also downloaded the Rutt-Etra Synthesizer in Max MSP but was only able to get it to behave properly once [image of the chimp from this run-through]. The effect on the Rutt-Etra image looks very similar to the Woody Vasulka video I found, entitled "C-Trend", from 1974.






When I looked into further meaning for "C-Trend", I read that a Scan Processor was used to manipulate the raster and the line deflection of the image. The black areas of the image are not affected as they lack voltage, but the grey/white lines contain energy and can be heightened or depressed. The "Rutt-Etra Scan Processor" I then found out, is another name for the "Rutt-Etra Synthesizer", which I thought tied everything together nicely!

Here are my screen shoots from Rutt etra synthesizer . The interface takes some getting use too but once you have it, its pretty interesting. It allows you change features such as the z depth and the number of segments and nurbs.

Rutt Etra for Jitter

http://registeringdomainnamesismorefunthandoingrealwork.com/blogs/?p=77

reading for weekend

http://www.vjtheory.net/web_texts/text_menotti.htmhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Color Theory and the Designer

Color theory, as I understand it, is the understanding how to mix colors and how such combinations can affect, in our cases, one’s design. Honestly, being that much of the human experience of digital work is viewed through the eyes, it is important that, as designers, we select the right colors or combinations of colors to be aesthetically pleasing to the audience and set the appropriate mood or atmosphere for the performance. Colors can very much evoke emotions of which we should be aware of, and utilize as a tool to make our work expressive and multidimensional. One can also argue that colors carry with them common associations with objects such as the sun with yellow, blue with ocean and sky, and green with grass. The aspects too can be used to effect in one’s piece. While it is great to know how colors are combined and associated with each other on a color wheel, I think that a next and necessary step for us as designers is to “feel” the colors as much as we should know them.

-Nathan D

Here's the color wheel poster that Dr. Pagano showed us in class:


P.S. Mine is definitively the best! It's 1920X1200. Thus better! QED, Gentlemen!

primary, secondary, tertiary, complementary, analogous Color theory

According to Wikipedia, any choice of primary colors is arbitrary. Three colors are usually used, as human color vision is trichromatic, meaning that we are able to sense three different colors at once, which coincide with the three different cone types in our retinas.

For the additive process using the primary colors Red, Green and Blue, combining two of these colors in equal parts produces the secondary colors Cyan, Magenta and Yellow. These are the colors that make up the primary subset of the subtractive colors! and when combined, oh yes, they also create the primary subset of the additive RGB palette. Nuts!

Tertiary colors are made by combining one primary color with one secondary color. Analogous colors are colors adjacent to each other on the color wheel, and complementary colors reside opposite each other on the color wheel, generally producing a very vibrant effect when used together.

color theory

In the visual arts, "color theory is a body of practical guidance to color mixing and the visual impacts of specific color combinations." As it relates to the designer, color can be a crucial factor, it has the ability to invoke different emotions. If the designer uses the wrong colors, the viewer can misinterpret what what the designer is trying to portray.

As it pertains to our class, we use RGBA (red, green, blue, alpha) giving us the ability to use all colors off the red, green, blue scale. The alpha allows to for additive of different shades of the colors to be represented

Color Theory

Even though I, as every other student, learned basic color theory as little kids, I had no idea there were so many terms that related one color to another. Analogous colors start with two primary color bases and then include the mixtures between them. Complementary colors can be split such that two colors can stand for one: a light orange and light green contain red and green respectively, which cancel each other out, leaving only the yellow in the orange behind, which is the complement of purple.

Alpha channeling is interesting because it sort of bends the mechanics of color theory in order to produce a transparent effect by changing what combinations two colors will make. I had no idea that that's how transparency worked, at least with alpha.

This picture FTW!

Color Theory

Color Theory/ Chroma Keying

Color Theory is the combination of multiple colors, RGB, to create a color pallet of multiple shades, hues, etc of different colors. This pallet is used for programs such as final cut, adobe products, etc and is the basis for compositors in movies and CC (Color Correctors). A whole career can be made off of color correction which is how the movies/ cinema create that HollyWood look. (I.E. Cop movies have that blueish tint to them, beach movies have a sun bleached look to them) this is all done by color theory and the use of blending.

Color Theory can be applied to Keying, which is the ability to remove a color and allow it to be transparent using it's alpha channel to see through the layer. The keying plug in or module can allow the user to select any color to key but the most efficient and effective of those would be green or blue. Green stands out and less of a skin tone color so less "spill" onto the foreground surface. These keying techniques can be perfected using simple additional plugins such as Chokers, White and Black Gains, Balance function and edge blur.





-Tim

Color Theory

Color theory, in the visual arts, is a body of practical guidance to color mixing and the visual impacts of specific color combinations. Many use a color wheel for selecting colors to add or subtract in graphic design with the use of programs such as Abobe Photoshop and After Effects. Chromakey allows one to key out chosen colors, mostly green, because the color stands out most. Color theory is very important when doing color manipulation. Color theory as well can define meaning; as seen in the picture, different colors have different meanings. Depending on what one wants to express one should choose the color that best suits the mood of one's piece.


P.S. ME > JAY
I HAVE A PICTURE.

THEORY OF COLOR

Color Theory. It explains itself. And my picture is better!

Maya Deren- the "avant-garde"

I have to say, the beginning of the video is really long. Before I started to watch the amazing video with soundtrack, the silence lasted about 1 minute and 45 seconds.

“The very eye of the night” was produced in collaboration with Metropolitan Opera Ballet School, in 1958 by Maya Deren, who was an American avant-garde filmmaker and film theorist of the 1940s and 1950s. It seems that the video mainly tells a story about the dance in the starry night. However, through the video can I hardly found the narrative clues of the story except the music. The video is more like a music video to me, which is linked by different dancing video clips. The dancers dance to the wind and the melody makes the night even lonely.

Ballet dancers’ movements and postures randomly flash according to the music beat, under the shining stars. I can’t tell what Maya Daren wants to express, but what I feel is the sense of beauty. The midnight made me intoxicated. The video technology Maya Daren used in 1958 was sort like “Dissolve”, which is generally applied today in video techniques. Nevertheless, I guess the dissolve effect at that age was still an innovation. Maybe that’s why Maya Daren is a so-called “avant-garde” in her age.

Sometimes nothing is everything. A video isn’t necessarily to be a complete story with all the elements such as “when, where, who and what”. The Maya-Deren-Video attracts audience by its unique tone and taste other than a good narrative. There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people's eyes. Audience from different background will have different understanding of the film. People can be moved by a single frame if only the moment touches the deep place of his heart. We cannot judge whether an “avant-garde” is good or not simply. All we need is managing to understand.

Besides the video, the sound got my attention as well. The music in the video is also an “avant-garde” in my opinion. It was composed by a Japanese composer- Teiji Itō, who is best known for his scores for the “avant-garde” films by Maya Deren. The melody starts with a traditional Japanese bell tone under a simple rhythm structure. Then it turns to clarinet and flute and the tempo increases. After that there comes out the melody of mustel I guess. The whole melody of the soundtrack creates a quirky and creepy atmosphere, in sharp contrast to the graceful ballet. There is another video by Maya Deren and the composer is Teiji Itō too. The soundtrack is really ”oriental”. The video is below:

Nowadays there are still a lot of “avant-garde” pioneers pursuing their art achievement. Maya Deren is an example for the youths who have unique thoughts to express themselves. I always believe that if you want the audiences to understand your work, you should have emotion touch on your own work.

Andy Shuang Li

Maya Deren - "The Very Eye of Night"

Maya Deren "The Very Eye of Night"

Maya's video was interesting to say the least, although i didn't really enjoy it, I do have appreciation for the video. Being made of over 50 years ago, it basically is the start of video production. She was able to produce one image, the stars and then take another image the dancers, and have them run at the same time. This video is the start of Digital Design making her one of the first VJs, she basically is one of the founders of Digital Production.

The video is a non-narrative video w/ musical audio. With out lyrical audio the viewer has to perceive on their own what the video portrays. After watching Maya's "The Very Eye of Night" I feel like it was about man kind reaching for the stars, striving for the best, to dance with the stars. Everyone can perceive the video different as it is a non-narrative. The music does create synesthesia as the drums start and the bells increase in speed, you get the feeling of what is going to happen next.

Chuck Rylander

Maya Deren: Deren to be Different

Yea, tacky title name, but it's the best I could think of. First impressions when I first started watching The Very Eye of Night, I automatically was reminded of the opening sequence of Final Fantasy VII, seen below:

However, the video quickly changed when the music and the dancers entered. The whole time, it had this ethereal feeling to it as if I were in a trance or a dream. I suppose I'm not the most deep-intellectual-thinker so I may not be able to appreciate a piece like this as some would. I mean it is avant-garde and not supposed to be widely accepted, but more as a means to challenge the rules of society. On that note, I can say for one thing I have never seen anything quite like that, besides the FF7 opening sequence, which I'd love to talk more about, but this blog is not about Final Fantasy VII.






Maya Deren, indeed, challenged American standards of cinema and made the effort to as a matter of fact. She was very dissatisfied with Hollywood's monopoly over what an "artistic" piece was supposed to be like. Thus, that's what makes her so distinct in her pieces, and you can really see the motive behind each of her pieces. It's people like this that steer the ship into new lands, leading the way for new frontiers, and I am all for it. No matter how avant-garde it may be, I think it's a great way for our culture to grow, and that it should.

The Very Eye of Night Response

Maya Deren's, "The Very Eye of Night" serves as a fundamental building block for the genre of experimental film, or the Avante-garde form of art.Deren superimposes two forms of video over one another and creates an effect that may have wowed audiences when it was first released. Deren uses this non-narrative film to give the audience a feeling of dancing in space, without spending a huge budget on sets and props, seen in Melies' A Trip to the Moon. While I can appreciate the history of this film but as film enthusiast and filmmaker, I'm not particularly fond of this work. While I enjoy many different forms of art and film, it felt dry. For it's time it is a great film, but to todays standards in visual projection production it doesn't come close in todays market. Overall, a good introduction to a genre of film that doesn't necessarily derive meaning in film or rather, contain a complex narrative. It simply serves a purpose to be visually and aesthetically pleasing to those who view it. And who knows, maybe you can derive your own meaning.

Responding to “The Very Eye of Night”

Hello everyone,

On a personal level, I, long mired in the monotonous nature of my academic discipline of History, have never truly grasped the feel of cinematic art, or ever gained a full appreciation for its movements and paradigms. To me art was another historical fact, an expression of the timeline meant only to prove a historical pattern and nothing more. So, I must honestly profess that this class has truly opened a whole new interesting world for me to explore. Maya Deren’s work was, at first pass, unimpressive to a mind unfamiliar with experimental cinematography. I found its lack of a structured narrative unappealing. Coming from History structure and narrative was all I knew, but somehow Deren’s work managed to intrigue me the more I watched it. I found myself enthralled by the dancers overlaid on the moving star field, and their ghostlike forms and repetitive dances coupled with rhythmic procession gave the work a very primordial feel. It reminded me of primitive cultural beliefs of spirits amongst the heavens. Mind you, when I say “primitive”, I am not trying to be little the work, but rather I mean to say that it speaks to our natural human tendency to be fascinated by the mysterious and almost spiritual nature of the night. The work became a theme or motif in it of itself; without the need of structured narrative or the like. While I could also comment about the technical aspects of the work such the dancers being shown in photographic negative, the overlaid images, and likewise, it was more the impact of the film that interested me as a projection designer. Patricia Moran noted that it was important that “Space/time, projection and experiential: sentient and feeling, visible and visionary are part of the experience.”, and I believe Deren’s work is a great example of these aspects of the theory behind the “VJ” and “VJing”. I am truly thankful for being in this class because of what I am being exposed to, and though I may be elementary in my observations of artistic work, I can certainly appreciate the impact.

-Nathan D.

"The Very Eye of Night"

"The Very Eye of Night"

This piece is a staple for video technology. She essentially created a modern day green screen effect by either layer by layer cropping out a dancer or group of dancers and placed a still image in the background. (in this case stars.) I would venture to say that it looks like there may even be some form of glow on the objects which i have no clue how that would be done back in the day.

Today programs such as Final Cut Pro, After effects and even PD and Max MSP are able to chroma key/ Luma key an image to allow transparency. What this does is it takes away a certain portion of the image, whether it be the green solid, blue solid or the white or black portion of an image, and allow another image below it to be seen. Today, this is a very common effect and due to technology, is made possible to every VJ live. Such Cool technology.

American Avant-garde

After reading Patricia Moran's VJtheory.net article, our exposure to Stan Brakhage and Maya Deren's work seems germane to our purposes. Patricia defines the VJ space as non-narrative, immersive and experiential; an extension of avant-garde aesthetics.

The links that Stan Brakhage and Maya Deren have to poetry are also interesting in light of Moran's article. Deren's master's thesis was titled "The Influence of the French Symbolist School on Anglo-American Poetry" and Wikipedia cites Brakhage's films as "noted for their expressiveness and lyricism". Both artist's films are quite abstract and visually-based as experiences. Deren's "The Very Eye of Night" was more interesting watching it this time through, though "Meshes of the Afternoon" and "Ritual in Transfigured Time" seem to convey something more important.

Response to "The very eye of the night"

I understand why Pat says Deren "Successfully" brought the avant-garde film to the United States. Even though the film is retro and seems simple it actually subtly complex and interesting. The film has multiple elements of story and visuals that we as VJ's try to portray in our projection designs still today. Not only is the film visually appealing, it contains elements of leitmotif where the dancers and emotions of the piece had their own theme. This film could have be shot and cut in an ordinary fashion but because it twist and turns and has layered video, it enhances the story. I do feel like you're part of the night or one of the stars watching a performance of other stars in space.

Maya Deren the very eye of night

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9166818823014303026

VJ scene: Spaces with audiovisual score

Works by Woody Vasulka: THE BROTHERHOOD at ICC, Tokyo, Fall 1998

Patricia Moran's article, "VJ scene: Spaces with audiovisual score", helped clarify some of the nomenclature intrinsic to the medium of image performace. The article describes and explores the visual experience as poetical in nature, expounds on the different definitions of immersion and relates how the audio-visual landscapes created by VJ's fall under the category of immersive experiences. She states "immersion operates between illusion and external critical references", which the light, music, visuals, crowd, and even elements such as smoke that she describes in her article, all coincide to create.

The New DJ and Then Some

For me, I've never quite understood the role of a DJ. Like if I were at a club or a dance party, I wouldn't really notice the DJ. He's just in his own world doing his thing while everybody's dancing, but after watching some videos like the one to the left, they deserve a lot more credit for what they do and the difficulty of it. However, the DJ is already becoming a thing of the past. Now there are VJ's! Visual jockey, video jockey, video-jam? Whatever it's called, this new sensation is establishing its place quickly in today's society.




The art of VJ-ing seems very similar to DJ-ing. However, on the flip side, VJ-ing also seems to contain a much more poetic aspect than DJ-ing does. In those live sessions, creating sounds and images channeled through synthesizers can be very abstract, and as Peter Weibel and Gene Youngblood did, using multiple projections really makes VJ-ing stand out. It's just a lot more fascinating than DJ's because it contains a visual aspect. The more senses that it reaches out to, the more exciting it becomes. Additionally, with VJ's, I imagine audiences paying more attention to the visual projections in awe rather than the typical dance party scene for DJ's. But VJ-ing is definitely appropriate for the dance floor still as the article states. Adapting to the temperature of the dance floor by changing images and volume, I imagine, can really spice things up and add a really nice element to a party. It's this idea of immersion-- being taken to a whole new world through these visual projections. It gets me excited just thinking of the capabilities of this field.

Anyhow, I found this sweet video of a video projection on a building. If anyone is starting to enjoy the weather, this Christmas music should help that feeling.

Thoughts Patricia Moran's VJ Scene

My favorite thing about this article is how it was almost needed for class. I love Pat's hands on approach cause you can get your hands dirty and really learn how to do things, but at the same time what do you do. Moran's background information was insightful because it gives us an opportunity to explore what the first VJ's were doing and what exactly is a VJ. I was actually surprise to find out that the term VJ came from MTV. Granted they were not anything like the ones we have today, but the idea of them is still present. Like how in Brazil the "J" is for any form of the word jam, which is similar to what the MTV VJ's worked with. They collaborated with DJ's and audio to deliver something interesting for the viewer. The technique is still used today, but without the DJ. It feel like its part of the VJ job to sometimes overload the audience sensory and audio is needed to fully accomplish this task.

I also really enjoyed the multiplicity of examples and genres of the VJ. Clearly everything we've been reading tells us VJ-ing is everything but having an example of everything is nice. This way too, we can possibly think outside of those boxes and do something else. We talked about some Paik's work and I found this clip of one of his piece.

The "VJ"

Patricia Moran’s article, “VJ Scene: Spaces with Audiovisual Scores, focuses on the acronym VJ to attempt to explain the meaning behind the abbreviation through what it stood for historically. Moran goes on to look at the first “official” VJ’s on MTV and explained their importance as being background support to the DJ’s. Though they are important as they were an example of improvised mix tracks being enhanced by images, Moran distances the idea of VJing to something more organic in which the image is not presented but warped and manipulated to “provoke concept associations”. It is this concept that she focuses on as she explores the idea of the “VJ” and the different meanings the acronym has. In seceding examples, she always points out in the techniques used by “video jockeys” the importance of real-time addition of effects and mixing images, and if such is not possible she highlights the importance of an organic way of presenting the work (i.e. randomization) from a constrained set of preselected images.

I found this exploration into the conceptual practices and theory of VJing really enlightening in that it was able to clear up, though not entirely I must admit, some of my reservations in separating the art of VJing from just recorded production. Perhaps the most interesting part of this article was the small section in the end entitled “A few pacts”. She talks about the projection work as an experience that effects the audience’s perception of elements such as space and time. The “pact” she describes is the pact that the audience makes to become immersed in the enjoyment of the work much like one loses oneself in a work of fiction, and it is up to VJ to not only create the environment, but make the audience want to accept this “pact” with your work.

One of the names brought up by Patricia Moran in her article was Gregory Markoupoulos, who was a Greek-American experimental filmmaker who worked from the 1940s on whose works were the precursors for the theory of VJing.

Here's an example of one of his works called "Sorrows".

From DJ to VJ

In the article, "VJ scene: Spaces with audiovisual score" by Patricia Moran, gives meaning to the word VJ and how it has evolved to become a new immerse experience. These such projections have formed a reality in which environments and three-dimensional worlds come to life in different venues all over the world. This creates virtual realities and space beyond the 2-dimensional wall it's being projected on. It's amazing to see what professional VJs create; vast and beautiful landscapes and abstract lighting right at their finger tips. The abstract art in itself gives the audience a perspective most have never seen before in real life. Many of the art today produced by projection designers is quite amazing. The artistic projections on buildings, for example, are so realistic that it almost seems as if the building and the projection have merged as one in real-time. This is the beauty of the visual jockey; that one can create a whole new environment to immerse its audience in; It's like real time visual effects. It's amazing to see what projection can do with the mind by creating a visually stunning 3-D reality.

Here's an example of "concept" projection on static buildings:

VJ

This article, by Patricia Moran, was mainly about the visual experience (by looking at Space/time, projection and experiential: sentient[4] and feeling, visible and visionary) to create a world for people to be immersed in. The question is, is it simply a "half-time show" as Fernando Pessoa puts it. What is the role of VJs and the art they create.

The article discusses the history and difference between VJ and DJ and the emergence of the VJ. VJ were made popular by MTV where you found the host of the show before the videos were played. This is inherently different from the term VJ that we think of or were referenced in the article. VJs that we know today are ones that role a series of video clips along side a DJ who has a series of audio clips. Married, the two make an interactive art form for people to become immersed in.

The article goes into depth about the aspect of "Space" and how it is more about perception than it is anything else. Space is a function or “product of complex mental processes” (Anders 2003:48) or a “mental construction which conditions our relation with the world” (Anders 2003:49). This is something that must be known by projection designers, not by the materials of a tangible "space" that one has for a show (meaning focusing on the asthetics of the room, smoke, diffuse lighting, etc) but also the "Space" that you will be building. Almost the mood or environment. The author references the cinema and the style they create with their work and how they create "illusionistic narratives."

The article was definitely one that brought insight into thinks a projection designer MUST know and think about. How does one assess these areas they will be working in, developing for and what is their role as a VJ etc.

Tim

Technology & Composer

Herbert Brun paper start out by telling us the history of technology in the field of Audio/Video, with the creation of cylindrical & disc phonograph systems, providing the ability to store audio signals. To the tape recorder in the 1950, which made it possible to "Could collaborate in furthering all kinds of projects pertaining to the relationships between electronics and the music. As technology has evolved the composer has begun to understand that technology is a tool to to be used by the composer. Herbert Brun define technology "as the science and art of applying knowledge to the desire for problem solving"

Section III

I find it interesting how in this paper, written in 1970, Hurbert Burn is talking about a World Wide Network. He has the same general idea of our World wide web, but he speaks of it as Composers and technologist working together to create new systems. While the web is mostly consist of social media, you tube, and porn. Although the internet does link us together to for educational purposes, and gives society as a whole the ability to relay vast information in seconds.

i really like the his question. "to the question whether a composition is music, let there be added the question: what if this were music" During the 1970's i couldn't imagine taking todays electronic music, and see peoples reactions. Most people would not even consider it music during that era. but look at music now. Almost every genera of music has some kind of technology, from electronic, auto tuners, synthesizers, beat machines, etc....

Tech and Comps

This article written by Herbert Brun, discusses the history and emerging technology and the roll it plays and has played towards musicians, specifically composers. The part starts with a brief history about the emergence of electronics and their role in music. It talks about people such as Edgar Varese who was known as the "Father of electronic music" and how they were constantly pushing and demanding a new array of musical instruments. A lot of effort was made in the bell labs by looking at telephone research. The research was used to look at how certain sounds could be analyzed and synthesized which created new sounds.

At the same time, composers began to work with tape recorders (tape decks) and started looping tracks on top of each other which created a new style and sound, (read "Sound Unbound"). But a major point was not how technology could simply create more precise sounds, or improved editing, etc. but the composers began to define technology as "the science and art of applying knowledge to the desire for PROBLEM SOLVING.." This is very interesting.

The second part discusses in depth the relationship between composers and technology and the role both play. One line states, " that technology considerations lead to the availability of acoustical phenomena needed by composers for an audible representation for their musical idea." BUt you have to remember that musical ideas can be thinking models rather than simply chorus' or a melody. Thus the need for these technological systems is more complex than originally thought.

The article was one that provided a new way of looking at technology and the role it has with musicians and composers. I definitely am looking at this from a new perspective than before.

Tim

File browser for Windows

Hello

This is a post specifically for WES, JAY, Nathan and Nic: Our in class windows users.
please go and grab and install pdMTL a set of abstractions provided by the Montreal pure data group
http://wiki.dataflow.ws/PdMtlAbstractions/Installation

and then follow these directions
http://wiki.dataflow.ws/PdMtlAbstractions/XP

these abstractions apart from ALOT of awesome patches to experiment with provides a patch called

file.browser_.help.pd which will provide you wih a filebrowser similar to playlist

let me know if you get it working. I will award

+2 points for ANYONE who get the pdMTL abstractions working on their machine.

Reading for thursday

Here is our reading for thursday as listed in the syllabus

http://www.vjtheory.net/web_texts/text_moran02.htm

Extending Pd even more

here is a link to an external library "Gridflow" that works on Windows, Mac OSX and Linux. Please try to install it on your system. I will briefly explain what it does on Thursday. It is an experimental library of objects that enables some unique projection opportunities.
http://gridflow.ca/

make sure you grab the proper one for your Operating system.

Pat

Technological Evolution

It's crazy to think how much music has evolved since the beginning of time. I wonder what the thought process was when those scientists began to create all these different sounds like Dr. Thaddeus Cahil and his Dynamophone. The ability to manipulate sound must've been quite empowering when he first invented his device. It's funny how we started with tape and tape recorders, and people were like, "We can make music out of this!" Now, basically every song on the radio uses some kind of electronic sounds... except for country music.

 It's interesting how people write music nowadays. As it said in the article we read, many composers today like to live in a socially concerned and courageously heuristic environment. In other words, composers don't just write music they think sounds good but to respond to a problem in today's society. Whether it be rap songs, country songs, gospel-- they all relate to issues that are prevalent in society. Now with technology, it makes it that much easier, and there many who take advantage of this technological music genre. Take dubstep for example-- basically all digitalized. Here's a good example on the left:

Another example would be anyone who uses auto-tune. This combination of technology and music make it possible for virtually anyone to become a modern musician. Just look how happy Lil' Wayne is:

The boundaries for music are continually expanding and the digital era we live in seems to be having a nice impact on where this is all going.

Technology and the Composer

Technology is as it's being applied today in music and other forms of art has created a new niche in media and musical development. As an example, the newest album from the Black Eyed peas was all mixed using the iPad. This creates a way to make music all from your room at home, without hiring professional studio work etc. In section II Brun talks about technology and that it is the "science and the art of applying knowledge to the desire of problem solving," which one can conclude that this day in age, that technology serves as a messenger to delivering different forms of musical compositions to homes across the world. As said before, The Black Eyed Peas and other artists use technology either to distort their voices or to create beats that mesh with their vocals. The majority of music videos are made using technology and effects of the current day. The emergence of the user ,as it refers to the article, has grown to be an industry standard to mix musical rhythms and compositions with the technology of today's age. If not, we would still have the boring old music videos and mono sound we had in the old days.

A Relevant Historical Read

I entitled my blog "A Relevant Historical Read" because of one line in the piece the states, " The time has come for the technologist to see that composers are not merely music makers, or art makers, who think that there products have to measure up to an established standard of culture and who are eager to call them merchandise and sell them". This article was written in the 70's and the concept still applies today. It is a very important thought for any artist and emerging technology, especially in this day and age where technology is king. We as VJ's, DJ's, artist and so forth, can all be linked together through technology and embrace Brun's idea of the broaden composers title.

I think its incredible how even though this article was written over 40 years ago, reads like it was written yesterday. Possibly because technology has not stop advancing since the time it was written. Regardless of the brief mention of vacuum tubes and transistors, the article focuses on not the tech or composer but them being beneficial to one another. And even I on occasion have lost track of this idea.

I had no idea was a Teleharmonium was so I did a little research and found that its basically a giant electronic keyboard.


The Teleharmonium weighed 7 tons and the instrument was noted for its ability to reproduce the sounds of common orchestral woodwind instruments such as the flute, bassoon, clarinet, and also the cello.

Idealsitic Thought Experiment

Herbert Brun's paper, "Technology and the Composer", presented at the U.N. Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization in 1970, reads as a manifesto for a new system of communication and societal evolution. Herbert Brun defines Technology as "being the science and art of applying knowledge to the desire for problem solving(Section II, paragraph 4)". He defines "composer" as a creator of all forms of the arts, and expounds upon this idea to imbue both the composer and technologist as the creators of new systems of thought, which he refers to often as a language throughout the paper.

Herbert Brun admonishes the current state of our society, claiming that "industrialists" and "politicians" control the means of our technical and cultural phylogeny, using a polluted system of thought and communication to reproduce itself.

In Section III, Brun basically goes on to propose that centers, run by composers and technologists in as many locations around the world as possible, be set up to invent a new system, or systems, that together with the aid of artificial intelligence, would augment humanity's ability to create an ideal society.

I am not surprised that with the ending of his presentation on an abstract thought experiment, without the accompaniment of some more concrete steps with which to create these centers of thought, that the UNESCO assembly basically declared the proposal as incomprehensible. Herbert Brun's statements about the broken down systems of thought that most of society perpetuates itself through is very tell-tale and the idea of harnessing technology to help us better organize and create a more truthful, real and practical (Section III, paragraph 18) society is an interesting idea.