Live manipulation of documentary audio in a narrative electroacoustic concert piece

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)

Jonathan W. Stuart-Moore (Creator)

Institution

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )

Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/

Advisor

Alejandro Rutty

Abstract: Documentary musical and theatrical works span a wide variety of genres, styles, and media. Such musical works typically involve fixed electronic media, either alone or--as in Steve Reich's Different Trains--with an accompanying acoustic ensemble. Most documentary theatrical works, by contrast, are live performances in which interviewees' original words are re-created by an actor. With this thesis, I have attempted a new blend of documentary styles involving the live performance of both acoustic and electronic elements. I have composed a piece, There Was No Question, using narrative audio clips taken from interviews with my father. His recorded speech is triggered and manipulated live during performance by two laptop players using Wii remotes, and is accompanied by an acoustic ensemble. This thesis investigates the precedents, both musical and theatrical, informing this new work. It also introduces two frameworks for understanding the compositional techniques used, both in treating the documentary audio and in constructing a compelling dramatic narrative. I provide the text of the narration (Appendix A), a score of the work (Appendix B), a concert recording (Appendix C) and the Max/MSP patches used to perform the two electronics parts (Appendix D).

Live manipulation of documentary audio in a narrative electroacoustic concert piece
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Created on 12/1/2011
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Additional Information

Publication

Thesis

Language: English

Date: 2011

Keywords

Documentary audio, Documentary music, Electroacoustic, Music composition

Subjects

Experimental theater

Performance art

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