http://vincehci.blogspot.com/2011/01/paper-reading-4-cross-currents.html
Critical Point, A Composition for Cello and Computer
Roger Dannenburg, Carnegie Mellon and Tomas Laurenzo, University of the Republic, Uruguay
Presented and CHI 2010 : Media Showcase Session 1
10-15 April 2010 Atlanta, Georgia
Summary
The authors discuss a piece of software written for the computer designed to enhance the musical performance of a cello player. Critical Point is intended to expand the cellists range of available chords beyond that physically possible on just the instrument, allow new sounds and "sonic textures", and add some random elements to cause more variation in the music being played. This is all intended to be achieved while leaving the cellist in creative control.
The effects used include "combination pitch shifting with delay and feedback", the random algorithims, a vocoder, and a section involving rising and falling glissandi.
The result was performed at the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble in 2009. There are references to an animation, but it doesn't appear to be where Google can find it, if it is online at all.
The implementation was a dedicated computer low level audio processing (written in C++), a program for "software digital audio patching" in an unspecified language, and a real time scripting component in a language called Serpent. Interestingly, no discussion of future directions for the research are mentioned in the paper.
Discussion
I'd like to start this section by noting I know next to nothing about music. This paper was mostly incomprehensible to me, although unlike the last one I don't think this instance is the fault of the author in any way.
The idea of using a computer to enhance the range of options available to a performer and his instrument seems fundamentally sound to me. I can't really comment on the effects produced by this device without at least audio rather than text, which I don't have. I suspect that further advancement of this program would involve refining the algorithms involved for improved quality and possibly adding more features, although I lack the knowledge in the music area to say what they might be.
One quibble I did have with the paper was the organization of information. They talked about the results they got before they discussed what they, a break from the conventional format that I found jarring and unhelpful. The ordering of information they used is reflected in the summary section.
This is what a cello looks like. Source: Wikipedia.
I used to play the violin over 4 years ago, and in fact, finally brought the same violin back to school with me this semester, with hopes of relearning the instrument and getting back into music. Anyway, I find this to be an interesting and even radical application, and I would like to try out something like this firsthand.
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