From Dr Who to Madonna . . . the computer music beat goes on

Avant-garde musicians were some of the earliest adopters of computer technology, and it is inconceivable that a modern recording studio could operate without computers. Lecturers and students at Monash's School of Music - Conservatorium are using cutting-edge composition work to conduct a number of computer music research projects. MICHELE MARTIN reports.

The eerie Dr Who theme tune composed in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in 1963 is arguably the most recognisable piece of sci-fi music in the world. Our ears identify those piercing notes of alien sound as generated not by traditional instruments but by sources unknown, perhaps computer or synthesiser.

In fact, most elements of the cult television show's theme were recorded as single notes from banks of oscillators, noise generators and modulators, then spliced together onto a tape, creating a tune that sounds like computer music but is better described as electronic.

Computer music's history goes back even further than the Dr Who theme, to the early 1950s, when some of the first computer music in the world was produced by Australia's first computer, CSIRAC.

The huge CSIRAC (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Automatic Computer), which featured pulleys, belts and drives, was programmed to play popular songs of the time, including 'Colonel Bogey' and 'Bonnie Banks'.

More than 50 years on, while many of us would not classify the latest Kylie or Madonna song as computer music, the surprising fact is that recording techniques used by both pop divas rely heavily on computers and electronic sounds.

Cutting-edge composing: Dr Thomas Reiner, left, and Mr Peter Mcilwain say computer music has become ubiquitous. Photo: Melissa Di Ciero

Monash University computer music composition experts Dr Thomas Reiner and Mr Peter Mcilwain say the technology has blossomed over time to the point where computer music is now ubiquitous.

"Computer music is a bit of an umbrella term that signifies any musical activity involving computers, and most of today's music uses computer technology in some form or another," says Dr Reiner, senior lecturer in theory and composition with the School of Music - Conservatorium at Monash.

"Musicians all over the world now use digital technology to record, edit, manipulate and generate sound," says Mr Mcilwain, lecturer in technology and composition with the school.

Digital technology allows sound vibrations to be converted into a stream of numbers that can be processed by a computer and have mathematical procedures such as algorithmic calculations applied to them.

This allows infinitely more manipulation to be done, says Mr Mcilwain. "With the right software, computers can make sounds that emulate those of traditional instruments or take a sample of something and radically transform it."

And the ability of specially designed software to provide perfect synchronisation between music and images has been a major factor in the pervasive use of computers to help create movie music, Dr Reiner says.

Mr Mcilwain says movie producers are also fond of computer-generated music because of the significant cost savings it can provide. "In a film such as The Lord of the Rings, for instance, half an orchestra was used to play the score, which was then enhanced to sound like a full orchestra using computer technology."

At Monash, Dr Reiner, Mr Mcilwain and about 10 postgraduate students are conducting a number of computer music research projects using cutting-edge composition work.

Several students are members of the sonic art group run by Mr Mcilwain. The group explores innovative music via practical experiments in electronic and computer composition using contemporary techniques and expression in music.

One of these techniques is 'musique concréte', created from tape-recorded sounds, either natural or instrumental, which are altered or distorted by various means including playing tapes backwards and splicing short sections together.

Sound spatialisation is another technique, involving the creative use of space in a music performance.

"During a performance, a software program could, for instance, tell the auditorium speakers to sound at different times from different locations, introducing space into the equation," Mr Mcilwain says. "This could be done in such a way that the sound would seem to whiz around the audience, creating an exciting new listening experience."

Although the use of space in music is not new - it has always been possible to place musicians at various points around a concert hall and have them begin playing at different times - what is new is the level of control available.

This ability to control sounds and musical outputs is a hallmark of all computer music. But is there a danger of young computer musicians simply becoming control freaks and losing their creative edge?

Many have already recognised this danger, according to Dr Reiner, and are now introducing the element of chance into their music. "They are using algorithms to churn out unpredictable complex numbers that are translated into surprising, unexpected sounds and sound patterns," he says.

Both Dr Reiner and Mr Mcilwain are passionate about computer music. Yet they emphasise that their philosophy is to encourage students to engage in computer and non-computer forms of expression, and everything in between, including interactions between both forms.

"One of our students is specifically researching such interactions, looking at how a computer can be set up to respond in certain ways to specific happenings in an ensemble of human musical-instrument players," Dr Reiner says. "The computer could be programmed to play, say, an A-flat if there were six E-flats in the space of 10 seconds from the human players ... the possibilities are endless."

It is the multitude of creative possibilities offered by computer-generated music that make it so exciting for devotees, with the computer able to act as musician, instrument, playback device or all three at once, say Dr Reiner and Mr Mcilwain.

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For further information, contact Dr Thomas Reiner on +61 3 9905 3228 or email thomas.reiner@arts.monash.edu.au or Mr Peter Mcilwain on +61 3 9905 1330 or email peter.mcilwain@arts.monash.edu.au.