Young Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Music in Computer

Their decades of experience in connection with computer music were essential to the inception and progress of my research. Dr. Fujinaga, as professor, mentor, and friend, deserves particular recognition for helping me to stay focused, challenging me to learn what I thought I already knew, and introducing me to our wonderful community. He will always be sensei. I also owe particular gratitude to my friend and collaborator Randall Packer, whose wonderfully impractical ideas pushed me beyond the limits I would have otherwise set for myself. Countless other cherished colleagues around the world have opened my eyes, ears, and mind to ways of approaching music that have enhanced my understanding and appreciation for this art form that we cannot live without. NOVA Research Company provided me with the infrastructure to carry out much of my research and development, and my coworkers demonstrated admirable forbearance when I was often lured from my post as systems administrator by the irresistible charms of music. I cannot express sufficient thanks to my family for supporting my studies in innumerable ways—they may not fully understand my quest, but the fact that it makes me happy is all the justification they need. Finally, very special acknowledgement must be given to my partner and sempai Margaret Schedel. She provided invaluable assistance in developing, testing, and presenting portions of my work. More importantly, as an accomplished computer musician in her own right, she has been a constant source of thoughtful feedback, both keeping me grounded and encouraging me to leap into the unknown. vi Artists long for limitations; excessive freedom casts us into a vacuum. Style used to be an interaction between the human soul and tools that were limiting. In the digital era, it will have to come from the soul alone. INTRODUCTION This portfolio brings together in chronological order the research I performed while obtaining my Master of Music degree at the Peabody Conservatory of Music. Each chapter represents a project consisting of both ideas and implementations. Though the projects as documented here were necessarily preserved at their time of completion, the vision manifested in each case extends beyond these pages into the present and hopefully into the future. The arc of technological obsolescence is brutal, so some of the details herein already betray their age. Nevertheless, if other explorers encounter these cooling embers and can use them to illuminate their own investigations, then I will have …