A Computer-Controlled Sound Distribution System for the Performance of Electroacoustic Music

Since the advent of electroacoustic music, and even earlier, musicianshave shown an interest in using the spatial distribution of sound as a significant consideration in composition. Whilethere have been many attempts to realize the musical potential suggested by this possibility, certain problems have intervened. Significantly, these have been primarily in the technological rather than the musical domain. In electroacoustic music, the general problem can be considered to be the evocation of cues which cause an acoustic event to be perceivedat a particular location in acoustic space. Such cues can be considered in terms of two categories: those affecting directional perception and those affecting distance perception. The current paper investigates the problems in the former category, the evocation of angular cues. [2] Following a brief discussion outlining musical motivation, considerations pertinent to the control of directional cues are discussed.Included are both technological and psychological problems. After a survey of relevant approaches, a new system is presented within the context of the Structured Sound Synthesis Project (SSSP) at the University of Toronto. Finally, a working prototype of this new system is presented in order to validate certain of the basic concepts presented.