[jmsl] Java Music Systems at NYU, Final Projects by students Fall 2007

[jmsl at music.columbia.edu]

Java Music Systems at NYU, Fall 2007
Final Projects by students
Nick Didkovsky - instructor

On Dec 4, 2007 Nick Didkovsky's Java Music Systems class at NYU 's 
Steinhardt School met for final project presentations.
What follows is a summary of each student's work. In some cases a URL to 
an Applet is included, and requires the JSyn plug-in ( 
http://www.softsynth.com/jsyn/plugins/ )

Wataru Itoh
Four Voices
JSyn based sound generator driven by four independent voices. These 
voices "sing" continuously within the constraints of a set of factors 
for which the range may be manually adjusted. The controls allow for 
only limited freedom by the performer, but these subtle adjustments in 
input factors result in audible change of characteristics for each 
voice's iteration, adding to the longer-term evolution in harmonic 
complexity.
A somewhat personal, but strong aesthetic motivation to create 
consistent, gradual, and ever-evolving sonic experiences had always been 
central (but not exclusive) to the author's creative interests, and 
either through influence or strong association, both contrapuntal and 
non-western musical structures have been the inspirational source of his 
output to this end, the current project inclusive.
http://www.venus.dti.ne.jp/watts/hw_final_FourVoices_Applet.html

Anupam Kodangada
Percussion Performer Applet
Uses JMSL and Jsyn Synthnotes to play different drum loops triggered 
depending on the user’s choice. The project helps user to come up with 
compositionally appropriate drum loops which can be triggered in 
parallel and different sequences and can be used in live performances.
http://homepages.nyu.edu/~ak2348/JMS/JavaFinalProject.html

Taemin Cho
Soloist – Rhythm and melody auto generator
Automated drumming and melody line generator program. The original goal 
of this project is to generate human like drum machine using chance 
operations. Drum tracks are generated, scored, and performed by machine 
in real-time. Usually, common drum rhythm, in pop and rock music, plays 
snares on 2&4 beats and kick drum does not play with the snares 
simultaneously and hi-hats plays continuously basic beats, 16th, 8th etc 
on 4/4 time signature. This project is simulation of this. In the melody 
parts the original goal was human like improviser, basic idea was 
following the scales and playing accidental notes on weak beats and 
resolving it on the next note with also using chance operations.
http://homepages.nyu.edu/~tmc323/JavaMusicNYU/final.html

Fred Scott
Personalized Ambient Music
My project was the start of an attempt to make an ambient piece of music 
that acts as a personal practical soundtrack. It would react to the time 
of day and a predefined schedule and attempt help the listener, i.e. 
soothing sleeping music, wake up call, traveling music, etc. The ideal 
end product would seek to aid the listener through out his or her day. 
It would wake them, keep them up, set a pace for the morning, block out 
annoying chatter on their commute by exploiting critical bands in the 
vocal range, promote focus and calm at work, and eventually help put 
them to sleep in the evening. An advanced system could even use 
biofeedback and external data to constant adjust to the listeners body 
and environment.

Max Newlands
HTML Page Sonifier
My final project is a tool for sonifying HTML files. Given a file name, 
my applet parses the text within file and turns information about the 
text into synthesis parameter values. Specifically, position values of 
parsed text instances inform the applet’s synthesized sounds, so the 
breadth and distribution of the text is heard. Hearing the complexity of 
a page’s design, the browsing experience is theoretically enhanced by 
informing the user of page content and providing a soundtrack to the 
browsing experience. The idea of a soundtrack to web browsing has 
practical and aesthetic appeal. Practically, playing the same unique 
sound every time a site is visited adds abstract but retainable 
information to it, potentially useful for mental indexing while 
browsing, even if it is unconscious. For developers, this adds another 
layer to which content may be added to enhance the experience of 
visiting one’s site. This gets at the aesthetic appeal of a “browsing 
soundtrack”: if music enhances other experiences, from visual arts to 
exercise to shopping, why couldn’t it enhance the browsing experience?

Michael Marchisotto
JMSL Score Composition
I chose to use JMSL Score to compose a piece in common music notation. 
Conceptually, I made a conscious effect to compose in a different manner 
than I am accustomed to. Usually, I would have a certain instrument in 
mind when composing, and would cater to that individual instruments 
characteristics and extended techniques. The piece would have to be 
practical in difficulty limitations, and also the instrument itself and 
human factor of the performance. In my Jscore piece, however, I had no 
such limitations due to the fact my piece was being performed by a 
computer. I was able to incorporate fast melodic runs, wide interval 
leaps, and the use of quarter tones with ease. My piece features the 
Jsyn instrument “FilteredSawtoothBL” in two voices, using a treble and 
bass clef.

Anthony Serino
Automation-ready JScore Piece.
The application opens a JMSL Score which I composed, using five 
different JSyn instruments and three different JSyn signal processors. 
The application provides the user with JSyn PortFaders which can be used 
to change the settings of the signal-processing patches while the score 
is playing back. The user can record PortFader moves and play these back 
automatically while the score is playing.


Congratulations to all these students for their extraordinary creative work!

Nick Didkovsky