Via: uk.ac.birmingham.computer-centre.vax1; Wed, 12 Aug 1992 14:51:34 +0000
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.emusic-l
Date:         Wed, 12 Aug 1992 14:55:00 LCL
From:         DOWRJ@UK.AC.BIRMINGHAM.COMPUTER-CENTRE.VAX1
Subject:      BEAST Bulletin No.5, August 1992
Comments: To: EMUSIC-L%EDU.AMERICAN@UK.AC.BIRMINGHAM

BEAST        Bulletin         No.5               August         1992



News From The University of Birmingham Electroacoustic Music Studios
====================================================================



BEAST Composers News
====================

Liz Cairns
----------

Liz Cairns is completing a new work for percussion and  tape  for
the percussionist Rachel Williams.

Robert Dow
----------

Recent performances (1992):

"Klavier" (Barber Institute of Fine Arts, 24.  March;  University
 of  East  Anglia,  29.  June)
"Les Stupra I" (Barber Institute of Fine Arts, 25. March)
"Les Stupra III" (Barber Festival of Contemporary Music, 28. Feb-
 ruary)

Robert Dow has completed a new work for flute and tape "Le Lethe"
(10  mins)  which  uses material developed on the VAX computer at
EMS, Stockholm and on the IBM3090 at the University  of  Birming-
ham.  The  work  at EMS was made possible by the financial assis-
tance of the Swedish Institute and the Hinrichsen Foundation.  He
is  currently  working  on  a  four  movement tape and instrument
piece, "Die allerbeste Zeit", the first movement of which ("Sona-
tina"  for tape alone) is to be premiered on 27. October, 1992 at
the MacRobert's Art Centre, Stirling.

Jonty Harrison
--------------

Jonty Harrison has completed "Ottone" for Brass Quintet and tape,
a  commission from the Fine Arts Brass Ensemble. He was awarded a
'Euphonie d'Or' at this year's Bourges Synthese 1992 for his work
"Klang".

Andrew Lewis
------------

Andrew Lewis has recently completed his new tape  piece  "Scherzo
(10mins) which was premiered at the University of East Anglia 29.
June, 1992. Other performances include his  shakuhachi  and  tape
piece  "Principles  of Flight" (The Sainsbury Centre, Norwich, 9.
March) and "Time  and  Fire"  (Barber  Festival  of  Contemporary
Music, 28. February).

He has been appointed at the University  of  Surrey  to  research
computer  aided  learning  in the field of music. He is currently
working on a large scale orchestral work.

Alistair MacDonald
------------------

Alistair  MacDonald  is  working   with   choreographer   Shobana
Jeyasingh  on  a  new  work  for  her Autumn programme. His work,
"Scuttle", for alto flute and tape has  been  selected  for  this
year's  Gaudeamus  Music Week, and "A Trace of Infinity", for en-
semble and amplified ensemble is to be released on CD by the Aus-
tralian ensemble 'Elision' this month.

Dan Rodger
----------

Dan Rodger's "Thak", for shakuhachi and tape  -  commissioned  by
Sonic Arts Network - was premiered in the Purcell Room, London 8.
May, 1992.

Recent performances (1992):

"The Temptations of St. Poob and the Revelations of St. Dionysus"
 (Barber  Institute  of Fine Arts, 24. March)
"Bob" (Barber Institute of Fine Arts, 25. March)
"Sample of Parody's Lot" (University  of  East Anglia, 23. June)
"Blip" (University of East Anglia, 23. June)

Bourges Festival 1992
---------------------

Eight  works  from  composer's  working  at  The  University   of
Birmingham's  electroacoustic Music Studios were featured at this
year's Bourges Festival: Andrew Lewis, "Time and Fire"  (2e  Prix
ex-aquo-Electroacoustique  1991) and "Arrivals" (2e Prix ex-aquo-
Electroacoustique  1989);  Nicholas   Virgo/Alistair   MacDonald,
"Busk"  (2e  Prix  Programme 1989); Alistair MacDonald, "Scuttle"
(Bourges  Commission);  Adrian  Moore,  "Prelude   to   Autonomy"
(Residence  1991);  Jonty  Harrison,  "Klang" (2e Prix Analogique
1983) and "EQ" (1e Prix Mixte 1981);  Mike  Vaughan,  "Ensphered"
(2e Prix ex-aquo-Mixte).

BEAST News
==========

o       Lancaster University (14. February, 1992) - BEAST provid-
ed  the  sound  diffusion  for  a concert which included works by
Jonathan Harvey and Alistair MacDonald ("Meeting Point") as  part
of the University's New Music Week.

o       There were two concerts of new tape music from Birmingham
University  held  in  the  Barber  Institute of Fine Arts (24/25.
March, 1992). Works by Robert Dow, Paul Fretwell and  Dan  Rodger
were performed on the BEAST system.

o       Tim Souster's trumpet concerto  for  trumpet/flugal  horn
and  live  electronics  was performed in the Queen Elizabeth Hall
(30. March, 1992) by John Wallace and the Philharmonia Orchestra.
Andrew  Lewis co-ordinated the electronics and diffused the sound
on BEAST.

o       Sonic Arts Electrifying Exotica concerts in  the  Purcell
Room, London (8/9. May, 1992) featured five instrumentalists per-
forming with tape diffused via the BEAST sound system.  Works in-
cluded  those  by  Bennett  Hogg,  Mike  Vaughan  and  Dan Rodger
("Thak").

o       BEAST was involved with the performance of Steve  Reich's
"Vermont Counterpoint" (flute and tape) given by the BCMG (Adrian
Boult Hall, 17. May, 1992) and recorded  by  the  BBC  for  later
broadcast.

o       BEAST presented a concert of new electroacoustic music by
composers  from  UEA  in the Allardyce Nicoll Studio Theatre (23.
June, 1992). Works by Simon Atkinson, Rodrigo Velloso, Anne Scar-
lett, Bennet Hogg were performed as well as Denis Smalley's "Val-
ley Flow", commissioned by BEAST with  funds  made  available  by
West Midlands Art.

o       BEAST was involved with a  project  in  association  with
Damage  Arts which culminated in a performance outdoors in Sutton
Park with multi-channel diffusion of music created by year 10 and
lower  6th  form  students from two Sutton Coldfield Schools. The
project also caught the attention of the Sutton Coldfield munici-
pal  charities  who  awarded  money to support the project in the
form of an equipment grant. This will give schools  in  the  area
access  to a small scale, high quality sound system enabling them
to perform their own works in public in the future.

o       As part of Birmingham's year long music festival,  Sounds
Like  Birmingham,  BEAST  was out in force during the hugely suc-
cessful performance of Stockhausen's "Sternklang" in Birmingham's
Cannon  Hill  Park. Hundreds turned up to experience the piece on
which was, unfortunately, the only dry evening of the week.  Five
groups of musicians, separately amplified, were dotted around the
park's perimeter with a central percussionist cuing events in the
presence  of  the  full  moon, starts. fireworks and the composer
himself who had been involved in the final rehearsals.  This  was
the  first  outdoor performance of Sternklang in this country and
was directed by Peter Britten with musicians from Birmingham  and
East Anglia.

o       Forthcoming events in Birmingham  include  2  Sonic  Arts
concerts  in Birmingham Town Hall with education workshops led by
Trevor Wishart, Robert Worby and  Alistair  MacDonald  on  15/16.
September, 1992.

BEAST Studio News
=================

#       Postgraduate Study in Composition at  the  University  of
Birmingham.  The  department of music now offers a one-year full-
time (or two-year part-time) programme in composition,  analogous
to a research degree at Master's level. The MA in Music (composi-
tion and analysis) and the PhD in composition continue.  The  new
MMus  caters for those who wish to compose at Master's level out-
side the framework of the taught programme. Students may work  on
paper  and/or  in the internationally recognised Electroacoustic
Music Studios. Teaching is provided by  Jonty  Harrison  and  Vic
Hoyland.

#       The Studios' computer music  facilities  are  slowly  in-
creasing.  The IBM3090-200S has now a suite of phase-vocoder pro-
grams based on Mark Dolson's original which can do a wide variety
of  spectral  changes  on  sound. Work is now underway to port X-
based software to interface with ATARI front-ends  and  parts  of
the  phase-vocoder  (and  other software) are being re-written to
allow utilization of the vector  processor,  which  should  allow
running  times  to  increase by a factor of between 5 and 10. CDP
software is also being re-written to run on the IBM. Xavier Rodet
has  given  his  permission for the Studios to run CHANT which is
now been mounted on the VAX cluster. An update in `C'  is  avail-
able which will be in due course ported to the IBM.

#       With the University's  connection  to  the  internet  via
JIPS,  BEAST  are now offer a limited anonymous ftp service for a
test  period.  Only  information  will  be  available,  both   in
postscript and ascii form. This will include a catalogue of works
produced and available from the studios, BEAST Bulletins,  infor-
mation  about courses, concerts, facilities and the BEAST system.
There also be a catalogue of PD  software  we  have  successfully
mounted  on  our various platforms. The archive must only be used
outside our normal working hours, i.e. between 10pm and 8am  GMT.
The internet address is   mus.bham.ac.uk

*****************************************************************
*								*
*  More information concerning the University of Birmingham's   *
*  Electroacoustic Music Studios, the BEAST  sound  diffusion   *
*  system  (which is available for hire),   forthcoming BEAST   *
*  concerts and electroacoustic music from the Studios may be   *
*  obtained from:                                               *
*								*
*  BEAST							*
*  Barber Institute of Fine Arts				*
*  Department of Music						*
*  Edgbaston							*
*  Birmingham B15 2TT						*
*  England							*
*								*
*  Telephone and Fax: (+44) 21 414 5781 			*
*								*
*  Requests to have the BEAST Bulletin e-mailed directly to:    *
*  DOWRJ@uk.ac.bham.vax1  (JANET - uk ordering)			*
*								*
*  A limited anonymous ftp service is available on:		*
*  mus.bham.ac.uk  (INTERNET via. JIPS)				*
*  Please use between 10pm and 8am GMT ONLY!			*
*								*
*****************************************************************
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU