MUS 1120: Introduction to Electronic Music: Books

This accessible introduction explores both mainstream and experimental manifestations of electronic music. From early recording equipment to the most recent multimedia performances, the history of electronic music is full of interesting characters, fascinating and unusual music, and radical technology. Covering many different eras, genres, and media, analyses of works appear alongside critical discussion of central ideas and themes, making this an essential guide for anyone approaching the subject for the first time.

In this new edition of the classic text on the evolution of electronic music, Peter Manning extends the definitive account of the medium from its birth to include key developments from the dawn of the 21st century to the present day. ...Manning covers key developments in both commercial and the non-commercial sectors to provide readers with the most comprehensive resource available on the evolution of this ever-expanding area of creativity.

Discusses the pioneering work of Oliveros, Ono, Eno, Kraftwerk, and more.

Traces the creation and legacy of the BBC's electronic music studio, the Radiophonic Workshop, in the context of other studios in Europe and America.

With plentiful citations from the history of radio, film, and sound recording, as well as from contemporary science and technology, the book is laid out in strictly chronological order and contains unusually ample commentary on the composer's sources of inspiration (From Amazon.com).

[This book] follows the development of sound as an artistic medium and illustrates how sound is put to use within modes of composition, installation, and performance (From Amazon.com).

This definitive reference to Csound (a free, cross-platform, do-it-yourself software solution for sound synthesis and music production) provides a thorough look at the most important features of this powerful program—as well as an introduction to a few secret features that even experienced Csound users may not know about.

Explains harmony fundamentals in the most simple and accessible way possible. Concepts are taught using the MIDI keyboard environment and today's computer composing and recording software.

Contemporary electronic music has splintered into a dizzying assortment of genres & subgenres, communities & subcultures. Given the ideological differences among academic, popular & avant-garde electronic musicians, is it possible to derive an aesthetic theory that accounts for this variety?

This book provides unique insights and perspectives for artists, students, teachers, meditators and anyone interested in how consciousness may be affected by profound attention to the sonic environment.

An introduction to the basic tenets of what is variously termed historical acoustemology, auditory culture, or aural history. Gathering twenty-one of the field’s most important writings, this volume will deepen and broaden our understanding of changing perceptions of sound and hearing and the ongoing education of our senses.

The soundscape--a term coined by the author--is our sonic environment, the ever-present array of noises with which we all live. Beginning with the primordial sounds of nature, we have experienced an ever-increasing complexity of our sonic surroundings. As civilization develops, new noises rise up around us: from the creaking wheel, the clang of the blacksmith’s hammer, and the distant chugging of steam trains to the “sound imperialism” of airports, city streets, and factories. The author contends that we now suffer from an overabundance of acoustic information and a proportionate diminishing of our ability to hear the nuances and subtleties of sound. Our task, he maintains, is to listen, analyze, and make distinctions.

Combining research on urbanism, popular culture and auditory issues, Acoustic Territories opens up multiple perspectives--it challenges debates surrounding noise pollution and charts an "acoustic politics of space" by unfolding auditory experience as located within larger cultural histories and related ideologies.