Chirp: NEC's Music Technology Showcase | Night 4

New England Conservatory students electrify the Black Box Theater during Chirp, a six-night music technology performance series showcasing live electronic music and cutting-edge music tech.

On May 8 and 9 at 8 p.m., students of faculty member John Mallia present two programs of performative works involving real-time signal processing and interactivity with instrumental, vocal, and electronic sources, spatialized fixed media audio (acousmatic), multimedia, and lighting. A  multimedia work collaborated on by NEC composers and visual arts students from the London University of the Arts will be included. As a special treat, the group will also present a performance of Toshi Ichiyanagi’s “Appearance,” an experimental work for one string instrument, one brass instrument, and an organ with two electronics operators involving controlled improvisation and coincidence-based modulation.

"I have been presenting electronic music showcases and concerts at NEC regularly since 2005, many of which have been part of citywide technology festivals, collaborations with other local art institutions, programs featuring guest artists, and a recent international conference. Electronic music concert programs have been consistently presented every year at NEC for approximately 50 years since Robert Ceely began teaching courses in the early seventies. The very first piece of electronic ‘tape music’ ever created, “The Expression of Zaar,” was realized on a wire tape recorder with studio effects processing in 1944 by the Egyptian composer Halim El-Dabh, who is an NEC alum. So, the history of all types of electronic music at NEC is very longstanding and rich." — John Mallia