ICMC2008
Exploring New Composer/Performer
Interactions Using Real-time Notation
Chris McClelland Michael Alcorn
SONIC ARTS RESEARCH CENTRE
Queens University Belfast

Introduction
Many existing solutions for the composer
Composer
to manipulate the performers sound in
Live Electronics real-time
1
Score
Potential for composer to provide
RTN
instructions to the musician during
performance
Performer

Overview
Background & Motivation, Scenarios
Requirements of a Real-time Notation Environment
Existing Solutions
Components of a Real-Time Notation Environment
Composer Tools
✦
Networking & Interoperability
✦
Performer Display
✦
Display
✦
Pages
✦
eScore
Future Work

Motivation
New Compositional And Performance Practices
✦
Somewhere In The Middle Of Composition And Improvisation
✦
New Levels Of Interaction And Feedback
✦
Network Performance
✦

String Quartet, Live Electronics
& Real-time Notation
Composer
Live Electronics
Cello Violin 1
Viola Violin 2

Soloist, Sensors and Real-time Notation
Saxophone
Sensors
Mediator
Live Electronics
Piano
Drums

Network &
Audience Participation
Audience
Mediator NETWORK Trumpet
Live Electronics
N
ET
W
O
R
K
Sax Sax
Composer

Requirements of a Real-time notation
Environment
Composition Performer
• Interoperability • Display
• Networking • Networking
• Notation • Notation
server client

Existing Solutions & Examples
JMSL / MaxScore
Finale, Sibelius, Lilypond
Choloniewski, M. 2001 Didkovsky, N.
✦ ✦
The Bays, 2008 Hadju, G. 2007
✦ ✦
Baird, Kevin C. 2005
✦
LiveScore
Max/MSP, Jitter Wulfson, H., Barrett, G. D., and
✦
Winter, M. 2007
Winkler, G. E. 2004
✦
Active Notation System
Legard, P., Morgan, N., 2007
✦

Networking & Interoperability
Open Sound Control
YAML
Ruby

OpenSoundControl Hierarchy
/window
/page/1/
bx
/stave/1/
/note/1/
/page/2/
/stave/2/

Eg. OpenSoundControl Messages
/window 1400 720
1
/page/add 0 0 800 600
2
/page/add 800 0 800 600
/page/1/stave/add bass 20 100 200
3
/page/2/stave/add treble 20 100 200
/page/1/stave/0/note/add 61
/page/1/stave/0/note/0/dynamic sfz
4
/page/1/stave/0/note/0/remove
/page/1/event1
5

Scoring with YAML
“YAML is a human friendly data serialization
standard for all programming languages.”
Event 1
jete
Ev
event 1, Leave No Trace
Event 3
Even

Leave No Trace
YAML Score
/page/1/event1
/page/1/event1/pitch 86

Real-Time Notation with Ruby

Performer Display

Pages Display
✦ Preview, and Current area
✦ Read just like a paper score
✦ Composer/Computer will be building the preview area in advance
✦ Composer/Computer/Performer changes page
✦ Large compose time, dependent on page size and tempo

Scroll Display
✦ Can be problematic due to graphics becoming blurred when moving at fractions
of a pixel per frame.
✦ Larger chunks of material distracting.
✦ Alternative is to having a scrolling line indicating current position.
✦ This method lends itself to rhythmical material.
✦ composer must be composing slightly out of the peripheral vision.

Scatter Display
✦ Material sent immediately to the screen
✦ Response is as quick as the performer can react to the new position.
✦ Not all material is suited to this method of display
✦ improvisatory and shorter passages are more successful.
✦ The compose time is very short
✦ Leave No Trace fragments were generated and displayed in <10 ms

Scatter Display in Leave No Trace

eScore demo

Future Work
User based Studies
Workshop with 4-6 Composers
✦
Varied notation types
✦
Work with performers
✦
Audience and Network participation pieces
✦
Ownership
Large Scale Ensemble Work
End of Year Release
Mac OS X only
✦
Open Source
✦

Thank you
Questions?
Contact
c.mcclelland@qub.ac.uk
http://www.sarc.qub.ac.uk/~escore
http://www.realtimenotation.com/escore