EDITORIAL
Sound in space
TONY MYATT
Abstract
There has been an extraordinary amount of interest in sound spatialisation in recent years.
The volume of work in this area has pushed many international organisations to feature
sound spatialisation as a theme for conferences and publications, and Organised Sound is
probably overdue in having a thematic issue based upon aspects of sound in space. This
issue of Organised Sound contains many different views of space. We have included
articles about spatialisation techniques, our understanding of sound spatialisation,
composition, performance and spaces inside music as well as the spaces and
environments where music can exist, including virtual spaces.
back to top







Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (135.2 KB)
Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 93-99 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S1355771898002027
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
Space in sound: sound of space
DAVID WORRALL a1
a1
Australian Centre for the Arts and Technology, Australian National University,
Canberra 2600, Australia. E-Mail: David.Worrall@anu.edu.au
Abstract
At a time when our sense of physical space is being radically challenged and modified by
new global communication technologies, it seems not unusual that composers are taking
a renewed interest in it. We have begun to experiment with using the new technologies
available to us to move sound in space and create surround-sound environments.
For electroacoustic music and other soundscapes we have pan pots on our mixing desks
and in our synthesizers to radially position sounds between loudspeakers, and
reverberators to simulate the distance of sound sources from the listener. Dolby Digital
5.1 (AC-3) and DTS were introduced as competing standards for theatre sound
recordings around 1992 and consumer products are available in both formats. In addition,
Digital Versatile Discs (DVDs) are making sophisticated soundfield techniques such as
Ambisonics both practical and more accessible.
This article traces some of my own explorations in the use of 3-space for musical
composition, examines the limitations of basing structuring methodologies primarily on
functional psychoacoustic studies of hearing, and suggests alternative approaches based
on an understanding of 3-space from the work of the perceptual psychologist James
Gibson.
back to top







Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (791.3 KB)
Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 101-115 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S1355771898002039
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
A layered architectural model for music: Malaysian music on the World
Wide Web
MINNI ANG a1 , ABU TALIB OTHMAN a2 , A. K. RAMANI a2 , GAN SIOWCKLEE a3 and PATRICIA MATUSKY a4
a1
Music Department, Faculty of Human Ecology, University Putra Malaysia, 43400
UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. E-mail: minni@music.upm.edu.my
a2
Computer Science Department, Faculty of Science and Environmental Studies,
University Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor,
Malaysiaramani@fsas.upm.edu.my
a3
Institute for Distance Learning, University Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang,
Selangor, Malaysia. E-mail: gansl@ideal.upm.edu.my
a4
PO Box 1102, Davis, CA 95617, USAPatriciaMatusky@compuserve.com
Abstract
The design and development of a layered Web architecture for Malaysian music can be
applied as a model of Web architecture for music education, specifically for the
introduction of the music of a particular country or region. The model is designed and
developed in two phases: the building of the subject architecture and the design and
development of the application architecture. The complete Web architecture is analysed
and tested to determine its suitability for delivery of music-related content. Research
findings indicate that the Web architecture is reliable, efficient and suitable for its
purpose. The classification scheme proposed is found to provide a firm foundation for the
building of the Web architecture. In conclusion, the prototype model provides a suitable
extensible platform for the delivery of music content, which may be packaged for the
purpose of education.
back to top



Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (359.8 KB)




Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 117-127 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S1355771898002040
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
Sound, space, sculpture: some thoughts on the ‘what’, ‘how’ and ‘why’ of
sound diffusion
JONTY HARRISON a1 a2
a1
Reader in Composition and Electroacoustic Music, The University of Birmingham,
Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
a2
Director, Electroacoustic Music Studios & BEAST. E-mail:
d.j.t.harrison@bham.ac.ukhttp://www.bham.ac.uk/beast
Abstract
Sound diffusion – the realtime (usually manual) control of the relative levels and spatial
deployment during performance – is one of the most contentious issues in the field of
electroacoustic music. There are parts of the world where the practice is virtually
unknown; in other places it is the norm and appropriate facilities would be provided as a
matter of course for any visiting composer or performer. These ‘local variations’ are not
merely ripples on the surface of a standardised performance practice but stem from
underlying attitudes to what composition and performance in this medium are about and,
ultimately, to a definition of music itself. What follows summarises observations drawn
from fifteen years of working with the BEAST concert diffusion system in numerous
performance spaces in the UK and Europe, as well as experiencing, both as listener and
performer, other systems in Europe and North America. Scientific rigour, in the normally
accepted sense of tables of measurements etc., is not my goal – my portable measuring
equipment has been my ears, and my conclusions are based on what I have heard.
back to top







Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (363 KB)
Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 129-134 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S1355771898002052
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
Creating generic soundscapes in multichannel panning in Csound
synthesis software
VILLE PULKKI a1 a2
a1
Helsinki University of Technology, Laboratory of Acoustics and Audio Signal
Processing, PO Box 3000, FIN 02105, Espoo, Finland
a2
Sibelius Academy Computer Music Studio, PO Box 86, FIN 00251, Helsinki, Finland.
E-mail: Ville. Pulkki@hut.fihttp://acoustics.hut.fi/
Abstract
Vector base amplitude panning (VBAP) is a new method for soundscape creation. It
generalises the pair-wise panning paradigm to the triplet-wise panning paradigm, which
can be used in three-dimensional loudspeaker setups. Similar soundscapes can be created
with differing numbers of loudspeakers in different positions. The VBAP implementation
in Csound synthesis software presented in this paper is a powerful tool for producing
generic soundscapes. Virtual sources are positioned by defining the virtual source
directions as (azimuth, elevation) pairs; the loudspeaker setup is defined in the initial
settings. Virtual sources can be moved in three different ways: they can be moved along a
polyline between specified directions, angular velocities can be applied to them, or their
directions can be controlled arbitrarily.
back to top







Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (156.6 KB)
Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 135-140 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S1355771898002064
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
Aural landscape: musical space
SIMON EMMERSON a1
a1
Music Department, City University, Northampton Square, London EC1V 0HB, UK. Email: s.emmerson@city.ac.uk
Abstract
This paper seeks to examine how sound in general (and electroacoustic music in
particular) can evoke a sense of being and place which may be strongly related to our
visual experience. The auditory system has evolved to seek the reasons for the soundfield
it encounters and this property cannot meaningfully be ignored by composers in this
medium. The acousmatic condition stimulates and enhances this response. The science of
acoustics cannot any longer alone explain sound phenomena and requires psychological
and ecological dimensions. The idea of the ‘frame’ is developed from large-scale to
small-scale soundfields: ‘landscape’, ‘arena’ and ‘stage’ are seen to be flexible
components of this approach to composition. The paper concludes that a mature
relationship of audio and visual art forms requires a greater acknowledgement of these
attributes of sound.
back to top







Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (212.1 KB)
Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 141-146 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S1355771898002076
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
Composition and diffusion: space in sound in space
BARRY TRUAX a1
a1
Schools of Communication and Contemporary Arts, Simon Fraser University,
Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6. E-mail:
truax@sfu.cahttp://www.sfu.ca/[similar]truax
Abstract
Composition and diffusion can be understood as two complementary and related
processes: bringing sounds together, and spreading them out again in an organised
fashion. In the Western tradition, these two processes are frequently carried out by
different people at different times, each drawing on specialised knowledge. The
electroacoustic tradition, even if much briefer, offers the possibility of the composer
designing and implementing both aspects of the music, and interrelating them in highly
specific ways. Computer control offers the greatest precision in dealing with the
complexities of these processes, even though, at present, separate programs are usually
required.
back to top







Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (2.61 MB)
Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 147-166 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S1355771898002088
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
Spatiality of sound and stream segregation in twentieth century
instrumental music
MARIA ANNA HARLEY a1
a1
Polish Music Reference Center, Thornton School of Music, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0851, USA. E-mail: maharley@usc.edu
Abstract
Let us imagine a situation: a listener seated in a concert hall witnesses a performance by a
trumpet player (standing on the stage) of a sequence of four quarter-notes, with the
pitches of B[musical flat]3–A3–C4–B3. The listener chooses to ignore the immediate
physical surroundings and hears one of the following: (i) four trumpet sounds equally
spaced in time, (ii) a sequence of intervals – minor second, minor third, minor second,
(iii) an instance of set 4-1, (iv) a motive referring to the name of BACH. The `web of
interpretants' (term from Nattiez 1987/1990) surrounding a simple musical fact is already
quite dense, even though we have only considered its aspects relating to pitch, pitch class
and pitch notation (representation by letters). What if the performer's gestures, the facial
expressions, the direction of the bell of the instrument became important? Might one say,
then, that the music has become theatre?
back to top







Volume 3
Issue 02 - Aug 1998
PDF (461.9 KB)
Cited by Articles (CrossRef)
Cited by Articles (Google Scholar)
Go to Next Abstract
Go to Previous Abstract
Organised Sound (1998), 3: 167-177 Cambridge University Press
doi:10.1017/S135577189800209X
Published online by Cambridge University Press 01Aug1998





Login
Subscribe to journal
Email abstract
Save citation
Content alerts
TUTORIAL ARTICLE
Approaches to spatialisation
D. G. MALHAM a1
a1
Department of Music, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK. E-mail:
dgm2@york.ac.uk
Abstract
This article describes some of the basic principles of acoustics and psychoacoustics
related to the spatialisation of sound. It introduces recording and diffusion technologies,
including binaural, stereo and surround-sound techniques.