Instructor: Sasha Leitman

TA: Romain Michon

When: Monday & Wednesday 10am-noon plus one 2 hour lab every week. The lab times are Mondays 1:15 - 3:05, 3:15 - 5:05, 5:15 - 7:05. It is required that students show up to one of those two hour blocks.

Where: CCRMA Classroom, The Knoll

In recent years, technologies for synthesizing, processing and controlling sound, as well as those for embedded computing, sensing and inter-device communication have become independently mature. This course explores how we can physically interact with electronic sounds in real time. A series of exercises introduces sensors, circuits, microcontrollers, communication and sound synthesis. We discuss critically what the merging of these technologies means for music and art. Along with new technologies, what new music practices or art forms may emerge?

In the broader sense, this course deals with interaction design: What happens when human behaviours meet those of machines? How do the devices we use determine the style of interaction? How do we design for the limitations of human performance and the affordances of machines.

Office Hours:

Sasha: Monday, Wednesday noon - 3pm. Thursday 9am - 1pm by appointment. If you do not find me in the Max Lab, please call my cellphone (the number is posted on my desk). I might be running around the building but I am here to help.

Romain: Any time by appointment.

Grading: Grading will be based on the following criteria:

• Attendance and Participation: If you are going to miss a class or a lab, please e-mail BOTH Romain and Sasha. If you miss more than two classes, your grade will suffer. If you are significantly late twice, that counts as a missed class.
• Readings: There will be 5 readings assigned this quarter. They will be emailed out on Wednesday along with a link to a Google form. You will need to read the article and fill out the form by the following Monday.
• Homework: The homework in this class is geared towards helping you think about your final project. It will mostly be sketching exercises, brainstorming, and research on previous work done.
• Labs: There is a mandatory lab in this class each week. The labs are designed to make sure you have the skills to create your own physical interface design.
• Final Project: This is a project based class and the final project is where the learning really takes hold. Here is the grading criteria: Cooperation - were you a good group member? Expressivity - does it convey its musical intention clearly? Feedback - did you take feedback? Completion - did you pull it off?

Lab Kit: Each student will be required to purchase a $40 lab kit that includes an arduino, prototyping board, and various connectors.

Software: We will be using Max/MSP. We encourage you to purchase a year long student license for $59. If you are not interested in doing so, however, the software will be installed in Studio C, D and E at CCRMA.