220b-winter-2015/hw1

Homework #1: "Homebrew"

• milestone due 2015.1.20, Tuesday, in-class
• final composition due 2015.1.26, Monday, 11:59:59

In this assignment, you are to record some "everyday" sounds, process/transform/arrange them, creating a composition that, in Paul Lansky's words, "views the mundane, everyday noise of daily life through a personal musical filter."

Tools at your disposal

(note: these are the only tools you are to use (but you don't have to use all of them) - you'll need to obtain permission to use other software or sound samples you didn't record)

• any microphone (phone, laptop, hydrophone, studio, etc.)
• something to record into (e.g., laptop/desktop)
• ChucK
• Audacity/Ardour (for intermediate + final recording/assembly)

SoX

Example of how to change snd file sample rate:

[cmn## lala] sox <inputfilename> -r 48000 <outputfilename>

Specification

What to do:

• 0) spend some time planning things out in terms of the sounds you want to record, the transformations to perform, and how to put it all together.
  • As with everyday life, some things might not initially work out as planned/hoped: be resourceful (think MacGyver), and be willing to adapt.
• 1) record a number of sounds around you
  • can be many different types of sounds, or many instances of a single type of sound (e.g., traffic)
  • note the origin of the sounds in your README
• 2) process/transform/arrange/compose.
  • check out the code examples from class here
  • figure out what you want to do, experiment, try a lot of stuff, have fun
  • use ChucK to process/transform the sounds
  • the bulk of the arranging should be done in ChucK, with intermediate editing and late-stage assembly in Audacity
  • if helpful, record and edit intermediate sound clips from ChucK into Audacity (via Jack)

Deliverables

As usual, turn in all files by putting them in your Library/Web/220b/hw1/ directory.

• 1) create a hw1/ directory, and put all the stuff below in there:
• 2) all related source/sound files (.wav/.ck)
• 3) a short README text (readme.txt) file that:
  • specifies instructions on running your programs
  • describes your process/adventure, and perhaps the ideas (technical/aesthetic) behind the composition
  • gives credit, if needed, for the sounds you are using
  • describe any difficulties you encountered in the process
• (EDIT) 4) please email Ge and Alex (ge@ccrma, chechile@ccrma) with the URL of the web page

Thanks and have fun!!!