I'm looking forward to the arrival of William Duckworth, in collaboration with the Queensland Conservatorium Research Centre as a prelude to the iOrpheus; Art among us digital arts project – a public opera based on the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice and written for and with South Bank Precinct in Brisbane, Australia. William is a New York-based composer and internet music pioneer who will be a visiting scholar with Griffith University from the beginning of a June on a Fulbright Senior Specialist grant awarded specifically for this project. He is a Professor of Music at Bucknell University and one of the leading composers of web-based music.
Performed on iPods, mobile phones, and laptops, along with interactive installations and live performers, iOrpheus will take place on Friday, August 31, 2007 in the streets, parks, and promenades of South Bank. All sounds—iPod, mobile phone, and laptop, as well as live performers and interactive installations—are broadcast live into the park, either with portable speakers, fm transmitters (with appropriate receivers and amplification), or, in the case of fixed locations, plugged into a common board with its own sound system.Thanks to Griifth's DVC-Academic, Prof John Dewar for his support of this project. I look forward to working with our partners who will be centrally involved in the technical aspects of this production: thanks to Apple Computer Australia for their MacBook Pros, MusicLab for their portable audio systems, Acoustic Technologies Electronics for their 5.1 surround PA as to be featured in the Sound Garden, and to Griffith Research Computing Services for the networking and wireless systems on South Bank – roll on August.
In April-May of 2007, I'm back in the IMERSD studios with Huib Schippers, recording and producing a new album of world music, featuring extraordinary performances of the sitar, tabalas and tambura. We aim to have the album completed by mid year, with around four CDs worth of music to be whittled down to one (!) for a release on Tall Poppies records.
One exciting aspect of the project is that it will be the first to utilise the recent refit of the studios, funded by a recent research grant win and industry partnership. The album is being recorded at 176.4kHz sample rate, utilising SSL, Amek and Manley pre-amps,
Wagner, Neumann and Coles ribbon microphones, and will be mastered through Dolby SR and Revox tape (Huib has been disappointed with CD releases for the sitar, citing the work of earlier vinyl productions as being the best available. So, looking forward to seeing if this production can't meet his exacting standards). The album is is also the first to utilise IMERSD's new Digitising ICON, 32 fader console.
The inaugural AUC-Griffith Digital Arts conference 'CreateWorld06' was featured in the Autumn 2007 edition of 'Wheels for the Mind'. Entitled 'Catering for the Creatives', the article features the work of around 100 creatives from around Australia. The PDF edition can be accessed here. More about CreateWorld 2006, including audio recordings and Blogs can be found at the CreateWorld2006 Wiki.
And the Queensland Conservatorium Research Centre hosted the national NACTMUS (National Council of Tertiary Music Schools) Conference, 'Music in Australian Tertiary Institutions - Issues for the 21st Century' shortly after, from 29 June-1 July 2007). The papers and proceeding of the conference are available here at the NACTMUS site.
