Fall 07 -DT 202-1

SCHEDULE

Details of chedule will be established as we go - check a few days before class.

1-August 29 (log) / Assignment for Next week

• 1:00: Introduction, Presentation of Syllabus, Questionnaire, Shopping List
• 4:15: Max videos, Laetitia's rigged briefcase - An intro to Max (the palette, objects, control vs. signal, )

2-September 5 (log) / Assignment for Next week

• Student's report on MAX-MSP clips from Cycling'74 site
• Digital audio concepts (hearing / demonstrate speaker & battery)
• MAXMSP- CLASS 1:
  • Intro to Max - Max-MSP: patch/palette; control/signals; building a patch; various signal generators; simple additive synthesis.
  • Exercices in class (second session): "Bell ringing" (metro and envelope generator), Your own additive patch (or other signal generators),
  • Optional - if time allows: Sound Shadows: create a sound which will be affected/modified by the movement of bodies in space (what is the relationship: the "narrative"??) The sensor we will use to test your patch is the PIR detector module.
• (Make sure fill the shopping list and give LS cash for miscellaneous parts.)

3-September 12(log) /Assignment for Next week

• Students' questions on last week presentation.
• Laetitia demonstrates the lady's glove / dynamic mapping / sensors
• More Max-MSP ( Amplitude modulation - Frequency Modulation - Sampling)

4-September 19 (log) /Assignment for Next week

• Go over last week's patches - Listen to students' patches - Problem solving.
• Max_MSP: sampling, abstractions (patches, bpatchers..)
• (if there is time: Hack a mouse, introducing simple mapping strategies)

5-September 26(log) /Assignment for Next week

• 1pm -5pm : Andrew Benson visiting lecturer
• 5pm - 7pm: Work on assignment in computer lab

Andrew's presentation:

First half:

• 1. Intro to hardware interfacing - very basic case studies
  2. Interface with MIDI device - keyboard with knobs
  3. Interface with OSC device - Lemur
  4. Interface with HID device - joystick/my controller

Second half:

• A. Andrew's interface: brief demo and discussion of the conceptual and practical
  considerations
  B. Discussion - control vs. interaction, What does your device
  communicate about your intentions as an artist? What does it mean to
  use a custom gestural controller vs. a generic hardware device.

Lab Work: Check assignment

6-October 3 (log)

• Class presentation of individual assignments (hands off keyboard, please!)
• A general intro to Interfaces, Sensors & Dynamic Mapping
• More Max-MSP

7-October 10(log)

• Finish presentation of students' assignments (one more left)
• Answer Max-MSP questions
• Start / Continue on the USB mouse / controller hacking and mapping to MAX-MSP
• A break from MAX? Introduction to Electricity & Electronics:
  • the basics
  • how to read schematics
  • build oscillator circuits onto breadboard (from Nic Collins' Hacking book)
  • or: build a resonator with piezos

8-October 17(log) Check assignment

• BRING a HAckable USB mouse or Controller!
• Mark Hellar gives a presentation on the Arduino board
• Ian gives a presentation on Chuck
• Build the 4093 circuit based on schematics given in class (chaining oscillators)
• More on Electricity and Electronics ?
• A review of basic principles of Digital Audio (in preparation for next week test)

9-October 24(log)

• TEST: on Digital Audio (article given at beginning of semester) and Basic Electricity and Electronics (based on tutorial given in class) + MAX-MSP test
• Build a preamp (LM 386) onto breadboard (with last week's circuit)
• Solder the circuit onto PC board (some of you know how to solder, can you help those who don't? I can also meet students next week outside of class to help out.)
• Free Max-MSP lab

10-October 31 (log) Check assignment

• Small jamming session with the circuits you built and soldered!
• Build the resonnator circuit
• Back to MAX_MSP
• Start thinking about hybrid instruments...

11-November 7 (log)

• Class jam with your analog circuits
• Discussion on final projects
• Max-MSP: building a complex patch with the granulator - abstraction and control

12-November 14(log)

• Max-MSP (more on abstractions , expressions, and the use of pattr)
• How To use the Making Things modules and connecting various sensors
• Some time to work on your projects

13-November 21(log)

• Submit your written project proposal!
• Visitor: SUe Costabile on Max-MSP Jitter, how she uses it and how to go about learning it.
• Some time to work on your projects

14-November 28(log)

• Students work on their individual patches/ circuits for final project

15-December 5 (log) Students present a rough version of their final projects to the class- feedback and comments

16-December 12(log) PUBLIC PRESENTATION of FINAL PROJECTS: CONCERT & INSTALLATIONS