Observations

Here you will find various observations about performing interactive electroacoustic music.

Balance

Unless a performer is playing unaccompanied, there are always other musicians playing with them, and performance requires listening and adjustments so that each part can be heard. The same is true with electronics, but the situation is more complex. Sound coming out of a loudspeaker is very directional, whereas an acoustic performer's sound is diffuse. Mixing those two sound sources can be difficult, and, if done poorly, may provide a very different experience to audience members depending on where they are sitting in the room. Proper speaker placement becomes an issue here as well. Many halls have speakers placed at the very edges of the stage, while the acoustics of the room are designed to spread sound coming from the center of the stage. For the best stereo image, speakers should be placed near the performer and angled thirty degrees off center. Ideally, the speakers will be raised off the ground to improve the sound diffusion. In large halls, multiple speakers on each side may be necessary to diffuse the sound to the entire audience. Many pieces add spatialization effects that require speakers to be placed behind the audience as well, which should be observed to recreate the musical meaning of the composer. Slightly amplifying the bassoon's sound can help achieve a balance within the speakers between the bassoon and electronics.

This only addresses the issue of balance for the audience. However the balance for the performer is often quite different, especially if they are only listening to the same speakers as the audience. In this situation, performers often cannot hear the electronics very well, and so they turn up the volume. But the acoustics of most performance spaces are designed to carry sound away from the stage, not back toward it. The result is usually that if the performer can hear the electronics well, they are too loud for the audience. Finding some way to have a pair of headphones, in-ear monitor, or a separate stage monitor will help performers be able to hear the electronics while they are playing without overloading the audience. However, even with monitors, performers are not in a good place to judge what the balance is like in the hall. There simply must be at least one person that is not the performer involved in a soundcheck to listen to the balance in the hall. Furthermore, making a change during the performance may not be possible for the performer if there is an error in the balance. Especially when a performer is just beginning to perform this repertoire, it is indispensable to have someone in the hall that can control the balance.

Another balance issue that is more common for bassoonists arises when using an electric bocal. Because of the nature of where the microphone is, the dynamic range of the bassoon is compressed and it can be very difficult to play with a true range of dynamics. It is important to have a volume pedal in these circumstances to help improve the dynamic range of the bassoon. Electric guitars and keyboards have volume knobs to change their dynamics, and the volume pedal is the bassoonist's "volume knob."

Physical Demands

Additionally, there are physical aspects of playing electroacoustic music that can cause some difficulties. Performers that play with lots of expressive movement may struggle when playing with microphones, as the distance between the microphone and the instrument largely effects the sound that is captured. Microphones may also be placed very close to the instrument and could be hit by a moving instrument or performer, causing a loud and unpleasant sound to go through the system. The effort of remaining completely still during a performance could also create extra tension, especially if the required position is awkward. McNutt describes some of the possible physical difficulties when playing with various technological devices: "A continuous control foot pedal can be awkward for those who perform standing; attached sensor might fit one person or instrument, but not another; the layout of on-stage gear may be highly dependent on the performer's size and habitual stance."¹

For bassoonists, the question of whether to sit or stand is not trivial and comes with different physical demands. This is even more true when live electronics are added to the setup. It can be difficult to press numerous foot pedals quickly while standing, especially if they are not close to each other. However, sitting in one place could make it hard to reach all of the pedals and controllers. Each piece may have its own setup depending on the demands of the piece and the equipment and physical stature of the performer. If the performer is using a page turning pedal, this can add even more to the necessary range of motion for pushing pedals.

Transporting all of the equipment can also be problematic, as amplifiers, PA speakers, and other equipment can be quite heavy. Having access to hand trucks and strong helpers can make this easier. The possibility of hearing damage from feedback, levels that are too high, and other unexpected loud sounds should not be underestimated either. Having trusted sound assistants can help minimize this risk, but there should always be a quick way to kill all sound if something goes wrong.

Obsolescence

The ever evolving nature of technology is wonderful for many things, but long-term preservation of digital information is not one of them. As updated software is released, there may be unintended results for programs written in older versions. For electroacoustic music, this means that some pieces may not be functional after a decade or less! A relatively recent example is the move from 32-bit programs to 64-bit programs. Patches that relied on 32-bit externals are obsolete unless those externals were rewritten for a 64-bit processor. Pieces such as the-m cannot be performed in their original state unless the performer happens to have specific, functioning hardware from the 80s for which the piece was written.

Obsolete pieces can be recreated and updated in modern programming languages, but that is an effort that frequently is beyond the ability of prospective performers. Some composers are very willing to update their pieces to keep them alive, while others prefer to spend their time writing new music instead of updating old music. Unless the prospective performer has a desire to also learn audio programming, or has a willing colleague with those skills, some pieces simply may not be possible to perform. However, performances of works are often one of the best motivators for a composer to update a patch, so it is always worth asking a composer if an update for a performance is possible.

The Audience

One difficulty that is not related to the performer is the difficulty for the audience. Audience members are accustomed to having a physical stimulus for every sound they hear; they can observe a bassoonist blowing air and moving fingers when they hear a bassoon sound. This relationship becomes more complicated with electroacoustic music. There may be no physical stimuli at all for sounds coming from the speakers, and the performer onstage surely cannot play all of the sounds that the audience is hearing. This can also be an exciting, yet challenging, aspect for the audience. Belet describes the responsibility placed on the audience for participating in this music:

"Audiences are also invited to modify their conservatory-preserved concert aesthetics as they encounter a unique event with each performance of a work. This requires dedicated active listening by a knowledgeable audience with an understanding of both deep and surface musical structures, as was necessary when Mozart and Beethoven performed their own piano sonatas, and which is still necessary today when listening actively to jazz and progressive rock. This is the classical tradition, so interactive computer music is actually adhering to a long-established and respected cultural paradigm."²

Additionally, the visual aspects of music performance may need a paradigm shift. Both audiences and performers may need to adjust the classical expectation that the performer is only onstage when they are performing. This may not be the case for live electronic music, as the performer may need to use a computer to start a patch, or turn on audio equipment after they walk onstage, or stay onstage after the applause to turn some equipment off. Foot pedals can be distracting for the audience, as they signal that something is about to happen. This is especially true when the performer has to move their head to look down and find the pedal before pressing it. For some, having a technician onstage running a patch can be equally distracting.

Learning Music

A crucial element of performance practice with live electronics is the time spent practicing with the electronics. All too often, performers are encountering the technology for a piece of music for the first time at the dress rehearsal. This simply is not enough time, especially for students and performers new to the genre. In a lot of ways, learning a piece with live electronics can be like learning a new instrument; it takes time and consistent practice for a performer to become familiar with playing alongside electronic accompaniment. This is no different from playing with a chamber ensemble for a time to understand how to play with each other.

Clearly the dress rehearsal is not the best time to discover that a bassoonist can't reach the different foot pedals while they are sitting and playing, or that the performer has a habit of moving their bell so much that it strikes the microphone. Such difficulties need to be resolved in practice time—which is only possible if the performer has access to the needed technology far in advance.

The dress rehearsal itself can be a stressful time, especially if it is the first time that a piece of technology will be used. The nature of having a setup with lots of cables, speakers, controllers, etc., is that there is a high probability that everything will not go right the first time. McNutt also recommends that the dress rehearsal should not be placed right before the performance, in case there are too many problems to fix in an hour before a performance.³ However, many performance venues may not be available for extended periods of time before a performance. If it is not possible to have the dress rehearsal the day before or earlier, then it is important to have enough time to troubleshoot technology problems and still be able to rehearse before the performance.

In the best scenarios, performers can have access to the full electronic setup during their practice time. However, this is not always possible. But in many cases performers can practice with an abbreviated setup that allows the performer to practice interacting with triggers and software—such as using the headphone outputs of an audio interface instead of a full array of speakers. Even if the performer cannot practice with all parts of the system, it can be beneficial for the performer to practice with unplugged midi controllers or effects pedals to practice the physical aspects of the performance.