Penn State University - School of Visual Arts
Fall 2014
Art 415 Integrating Media: Convergence in Practice
Professor: Eduardo Navas (ean13@psu.edu)

Mondays & Wednesdays 2:30 PM - 5:30 PM

Office Hours: 10 AM - 11 AM, 209 Arts Cottage

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First Project: Three Sound Compositions and Their Analysis (20%)

Due: Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Develop three sound compositions that expand upon the first three texts by Benjamin, Mowitt, and Attali. You may choose to emphasize the principles of each text in any way that you find best fits your project. If unsure, set a time to meet and discuss your ideas. While each of the sound compositions can certainly reference or rely upon specific theoretical premises of the three authors, it is expected that there will be some crossover. However, each piece should have an emphatic exploration that references the authors' main ideas respectively. For these reason, you should consider the following for each of the theorists:

Conceptual Parameters:

  • Benjamin: The relevance of mechanical reproduction, issues of the original vs. the copy, in contemporary times (what has changed, not changed, etc.)
  • Mowitt: Electronic media (the bit, and the new type of aura he defines with digital technology), how this shift repositions Benjamin's premises of the original vs. the copy, what do such concepts mean at this point?
  • Attali: The organization of noise, how is this relevant to the shift from mechanical to electronic media as discussed by Benjamin and Mowitt? The role of repetition (the loop) in terms of recording as a means of organizing noise.

Technical Parameters:

  • You need to use pre-recorded samples. You should consider samples available in the software applications you have been using to develop compositions in class.
  • You must record your own sound and implement them in any of the three recordings. (Ambient sound--random noise is encouraged.)
  • There should be a sense of experimentation with the sound, meaning that you should aim to push time and patterns in ways that defy conventional 4/4 or other easily recognizable music pattern used especially in popular music.
  • Consider using "noise" as an integral part of your three pieces in order to enhance the premises of each author.

Analysis:

  • Analyze your three recordings with Sonic Visualizer. Look for similarities and differences among the recordings.
  • Write a 500 word explanation of your initial intention for each of the recordings, and what you learned about them after your analysis with Sonic Visualizer.
  • Turn in image visualizations that help in understanding your conclusions.