Conference napalm::commusic_v1

    Yamaha and (I bleeves) The University of Illinois (?) have had special
    2 week FM seminars featuring John Chowning.
    
    Dealt with lotsa of fun thingies using SOTA H/W. T'was fairly
    pricey though. $1K area...
    
    Edd

RE: .0

    Or you could just frequent this conference.  Lots of MIDIots around
    here. 

-b

    I've heard but haven't confirmed that Clark University in Worcester
    has electronic (computer) music classes. I don't know any particulars
    though.
    
    Bill

    Two good books to start off with:
    	_MIDI for Musicians_ by Craig Anderton
    	_Computer Music_ by Charles Dodge
    Then poke around and check out other people's setup and start
    building your own. (An inexpensive or used MIDI keyboard and
    drum machine and sequencer [hardware or software]). Might
    run into a little expenses, but the payoff is better then
    blowing it all on a one time course.

The issue of M.I.T. Computer Music Journal, volume X number 3 is about MIDI, 
so you could read the whole issue.  CMJ is usually about fundamental technical 
theoretcial issues in computer music, that sometimes become products 5 or more 
years later (in the case of FM, 10 years, but that was really in the Journal of
the Society of Acoustical Engineers or something.)
There are also now lots of 
books about signal processing because fast d/a convertors a/d convertors that 
are small, and cheap are available, and becasue memory is cheap now.  
Everything from radar to music, voice recognition and synthesis, can be done 
efficiently with digital signal processing techniques, and books with those 
words in the title have proliferated.  It depends on what you care about.

Ten years ago there was a dearth of material to read in computer music.
Now there is a surfeit.  Microprocessor Applications in Computer Music by Hal 
Chamberlain, and the book of old CMJ articles by Roads and Strawn, Fundamentals
of Computer Music.  

If you want to concentrate on MIDI, you can get trade magazines like Keyboard, 
Electronic Music, and others.  These magazines are designed to market MIDI 
hardware, and are not about signal processing.  Write to manufacturers 
addresses in the ads to get data sheets on their instruments.  Get a copy of 
the MIDI spec.  

You could borrow old library books like Lejaren Hiller's book Experimental 
Music (about algorithmic composition) and Iannis Xenakis's book Formalized 
Music, and type in his FORTRAN program to compose music (it makes a printout, 
so you can run it on a VAX).  Try not to buy any of these books until you're 
certain.  If your local library doesn't have them, ask them to ask
Boston Public Library, or to look for them for you.  

You should bone up on musical acoustics with simpler books like Horns, Strings, 
and Harmony, or the old Seashore's Psychology of Music, which has problems for 
its age, or even read Helmholtz.  These last two are Dover paperbacks for 
ca. $7. ea.  Read acoustics articles in big musical dictionaries and 
encyclopedias such as Groves, and also in there about Scales, Timbre, or 
whatever.
Have fun.
Tom

    I'll add a vote to Helmholtz' "The Perception of Sound".  Helmholtz
    was a physicist, not a musician, so he leaned away from the artistic
    explanantions and got right down to pressure waves, constructive
    and destructive interference, etc.  
    
    I have a copy of the Dover edition and I really enjoyed it.  Although
    it's over 100 years old, it's not 'dated'.

    Another vote for Helmholtz.  It's also got an impressive array of
    data on alternative tunings.
    
    len.
    

I took a course many years ago at the University of Lowell. At the time it was
taught by Stewart... opps I can't remember his last name. Anyway, since U of L
has a very extensive music program they should still offer the course.

BTW- Many years ago means when I took the course U of L had a brand new ARP 
2000! 

Dana

	
	Now for my .02:

		I just graduated from Cornell 7 weeks ago and during my last
	semester, I had the opportunity to take a new course that was being 
	offered entitled "Learning Music Through Digital Technology."  It
	was taught by David Borden (Mother Mallard fame) and proved to be
	quite a good intro to the latest gear.  My coursework consisted of
	three music projects (using all of the school's equipment)  and my
	grade was basically based on how much stuff I could use and still
	make everything sound good.
		The lectures were fairly interesting, having guest speakers
	from Opcode, the Physics dept., etc. (all personal friends of Dave)
	and the amount of stuff the Music dept had was respectable, considering
	that it was the first semester the course was taught.
		The only problems the University are facing right now are that 
	over 120 hundred students have pre-registered for the next class which 
	can accomodate only 20.  Once again, it will most likely be limited
	to just Seniors. Dave told me before I left that he was hoping they
	would get more stuff soon to enable larger enrollment but the Music
	dept. wasn't too pleased with his proposed budget.

						-Dan

    
    	For an entry level, I'd recommend Indian Hill Arts in 
    	Littleton MA.
    	They have a synth course. Their equipment is no longer state
    	of the art, but it's a good intro course. Last time I peeked
    	into the lab, they had a Juno 106, a Polaris, a Drumulator,
    	a Roland 8 track sequencer and a Porta-one 4 track cass deck.
    	I think the course is one hour class time plus one hour lab
    	time per week.
                                                            
        Call 486-9524. Harry Chalmiers is the director of Music.
    	
    	BTW, they are a non-profit organization in case anyone wants
    	to donate old equipment (Or $$$) as a tax deduction.
        
    	Guy Novello
    

    Where's a good place to ask about beginning adult piano lessons?
    Is there a conference similar to this for acoustic instruments where
    I can ask for recommendations for adult beginning piano lessons
    in the New England area, preferrable within a reasonable distance
    from Nashua NH?  Does anyone know anything about the school at Music
    Mall Inc in Chelmsford.  Since I'll be actually practicing on a
    digital sampled piano that feels like an acoustic piano, this might
    be the place to ask after all.
    
    Thanks for any info.
    
    Kenney