20th-21st analysis 1 (Stravinsky room)
Composer-performer orchestration research ensembles (Studio 5)
Timbre analysis in 20th (and maybe 21st) Century music (Hasegawa/Michel) [Stravinsky room]
The focus of the working group will be on the development of two collaborative projects: (1) analytical tools to describe composite timbres in contemporary music by Rebecca Saunders, Chaya Czernowin, Pascale Criton, and others (led by Robert Hasegawa) and (2) the analysis and performance practice of Grisey's Les espaces acoustiques including rehearsal footage and interviews with conductor Pierre-Andre Valade (led by Pierre Michel). Additional propositions for collaborative research on the general topic of timbre analysis of 20th-century and contemporary music can also be proposed for discussion during this session.
Composer-performer Orchestration Research Ensembles (CORE) (Reynolds/Hamel) [Studio 5]
This working group will discuss the initial steps made at University of British Columbia and UC San Diego during 2018-19. Composer-performer Orchestration Research Ensembles are a unique way for composers and performers to experiment with orchestration in a controlled environment. We will discuss the first year of the ACTOR project (primarily at UBC and UCSD), the ensemble recording specifications being developed, and the works written by graduate students at UBC, performed and recorded by the ensemble. We will discuss the next phase of the project involving compositions
written at all five collaborating institutions: written for the same instrumental ensemble (violin, bass clarinet, trombone and vibraphone plus small percussion) and recorded using identical recording specifications, beginning in 2019-2020. We will develop strategies for sharing compositions between institutions so that the works can have multiple performances with different ensembles in different acoustic spaces. We will discuss recommendations for maximizing consistency between institutions and investigate analysis strategies so as to compare the works composed, performed and recorded at different institutions. Additional agenda items will include how the size and nature of the common ensembles will develop over time and what part electro-acoustic resources will play.