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Michael Peters wrote: > > hi Francis, > > >I wonder how I relate to all of you with the way I came into looping > (writing my > >own software, etc.) without much knowledge of what was going on at the > >Guitar Center, etc., but instead, developing looping concepts in my >Ivory > >Tower and musing on Steve Reich's music, etc. and how to do something > >similar with computer source code which I was writing > > Yes it might seem like we're looping guitarists only but there are a >couple > of other instrumentalists here, we've had quite a number of discussions > about computer-generated or -controlled loops, and the minimalists are > without doubt one of the major influences for most of us. > > I'd love to learn more about you and your work on our "Personal Profiles" > page - if you want to be present on this page, please send the info to >me, > and I'll work it in. > > I'd also love to hear your opinion about my little "history of looping" > article from our website - you seem to be quite familiar with the > minimalist roots of looping, and maybe you can correct or contribute > something. > > Michael Peters > mpeters@compuserve.com > http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/mpeters > > HOP - Fractals in Motion ..."the only screen saver you'll ever want" > http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/mpeters/hop.htm > > -----Original Message----- > From: INTERNET:Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com > Sent: Saturday, March 29, 1997 3:56 PM > To: INTERNET:LOOPERS-DELIGHT@ANNIHILIST.COM > Subject: Re: Looping in London 10-iv-97 > > Sender: lists@slip.net > Received: from ferret (ferret.slip.net [207.171.193.6]) by > arl-img-1.compuserve.com (8.6.10/5.950515) > id JAA17013; Sat, 29 Mar 1997 09:49:58 -0500 > Received: from lists by ferret with local (Exim 1.61 #1) > id 0wAzS4-0003DF-00; Sat, 29 Mar 1997 06:49:52 -0800 > Message-ID: <333D2A3D.249F@lafn.org> > Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 06:42:05 -0800 > From: Francis Leach <ba754@lafn.org> > Organization: lafn.org > X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.02 (Win16; I) > MIME-Version: 1.0 > To: Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com > Subject: Re: Looping in London 10-iv-97 > References: <23054.199703290923@rank-serv.elec.gla.ac.uk> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Resent-Message-ID: <"WPIsJB.A.q9C.jvSPz"@ferret> > Resent-From: Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com > Reply-To: Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com > X-Mailing-List: <Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com> archive/latest/2433 > X-Loop: Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com > Precedence: list > Resent-Sender: SmartList <lists@slip.net> > Resent-To: 100041.247@compuserve.com > Resent-Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 06:49:52 -0800 > > Dr M. P. Hughes wrote: > > > > David O'Torn - I mean Orton - said > > > > >>Just a brief note to say I will be adopting a solo loopist stance on > April > > >>10th at the the Clock Tower in Croydon, London (UK) from 1pm till 2pm > (lunch > > >>time) > > > > Another UK looper! Does that make, oh, about 3 of us? > > > > Michael > > > > Dr Michael Pycraft Hughes Bioelectronic Research Centre, Rankine > Bldg, > > Tel: (+44) 141 330 5979 University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, > U.K. > > "Wha's like us? Damn few, and they're a' deid!" - Scottish proverb > > 3 in London! And one, me, feeling isolated from you all in the > newsgroup. Why? > > Because I don't use the same looping software and the same looping > hardware that most of you use . . . let me explain. > > Though I am a professional musician, in 1983 I became a computer addict > and began to write my own source code. The first extremely simple > program I wrote was a BASIC program to play Bach's Prelude in C > (well-tempered) on my /CPM Toshiba machine that played on the primite > built in speaker . . . not very sophisticated . . . > > But then, in the next few years, I began to take college programming > classes in the following languages: LISP, C, BASIC, Prolog, Logo, > Pascal, etc. > > And tho I then had no MIDI setup, I was fascinated and quite creative in > writing looping "space" music that used a combination of aleatoric and > constraining devices to create a patterned music that was based on chance > patterns . . . my favorite composing influences, were Steve Reich, Terry > Riley, Philip Glass, etc. all of whom I became extremely interested in > and how they "looped", while I spent 9 years writing classical music > reviews for the Pasadena Star News. My most challenging writing about > the concerts I attended were about LaMonte Young, John Cage, etc. I even > attacked Cage at a party in Pasadena, in his honor, by approaching him > and asking "Why don't you believe in patterned music!" His charming > response to me was by smiling and saying while extending his hand in a > most disarming manner, "Perhaps when you know me better!" I find him > socially delightful, but though I didn't tell him, I still disliked his > music immensely. But I did find people like La Monte Young, whom I > interviewed, and Steve Reich . . . very intrigueing indeed . . . > > So during those using, I began to form theories and opinions about > looping (For loop1 = 1 to 4 . . . . .next loop1)! that were reflected in > my composition source code. And then, about three years ago, I bought my > first polyphonic synthesizer, an old Kurzweil K1000). Years previously, > I had obtained an early Roland monophonic synthesizer, and took classes > at Pasadena City College on a Moog) . . . > > Well, I installed MIDI cards in PCs, the next couple of years, sold some > computers (I had picked up many in thrift stores) to the Electronic Music > Laboratory I became involved with at LACC (Los Angeles City College), > began to both continue with the aleatoric music source code I both wrote > myself and was a consultant on with another programmer from IBM, on and > on and on . . . > > It's to long to tell all this, right? > > But to shorten my background story: I continued to be obsessed with the > principle of looping, and how, in recursive usage of looping (ala "Godel, > Escher, Bach"), I could gradually change the musical sound loops ((MIDI > now on a Kurzweil, Roland W-50 drum machine, Cakewalk software), as they > occurred). > > So, we arrive at this week, and I am in the midst of creating a memorial > looping piece (with my sometime composing partner) based on > "Heavens-Gate". It has both an elegaic sound similar to Albinoni's > famous funeral piece, and Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings", and a > recurring space music feel . . . .!!! > > Well, anyway, I'm isolated here in Hollywood, from you guys and I read > your messages about certain looping software and hardware, and I wonder > how I relate to all of you with the way I came into looping (writing my > own software, etc.) without much knowledge of what was going on at the > Guitar Center, etc., but instead, developing looping concepts in my Ivory > Tower and musing on Steve Reich's music, etc. and how to do something > similar with computer source code which I was writing . . . it did work > and sometimes the bugs in my code produced the more interesting sonic > results than my cleaner code . . . . > >Thank you Michael Peters, very much: I'll very definitely find the personal profiles which I suppose are at www.Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com and fill one out . . . I'm also looking forward to reading your essay on the history of looping. I appreciate your answer . . . Ciao Francis Leach