BLOrk - Boulder Laptop Orchestra
The emergence of the laptop orchestra in the last several years has given improvisers innovative tools for creating novel musical experiences. BLOrk integrates technology with improvisers in an ensemble setting providing live interaction between the two. The ensemble consists of 6 performers each equipped with a laptop, a hemispherical speaker, and a variety of control devices, which can include traditional instruments or voice. The use of hemispherical speakers projects sound in a way similar to that of an acoustic instrument, creating a unique sonic experience.
BLOrk workshop with the "Tesla" String Quartet and KRONOS 2010
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In a recent workshop at CU, the Kronos Quartet works with the graduate string quartet, "Tesla." Composers and musicians work together to explore innovations in technology and devise ways to integrate this into traditional performance contexts.
BLOrk with special guest Janet Federer 2009
Performing student and faculty compositions, BLOrk and Janet also presented a performance of Maurice Sendak's "Where the Wild Things Are." The concert was broadcast simultaneoulsy on "2nd Life."
BLOrk performed at the 2008 ISIM conference on December 7th featuring new works by CU students and faculty.
Compositions explore the application of traditional sound processing technology as well as the integration of powerful programming languages such as MAX, Jitter and Super Collider. The Technology is interwoven with composition and improvisation in unique ways. Additionally, the use of electronic sensors that link the performers body movements to sound are explored. The ensemble builds on the research of the Princeton Laptop Orchestra (PLOrk) begun by Perry Cook and Dan Trueman in 2006 which has featured collaborations with Pauline Oliveros and Zakir Hussain among many others.
In 2007, University of Colorado professors John Gunther (woodwind) and John Drumheller (computer) performed "Wild Orphan," utilizing composition, spoken word, improvisation, and real-time sound processing. In 2008 CISMAT began expanding on this model of composition and performance to include a larger ensemble forming the Boulder Laptop Orchestra.Wild Orphan - for woodwinds, narrator, and computer
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And the father grieves in flophouse complexities of memory a thousand miles away, unknowing of the unexpected youthful stranger bumming towards his door. - Alan Ginsberg |
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