[NewMusic] What David Cope is up to

[barry threw]

> Ok - so it's all good? We either accept it all unquestioningly, or  
> we're
> 'reactionary'?

I never suggested that you accepted anything unquestionably, just  
don't be reactionary.  You were making sweeping dismissals of  
technology that can be useful, and while I have faith that you can  
make a well presented argument in favor of your fear of Mr. Cope's  
technology, you didn't.

> I know that critical thinking isn't a popular pastime in the
> U.S., but the lack of public dialogue on the implications of the  
> radical way
> in which advanced technology has changed, and will continue to change,
> everyone's life is truly depressing.

What world are you living in? In mine, thats all we talk about.

> And will people stop throwing around the word 'visionary' at some  
> point?

 From Oxford, "visionary": thinking about or planning the future with  
imagination or wisdom.  I say what I mean.  The same time we stop  
throwing the word "crap" around we will probably stop using visionary.

> What's the vision, exactly? Spell it out.

You have to ask David Cope, but it looks as if he marketing this as  
both a compositional and analysis tool. This could have dramatic  
impact on the interactive audio front. With the length of an  
interactive media work approaching the hundred hour mark easily it is  
more important than ever for the composer to have some artificial  
intelligence-like tools that would allow them to create variations on  
their works.  The music also has to be intimately tied to user control  
to support and effectively mirror the emotional state of the  
environment. With some ties to engine movements, technology like this  
can create very important art for a field that is struggling right now  
to figure out a compositional direction, we need better tools.

For analysis, we have a definite problem in creating revenue for  
content creators right now, and unless you have the magic formula to  
fix this problem then it looks like analysis tools could be an  
important part of it.

>  If any of y'all are still under the pre-9/11 illusion that this was  
> all headed towards a nirvana of
> unlimited bandwidth and the dissolution of nation-states, guess again.

Fucking what?!  OK, you just blew my mind...I actually think you have  
a good position on several points and would love to have an actual  
dialog about on the implications of the radical way in which advanced  
technology has changed, and will continue to change, everyone's life,  
but this thread has devolved from picking at grammar to evoking 9/11.

No one that thought about technology in a serious way for half a  
second was under the impression that it was a nirvana, ever.

> Surveillance infrastructure, data mining to combine vast amounts of  
> information into relationship
> charts and behavior patterns, interception systems to analyze every  
> phone call, e-mail,
> web site visit, and google search, software to analyze camera images  
> in real time for
> movement patterns, faces, license plates  - in short, the means to  
> track every single
> movement of all people and all things - that's what THEY have gotten  
> out of this.
> All WE can do now is pray that it remains in their best interest to  
> leave most of us
> alone to continue shopping and consuming.


I, for one, welcome our targeted marketing overlords.  I'm in a damn  
information overload already, and there have been articles in the last  
few days calling this sea of information the biggest problem of 2008.  
It is a useful service for me to be able to only be presented with  
advertising that is relevant to my interests.

As far as governments tracking and conspiracy theories...thats case by  
case. This is certainly a huge problem that needs monitoring to ensure  
that this information isn't abused, and we have definitely been in a  
less scary political climate in the past.  I agree that we need to  
look at these issues carefully.

b

Barry Threw
Media Art and Technology

San Francisco, CA
Work: 857-544-3967
Email: bthrew (at) gmail (dot) com
IM: captogreadmore (AIM)
http:/www.barrythrew.com