Organised Sound · 1998 · 86 citations · 0 references
MusicAudio ElectroacousticsPsychoacousticsSpatial AudioPerformance StudiesEngineeringArtsSound DiffusionAcousticsAuditory ResearchCommunicationSpatial DeploymentRelative LevelsSound ArtSound DesignAcoustic AnalysisSoundscape
Sound diffusion, the real‑time control of levels and spatial deployment in electroacoustic performance, is a highly contested practice that varies worldwide and reflects differing attitudes toward composition and the definition of music. The author draws on fifteen years of experience with the BEAST concert diffusion system across UK and European venues, using portable listening equipment rather than formal measurements to assess how sound diffusion operates in practice.
Sound diffusion – the realtime (usually manual) control of the relative levels and spatial deployment during performance – is one of the most contentious issues in the field of electroacoustic music. There are parts of the world where the practice is virtually unknown; in other places it is the norm and appropriate facilities would be provided as a matter of course for any visiting composer or performer. These ‘local variations’ are not merely ripples on the surface of a standardised performance practice but stem from underlying attitudes to what composition and performance in this medium are about and, ultimately, to a definition of music itself. What follows summarises observations drawn from fifteen years of working with the BEAST concert diffusion system in numerous performance spaces in the UK and Europe, as well as experiencing, both as listener and performer, other systems in Europe and North America. Scientific rigour, in the normally accepted sense of tables of measurements etc., is not my goal – my portable measuring equipment has been my ears , and my conclusions are based on what I have heard .