SCHOOL OF MUSIC
DIGITAL ARTS
and the
ARTISTS AND LECTURERS COMMITTEE
October 3, 1999
3:00 P.M.
Elizabeth Hall
THE HYPERSTRING PROJECT
'the new dynamic of rogue counterpoint'
Jon Rose
The Hyperstring project pushes the envelope of musical expression through the use of Midi
controllers measuring the physicality of high-speed improvisation.
There are 3 primary controllers...a sensor mounted on the violin bow which measures the bow
pressure; an accelerometer mounted on the bowing arm, measuring bowing arm movement (and
more importantly) speed of movement; and footpedals which are played independently by both
feet (normally playing bass lines and/or rhythmic stuff). Hyperstring can create improvised rogue
counterpoint in two, three or more parts. This is a counterpoint as much between independent
physical movements and controller devices, as between lines of musical information. The continuous
control of any contrapuntal lines however, still rests with the business of playing the violin,
basically a monophonic instrument. There are almost no midi sequences used in the hyperstring
software, the midi-derived counterpoints operate in real time. When a set of midi parameters are
switched in, the movements of the bowing arm continually disrupt or interpolate the material
(usually pitch and speed). Hyperstring follows a long tradition of polyphonic improvisation in the
musics of the world. Particularly inspirational to this project are the 'one man band' pioneers of the
late 19th century street music culture and music hall; the Balinese Gamelan; the group
improvisation of early trad jazz; and the essential contrapuntal skills of Palestrina, Bach,
Schoenberg, etc. This project tries to intelligence of physical actions determines contrapuntal sonic
events. The counterpoint of the violinist's body, arms, feet and finger movements are fundamental to
the language and extend the usual paradigm of live electronic music which is normally concerned
with expanding (padding out the same sound), extending (the ubiquitous minimalist loop), or
intensifying (effects such as digital delay) what in essence are usually one line ideas. Hyperstring
creates a volatile musical environment where the inherent subconscious expression of the music.
Hyperstring brings together some 30 years of experimentation with legitimate, historical, modern,
and homemade string instruments.... also known as The Relative Violin Project. These exist in any
performance as real instruments (e.g. the tenor violin), modified instruments (e.g. various amplified
violin bows), virtual instruments (i.e. samples from a whole range of bowed, plucked, scraped,
blown, etc., string instruments.), and generated wave forms and acoustic phenomena based on
strings.
This concert is jointly sponsored by the Artists and Lecturers Committee and the Civic Minded Five
of Orlando, Florida.
Ushers are provided by Sigma Alpha Iota and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.
Out of courtesy to the performers, it is requested that cameras and recording equipment not be operated
during the performance
