Improvisation on Korg Volca (4 Mika Vainio)
The Korg Volca is a line of small, inexpensive, battery-powered electronic instruments, each designed for a specific purpose. This improvisation is designed to test the limits of a single Volca, both in terms of sonic output and with respect to its minimal performance interface. It is an homage to Mika Vainio and his experiments with minimal techno.
September 2017
Atoms and Digital Audio: Epicurus Meets Mika Vainio
Though we commonly describe sound as a wave, a minority viewpoint holds that sound is more properly corpuscular. This concept can be traced back to the atomists, who held that all of nature could be construed as two elements: atom and void. Foremost among these thinkers is Epicurus, who proposed that an infinitesimal “swerve” in the otherwise regular movement of atoms is responsible for all interactions and hence all nature. This paper will illustrate the contemporary relevance of this theory, in light of corpuscular theories of sound, granular synthesis, and the minimal techno of Mika Vainio and Panasonic.
September 2017
Digital Media Software and Systems 2
In his undergraduate module at DMARC, University of Limerick, students used Max 7 to implement various forms of sound synthesis, learning the history and digital audio concepts behind each practical technique. Coding style, interface development, and MIDI control are also covered.
September 2017