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Distributed Scores and Audio on Mobile Devices in the Music for a Multidisciplinary Performance

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Perception, Representations, Image, Sound, Music (CMMR 2019)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNISA,volume 12631))

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Abstract

In an attempt to uncover the strengths and limitations of web technologies for sound and music notation applications, driven by aesthetic goals and prompted by the lack of logistic means, the author has developed a system for animated scores and sound diffusion using browser-enabled mobile devices, controlled by a host computer running Max and a web server. Ease of deployment was seen as a desirable feature in comparison to native application computer-based systems – such as Comprovisador, a system which has lent many features to the one proposed herein. Weaknesses were identified motivating the design of mitigation and adaptation strategies at the technical and the compositional levels, respectively. The creation of music for a multidisciplinary performance entitled GarB’urlesco has served as a case study to assess the effectiveness of those strategies. The present text is an extended version of a paper presented at CMMR 2019, in Marseille.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Both host and client applications of Comprovisador run in the Max environment [25] using the bach library [6, 12] and also Java.

  2. 2.

    Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) is an Extensible Markup Language (XML)-based vector image format for two-dimensional graphics with support for interactivity and animation.

  3. 3.

    MaxScore is a music notation library for the Max environment [1].

  4. 4.

    UDP (User Datagram Protocol) is a communications protocol used primarily for establishing low-latency and loss-tolerating connections between network applications.

  5. 5.

    Paid solutions are not included in the scope of this research.

  6. 6.

    At the cmmr 2019 conference, we have learnt about the Guido Project [5], an open source project that encompasses a music notation format, a score rendering engine and various music score utilities. The Guido engine is a library that can be embedded on different platforms using different programming languages, among which JavaScript. We find both the music notation format and the score rendering engine to be adequate for the type of generative applications we envisage.

  7. 7.

    WebSocket is a computer communications protocol, providing full-duplex communication channels over a single TCP connection.

  8. 8.

    – in devices running older Android versions – see Sect. 4.

  9. 9.

    This concept aims at solving synchronisation problems in real-time music and media systems. The author describes four approaches to synchronisation in increasing levels of sophistication: Synchronisation Levels 0 through 3. Level 1 consists on applying time-stamps to events, computing the events in advance within a “control stage” and delivering the computed events with time-stamps to a “rendering stage”. There, events are delayed according to time-stamps in order to produce accurately timed output.

  10. 10.

    The bach library enables music notation and CAC tools inside the Max environment. Its most prominent objects are bach.score (for standard metric notation) and bach.roll (for proportional notation). Both objects are notation editors (meaning a user can interact with them via mouse and keyboard to create/modify the score) and score players (they can read back score data and drive a MIDI synth or similar). Moreover, they feature Max type inputs and outputs in order to be controlled by and/or to control other Max processes in real time [6].

  11. 11.

    For a standalone interactive example of the score in action, visit https://glitchscore.glitch.me/.

  12. 12.

    Trying to render graphics with the more precise Web Audio clock would result in a much lower frame rate. Synchronisation is nonetheless controlled by the Web Audio clock using the Tone.Draw.schedule() method of the tone.js library (see [3, 27]).

  13. 13.

    llll stands for Lisp Like Linked List.

  14. 14.

    Dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) signaling is a telecommunication signaling system using the voice-frequency band over telephone lines between telephone equipment and other communications devices and switching centers.

References

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  2. p5.js. https://p5js.org. Processing Foundation

  3. tone.js. https://tonejs.github.io

  4. xebra.js (2018). https://cycling74.github.io/xebra.js/index.html. cycling74

  5. The Guido project (2020). https://guidodoc.grame.fr/about/. grame-CNCM

  6. Agostini, A., Ghisi, D.: A max library for musical notation and computer-aided composition. Comput. Music J. 39(2), 11–27 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1162/COMJ_a_00296

  7. Bell, J.: Audiovisual scores and parts synchronized over the web. In: Bhagwati, S., Bresson, J. (eds.) Proceedings of the International Conference on Technologies for Music Notation and Representation - TENOR 2018. Concordia University, Montreal, Canada, pp. 17–23 (2018). https://www.tenor-conference.org/proceedings.html

  8. Clément, A.R., Ribeiro, F., Rodrigues, R., Penha, R.: Bridging the gap between performers and the audience using networked smartphones: the a.bel system. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Live Interfaces, Brighton (2016). http://users.sussex.ac.uk/~thm21/ICLI_proceedings/2016/Papers/Short_Papers/127_Abel.pdf

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  10. Freeman, J.: Flock (2007). http://distributedmusic.gatech.edu/flock/

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  13. Gottfried, R., Hajdu, G.: Drawsocket: a browser based system for networked score display. In: Hope, C., Vickery, L., Grant, N. (eds.) Proceedings of the International Conference on Technologies for Music Notation and Representation - TENOR 2019. Monash University, Melbourne, Australia, pp. 15–25 (2019). https://www.tenor-conference.org/proceedings.html

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  19. Louzeiro, P.: Real-time compositional procedures for mediated soloist-ensemble interaction: the comprovisador. In: Agustín-Aquino, O.A., Lluis-Puebla, E., Montiel, M. (eds.) MCM 2017. LNCS (LNAI), vol. 10527, pp. 117–131. Springer, Cham (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71827-9_10

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  20. Louzeiro, P.: The comprovisador’s real-time notation interface (extended version). In: Aramaki, M., Davies, M.E.P., Kronland-Martinet, R., Ystad, S. (eds.) CMMR 2017. LNCS, vol. 11265, pp. 489–508. Springer, Cham (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01692-0_33

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  27. Wilson, C.: A tale of two clocks - scheduling web audio with precision (2013). https://www.html5rocks.com/en/tutorials/audio/scheduling/

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Acknowledgments

I should like to thank my supervisors Christopher Bochmann and António de Sousa Dias for their advice and Sara Ross for proofreading. I would also like to thank Elsa Santos Mathei and all artists who made GarB’urlesco possible.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidade de Évora, Évora, Portugal Centro de Estudos de Sociologia e Estética Musical (CESEM), Lisbon, Portugal

    Pedro Louzeiro

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  1. Pedro Louzeiro
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Correspondence to Pedro Louzeiro .

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  1. Laboratoire PRISM, CNRS-AMU, Marseille, France

    Richard Kronland-Martinet

  2. Laboratoire PRISM, CNRS-AMU, Marseille, France

    Sølvi Ystad

  3. Laboratoire PRISM, CNRS-AMU, Marseille, France

    Mitsuko Aramaki

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Louzeiro, P. (2021). Distributed Scores and Audio on Mobile Devices in the Music for a Multidisciplinary Performance. In: Kronland-Martinet, R., Ystad, S., Aramaki, M. (eds) Perception, Representations, Image, Sound, Music. CMMR 2019. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 12631. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70210-6_22

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70210-6_22

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