Works

hops & COLLABORATIONS

EACH YEAR, SPLICE INSTITUTE EXPLORES A SPECIFIC THEME. THIS YEAR’S THEME WILL BE interactive Multimedia practices, WITH WORKSHOPS focusing on multimedia, including video editing, processing, and live video manipulation.

COMPOSITION WORKSHOPS

Composition workshops will be offered at all experience levels, with workshops in beginning and advanced SuperCollider, Interactive Video, Improv with Electronics, Interactive Controllers, Open Music, and Orchidea (computer-assisted orchestration). A beginning Max workshop will introduce newcomers to this powerful application, while advanced Max workshops will explore topics including Jitter, gen~, synthesis, and more. 

PERFORMANCE WORKSHOPS

Performance workshops for beginners will cover working with electronics in rehearsal and performance without the aid of a composer or sound engineer. Workshops focus on setting up equipment, learning about mixers and microphones, studying the musicality of electronics, and introductions to Max, Logic, and Supercollider. There are also advanced workshops that specifically include content for performers with significant previous experience, including those who have previously attended SPLICE Institute.

Concert Collaborations

Composers and performers selected for a concert collaboration are paired to collaborate on a new work that will be premiered at SPLICE Institute. Composers will be paired with Vicki Ray, SPLICE Ensemble, or participant performers to write and premiere a new work at the Institute. Composer-performers can present a work that they write for themselves to perform. And, new this year, select participants may take part in the inaugural EA-chamber music program. Participant-performers would play a new work with the SPLICE Ensemble written for the quartet by a participant-composer.

Community building and collaboration form the core of SPLICE’s mission and activities. Attendees become part of a community that continues to grow and develop beyond the Institute.

While SPLICE Institute allows participants to find a collaborative process that works for them, composers and performers agree to adhere to the collaboration deadlines indicated here. Communicating and figuring out how to work together is largely the responsibility of the participants; however, each collaborative team will be assigned a faculty member who will provide mentorship during the collaborative process. Additionally, all individuals collaborating on a new work will meet with a faculty member during the afternoon on the first Sunday of the Institute between noon and 6 pm. We are dedicated to facilitating these collaborative processes and hope that attendees at SPLICE Institute will form relationships that result in future collaborations and projects. We suggest the following regarding the collaborative projects that will premiere at the Institute:

  1. As soon as you are paired with someone, begin communications regarding creating a plan that works for both collaborators, including more specific deadlines, aesthetic considerations, and technical concerns.

  2. Make sure that you are being clear regarding your preferences, while also being responsive and open-minded to the ideas and concerns of your collaborator.

  3. If something is not clear to you, continue to ask questions until it is clear.

  4. We recommend that, given the time restrictions inherent in this type of process, these collaborations and premieres be viewed as works-in-progress; however, a number of collaborations from previous years resulted in final products that went on to be presented at conferences including SEAMUS, NYCEMF, ICMC, EMM, and the Toronto International Electroacoustic Symposium.

The requirements regarding these works are as follows:

  • Technology required can not exceed the equipment that we have available.*

  • The program note must include a statement that the work was written to premier at SPLICE Institute.

  • The work may not exceed 8 minutes in duration, unless special permission is provided and both members of the collaborating team agree to the duration.

  • Composers must write pieces that the performers can perform in the composer's absence. This requires clear performance materials that facilitate the presentation of the work.

*SPLICE has access to music technology equipment at Western Michigan University during the week. This technology is quite robust and includes numerous microphone options, a 5.1 speaker configuration, software, and all other equipment common in these performance situations. For anything that is exceptional, please inquire about your tech needs early on in the process.