
"Privacy Glitch" is a continuation of the musical study that I've been doing on the hot topic of online privacy in this increasingly free flowing age of social media; I started this idea in my last piece, "The Price Of Patriotism," which explored the trials of Edward Snowden, but that certainly wasn't the end of the story.  This piece looks at the balance between the sometimes knowing and sometimes unwitting consent to a lack of privacy, as we share our lives with people around the world.  Social media and online interactivity often seems like a fun and exciting way to connect with friends past and present, so we often leap right into the fray without a second thought.  When we do, we pretty much give consent to a lack of privacy, something that's not always clearly apparent.  This grey area where we let growing corporations use our data for their advantage is a bit scary, and the consequences can be larger than we initially imagine.  

I'm exploring this balance between consent and manipulation in "Privacy Glitch" through three distinct musical sections, which range in mood from enthusiastic to downright dissonant.  There's an upbeat and overwhelmingly positive mood in the first section of the piece which reflects our initial excitement around the interconnected nature of the online world - let's face it, things like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are pretty thrilling at times.  It's easy to get caught up in the flow of information, participating actively by transparently putting ourselves into the public eye.  Things start to get a bit muddy in the second section as a slower tempo, a slightly demented and dissonant arpeggiated pattern, and minor chords represent our growing unrest with the prying eyes of the world.  While life casting might have been fun at first, grey boundaries and the liberal use of our information by major corporations just feels wrong.  As the piece moves into a disjointed and edgy collection of glitched out electronic sounds, we realize that we've led ourselves too far, and at this point, there's simply no turning back - we're stuck in a web of need, want, and mistrust.  We've come to rely upon the ease and accessibility of online sharing and at this point, we need the conveniences that it provides . . . but we don't like the fact that the world can see into our personal lives.  It's an uneasy place to exist, a fact that's very apparent in the thick and dissonant soundscape that ends the piece.

"Privacy Glitch" was composed completely on my third generation iPad, with the help of some outstanding apps.  My main DAW was NanoStudio and my indispensable connection between all the apps was the amazing Audiobus.  I used several synths to create the layers of sound, including Nave, Thor, Sunrizer Synth, Animoog, and iMini.  There were also some great additional applications including ThumbJam, DrumJam, Stochastik Drum Machine, DM1, SoundPrism Pro, WerkBench and AudioShare.  I used JamUp Pro XT to record my bass at a couple of points.  I used a number of effects apps that included AD480 Pro, AUFX: Space, Turnado, Audio Mastering, and Master Record.  This one combined the power of a lot of apps, and consequently took some time to assemble . . . but it was worth the effort.  

Privacy Glitch

When I wrote this song, I had two simple goals - finish a song and learn how to use Sector.  

The first goal was something that I've been struggling with for a while.  I've got lots of bits and pieces, some really good starts and some just awful pieces of experimentation.  Some constituted me playing around with new apps while others were the result of hours of synth patch creation.  This is all normal and good stuff, but for some reason, I just couldn't bring myself to finish anything.  I've been dealing with a whole lot of overwhelm and responsibility in both my personal and work life, which seemed to consistently get in my way.  

SECTOR has been an intriguing possibility to me, but previously, I hadn't dug too deep into it.  I love all of Jonatan Liljedahl's apps, so I was ready to make this my new favorite.  It forced me to think about music creation in a different way though - I've really explored synthesis in the past, and the manipulation of audio loops hasn't been my main thing.  My respect for Jonatan was larger than my fear of a new approach though; I just needed a focus to really learn what the app could do.  
 
My solution to both goals was to create a short and simple song - not my usual process, but a seemingly quick way to reach the finish line.  I started with a basic and thin texture that seemed positive and full of light; it's a minor key, but there was a hidden bit of hope in the melody and backing track that I enjoyed.  As I dug deeper into SECTOR, the ability to warp loops into something new and a bit more edgy really hit a chord with me.  I kept extending the piece with a darker edge, constantly playing upon the glitchy potential of SECTOR, exploring the way that it could fit into my music.  

As I completed the piece, I felt good about the outcome - I accomplished both of my goals while exploring the balance between light and darkness within my own personal approach.  I also feel inspired to keep creating, so be prepared for more . . .

I created this song exclusively on my third generation iPad, using NanoStudio as my core DAW app.  I also used a number of additional apps, including Sunrizer Synth, iSyn Poly, Thor, ThumbJam, SoundPrism Pro, Audio Mastering, AUFX:Dub, AUFX:Space, Turndao, WOW Filterbox, iSEM, Audiobus 2, and of course, SECTOR.

Between Light And Darkness

This was my first practical application of Layr, an amazing new synth app from Living Memory Software.  My goal was to explore a number of presets from all different categories.  When I'm thinking synth heavy pieces, I tend to lean towards ambient, so that's where this piece went.  The more synths that I layered onto the piece, the more exploratory, and somewhat creepy it got - I imagined a all through a dark cave, where you have no idea exactly what is around the corner.

All the synth tracks are Layr presets.  I used Tonestack for my bass and there's some percussive sounds from nodal.  I recorded all of this into GarageBand; while I was there, I used a gong from within the app.  All of this was done on my iPad Air 2.

App Demos

Around The Corner

Glass Half Full is part of a series of pieces that I’m putting together meant to explore ambient textures as a context for improvisation.  The positive title refers to the building textures that imply a growing sense of hope.  It served as a guiding theme for the improvisation, so it was an interesting crossroads between technology and humanity.

I put this together on my iPad Air 2, using a combination of Korg Gadget, GarageBand, and Final Touch.

Glass Half Full

As I write this, we're approaching the holiday season, a time that I've always valued in my family life.  When I became a parent, this time of the year became something that I cherished even more, as my children began to enjoy it along with me.  Now that I'm firmly settled into my family life with three children, I couldn't picture the holiday season without them.  I appreciate the joys of watching them grow all year long, but there's no doubt that there's something special about spending the end of the year with them.

Also as I'm writing this, we're a little over a week past the news of the tragic shooting in Newton, Connecticut where over twenty children were killed.  That's twenty young souls that will never see their true potential as human beings and twenty sets of parents that have lost of piece of themselves.  As a parent myself, I can't really come close to imagining the pain that goes along with this experience - it's nothing that any parent should ever have to go through.  

I'm enjoying every minute of the holiday season with my own kids, but I can't help but think about the people that had their children viciously ripped away from them - especially now, their children should be there with them.  This song is a tribute to those folks and the inhumane loss of life that happened in Connecticut.  There's a somber mood that builds with intensity throughout the piece, backed by samples of children and parents.  I don't think its possible to honestly capture this experience, but at least trying helped me deal with the thoughts floating through my head.

I created this piece completely on my iPad, using MultiTrack DAW as my main workspace.  I used a number of additional apps to bring the piece together, including Sunrizer Synth, Magellan, Animoog, the Korg iMS-20, and the Korg iPolySix.  I also used DrumJam, ThumbJam, FunkBox Drum Machine, and Audiobus.  The samples were downloaded from freesound.org.

They Should Be Here With Us

This song once again follows a sci-fi theme and fits into a larger story.  The mood of the piece follows a crash land of a deep space traveler that has found himself on an unknown world.  When he awakes following the crash, he is overwhelmed by the newness of the world around him.  Taking in the new sights and sounds, he finds himself lost without a plan of action.  Suddenly, he feels an threat that sends him into a frenzy.  Although he can't quite see a creature around him, he certainly feels a presence with a menacing quality.  He runs without any idea of where he is heading, just looking for safety.  After what seems likes hours, he finds himself alone, but the adrenaline is still surging through his body.  He frantically looks for shelter in unfamiliar territory and fights through an overwhelming amount of feelings.  He feels scared but at the same time, feels a sense of triumph in the mere fact that he is alive.  Most of all though, he feels lost.  

This was the first song that I put together for the 2013 RPM Challenge.

I composed and recorded this song completely on my iPad, using Sunrizer Synth, Magellan, Thumbjam, Animoog, iFretless Bass, SoundPrism Pro, DrumJam, DM1 Drum Machine, Audiobus and MultiTrack DAW.  

Lost In A New World

After days lost in contemplation, our stranded astronaut is running short on supplies and facing the grim realities of survival.  Instead of staying stuck within a moat of self-pity though, our traveler embraces the challenge of staying alive in a foreign world.  Using a combination of the native surroundings and salvaged technology, he builds a shelter, scopes out the area for food and water, and creates some self-defense.  Upon accepting his situation and how it will potentially define the rest of his life, our astronaut gets to the point where he feels somewhat optimistic about his new world.

As the weeks wear on, the challenges of building a life on a new planet begin to wear on our astronaut. The constant newness of his environment offers consistent surprises and threats at ever turn.  Unusual wildlife wanders around him, no he's never quite sure about the danger they pose.  Every bite he takes runs the chance of making him sick, and at some points, he falls into that trap.  More than anything, it's the loneliness that drives him crazy though, and he spends most days just wishing for someone to talk to.  While he still feels his chances do survival are good, he just can't picture living like this forever.

After a couple of months, the loneliness becomes too much and he decides to leave the fairly safe confines of his shelter and look for other life.  A long journey brings him to the edge of a local civilization, providing a shocking realization - he is not alone and he is in grave danger.  The native people are extremely technologically advanced and very militaristic.  They seem confined to their own people which does not show signs of inclusion from outer influences.  The reality sets in that once he confronts them, he will undoubtedly face defeat and death.

This is the second piece in my 2013 RPM Challenge album.

I wrote and recorded this track completely on my third generation iPad using a number of apps, including Sunrizer Synth, Magellan, Stochastik Drum Machine. Animoog, Thumbjam, Drumjam, guitarism, Audiobus, MultiTrack DAW, iFretless Bass, SoundPrism Pro, Arpeggionome Pro, and Korg iPolysix.


Acceptance And Defeat

After our astronaut's visit to the alien colony, the whole reality of his existence on this new world has been turned upside down.  He can't help but feel an inescapable sense of hopelessness about his life and his slim chances for survival.  Although he hasn't seen signs of a definite threat from the alien community, he's sure that they don't have his best interest in mind.  

At the same time, he's got an overwhelming feeling that the locals have become aware of his presence and they are constantly watching him.  There's lots of reasons to justify his thoughts - they have extremely advanced technology that must have caught his proximity to their community.  The crash landing of his ship must have made some noise, something that the aliens couldn't miss.  At the same time, he's never actually seen the aliens outside of their community; he just feels their presence.  As time wears on, our astronaut becomes increasingly convinced that he's under regular observation and he's in grave danger.  

On the verge of paranoia, he falls into a state of depression as he accepts a tragic fate detirmined by the aliens around him.  In fact, he assumes that they've been watching him all along and just taking time to observe him before they end his life.  He digs deeply into his shelter, finding a hidden spot that protects him from the sites and sounds of the outside world.  He's confined himself to a spot that leaves him virtually invisible, but he's convinced that there's no hope - they're coming for him and they're going to find him.
This is the third piece in my 2013 RPM Challenge album.

I wrote and recorded this track completely on my third generation iPad using a number of apps, including Sunrizer Synth, Magellan, Stochastik Drum Machine, Animoog, Thumbjam, Drumjam, guitarism, Audiobus, MultiTrack DAW, iFretless Bass, SoundPrism Pro, DM1, and Korg iPolysix.


Hopelessness And Paranoia

Buried deep in his shelter on an alien world, overwhelmed with a sense of anxiety and desperation, our astronaut looks for a bright light in his memories of life on earth.  As his thoughts drift towards his family and friends, he starts to see reasons for living.  There's no doubt in his mind that the alien civilization has the ability to completely overtake him with their superior technology, but he can't shake the thought that maybe there's a chance.  A tear rolls down his cheek as he envisions his wife and child growing older and living their lives without him.  Despite his inner feelings of dread and despair, he comes to a realization that he needs to draw upon his building sense of possibility.  

With a solemn and shallow bit of inspiration bubbling inside him, the astronaut realizes that his only hope lies in contact and a connection with the alien civilization.  They may have a mode of transportation that could get him back to Earth; the chances of them having transport are certainly better than him building something independently.  At first, he considers the possibility of sneaking into the alien compound and taking a vehicle by force.  It could be a quick and easy maneuver that would take full advantage of his military background.  In reality, there's not a chance of success with that idea though, which leads him to other options.

He comes to the realization that his only hope is building a peaceful connection with the aliens.  It's a terrifying thought for him thought that puts him at odd with everything that he's been feeling recently.  It's a difficult decision and one that weighs heavily upon him, forcing him to mull over all the possible outcomes.  One the one hand, the advanced creatures could certainly defeat him in a quick and efficient manner, destroying him once and for all.  There's also a chance that he could form an alliance and get home though - this seems like his best hope, so he makes his way towards the alien civilization.

As he enters the alien living area, he gets an unexpected and puzzling response.  The humanoid creatures simply look at him with a sense of curiosity, but they make no attempt to communicate with him.  Their yellow eyes look right through him as they turn their orange tinged faces in his direction.  Unsure how to proceed, our astronaut walks to the closest alien and extends his hand as a greeting.  The alien calmly takes his hand in a firm yet inviting grasp, and as our astronaut looks into the deep yellow of the alien's eyes, he feels an energy transfer into his body.  The foreign entity quickly invades his whole body, filling him with a cold, technological chill.  His vision becomes pixelated and his thought process changes into something completely clear and linear.  He feels his personality slowly slip into the back of his mind, being overwritten with technological code.  As he feels the alien technology completely take over his being, a vacant sense of calm comes over his body.  

This is the fourth piece in my 2013 RPM Challenge album.

I wrote and recorded this track completely on my third generation iPad using a number of apps, including Sunrizer Synth, Magellan, Stochastik Drum Machine. Animoog, Thumbjam, Drumjam, Audiobus, MultiTrack DAW, iFretless Bass, Arpeggionome Pro, SoundPrism Pro, DM1, and Korg iPolysix.


From Hope To A Vacant Sense Of Calm

This piece is loosely based upon Edward Snowden's decision to reveal the PRISM program to the United States public, and the price that he has paid for committing an act of patriotism.  The frantic feel at the beginning of the song emulates the transfer of data, while the drama behind the chords relates to clandestine nature of this movement.  The repetition of the melodies relates to shock and awe over the misuse of data and the blatant disregard for the public's privacy.  As multiple layers of arpeggiated figures fall over each other, the confusion becomes apparent, questioning which would actually be a patriotic act - keep the government's secret or inform the public?  A sense of open calm comes over the song as the information hits the public and the general population reels over the implication of PRISM.  There's also a reflection sadness inherent in the strings and the return of the main melody as the government's reaction insures that Snowden will be robbed of a normal life.  As this section continues, fragments of the former section seep through the background, as the public slowly looses interest in PRISM and even worse, accepts it, while Snowden continues to pay the price of patriotism with the lose of his former life.  Whether or not you see Snowden as a patriot, the implications of his actions certainly give us something to consider; hopefully, some of that has been captured in the song.
 
This song was created completely on my third generation iPad using a number of music apps in various combinations.  Some of the apps that I used included Sunrizer Synth, Nave, Thor, Galileo, Thumbjam, Drumjam, iFretless Bass, SoundPrism Pro, Arpeggionome Pro, Stochastik Drum Machine, Audiobus, and NanoStudio.  At the onset of writing this song, I realized that we've seen a wealth of powerful new synths recently, and I really wanted to explore them.  I took advantage of this song to wander through the vast amount of presets offered in this apps to get an idea of the possibilities behind these apps.

The Price Of Patriotism

I’m a bass player, composer, educator, and writer from the San Francisco Bay Area with a strong interest in new avenues for music creation. Most of my life has been focused upon performance, with an emphasis upon jazz and Caribbean music. All along the way though, technology has been a constant presence in my life – I’ve become a true believer in the iOS platform as the future of music creation, and I know as the music revolution of the 21st Century approaches, I’ll be meeting it with my iPad in my hands.I actively explore my interests online through my two websites - <a href = "http://iosmusicandyou.com">iOS Music And You</a> &amp; <a href = "http://www.chipboaz.com/blog">The Latin Jazz Corner</a> - stop by and you can get a fuller picture of where I'm coming from!


Zoab

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