Program Notes: "There is pleasure in recognizing old things from a new viewpoint" - Richard Feynman

"There is pleasure..." is a structured improvisation, combining elements of modern Electronic Dance Music and Computer Music, with the improvisatory approach of Jazz. The piece attempts to explore the materials and sounds used from multiple viewpoints, in addition to exploring 'modern' approaches to a number of 'old' techniques. The goal being to create a variety of moods, ambiances, and textures, using a minimal amount of basic materials - or to view a limited amount of musical materials from new viewpoints. The piece uses the composer's AAIM (Algorithmically Assisted Improvised Music) performance system to enable the performer to manipulate and vary the pre-composed musical materials during performance.

All of the sounds used during the piece are created with Frequency Modulation(FM) synthesis, and the piece also relies on a constant underlying pulse to arrange these sounds in time, two approaches which are often viewed as dated within the genre of Computer Music.  However, the underlying pulse is obscured through the use of overlapping tuplets, resulting in a wide variety of multi-layered rhythmic textures and a sense of rhythmic freedom. These variations in the basic rhythmic patterns, together with slight variations in the setting of the FM synthesizers, and the use of signal processing and diffusion technique, allow the performer to also explore the sounds from multiple perspectives. Finally, the musical materials used during the piece are also viewed from multiple perspectives - with only 3 rhythmic patterns used throughout, but which each being used to trigger different sounds, and manipulated and varied in different ways, at different times during the piece.

Recorded 5 Feb 1984

There is pleasure...

5Four is a structured Improvisation for drum kit and the AAIM
performance system. Given a minimal score, the drummer is asked to improvise within the framework of the piece. The computer performer determines the progression of the piece, and also improvises using the AAIM performance system and a collection of samples consisting of both live and prerecorded sounds from the drummers kit.

Ethan Cayko - Drums

5Four_demo_090415

Some fun with an arbitrary assortment of samples and loops and the AAIM system.

Credits:
Francis Dhomont - Novars
Alva Noto - Prototypes 1
Matmos - lipostudio... and so on
Aphex Twin - Gwarek 2
Roeyb - oligarchy https://soundcloud.com/roeybe
Denis Smalley - Pentes
Boards of Canada - Ready Let's Go
Bernard Parmegiani - Incidences / Résonances
Molotov Ape - This is Your Brain on Money https://soundcloud.com/molotovape
Squarepusher - Metteng Excuske V1.2
Cinematic Orchestra - All That You Give
Tool - (-) Ions
Bernard Parmegiani - Incidences / Résonances
Christopher Haworth - Vertizontal Hearing (Up & Down, I then II) https://soundcloud.com/littlshyningman
Portishead - Mysterons
John B Keane on Drink https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKIqNTJ-yus
Francis Dhomont - Novars
Aphex Twin - minipops 67 [120.2][source field mix]

radioAAIM-2am

Some, more, fun with an assortment of samples and loops and the AAIM system. 
[Should really make another version of this (so many other tunes to add…) but I’m far too lazy. I’m also clearly not a DJ. Finally, I did cheat a bit and deleted a handful of bars at a couple of points…]
Credits:
Jimi Hendrix - Wind Cries Mary
Stevie Wonder Fingertips Pt 2
James Brown - Superbad
Rupert Holmes - Escape
Redbone - Come and get your love
Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters - Sly
Stevie Wonder - Sunshine of My Life
The Temptations - Papa was  a Rollin’ Stone
Stevie Wonder - Do I Do
George Benson - Love X Love
The Gap Band - Oops Upside Your Head
James Brown - Superbad
Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters - Sly
Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters - Chameleon
Stevie Wonder Fingertips Pt 2

radioAAIM_2-cheeseNcrackers

Credits:
Sly & the Family Stone - Dance To The Music
Stevie Wonder - I Wish
The Commodores - Brickhouse
James Brown - Get Up Offa That Thing
Kool and the Gang - Get Down On It
Funkadelic - One Nation Under A Groove
Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
George Benson - Give Me The Night
James Brown - Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag
Parliament - Theme From The Black Hole
Average White Band - Pick Up The Pieces
Stevie Wonder - Sir Duke
Sly & the Family Stone - Dance To The Music

radioAAIM_3-cheeseNcrackers_pt2

Beat made with the AAIM.patternVary module and a few fx http://sourceforge.net/projects/aaim/files/AAIM_DrumMachine.zip/download

AAIM_beat1

NOTE: The original performance was over 2 hrs long. This is a significantly abridged version... 

beakerhead_Calgary2015 (MAA_mix)

JamBand_0206

Some fun with guitar using the AAIM (http://simonjohnfay.com/aaim/) system as a loop-pedal (of sorts)...

frozenDesert

Plunderphonics improvisation using the AAIM.loopVary MaxForLive device

http://simonjohnfay.com/aaim/

ForgotAboutFay (gibberish mix)

All the pieces on this page were created  using custom coded software and, for the most part, said process was completed live with minimal arrangement afterwards... 

Simon is a composer of acoustic and electronic music in a variety of styles and genre’s ranging from rock and jazz, to electroacoustic and classical.

He completed postgraduate studies, receiving a distinction, at the Sonic Arts Research Centre(SARC), Belfast, focussing on the composition of electroacoustic music under the supervision of Dr. Eric Lyon. Prior to this he graduated from Waterford Institute of Technology, receiving first class honours, where he majored in creative music technology and composition under Mark Graham and Dr. Eric Sweeney.

While at WIT he also studied Jazz guitar under Dylan Bible, and has performed in a number of jazz, rock, and electronic groups in addition to giving numerous performances as a solo guitarist and solo electronic artist.

http://simonfay.wordpress.com/
http://soundcloud.com/chubbylittlefatman

ps_

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