lcoogan
/
sound-hacking
1
0
Fork 0
Code Issues Pull Requests Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity

progress

Browse Source
master
Leo Coogan 7 months ago
parent c3321c92c9
commit cf39505b79
4 changed files with 11 additions and 82 deletions
Show Stats Download Patch File Download Diff File

3
01-preface.mom
Unescape Escape View File

@ -12,5 +12,6 @@ This book aims to give intermediate electronic music producers advice on how to
If I end up working professionally in sound design — not just for electronic music, but for film, animation, or games — this book could eventually expand to explore how sound design functions across those mediums. In IDM, sound design is the foreground; it carries the structure and invites deep, focused listening. In film and animation, sound design supports another medium — it sets the mood, enhances the world, and reinforces narrative without drawing too much attention to itself. The techniques often overlap, but the intent shifts: where IDM prioritizes sonic innovation for its own sake, film sound must serve timing, emotion, and story. In both cases, though, sound design is applied sound art — and understanding how to shape, place, and transform sound remains a core compositional skill. If I end up working professionally in sound design — not just for electronic music, but for film, animation, or games — this book could eventually expand to explore how sound design functions across those mediums. In IDM, sound design is the foreground; it carries the structure and invites deep, focused listening. In film and animation, sound design supports another medium — it sets the mood, enhances the world, and reinforces narrative without drawing too much attention to itself. The techniques often overlap, but the intent shifts: where IDM prioritizes sonic innovation for its own sake, film sound must serve timing, emotion, and story. In both cases, though, sound design is applied sound art — and understanding how to shape, place, and transform sound remains a core compositional skill.
.PP .PP
I used to wish I didn’t take so long to compose. But I’ve come to realize the reason it takes so long is because I’m constantly experimenting — and that’s not a flaw in the process, it is the process. Each piece is built through trial and discovery. I’m not just composing, I’m conducting research. This book is a map of that ongoing research: a record of the tools I’ve tested, the techniques I’ve uncovered, and the paths that led somewhere unexpected. I used to wish I didn’t take so long to compose. But I’ve come to realize the reason it takes so long is because I’m constantly experimenting — and that’s not a flaw in the process, it is the process. Each piece is built through trial and discovery. I’m not just composing, I’m conducting research. This book is a map of that ongoing research: a record of the tools I’ve tested, the techniques I’ve uncovered, and the paths that led somewhere unexpected.
\" maybe provide a paragraph overview of all the different sections before getting into micro sounds? It might help people to consider how the different processes work together to create the whole composition before they start navigating the details of one. \" Dad: maybe provide a paragraph overview of all the different sections before getting into micro sounds? It might help people to consider how the different processes work together to create the whole composition before they start navigating the details of one.
\" Me: yes, once I've written the chapters, that'd be a good idea.
.COLLATE .COLLATE

11
02-microsound.mom
Unescape Escape View File

@ -2,18 +2,15 @@
.CHAPTER_TITLE "Microsound" .CHAPTER_TITLE "Microsound"
.HEADING 1 Microsound .HEADING 1 Microsound
.BLOCKQUOTE
Granular synthesis is based on the idea that a steady-state waveform with its time-invariant spectrum, although mathematically convenient, is a physical impossibility because a waveform cannot exist for all time. It stems from a theory of acoustical quanta postulated by Gabor, which recognizes that aural perception is performed in the time and frequency domains simutaneously. In this technique, the fundamental compositional elements that are used to to weave the sound are /grains/: small bursts of energy encased in an envelope. This term is attributed to I. Xenakis who detailed an extensive theory of grain selection.
.RIGHT
\[em] Charles Dodge, /Computer Music/
.BLOCKQUOTE END
.PP .PP
test With conventional sound synthesis methods such as subtractive or FM synthesis, sound is rendered as a periodic waveform, running invariantly for all time. With granular synthesis, sound is composed by particles of sound called grains—10–50 ms bursts of sound (encased in an envelope to avoid clicking). This is a broad category of a variety of synthesis methods, also known as particle synthesis.
.[ .[
dodge dodge
.] .]
.PP
When I first started exploring the varieties of particle synthesis (microsound), I quickly realized that although many synthesis methods—like wavesets—are well-documented in theory, there’s often a big gap between reading about them and actually getting useful results. Wavesets, in particular, are kind of obscure because they demand more than just knowing the technique: you need to experiment with how you choose your source material, how you cluster segments (like k-set clustering), and how you apply the method creatively.
\" Synchronous vs asynchoronous production mode \" Synchronous vs asynchoronous production mode
\" 5 to 50 ms \" 5 to 50 ms
.COLLATE .COLLATE

5
05-alternative_tunings.mom
Unescape Escape View File

@ -4,5 +4,10 @@
\" how tuning affects timbre \" how tuning affects timbre
\"I'll start by listing which tunings I like and what they're like and what they're good for in the context of IDM, and then I'll expand on how they work and how complex they get -- keeping it artistically minded, not super mathy. \"I'll start by listing which tunings I like and what they're like and what they're good for in the context of IDM, and then I'll expand on how they work and how complex they get -- keeping it artistically minded, not super mathy.
.LIST
Regular Temperaments
.ITEM
22 TET Porcupine[7] 3 3 3 4 3 3 3
.LISTEND
.COLLATE .COLLATE

74
old/idm.mom
Unescape Escape View File

@ -1,74 +0,0 @@
.\" Use groff -Kutf8 -mom -Tpdf 01-intro.mom > out.pdf
\" Senior thesis for VCUarts major in Kinetic Imaging with a minor in Sound Design
\" Please write a forward, RDJ!
.mom
.AUTHOR "Leonard Francis Coogan"
.TITLE "Sound Hacking: Composing Braindance / IDM"
.PRINTSTYLE TYPESET
.papersize letter
.DOCTYPE DEFAULT
.START
.COVER TITLE AUTHOR COPYRIGHT
.COLLATE
.START
.CHAPTER 1
.CHAPTER_TITLE "Preface"
.HEADING 1 "Preface"
.PP
To me, I think of IDM not as a style, but an approach to electronic music that presents experimental sound design and compositional techniques in the context of techno. This book frames sound synthesis methods and alternative tunings in the context of IDM in order to make these concepts practical and applicable for intermediate electronic music composers
.PP
Access to music technology is universal for anyone with a computer, but education isn’t. To write this book, I conducted endless experiments in SuperCollider and studied computer music textbooks to discover what’s useful. Through experimentation, I found that certain tools suit certain purposes — but if one piece of intellectual advice is missing, the results can be boring or hideous.
.PP
This book aims to give intermediate electronic music producers advice on how to think more critically about their sound design choices. For true beginners without any music or technology background, this book might be too advanced — you might benefit more from starting with foundational music theory, especially if you struggle to create melodic or harmonic content. Although IDM compositions tend to be simple theory-wise, they're still strong compositions. You need a stable structural base to build the complex sound design.
.PP
If I end up working professionally in sound design — not just for electronic music, but for film, animation, or games — this book could eventually expand to explore how sound design functions across those mediums. In IDM, sound design is the foreground; it carries the structure and invites deep, focused listening. In film and animation, sound design supports another medium — it sets the mood, enhances the world, and reinforces narrative without drawing too much attention to itself. The techniques often overlap, but the intent shifts: where IDM prioritizes sonic innovation for its own sake, film sound must serve timing, emotion, and story. In both cases, though, sound design is applied sound art — and understanding how to shape, place, and transform sound remains a core compositional skill.
.PP
I used to wish I didn’t take so long to compose. But I’ve come to realize the reason it takes so long is because I’m constantly experimenting — and that’s not a flaw in the process, it is the process. Each piece is built through trial and discovery. I’m not just composing, I’m conducting research. This book is a map of that ongoing research: a record of the tools I’ve tested, the techniques I’ve uncovered, and the paths that led somewhere unexpected.
.COLLATE
.START
.TOC
.COLLATE
.START
.CHAPTER 2
.CHAPTER_TITLE "Microsound"
.HEADING 1 Microsound
.BLOCKQUOTE
Granular synthesis is based on the idea that a steady-state waveform with its time-invariant spectrum, although mathematically convenient, is a physical impossibility because a waveform cannot exist for all time. It stems from a theory of acoustical quanta postulated by Gabor, which recognizes that aural perception is performed in the time and frequency domains simutaneously. In this technique, the fundamental compositional elements that are used to to weave the sound are /grains/: small bursts of energy encased in an envelope. This term is attributed to I. Xenakis who detailed an extensive theory of grain selection.
.RIGHT
\[em] Charles Dodge, /Computer Music/
.BLOCKQUOTE END
\" Synchronous vs asynchoronous production mode
\" 5 to 50 ms
.COLLATE
.START
.CHAPTER 3
.CHAPTER_TITLE "Convolution"
.HEADING 1 Convolution
\" what convolution is, and which impulse responses produce interesting results, how to avoid feedback on them, unorthodox uses of them.
.COLLATE
.START
.CHAPTER 3
.CHAPTER_TITLE "Phase Vocoding"
.HEADING 1 Phase Vocoding
.COLLATE
.START
.CHAPTER 4
.CHAPTER_TITLE "Alternative Tunings"
.HEADING 1 Alternative Tunings
\" how tuning affects timbre
\"I'll start by listing which tunings I like and what they're like and what they're good for in the context of IDM, and then I'll expand on how they work and how complex they get -- keeping it artistically minded, not super mathy.
.COLLATE
Write Preview
Loading…
Cancel
Save