A Model for Orientally Applied Digital Music Technology

Joel Kivelä

University of Jyväskylä

Department of Mathematical Information Technology

Personal Background

● Advanced Music Theory ● Eastern Ethnomusicology ● Musical Instrument Development● Music Software Development● (~10 years of work experience with music

and musicians)

Research Background● Currently widely used data protocol (MIDI)

between digital music software and hardware supports only western twelve-tone equal temperament tuning system and thus is unable to present/handle any other tuning systems.

● Alternative protocols to replace MIDI (1983) should be developed in order to implement any other musical system by digital means.

Research Question● What kind of (an abstract) model is needed to

develop and what aspects are needed to study in depth for a protocol or a part of a protocol that implements popular alternative tuning systems as a fundamental feature ?

● Synthetic analysis of tuning systems, MIDI protocol and the requirements of technical features with a study of alive protocol platforms.

Work Structure, so far● Introduction ● Tuning systems in general (music theory

part)● MIDI (history, specifications, use)● Alt. systems and MIDI (proving stuff)● Model requirements analysis● Analysis of on-going protocol projects and

possible platforms for the model● Conclusions

MIDI & Western System

Some idea of Alt. tuning systems

i.e. South-indian melakarta system

i.e. Chinese music system

About MIDI

● Standardized in 1983, and no changes made since.

● Virtually all modern hardware and software are based on MIDI protocol by their data communication.

Open Sound Control (OSC)

● Currently most active project developing an alternative protocol.

● Network based system● Symbolic data● Already supported by many software and

some hardware

● Also a new “MIDI” protocol HD-Midi is said to be under development (NAMM 2013)

Something weird & interesting

Reference Material

● Lots of music science papers (too many?)● Computer science papers about musical

interface design theory (Pennycoock, Hoadley, Obrenovic, etc..)

● OSC specification research papers (Freed & Schmeder)

and few technical textbooks: ● Introduction to Music Technology (Hosken)● Electronic & Computer Music (Manning)

Thanks

For the interested:

● Microtonal wiki at http://xenharmonic.wikispaces.com/

● OSC protocol project at http://opensoundcontrol.org