Quote:
Originally Posted by TheBig3
This is a computer we're talking about. It needs a base unit of measurement.
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Raw frequency, there is not reason why music cannot be 100% atonal.
In the end, the differences between the pitches playing means worlds more than the pitches themselves. Instruments being nothing but signal senders you might as well just be able to set a minimum, and maximum frequency per interface.
Then, you have to sort of decide the interface. Obviously with a keyed, or button based interface you'd have to set up a system of interludes(you could set up a different one for each instrument instantly without tuning). Then again, if you were to utilize a midi interface connected to a series of strings ala a violin like series of strings(each could be a separate interface), you could make the increments practically microscopic, and just use a really thin bow.
You can be even more flexible of you're using coding, or more automated interfaces(which I like a little automated, but it's no fun if there isn't some element of human interface).
Melody and harmony, imo, shouldn't be the realm of mathematics anyway. It should be the realm of listener, and composer intuition. It's how hip-hop operates, and it's what allows hip-hop to reach areas that more strictly constructed music can't always achieve.
All else goes. Obviously if you use heavy electronic effects, you can't achieve perfect harmony anyway, as layers of filters will distort your pitch quite a lot along the way. It's better to use these, and compare them differences yourself, than worrying about being perfectly parallel.
The electronic language should be set up more in the competence of interfaces, and the fullest usage of their potentials, not as much the strict rules the sounds they produce. There's still measures that a composer can be judged in terms of the means he or she utilizes these technologies to gain distinction(which is significantly more difficult seeing as making relatively amazing sounding music is much easier with sample-based digital means than traditional instruments).
As far as notating I'm assuming it'd be something like this:
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Interface A
Texture A : Siren
Texture B : Electronic Wave (3989 3948398 9834983 or some nonsense numbers like that)
Start Frequency: 25678(I have no idea what note this would be, or even if it's listenable).
Over the duration of 2500 milliseconds Texture A fades from 50% to 75%, and Interface A raises to frequency 3745847
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Essentially, just a description of traits of sounds, how they can be achieved, and where they can be transformed over portions of time, roughly. I'm assuming also there will be descriptions of how to 'tune' or 'set' your instrument. They'd have to contain more than raw notes as textural values are equally important as pitches in electronic music. Things like 'slides', 'sustain pedals', 'damper effect', etc. Would also have to be charted to particular knobs, slides, and other interfaces.