IRCAM
IRCAM is the abbreviation for the Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique / Musique ( German: Research Institute of Acoustics / Music ). It is located in the Centre Pompidou in Paris.
The tasks of the IRCAM has the composer Pierre Boulez, who was instrumental in the creation, as outlined: "We know by now that I am following the plan to establish a research institute in Paris, not only for the electro-acoustic and electronic, but for research in all areas related to the field of music and acoustics. " ( Boulez 1977, p 125)
History
The history of the Institute is closely interwoven with that of the Centre Pompidou, that was planned as a comprehensive arts and cultural center and realized opened on 31 January 1977. 1978, the Espace de projection, an experimental hall with an area of 375 square meters and variable acoustic properties dedicated. In 1992, Pierre Boulez Honorary Chairman of the IRCAM.
Statutes
The starting point of Boulez's considerations was the criticism of the existing, its conviction that in electronic music to date ( commercial or especially under the compulsion of usability ) single Procedures ( " Bastelein " ) found more random than had been specifically researched:
"But these studies were isolated, as did the researches of broadcasters in general. Generally this research were always operated in institutions that were not created for it. Broadcasters saw it as a matter of prestige to have electronic music studio where possible. But as soon as the television showed voracious, these small studios came completely sidelined. In other studios turn one institution is a university, a phone company or another company in the electrical industry dependent, so that also do this for reasons of prestige and their energy is not unrestricted use in this research: .. they remain alibis, hobbies, pastimes It therefore seemed necessary to me to be no longer dependent on institutions that have different points of view, different management principles and other exposures - even to society you need an institution that is exclusively engaged in this research, and is able to make the link between the other institutions, all of their resources focused on a well- defined objective between the studios in universities, companies and broadcasters, and. " ( Boulez 1977, p 127f. )
This result for the IRCAM following statutes:
- The theoretical reflection on the compositional possibilities of electroacoustic material is important.
- The totality of all procedures is to systematically explore.
- Neighboring disciplines such as linguistics, information theory, communication studies and musical analysis must be included in the considerations.
- The research can be carried out by all research teams ( from composers, technicians and scientists ) as a collective activity where the volume of research activity, while the composition of individual plants or realizations continues to be an individual creative process.
- The new use of traditional means (eg, in instrument ) must be promoted and included in the considerations.
- The research should be carried out in financial and institutional independence.
- The IRCAM also takes on the task of coordinating research interests of other institutions.
Importance
In addition to the Cologne electronic music studio IRCAM is one of the world's leading institutions in the field of research into electronic music. The following composers have already worked at IRCAM: Hanspeter Kyburz, Barry Anderson, Clarence Barlow, Francois Bayle, George Benjamin, Pierre Boulez, Marc -André Dalbavie, Jean -Pierre Derrien, Karlheinz Essl, Andrew Gerszo, Vinko Globokar, Georg Friedrich Haas, Arnulf Herrmann, York Höller, Werner Jauk, Thierry Lancino, Michaël Levinas, Tod Machover, Philippe Manoury, Isabel Mundry, Olga Neuwirth, Ichiro Nodaira, Michael Obst, Jean -Claude Risset, Kaija Saariaho, Émilie Simon, Morton Subotnick, Marco Stroppa, Karlheinz Stockhausen, courtship Trümpy, Alejandro Vinao, David Wessel and Trevor Wishart.