Mapper4Live

Using Control Structures to Embed Complex Mapping Tools into Ableton Live

This paper presents Mapper4Live, a software plugin made for the popular digital audio workstation software Ableton Live. Mapper4Live exposes Ableton’s synthesis and effect parameters on the distributed libmapper signal mapping network, providing new opportunities for interaction between software and hardware synths, audio effects, and controllers. The plugin’s uses and relevance in research, music production and musical performance settings are explored, detailing the development journey and ideas for future work on the project.

Boettcher, B., Malloch, J., Wang, J., & Wanderley, M. M. (2021). Mapper4Live: Using Control Structures to Embed Complex Mapping Tools into Ableton Live. NIME 2022. https://doi.org/10.21428/92fbeb44.625fbdbf

T-Stick Concert Videos

The Input Devices and Music Interaction Lab has uploaded videos from a concert held in February 2020, in which participating composers from the CIRMMT T-Stick Music Creation Workshop presented their new works. The videos linked below show some of their amazing variety, including installation-like pieces in which the T-Stick is fixed to a stand, works for dancers, laptop ensembles, and interactive visuals.

New videos from Ex)Situ

Ex)Situ recently released four short videos presenting projects related to gesture based interaction on mobile phones. Two of the videos—Fieldward and Expressive Keyboard—are related to research I pursued while working there as a postdoc:

Concerto for T-Stick and Two Laptop Orchestras

Here’s a video from way back in 2011 that I only recently noticed on YouTube. It features D. Andrew Stewart playing the T-Stick as instrumental soloist with laptop orchestras from Concordia and McMaster Universities.

The piece was co-composed by Eldad Tsabary (director of the Concordia Laptop Orchestra, CLOrk), D. Andrew Stewart (T-Stick) and David Ogborn (founder of McMaster University’s Cybernetic Orchestra).

Interestingly, there are also a couple of videos online in which composer Kevin Austin presents the video and discusses the piece.

fMRI-compatible musical instruments

My good friend and colleague Avrum Hollinger created some amazing fMRI-compatible musical instruments while working in the Input Devices and Music Interaction Lab at McGill University. They recently released a video explaining parts of the project and featuring a few of his creations: