AEC FORUM - "FLESHFACTOR"
(http://www.aec.at/fleshfactor/arch/)

I would like to add another point to Jean Piche's "Computers, Slavery
and Making Art." But first, as a fellow artist/musican that has been
using computers to compose music for the last 14 years, I would
wholeheartedly agree that the music itself has changed little due to
changes in technology. A good example is the last David Bowie album.
The production is very "techno" sounding and relies heavily on both
analog and digital technology. I caught David on TV one night and saw
him perform a song off his new album with only his voice, his acoustic
guitar and a second acoustic guitar accompanist. The song could have
easily been off his 2nd or 3rd albums. His music hadn't changed, only
the production had.

The change that has taken place is in an individual's ability to
actualize his or her vision without the intervention of other humans.
Earlier this evening I was talking to some friends regarding the make up
of an experimental ambient music project I am part of. I am actually
the only "core" member (not counting the mountain of gear/slaves that I
drag around to each show) of our group. Most of the other members vary
from show to show and the line up is rarely the same. The only control
I retain is that I pick the individuals that I play with. Other than
that, each person has free reign to contribute as they see fit.
Sometimes, however, I chose not to play with anyone at all and maintain
total control of the output. I was criticized as being a control
freak/ego maniac. "No," I countered, "I just have a vision that I
would like to get across without any interference. It may or may not be
a good one, but it's mine." It is with the slaves I call my "gear" that
I am able to do this with relative ease. No one calls a painter a
control freak for not collaborating with other artists when doing a
painting. Why should musicians be the same now that the technology
exists to give the musician total control?

Meta-Creations' Painter 5.0 allows an image to be worked on ("painted")
by multiple artists at the same time via a network. The computers can
facilitate both collaboration between humans through communication
networks and the actualization of unadulterated works by acting as non-
complaining "slaves." I really like that my computer is my slave. I
can't get my cat to stop scratching my furniture, much less help me
compose music. I have both a cat and a computer, for obviously
different reasons. (my cat is into Einsturzende Neubauten and the
Boredoms, by the way…)

[…]

My computer seems to respond to me quite nicely. […] It constantly
scans its keyboard and mouse for my every tap and responds accordingly.
If I choose, it can even understand a few rudimentary phrases of
English, like "Computer, what time is it?" It often misunderstands me,
but it always tries. (things are improving in this respect) When I
tell it to be a 16-track audio recorder, it does. When I tell it to
capture some video and play it backwards, it does. When I tell it to get
in touch with my pals, it does. If it suggested that I might want to
write a short story, instead of collaging some images together, I'd
smack it. I've already got professors and employers for that kind of
thing. I like the relationship I have with my computer.

I am its god.