This new collection of papers covering all aspects of modern music and
the technology and culture of its production seeks to combine the best
of sonic theory with the actual concerns of the sonic domain, and to be
of interest to practicing musicians, technical innovators and other
hedonists as well as those versed in contemporary theory.

CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS

-BOOK PROPOSAL-

*Sonic Frontiers* an edited collection of papers exploring all aspects
of modern music

Music is a field of pre-linguistic meaning that refuses categorisation
and interpretation. Sonic Frontiers aims to open the sonic domain to
critical enquiry, but in such a way that its semiotic pool (Andrew
Blake, this volume) may be increased without pinning it down to the
dialectics of sense. To this end the papers selected are not intended to
give a totalised, authoritative account of the edifice of modern music,
but instead to trace some of the frontiers that animate it and take it
away from itself.

Sonic Frontiers will reflect the diverse range of interests and
influences of the recent FUTUREsonic conference, with sections on
technologies of sound, cultures of music and dance, and new musical
horizons. Contributions are invited from both theorists and
practitioners, and should be roughly 6000 words long. They may be
complimented by tracks and musical excerpts which, licensing allowing,
will be included on an accompanying CD.

*technologies of sound*

With the rise of electronic music and digital editing techniques,
technology has attained unprecedented influence and visibility. The
evolving relationship between artist and technology, and between art and
technique is to be examined, and the significance and potential of
contemporary technologies assessed. Particular interests are the
human-machine interface, the supersession of instrumental parameters,
the decomposition of the sound object, and the convergence of media.

*cultures of music and dance*

Music impacts upon culture and upon the body in numerous ways.
Throughout history it has played roles as diverse as the simulacrum of
order, the soundtrack to everyday life, a medium of avant-garde
expression, and a cultural weapon in the service of marginality. The
functionality of music will be explored in terms of its shifting
cultural impact and theoretical significance. The dynamics of acoustic
space, modes of sonic engagement, and environments of musical reception
are topics to be considered.

*horizons in sound*

Musical perception has evolved with changes in both culture and
technology. And just as our understanding of music has changed, so have
the demands we place upon it. In an age when notions of progression and
development have been problematised by non-Western sensibilities, and
when the experimentation of the avant-garde is often supplanted by the
pragmatics of the dancefloor, the question arises, what are music's
frontiers today?

Abstracts should be roughly 200 words in length and sent to the address
below by 21st November 1996

FUTUREsonic Productions, 16 West St, Lancaster, LA1 4UJ
++44 (0)1524 382292
email: fsonic@lancaster.ac.uk