Zones of Influence

David Rosenboom (b.1947) is considered a pioneer in American experimental music. This release of his Zones of Influence (1984-85) documents for the first time the complete version of a major composition for percussion and computer/electronics that introduced new virtuoso performance techniques along with significant developments in real-time algorithmic composition and advanced interactive linking of percussion instruments with software. Few solo percussion works exist with the scope of this composition. Though the work has been performed extensively, it has never been fully recorded for public release until now. Zones of Influence (a 2 CD set) is a five-part cycle of works for in which the percussionist's performance is processed and transformed in a special way. This way involves not just transforming the percussion instruments' sounds on an acoustic level, but processing based on information contained in complex patternings manifested in the percussionist's performance. This constitutes real-time algorithmic processing or algorithmic composition driven by the musical structure of what the percussionist plays. For its time, Zones of Influence introduced historically innovative approaches to how real-time compositional algorithms may be considered as key components of a score. It also introduced a technique for making sequences of continuously evolving variations on musical materials, called morphological transformations . These transformations, in turn, outlined musical trajectories in what qualities; and from a system of multi-part counterpoint made with these trajectories , the musical materials of Zones of Influence emerged. Indeed, all the musical materials for Zones of Influence were generated with these tools, starting with the musical features contained in two long, 60-note, melodies, which were freely composed in advance. Each of the five works in this set involves entirely different percussion setups, written scores and computer algorithms. Since the piece was composed before the proliferation of MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface), special interface electronics were constructed to connect the percussion instruments to a computer assisted digital instrument known as the Touché . This innovative, computer instrument was collaboratively designed by Donald Buchla and David Rosenboom in Berkeley, Ca, in 1979-1980. Zones of Influence was written for percussionist, William Winant and the Touché.