An algorave (from an
algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm () is a finite sequence of rigorous instructions, typically used to solve a class of specific problems or to perform a computation. Algorithms are used as specifications for performing ...
and
rave) is an event where people dance to music generated from algorithms, often using
live coding
Live coding, sometimes referred to as on-the-fly programming,Wang G. & Cook P. (2004"On-the-fly Programming: Using Code as an Expressive Musical Instrument" In ''Proceedings of the 2004 International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expr ...
techniques.
Alex McLean
Alex McLean (born 1975) is a British musician and researcher. He is notable for his key role in developing live coding as a musical practice,
including for creating TidalCycles, a live-coding environment that allows programmer musicians ...
of
Slub and
Nick Collins coined the word "algorave" in 2011, and the first event under such a name was organised in London, UK. It has since become a movement, with algoraves taking place around the world.
Description
Algoraves can include a range of styles, including a complex form of minimal techno, and the movement has been described as a meeting point of hacker philosophy, geek culture, and clubbing.
Although live coding is commonplace, any algorithmic music is welcome which is "wholly or predominantly characterised by the emission of a succession of repetitive conditionals", which is a corruption of the definition of rave music (“wholly or predominantly characterised by the emission of a succession of repetitive beats”) in the UK's
Criminal Justice Act. Although algorave musicians have been compared with DJs, they are in fact live musicians or improvisers, creating music live, usually by writing or modifying code, rather than mixing recorded music.
At an algorave the computer musician may not be the main point of focus for the audience and instead attention may be centered on a screen that displays live coding, that is the process of writing source code, so the audience can not just dance or listen to the music generated by the source code but also to see the process of programming.
History
Algorithmic approaches have long been applied in electronic dance music from the 1970s when
Brian Eno established randomised musical practises which evolved into
generative music
Generative music is a term popularized by Brian Eno to describe music that is ever-different and changing, and that is created by a system.
Historical background
In 1995 whilst working with SSEYO's Koan software (built by Tim Cole and Pete Col ...
over the course of his long career. This, in turn, influenced
rave culture
A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mu ...
and
techno
Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...
of the 1990s by
Farmers Manual,
Autechre
Autechre () is an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both from Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are among the best known acts signed to UK electronic label Warp Records, through which all of Au ...
, and
Aphex Twin. The ''
Anti EP'' was an explicit response to the
Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994
The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (c.33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It introduced a number of changes to the law, most notably in the restriction and reduction of existing rights, clamping down on unlicensed r ...
- specifically the track "Flutter" as a means of creating "non-repetitive beats" at raves which had been outlawed by the wording of the Act. The
snare rush famously featured on the ''
Girl/Boy EP'' of 1996 is an earlier form of digital algorithmic coding and featured in
drum and bass influenced electronic music of the early to mid 1990s, this approach later evolving into
glitch
A glitch is a short-lived fault in a system, such as a transient fault that corrects itself, making it difficult to troubleshoot. The term is particularly common in the computing and electronics industries, in circuit bending, as well as among ...
music. Traditional use of algorithms include
Maypole dancing, where they are applied to the dance itself as a form of
Algorithmic Choreography and
bell-ringing. The first self-proclaimed "algorave" was held in London as a warmup concert for the
SuperCollider Symposium 2012. However, the name was first coined in 2011, after live coders
Nick Collins and
Alex McLean
Alex McLean (born 1975) is a British musician and researcher. He is notable for his key role in developing live coding as a musical practice,
including for creating TidalCycles, a live-coding environment that allows programmer musicians ...
tuned into a
happy hardcore
Happy hardcore, also known as 4-beat or happycore, is a subgenre of hardcore dance music or " hard dance". It emerged both from the UK breakbeat hardcore rave scene, and Belgian, German and Dutch hardcore techno scenes in the early 1990 ...
pirate radio station on the way to a performance in the UK.
Since then, algorave has been growing into an international movement, with algoraves having been held mainly in Europe and Asia; and few events in Australia and
North America.
Community
Algorave can also be considered an international music movement with a community of electronic musicians, visual artists and developing technologies. See
the Algorave category page.
References
External links
*
Algorave.com
{{Music festivals
Live coding
Experimental music
Live music
Digital art
Computer programming
Computer music
Rave
Electronic dance music
Digital artworks