Jean-Claude Raoul Olivier Risset (; 13 March 1938 – 21 November 2016) was a French composer, best known for his pioneering contributions to

computer music Computer music is the application of computing technology in music composition, to help human composers create new music or to have computers independently create music, such as with algorithmic composition programs. It includes the theory and ...

. He was a former student of

André Jolivet André Jolivet (; 8 August 1905 – 20 December 1974) was a French composer. Known for his devotion to French culture and musical thought, Jolivet drew on his interest in acoustics and atonality, as well as both ancient and modern musical influe ...

and former co-worker of

Max Mathews Max Vernon Mathews (November 13, 1926 in Columbus, Nebraska, USA – April 21, 2011 in San Francisco, CA, USA) was a pioneer of computer music. Biography Mathews studied electrical engineering at the California Institute of Technology and the Ma ...

at Bell Labs.

Biography

Risset was born in

Le Puy-en-Velay Le Puy-en-Velay (, literally ''Le Puy in Velay''; oc, Lo Puèi de Velai ) is the prefecture of the Haute-Loire department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of south-central France. Located near the river Loire, the city is famous for its c ...

, France. Arriving at

Bell Labs Nokia Bell Labs, originally named Bell Telephone Laboratories (1925–1984), then AT&T Bell Laboratories (1984–1996) and Bell Labs Innovations (1996–2007), is an American industrial Research and development, research and scientific developm ...

, New Jersey in 1964, he used Max Mathews' MUSIC IV software to digitally recreate the sounds of brass instruments. He made digital recordings of trumpets and studied their timbral composition using "pitch-synchronous" spectrum analysis tools, revealing that the amplitude and frequency of the harmonics (more correctly, partials) of these instruments would differ depending on frequency, duration and amplitude. He is also credited with performing the first experiments on a range of synthesis techniques including

FM synthesis Frequency modulation synthesis (or FM synthesis) is a form of sound synthesis whereby the frequency of a waveform is changed by modulating its frequency with a modulator. The frequency of an oscillator is altered "in accordance with the amplitud ...

and waveshaping. After the discrete Shepard scale Risset created a version of the scale where the steps between each tone are continuous, and it is appropriately called the continuous Risset scale or Shepard-Risset glissando. Risset also created a similar effect with

rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular re ...

in which

tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...

seems to increase or decrease endlessly. Risset was the head of the Computer Department at

IRCAM IRCAM (French: ''Ircam, '', English: Institute for Research and Coordination in Acoustics/Music) is a French institute dedicated to the research of music and sound, especially in the fields of avant garde and electro-acoustical art music. It is ...

(1975–1979). At

MIT Media Lab The MIT Media Lab is a research laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, growing out of MIT's Architecture Machine Group in the School of Architecture. Its research does not restrict to fixed academic disciplines, but draws from ...

s, he composed the first Duet for one pianist (1989). For his work in computer music and his 70 compositions, he received the first Golden Nica ( Ars Electronica Prize, 1987), the Giga-Hertz Grand Prize 2009, and the highest French awards in both music (Grand Prix National de la Musique, 1990) and science (Gold Medal, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1999). and in art (René Dumesnil Prize from the French Academy of Fine Arts, 2011). Risset died in

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

on 21 November 2016.

Selected works

Vocal music *Dérives, for choir and magnetic tape (1985) 15' *Inharmonique, for soprano and tape (1977) 15' Orchestral music *Escalas, for large orchestra (2001) 17' *Mirages, for 16 musicians and tape (1978) 24' Chamber music *Profils, for 7 instruments and tape (1983) 18' *Mutations II for ensemble and electronics (1973) 17' Solo music *Trois études en duo, for pianist (bidirectional MIDI piano with computer interaction) (1991) 10' *Huit esquisses en duo, for pianist (bidirectional MIDI piano with computer interaction) (1989) 17' *Voilements, for saxophone and tape (1987) 14' *Passages for flute and tape (1982) 14' *Variants for violin and digital processing (1995) 8' Music for solo tape *Invisible Irène (1995) 12' *Sud (1985) 24' *Songes (1979) 10' *Trois mouvements newtoniens, for tape (1978) 13' *Mutations (1969) 10' *Computer Suite from Little Boy (1968) 13'

References

External links

Jean Claude Risset, Ressources.IRCAM
{{DEFAULTSORT:Risset, Jean-Claude 1938 births 2016 deaths École Normale Supérieure alumni 20th-century classical composers French classical composers French male classical composers 21st-century classical composers French electronic musicians Electroacoustic music composers People from Le Puy-en-Velay 20th-century French composers 21st-century French composers 20th-century French male musicians 21st-century French male musicians

Biography

Selected works

References

Further reading

External links