ensemble of fifteen laptop-based meta-instruments, began its first season. In this article, the author explores the motivations for starting a laptop orchestra, both in musical and cultural terms, and some of the aesthetic, technical, and compositional issues that face those interested in working with such an ensemble. 1. LAPTOPS AND ORCHESTRAS That the notion of a ‘laptop orchestra ’ is seemingly paradoxical is one of my prime motivations for creating one; the pairing of these two inventions is perhaps obvious only because of its apparent impossibility. One is an almost archaic institution whose continued existence is something of a miracle, the other a technological newcomer that has become commonplace and seems likely to be with us, at least in some form, for

Informed by a proposed theoretical framework for the field of interconnected musical networks (Weinberg 2005), I describe a set of local musical networks that utilise novel gestural controllers for interdependent collaborative performance. The paper begins by contextualising developments in the field of musical networks in correlation with development of technological innovations, leading to the utilisations of gestural controllers in local musical networks. This introduction leads to the definition and categorisation of theoretical and practical approaches for the design of local gestural networks, addressing motivations, social strategies, network architectures, musical content, and control software and hardware. Based on this theoretical framework I describe the evolution of four local musical networks that utilise newly developed gestural controllers, titled ‘Squeezables’, ‘Musical Fireflies’, ‘Beatbugs ’ and ‘Voice Patterns’. The paper discusses the design and development process of these projects and ends with a comparative analysis of the networks and controllers based on conceptual and practical criteria. 1.

This article examines a number of recent Internet- and network-based audio pieces with a focus on their compositional underpinnings, and the effect of the Internet and networks on the creative process. The process is discussed in excerpts from online interviews with the creators, and the technical and aesthetic goals of the pieces are described. The article concludes with a discussion of the author’s own recent experience composing groundloops: for solo percussion and internet—as well as an attempt to find areas of intersection and differentiation among the approaches discussed.

networked music performance, involving video and audio representations, is rapidly growing and presenting new possibilities and opportunities for aesthetic expression. This thesis examines the expanding body of works in telematic music and formulates a critical analysis of the primary aesthetic and technical concerns for music composition and performance. Presence, agency, and interactivity inform telematic music performance, stemming from the transparency or mediation of the network, directly impacting the expressive capabilities of the medium. Practical issues in the problem domain of networked ensemble performance were examined through a series of experimental research sessions, showing that latency affects the perception of interactivity and presence and strongly coerces musical results. Visual representations can be critical for communication at key ensemble moments, regardless of synchrony with other media, yet audio streams remain the primary channel for musical connection and interaction. The multiple composite musical results, different at each location due to network transmission times, leads to a unique reformulation of the notion of “piece, ” creating many valid aesthetic experiences from a single, distributed production. ii To Meagan and Rowan.