Composing spaces - spatialised performance of CODEX XIII

BACKGROUND Composing Spaces, an international series of invited lectures and performances explored spatial music from Gabrieli (d. 1612) to the 21st century. Kees Tazelaar, director of The Institute of Sonology, Royal Conservatoire, The Hague, curated this prestigious series. Invited electroacoustic music studios were INA-GRM, Paris, TU, Berlin, and SIAL Sound Studios, RMIT University. Harvey was invited to lecture and present a new collaborative performance. CONTRIBUTION The lecture/performance presented research from the recently completed LP0882872 with Elision Ensemble, Australia's premier international contemporary music ensemble. The lecture highlighted current innovative techniques and software developed for spatialisation of a large-scale ensemble and its implementation in a performance of Construction (by highly regarded UK composer and improviser, Richard Barrett), a two-hour work for 23 performers and three-dimensional sound system premiered by Elision in 2011. The associated Hague performance - with spatialisation directed by Harvey - was of a new work, Codex XIII, in conjunction with Barrett. SIGNIFICANCE Harvey's ongoing, original research continues to push boundaries by investigating ways to apply geometrical data to advanced contemporary music techniques. The Hague performance of Codex XIII enabled the new, creative approach developed for the 2011 performance of Construction to be extended to spatialise a smaller group. The additional innovations included: a technique to design and refine complex sound paths in a venue when limited rehearsal time is available (this technique combines 3D trajectory design software, OM Prisma, with SIAL Sound Studios Max/MSP spatial diffusion software); and a performance technique using three technical operators to manage the large number of audio and signal paths required to spatialise an ensemble performance. The acclaimed presentation and performance was a public event.