Pragmatic Considerations in Mixed Music: a Case Study of La Rage

With access to powerful real-time DSP languages now easier than ever, the new generation of mixed music composers are able to manage both sides of the coin: they have the programming skills and the compositional concerns that were traditionally the responsibility of two different persons. This brings more and more sophisticated integration of technical resources and compositional gestures. A good example of such integration is the author’s piece La Rage. In the light of general comments on the seamless integration of technology in this piece, the author, by discussing how compositional and technical concerns interact in his process of creation, tries to pinpoint key considerations that help him achieve this. He proposes two major categories, portability and adaptability, and explains how they were addressed in this specific work.