Computer Science and ... Music!

Taught By:

This one-quarter program will address the fields of computer music, and digital signal processing. We will be using the language "Python," which will be used for sound synthesis and music composition.

The function of the computer in the creation of music has been widespread since the 1980s. Computer synthesis programs have been commercially available since the 1990s. However, the underlying scientific principles have remained the same since the early 1950s, when the first occurrences of digitally generated sound and computer assisted music composition were made.

In our class, we will study these underlying principles, including some of the mathematics of digital signal processing and acoustics.

We'll be exploring three areas:

Computer synthesized music
Digital signal processing
Aesthetics and the History of Electro-Acoustic Music

Python was created in the early 1990s. It survives today in a freely available form, and is capable of addressing many programming paradigms, such as structured programming, object-oriented, and functional programming.

In learning Python, we'll also be studying the basics of Digital Signal Processing (DSP). This involves learning the mathematics behind the building of simple waveforms, learning the fundamentals of frequency and amplitude modulation, mixing, digital filters, and reverberation.

In general, the mornings will consist of lectures on synthesis and digital signal processing, and the afternoons will be workshops in Python. Students will be asked to turn in two labs a week from the Python workshops, and there will be three group projects over the quarter dealing with DSP and sound synthesis.

To successfully participate in this program, students will need access to a desktop or laptop computer with a modern web browser. Access to good quality speakers is very important (unfortunately, headphones and computer speakers do not transmit low frequencies very well.)

This program is coordinated with Greener Foundations for first-year students. Greener Foundations is Evergreen’s in-person 2-quarter introductory student success course sequence, which provides first-year students with the skills and knowledge they need to thrive at Evergreen. Students expected to take Greener Foundations will be prompted to register for a 2-credit Greener Foundations course in addition to this 14-credit program during registration. Students will be prompted to register for Greener Foundations with their new winter program to complete the 4-credits of Greener Foundations.

Fall Anticipated Credit Equivalencies: