Zero 'n' One. Composing in the digital age

Concerts, composer lectures, performances, talks, discussions

Running time		September 15-18, 2010
Venue		Akademie der Künste, Hanseatenweg 10, 10557 Berlin, Germany, Phone +49 (0)30 200 57-2000, info@adk.de
Admission		Day-time program: free entry, evening program 12/6 Euro, festival ticket 30/15 Euro

What happens when we transform music into zeros and ones? The computer has long been an essential tool in the creation and enjoyment of music. From the arrangement of sounds to new forms of presentation and reception, binary code has fundamentally changed the very processes used by the world of music. Zero 'n' One is an inquiry into the consequences and opportunities caused by this digital turn. How are composers and musicians reacting to these new technologies? How “musical” is the computer? And how do device and software producers influence the imagination of composers?

This four-day festival, staged by the Akademie der Künste in partnership with its own electro-acoustic studio and the ZKM | Institut für Musik und Akustik, undertakes a survey of the multi-facetted landscapes of digitally-assisted musical creation. Pioneers of computer music such as Johannes Goebel as well as various fascinating representatives of new and brand-new developments, including Michel van der Aa, Ludger Brümmer, Robert Henke (Monolake), Hanspeter Kyburz, Enno Poppe, Hans Tutschku and Jan St. Werner (Mouse on Mars) will be introducing the public to their work during composer lectures, concerts, panel discussions and performances.

These concerts and performances at the interface between electronics, music, dance and video will highlight the various aspects of a digital aesthetic within the context of composed and experimental music. The musical robots of the OMax Project will be performing ‘out-of-competition’ and promising an appreciable level of enjoyment.

A project of the Akademie der Künste and the electro-acoustic studio of the Akademie der Künste in partnership with the ZKM I Institut für Musik und Akustik, Karlsruhe