Max/MSP/Jitter for Music: A Practical Guide to Developing Interactive Music Systems for Education and More

by V. J. Manzo

Overview

A practical guide for readers of all levels of programming ability, Max/MSP/Jitter for Music teaches all of the necessary skills for writing custom software for musical interaction using the programming language Max/MSP/Jitter. In step-by-step instructions, expert author VJ Manzo guides readers through all of the essential concepts and steps for designing and completing projects.

Manzo's applications are remarkably broad; from complex programs which explore relationships between modes for veteran composers to basic exercise for beginners that helps improve finger dexterity, the range of possibilities this book opens up will impress both new and experienced users of music technologies. With clear, hands-on examples, Manzo teaches readers to write effective, customized software which supplements and complement their instructional and musical objectives. The book also discusses ways to interact with the software beyond the mouse and keyboard through use of camera tracking, pitch tracking, video game controllers, sensors, mobile devices, and more. Chapter review sections remind readers of key commands and important concepts, buildling a solid foundation in understanding Max and its structure, while connecting it to music making and learning concepts.

Extensively illustrated throughout and packed with practical tips, this book will be invaluable for musicians and teachers looking to supplement their lessons with interactive instructional tools, develop adaptive instruments to aid in composition and performance activities, and create measurement tools with which to conduct research.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199777679
Publisher:	Oxford University Press, USA
Publication date:	11/25/2011
Pages:	360
Product dimensions:	8.70(w) x 11.00(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

V.J. Manzo is Director of Music Technology at Montclair State University where he teaches courses in composition and electronic music. He is the author of several open-source interactive music projects including EAMIR and the Modal Object Library. He has guest lectured on music technology, music education, and interactive music systems for education, and has presented compositions and installations at numerous conferences. For more information, visit the author's website at www.vjmanzo.com/cv.

Table of Contents

Foreword by David Elliott Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1: Introduction to Programming Chapter 2: Generating Music Chapter 3: Math and Music Chapter 4: Scales and Chords Chapter 5: Interactive Ear-training Chapter 6: Data Structures Chapter 7: Control Interfaces Chapter 8: Control Interfaces Continued Chapter 9: Tools for Music Theory Concepts Chapter 10: Working with Time Chapter 11: Building Standalone Applications Chapter 12: Working with Audio Chapter 13: Audio Playback and Pitch Tracking Chapter 14: Audio Buffers Chapter 15: Audio Effects and Processing Chapter 16: Working with Live Video Chapter 17: Working with Video Files Chapter 18: Video Research Instrument Chapter 19: Informal Music Learning Instruments Chapter 20: Compositions and Perception Tools Index

Editorial Reviews

"A groundbreaking, step-by-step approach to empowering the creativity of music educators and music students through interactive computer software design." —from the Foreword by David Elliott, Professor of Music and Music Education, New York University

"Max has become a major player in the world of music making and VJ Manzo's book is perfect for those who want to become fluent with the language. And, for the growing legions of music makers who are using clusters of applications for diverse projects, Manzo's clear categorization of Max functionality may well make this book an ongoing standard reference for building specific Max/MSP patches within each cluster." —Morton Subotnick, Composer and Educator

"This book is a lucid and systematic introduction for beginners or intermediate users to all three components of the popular multimedia software Max/MSP/Jitter, covering MIDI, basic programming concepts, real-time audio/video manipulation, camera tracking, and alternate controllers. VJ Manzo does an excellent job of clearly explaining how to use the software. Music educators, students, music technologists, sound designers, game developers, composers, and multimedia artists interested in learning Max in order to develop their own software applications will find this to be a highly useful text." —Cort Lippe, Director, The Lejaren Hiller Computer Music Studios, University of Buffalo

"There are very few comprehensive resources out there for educators in music technology to get their students engaged in the creative act of writing software, as opposed to simply relying on commercial applications. This book, start to finish, provides a thorough curriculum for using Max in a music education setting, nicely complementing the company's own documentation by showing how to build more complex projects that integrate interactivity and sound. Manzo's book is a great read, not only for educators and students but for electronic musicians looking to expand their arsenal of expressive tools." —R. Luke DuBois, Brooklyn Experimental Media Center, Polytechnic Institute of NYU

From the Publisher