The Computer Science Program at Oberlin College and the TIMARA (Technology in Music and Related Arts) Department of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music are working collaboratively to develop educational materials to support imaginative applications of computer science to musical creativity. This is an innovative adaptation that combines work done in the computer graphics field using fractal geometry with properties of computer algorithms such as hierarchical structure and recursion. It gathers the best work in visualization and sonification and adapts it to an interdisciplinary pedagogical approach. It implements user-friendly software that encourages experimentation and a deeper understanding of both the scientific and artistic ramifications.
A new junior-senior level undergraduate course, Algorithmic Approaches to Interactive Composition, is being developed to be a model for interdisciplinary study between the sciences and art. The course provides a new focus for computer science majors and an opportunity to work with music students to apply their skills and knowledge of abstract algorithmic ideas to the creative enterprise of music composition. An on-site evaluation expert using a variety of evaluative techniques, including individual student case studies, is assessing the impact on student learning, the curriculum and the institution. A description of the model course and the evaluation results will be made available at the completion of the project.
