Park Foundation Music App

Home > Labels

Center For Experimental Music And Intermedia, University Of North Texas, Denton

Profile

The [b]Center for Experimental Music & Intermedia[/b] ([b]CEMI[/b]) is an interdisciplinary center at UNT's Division of Composition Studies for research, teaching, creation, and performance of experimental music and innovative art technologies. In 1963, a faculty composer [a=Merrill Ellis] established the [b]Electronic Music Center[/b] ([b]EMC[/b]) at the North Texas State University. This tape music studio soon became a vital part of the Division of Composition Studies and allowed faculty and students to create experimental compositions for magnetic tape and organize live analog synthesizer performances. During the seventies, North Texas composers started working on "mixed-media" projects with dancers, actors, and narrators: they were trying to enhance the electronic soundscapes with elaborate theatrical settings and visual projections. Following the opening of the [b]Intermedia Theater[/b] in 1979, expanded EMC studios were named CEMI in 1983. [a=Thomas Clark] and [a=Larry Austin], who joined the faculty in the late seventies, changed CEMI's direction and oversaw the transition from the use of hybrid analog/digital systems to software synthesis on UNIX-based workstations. The pioneering research in computer music had drawn international attention to the Center when North Texas State University hosted the 7th annual [i]International Computer Music Conference[/i] (ICMC) in 1981. After Ellis passed away in 1981, [a=Phil Winsor] joined the University and became co-director of CEMI with Larry Austin. Throughout the nineties, Winsor, Austin, and Thomas Clark had been leading the studios, until [a=Jon Christopher Nelson] joined the composition faculty as the new director of CEMI in 1996. Under his leadership, the Center was redesigned and equipped with modern Macintosh desktops as flexible, multi-purpose computer music workstations. In 1999, Nelson was appointed a Dean of Operations for the College of Music, and [a=Joseph Rovan] became a new Director of CEMI. He focused on Merrill Ellis' original vision, organizing and hosting multiple performances and events by faculty, students and guest artists, including [i]SEAMUS National Conference[/i] in 2000. Rovan left CEMI in 2004 to take an appointment at the [l=Brown University]. CEMI facilities include: [b]Merrill Ellis Intermedia Theater[/b] ([b]MEIT[/b]), a 120-seat configurable black box theater with 16.1-channel Genelec/Adam surround sound, custom audio diffusion via Max/MSP, smart stage lighting, and 180-degree custom-routed video projection system. [b]Five Studios[/b] Music GAL Recording Studio [b]MU2008[/b], 8-channel interactive studio and rehearsal space [b]MU2009[/b], 8-channel production studio and teaching space [b]MU2011[/b], 8-channel audiovisual studio [b]MU2013[/b], stereo production studio [b]CEMI Directors[/b] [a=Merrill Ellis] (1963–81) [a=Phil Winsor] / [a=Larry Austin] (1983–90) Larry Austin (1990–91) Phil Winsor (1991–93) [a=Thomas Clark] (1993–95) Larry Austin (1995–96) [a=Jon Christopher Nelson] (1996–99) [a=Joseph Rovan] (2000–2004) Jon Christopher Nelson (2004–05) [url=http://cemi.music.unt.edu/may]Andrew May[/url] (since 2005)