The Art and Science of the Electroacoustic Steelpan
Date
2023-04-28
Authors
Malloy, Colin
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Abstract
Hailing from the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago, the steelpan is one of the most significant acoustic instruments invented in the 20th century. Despite en- joying international popularity and attention from acoustics researchers, the steelpan has not received as much attention as an electroacoustic instrument. This disserta- tion presents my work in the field of music technology as it relates to the steelpan. The contributions presented here can broadly be put into three categories: acous- tics, digital signal processing, and electroacoustic steelpan composition/performance. Relating to the acoustics of the steelpan, I present two research projects. First is a computation analysis that characterizes the timbral differences between mallets on the tenor steelpan. The other is a steelpan-specific audio dataset and pitch detection system that outperforms the available state-of-the-art methods. I then present two audio effects plugins I developed. Realstretch is a realtime time-stretcher—an audio effect that had previously never been implemented as a realtime effect. HarmonEQ is an audio equalizer that reframes how the equalizer’s controls in terms of musical notes and chords rather than abstract frequency. HarmonEQ’s change in control scheme allows it to be paired with a chord detection system so the equalizer can update its own settings based on the harmony of the incoming audio signal. Next I discuss approaches to using the steelpan as an electroacoustic instrument. The prac- tical considerations of electroacoustic performance are discussed through summary and analysis of three new solo compositions for electroacoustics steelpan that were premiered on March 26, 2022 as part my of Ph.D. recital. These various contributions combine to progress the art and science of the electroacoustic steelpan.
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Keywords
music, computer science, digital signal processing, steelpan