Listening to a band at a live music venue like the ‘Sco, concertgoers don’t often peel their eyes off the mainstage to look at the individuals running sound. However, the complexity behind this job, and the technician who works this position, warrants further examination.  Audio engineers are technicians who work in live sound or recording studios, and these positions are often held by cisgender men. According to Women’s Audio Mission, less than 5 percent of audio engineers in 2018 were women. Notably, this is a number based on binary statistics of cisgender individuals and does not reflect the impact of gender-based discrimination on non-binary and transgender audio engineers. Music technology, a broader field t...

The TIMARA basement is uncharted territory for many Oberlin students, even those who frequent the Conservatory. Known for pushing the boundaries of electroacoustic composition and experimental performance, the department is internationally recognized for its impact on the history of electronic music — it was the first conservatory program in the world to focus on electronic composition. The program has a legacy of accomplished and prolific alumni and faculty, and at 8 p.m. tonight in Warner Concert Hall, Oberlin students will get a chance to witness this tradition in a recital featuring TIMARA faculty and guest composers. The recital features faculty members Peter Swendsen, OC ’99, Tom Lopez, OC ’89, and Aurie ...

The Division of Contemporary Music, which encompasses the Composition and TIMARA departments, has succeeded in enrolling a cohort of exceptional first-year students. This was made clear Saturday afternoon, when students performed a recital in Fairchild Chapel. Audience members arrived in twos and threes, carefully sidestepping the many cellos leaning against the wall. By 3 p.m., when the concert began, the room was packed. Framed with stained-glass windows, the chapel made every quiet sound reverberate through the small space. Not one of the composers stayed within the realm of the safe and familiar. Rather, they pushed the envelope, whether in terms of style, instrumentation or quality of sound. Some compositions...

The ’Sco served as an experimental music mecca last Monday, attracting TIMARA majors, sound technicians and programmers alike for an improvised electroacoustic showcase. College senior Adam Hirsch, Conservatory senior Charles Glanders and doubledegree senior Devin Frenze of the experimental audiovisual ensemble Wisseler opened the show on saxophone, turntables and visuals, respectively. Their music and visuals were expertly coordinated and built symbiotically to a climax. The jam’s visual component began with slowly moving black and white forms that thematically mimicked the saxophone’s spacey sounds. Gradually, light blues overtook the black and white, followed by a rapid, multicolor potpourri of asymmetrical...