Immersive spatialized live music composition with performers: a case study, Le vent qui hurle

This article presents reflections on theoretical and practical aspects of the composition of immersive spatialized live music with performers through a case study, Le vent qui hurle. This is a piece written for the Ensemble d’oscillateurs founded by Nicolas Bernier at the Faculty of Music of the University of Montreal, semi-modular analog synthesizers, metal sheets and sound spatialization. Initially, I present the research context, discussing the concepts of spatialization and immersion within the frame of live music. I then examine how compositional intentions can be related to the composition of the sound space. I later discuss the relationship between sound and space by introducing spatial attributes and spatialization strategies. Then I illustrate the context in which the piece was created, covering the rehearsal period and the writing of the score. I then present the immersive, spatial and musical composition strategies I used in writing the piece, illustrating techniques that explore the relationship between analog synthesis and the composition of sound space and the relationship between the spatialization created by speakers with the spatialization created with acoustic sources. Finally, I outline future developments. The perspective of this article is mainly oriented toward the compositional dimension and not the technological dimension.