Electronic music

I went to an electronic music concert at SUNY Fredonia Friday night and the composer, Alexandra Gardner, talked to the audience about the change in music styles, and in particular, how music is beginning to become more and more electronic. She was talking about how instead of using actual musicians to perform their music, composers are using software equipment to make computers play their music. For some composers, their concerts consist strictly of a computer on the stage that plays their compositions, and often alters the instruments' sounds. I thought about how much of a change this was to the jazz, swing, and Big Band era. The whole appeal of this era in music was that the band was interactive with the audience and people would flock to places like the Cotton Club to hear the music, but also see the performers. The whole experience involved going to a venue and listening to the music acoustically, without any manipulation of the instruments' actual sounds. However, Gardner mentioned that the change in music styles isn't bad and that composers should see the "glass as half full" because the whole point of music is that it always changes and if it stays in one place for too long, it is detrimental.