3 鈥� 2 鈥� 1 鈥� Get ready for liftoff as the Boulder Laptop Orchestra鈥擝LOrk for short鈥攑uts on a space-themed feast for the eyes and ears at CU Boulder鈥檚 Fiske Planetarium.
鈥淚t鈥檚 music inspired by the sights and sounds of space, including video and audio of NASA space launches from the point of view of the shuttle. Journey forth into great beyond with BLOrk as your guide!鈥�
Thompson Jazz Studies Program Director John Gunther is a founding director of the College of Music鈥檚 electro-acoustic ensemble. He and his co-founder, Director of Music Technology John Drumheller, will join music majors and non-majors on stage for BLOrk鈥檚 April 20 concert, which features a variety of digital and traditional instruments performing songs by Sun Ra, David Bowie, Bjork, Radiohead and the Flaming Lips. Saxophones, drums and violin meld with sounds created online for this far-out take on space travel鈥攁nd it鈥檚 all accompanied by Fiske鈥檚 Liquid Sky music visualization.
鈥淭he audience can fly around on the surface of planets, explore distant nebulae, then see colors and shapes are in synch with the music through Liquid Sky,鈥� Gunther says.
BLOrk鈥攆ounded 11 years ago as only the second laptop orchestra in the country鈥攐ffers student and faculty performers a way to keep up with the latest in music technology. It鈥檚 a unique opportunity, Gunther says, to help usher in a new era of music.
鈥淭hings that would have been clumsy and expensive 10 years ago鈥攕uch as integrating motion and light sensors鈥攚e鈥檙e able to do now simply by plugging in our laptops.鈥�
That even includes trying out a new software called Music_SDP, which was created by a member of the College of Music family.
鈥�Alum Hugh Lobel invented , which is an open-source, free software for music composition and performance that we鈥檙e using in this class,鈥� Gunther says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 one of the technologies we鈥檙e exploring now that didn鈥檛 even exist five years ago.鈥�
Gunther says music technology is changing so fast that the name 鈥淏LOrk鈥� itself may have to change as well.
鈥淲e鈥檙e using our phones and tablets鈥攑laying actual instruments with mobile devices,鈥� he explains. 鈥淓ventually we may not even use our laptops anymore, so we might have to figure out how to replace the 鈥楲鈥� with something else!鈥�
鈥淪ongs of Space鈥� is Saturday, April 20, at 7 p.m., at Fiske Planetarium. For more information, including how to purchase tickets from Fiske, visit .
