Establishing a laptop orchestra in South Africa : an emic-centred inquiry into computer music performance

Abstract

A few months into the final year of my undergraduate degree an opportunity emerged to oversee and coordinate the technical and organisational aspects of UPLOrc (University of Pretoria Laptop Orchestra), an ensemble of laptops consisting of undergraduate and post-graduate students whose focus is to explore collective live coding practices. In addition to coordinating the activities of UPLOrc, in April 2020 I was invited to collaborate with SuperContinent, a networked live coding ensemble whose members are located across various continents at a minimum distance of more than 500 kilometres apart. A qualitatively-driven mixed-methods research paradigm was implemented guiding the collection of data from multiple sources in order to obtain a broader understanding of the complexities involved with live coding in collaborative contexts. A netnographic methodology was chosen for the qualitative component of this research, and incorporated an intersecting secondary quantitative component in the form of a survey administered to members of the networked performance community. The research is presented from an emic (insider’s) perspective in the form of an autoethnographic account of my experiences as a performer and instructor of live-coded music. Adopting the perspective of an insider initiated a process of critical self-reflection in which I attempted to understand my role as a student, teacher and collaborator in both performance and educational contexts. The procedures implemented in this research prompted by my collaboration, communication, active participation, and performance with the members of both ensembles over a two-year period, have allowed me to realise the purpose and power of collaborative networked live coding in terms of its potential for cultivating transformative spaces for musical creativity. In addition, conducting this research has provided me with the opportunity to begin the process of building an identity as a live coder, an identity that is multifaceted, complex and constantly negotiated no matter the context in which it operates.