Hal McGee 50th Birthday Mania Gainesville Before Show

Hal button by Andrew Chadwick

view all of Charlie Goff's photographs from the 50th Birthday Celebration Fest

Aaron: It's tough to have a short caption
me: Short, long, whatever. Write a paragraph if need be
Aaron: ...CV controlling the Moog ring modulator's carrier oscillator via a pseudo-random CV spitter. I'm not actually playing that CV box. All the sound is coming from your ring mod's oscillator.
me: Should I call that thing a "pseudo-random CV spitter"? Or is it "splitter"?
Aaron: Yes. That's not a name, just a description
me: Which?
Aaron: Spitter
me: Do you have a name for it?
Aaron: No. And note that it is playing/controlling the ring mod. It's a prototype sort of thing
me: Aaron Junior?
Aaron: No, a junior Aaron would have much more fun
me: You don't think that the pseudo-random CV spitter is having fun in that pic?
Aaron: Yes but an Aaron junior would ideally be capable of much more fun
me: How much more fun could a device have than having its knobs tweaked?
Aaron: Well it would preferably tweak itself. That's what I'm working towards: generative circuits that don't need us. Like David Tudor's last piece, but much much smaller
me: Sounds like too much fun for me
Aaron: Well I'd like to not be so selfish in my next set of creations and let the machine have more fun than I do. Well, I mean have the machine's fun be first priority. Of course I'll have fun regardless
me: Selfishness isn't bad
Aaron: Well if anything it would give mean ensemble
me: Like let's go back to your pseudo-random CV spitter. If it tweaked itself it would be selfish and wouldn't give it a second thought
Aaron: Haha. I was going to respond, but I would just be saying words anyways
me: Words are what we say