Activities in Canada

CECG/GEC and ÉuCuE

Starting in 1982, the CECG/GEC, or Concordia Electroacoustic Composers’ Group / Groupe électroacoustique de Concordia for short (and formally known as MetaMusic) began to present several concerts per year at Concordia University, in Montréal. Initially the concert series included live performances (“live electronics”) as well as works on tape. The changes in the programming over the years reflect the changing interests of both the group members and the larger electroacoustic scene itself.

In an introductory text for the second Summer Series, “30 Miles of Tape” in 1983, the series’ prime instigator Kevin Austin explained that the concerts would typically be structured in “three halves”: part one would “tend to highlight new composers, some of them still currently [studying],” part two would involve live electronics, and, finally, the third “half” was a mixed bag (and did not in fact feature in all concerts). As a whole, the Concordia concert series was “based on a few basic ideas: small scale productions, small spaces, a variety of composers, small budget, up to twenty concerts per years, and also repeat performances of some works.”

After the founding of the CEC (Communauté électroacoustique canadienne / Canadian Electroacoustic Community) the name would eventually be changed from CECG/GEC to ÉuCuE (Électroacoustiques université Concordia university Electroacoustics), ostensibly to avoid confusion with the names (Kevin Austin in interview with Ian Chuprun in eContact! 4.4).

Austin has very fortunately managed to keep fairly complete documentation of the activities of this group over the years and has recently scanned them to make them available for this Special 10th Year Anniversary Issue of eContact!. Brief descriptions of each year’s series are found below, as well as links to downloadable PDF documents that contain concert programmes, notes about the works, scores (for performance and representational scores), technical diagrammes, original artwork, brief articles and much more.

These documents give the reader an overview of the activities of this group, which are no more and no less than an exceptional representation of the diversity and engagement of the larger Canadian electroacoustic scene.

We hope you enjoy this historic tour!

CECG/GEC — Concordia Electroacoustic Composers’ Group / Group Électroacoustique de Concordia (1982–89)

Summer Series 1982 — “Hazi-Daze Plays” (June 1982)

4 outdoor concerts in June 1982.

Series 1 (1982–1983)

8 concerts from September 1982 to April 1983. Includes “Notes and Noises”, a newsletter about the series and the people involved.

Summer Series 1983 — “30 Miles of Tape / 48 km de bandes magnétiques” [pt.1 | pt.2]

11 outdoor concerts from May to September 1983.

Series 2 (1983–1984)

If you have a copy of any programmes from this series, please contact us.

Summer Series 1984 — “Unbounded Remote Fields / Champs de périodes vagues” [pt.1 | pt.2]

10 regular outdoor concerts from May to August 1984. Also one edition of “Notes and Noises,” and the two-day festival “Mid-Summer’s Meditation / Crépuscule estivale” in late July

Series 3 (1984–1985) [pt.1 | pt.2]

6 regular concerts from September 1984 to April 1985, with 8 additional concerts in the Concordia Visual Arts Gallery (4 in November 1984, 4 in February 1985) in “Series 3+”. Also the three-day outdoor event “Sonic Strands / Toiles sonores” 28–30 September 1984 of live electronics and works on tape. During these concerts a 500 sq.m. “fibrous web” was weaved around the performance area. Bulletin CECG/GEC Newsletter “minus 1” is included.

Summer Series 1985 — “407” [programme | programme notes]

12 outdoor concerts from May to September 1985.

Series 4 (1985–1986)

If you have a copy of any programmes from this series, please contact us.

Summer Series 1986 — “Out to Pasture / Pasteurisé”

8 regular outdoor concerts from May to August 1986… plus corn on the cob. 3 additional concert performances in June, July and September of works by CECG/GEC members.

Series 5 — “Panorama” (1986–1987)

8 concerts from November 1986 to April 1987. Includes a “Computer-Assisted Compositions” series, “Micromatique”, “Micro-acousmatique”, Ad hoc in concert, and “Heresy”, a “play-along” with Furtwangler conducting Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony from 1942 (?).

Series 6 — “Spectra” (1987–1988)

7 regular concerts from September 1987 to April 1988. Extra concerts include “Paul Dolden under 100 dB” (talk/conference/concert), “Piano électroacoustique” with alcides lanza performing, and “Electroacoustics and Computers”, two supplementary concerts in late May.

Series 7 — “Actuality / Actualité” and “Hear and Now” (1988–1989)

9 concerts in total spread over the “Actualités” and “Hear and Now” series featured live performances by Sergio Barroso and alcides lanza, the “Festival électro” — with electroacoustic theatre, live mixed works, international electroacoustic works and a Jean-François Denis retrospective — and acousmatic works from Montréalers.

ÉuCuE — Électroacoustiques université Concordia university Electroacoustics (1989–…)

http://music.concordia.ca/EuCuE/Concerts.html

Series 8 (1989–1990)

11 regular concerts from October 1989 to May 1999. Also two concerts prepared by Jean-François Denis: “Canadian Electroacoustics” for performance in Buenos Aires (June 1989) and Firenza, Italy (May 1989), and “Électroacoustique québecois” for performance in Geneva (April 1989).

Series 9 (1990–1991)

12 concerts from October (?) 1990 to April 1991. Includes France’s Collectif et Cie. in performance, “Electro-clips” (electroacoustic miniatures), tape and video, and live mixed works. Also inter-university concerts  in May 1991.

Series 10 (1991–1992)

12 concerts from October 1991 to May 1992. Includes MEDUSA (Musique électroacoustique universitaire série annuelle) and Trois Concerts Three!, a three-day concert series in February 1992.

Series 11 (1992–1993)

If you have a copy of any programmes from this series, please contact us.

Series 12 — Archives et al (1993–1994)

10 concerts from October 1993 to April 1993. Also MEDUSA in May 1994.

Series 13 (1994–1995)

If you have a copy of any programmes from this series, please contact us.

Series 14 (1995–1996)

The ÉuCuE series is now structured as three groups of concerts in October, November and February. 12 concerts in this series, including the VoxEaVox — Studies in Voice, Dreams, the Imagination and Solitude and L’électro de l’autre bord de la “track” / Electroacoustics from the other side of the tracks series. Also the February 1996 Voices in the Wind concert.

Series 15 (1996–1997)

12 concerts in October, November and February, including the Electroacoustics from the Younger Generation series, performance of works on the DISContact! II CD compilation (including diffusion timelines), a Latin America feature concert, a performance of works for piano and tape by Rainer Burck. ÉuCuE begins to present curated concerts: an individual proposes a programme and wherever possible is present to present and discuss the works. Curators: Claude Schryer (Soundscapes), Ian Chuprun / Francis Dhomont, George Todd / Dave Lindsay. Also MEDUSA in May 1997.

Series XVI (1997–1998)

14 concerts in October, November and February. Curators: Folkmar Hein/ Kevin Austin, Emmanuel Madan / Ian Chuprun, Adrian Moore / Jørgen Teller, Pete Stollery / alcides lanza (also performing live), Claude Schryer / Andra McCartney, Peter Castine / Jonty Harrison, Igor Lintz-Maues / Yves Daoust, Wende Bartley / Anna Rubin, Ben Thigpen / Yves Gigon (multi-channel works), and for SEAMUS Week Scott Wyatt / Steven David Beck, Barry Schrader / Paul Koonce, James Beauchamp / Barry Truax, Elizabeth Hinkle Turner / Charles Mason, and Mara Helmuth / Kevin Austin.

Series XVII (1998–1999)

12 concerts in October (Semaine de l’Amérique Latine), November (Semaine SEAMUS) and February. Curators: Jorge Antunes / Flo Menezes, Manuel Iturbide / Guto Caminhoto, David Keane / Kevin Austin, Elsa Justel / Kevin Austin, Anne LeBaron / Jon Nelson, Elainie Lillios, Mary Lou Newmark, Ian Chuprun, Martín Fumarola / Darrren Copeland, Andrew Lewis / Alistair MacDonald, Corte Lippe / Jøran Rudi, Yves Gigon / Ben Thigpen.

Series XVIII (1999–2000)

10 concerts in October (West Pacific Rim), November (SEAMUS and CEC CD releases) and February. Curators: John Young, Yu-Chung Tseng / Garth Paine / Ian Chuprun, jef chippewa (instrument and tape works), Simon Emmerson, Ben Thigpen / Yves Gigon (8-channel works); and works from the CEC’s Young and Emerging Sound Artist project (YESA), which would become Jeu de temps / Times Play (JTTP).

Series XIX (2000–2001)

7 concerts in October (CEC CD launches of Cache 2000 and PRESENCE II), November (works from the USA and Canada) and February (YESA). With curator Andres Lewin-Richter.

Series XX (2001–2002)

16 concerts in October (works from JTTP 2001 and from the Cache 2001 CD compilation), November (SEAMUS), February and March. Curators: Kevin Austin, Jean-François Denis (Space/Spatialization), Mark Corwin (multi-channel works by West-Coast composers), Laurie Radford, Ian Chuprun, Ned Bouhalassa, Andra McCartney (Possible Loves and Resonant Contact), Yves Gigon / Ian Chuprun (multi-channel works), Rosemary Mountain.

Series XXI (2002–2003)

15 concerts in October (works from JTTP 2002 and New Adventures in Sound Art), November (SEAMUS) and February. Curators: Christian Calon (Sound Diffusion lecture and concert), Francis Dhomont (lecture and concert).

Series XXII (2003–2004)

15 concerts in October (Late Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y), November and February (Interactive Electronics: Vertex in concert).

Series XXIII (2004–2005)

15 concerts in September-October, November and February featuring works from the CEC’s new project, SONUS.ca. SONUS is the largest freely-available online Jukebox of electroacoustic works in the world!

Series XXIV (2005–2006)

13 concerts in October (works from PRESENCE III), November (Barbara Golden in concert) and February (works from JTTP 2005). With Curator Dominique Bassal. MP3’s podcasts of the concerts are now made available from the ÉuCuE pages.

Series XXV (2006–2007)

15 concerts in October (works on Cache 2005), November (SEAMUS Electroclips 2004 and works from JTTP 2006) and February.

Series XXVI (2007–2008)

14 concerts in November (works selected for Cache 2007; the official international 60x60 selections) and February. With Special Guest Curator Serena Alexander (multi-channel works).

Series XXVII (2008–2009)

18 concerts in November (the first Canadian edition of the international 60x60 Project) and January (works selected for Cache 2008).