John Chowning, Father of the Digital Synthesizer and Computer Music Pioneer, at Berklee’s Vox Festival in Valencia
Berklee College of Music, the world’s leading college for contemporary music, will welcome computer music pioneer John Chowning as lead guest performer and presenter at the first ever Vox Festival in Valencia, taking place on June 4, 2015 (10am - 9pm), at the Saló d'actes in Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros de Telecomunicación (Edificio 4D on the campus of the Universitat Polytècnica de València). Chowning will also be a visiting guest artist at Berklee’s Valencia campus.
“We are delighted to welcome John Chowning - the father of the digital synthesizer – to Valencia, for what promises to be an exciting and inspiring few days,” commented Stephen Webber, Director of the master’s program in Music Technology and Innovation at Berklee’s Valencia campus. “As both a composer and inventor, he is renowned for his ground-breaking work which has paved the way for the computer generated music of today.”
“We also look forward to sharing with him the cutting edge developments our master’s students are achieving through the application of technology to music during his visit to campus,” concluded Webber.
Chowning is professor emeritus at Stanford University and founding director of the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA). One of the great pioneers of computer music, he was among the first to realize the tremendous musical possibilities of the digital computer. His discovery of the FM synthesis algorithm in 1967 was licensed to Yamaha and popularized in the most successful synthesis engine in the history of electronic instruments, enabling precise control over new realms of sonic possibilities. Chowning’s innovations also extend into sound spatialization and musical temperament.
The Vox Festival, designed as a celebration of the creative confluence of music and technology, will be presented by Berklee in collaboration with the Universitat Polytècnica de València and Barcelona's Universitat Pompeu Fabra, and supported by the Instituto superior de enseñanzas artísticas de la Comunitat Valenciana (ISEACV). The event will comprise open workshops on new music technologies; lectures and discussions including Past, Present, and Future of Electronic Music and Composing Music from the Inside-Out; and a concert of student works featuring a performance by the Berklee Valencia App Choir. The event concludes with a performance by Chowning, featuring his wife, acclaimed soprano Maureen Chowning as soloist, and will include some of his classic compositions.
In addition to participating in the Vox Festival, Chowning will also conduct a master class and innovation seminar on June 3 for students in the master’s program in Music Production, Technology and Innovation at Berklee’s Valencia campus.
Related reading
News 
April 21, 2023This free event will take place on Saturday, April 29, starting at 2:00 p.m. at the Centre del Carme Cultura…
Full Story News 
November 18, 2022On January 17–20, 2023, Berklee Valencia will present the seventh edition of the Berklee Global Career Summit: a four-day bootcamp…
Full Story 
Public Safety Alerts