Ariza, C. 2005. "The Xenakis Sieve as Object: A New Model and a Complete Implementation." Computer Music Journal 29(2): 40-60. Internet: http://www.mitpressjournals.org/ doi/ abs/ 10.1162/ 0148926054094396 abstract

In numerous publications from 1965 to 1992, composer, architect, and theorist Iannis Xenakis (1922–2001) developed an elegant and powerful system for creating integer-sequence generators called sieves. Xenakis used sieves (cribles) for the generation of pitch scales and rhythm sequences in many compositions, and he suggested their application to a variety of additional musical parameters. Though sieves are best calculated with the aid of a computer, no complete implementation has been widely distributed. Xenakis’s published code is incomplete and insufficient for broad use. This article demonstrates a new object-oriented model and Python implementation of the Xenakis sieve. This model introduces a bi-faceted representation of the sieve, expands Xenakis’s use of logic operators, employs a practical notation, produces sieve segments and transpositions, and easily integrates within higher-level systems. This modular implementation is deployed within athenaCL, a cross-platform, open-source, interactive command line environment for algorithmic composition using Csound and MIDI. High-level, practical interfaces have been developed to provide athenaCL users with sieve-based tools for the algorithmic generation of pitches, rhythms, and general parameter values