Christopher Ariza

Biography
Education
Publications
Works List
Honors

Christopher Ariza

Biography

Christopher Ariza (b. 1976) is a composer and programmer of sonic structures and systems. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Recording Arts and Music Technology at Towson University. While completing a Ph.D. in Music Composition and Theory at New York University (Ph.D. 2005, M.A. 2003) he studied composition with Elizabeth Hoffman and Louis Karchin. While at Harvard University (B.A. 1999) he studied composition with Michael Gandolfi, Mario Davidovsky, and Jeff Nichols. He has composed for theatre, film, concert-hall, and interactive media, and his works have been performed at numerous concerts and festivals. He performs live electronics in the trio KIOKU, an ensemble that explores a new terrain between traditional Asian music and collaborative improvisation. Recognitions in composition include the Hugh MacColl prize (1999) and the John Green Fellowship in Composition (1999) from Harvard University, two BMI Student Composer Awards (2001, 2002), and a finalist designation in the 25th Concorso Internazionale "Luigi Russolo" (2003); commissions include new works for the 2003-2004 tour of the Los Angeles based TaikoProject. Research grants include a U.S. Fulbright grant (2004) to the Institute of Sonology, The Hague, the Netherlands, for research, supervised by Paul Berg, in algorithmic composition system design. His research in generative music systems and computer-aided algorithmic composition has been published in journals and presented at numerous national and international conferences, and is made available through the open-source, cross-platform software athenaCL. He is the creator of the babelcast-zoetrope, an algorithmic, computer-generated video podcast, and Post-Ut, a free, web-based ear-training system dedicated to training sonic qualities and measures relevant to computer musicians and audio engineers. His music, software, and research are distributed via www.flexatone.net.

Education

New York University, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
PhD in Music Theory and Composition, 2005

New York University, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
MA in Music Theory and Composition, 2002

Harvard University
AB in Music with Honors, 1999

Publications

Ariza, C. 2008. "Composing Musical Structures within a Web-Browser: A Guide to Envl.net." Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ envl/ docs

Ariza, C. 2007. "Serial RSS Sound Installation as Open Work: The babelcast." In Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference. San Francisco: International Computer Music Association. 1: 275-278. Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ docs/ srsiowb.pdf abstract

Ariza, C. 2007. "Automata Bending: Applications of Dynamic Mutation and Dynamic Rules in Modular One-Dimensional Cellular Automata." Computer Music Journal 31(1): 29-49. Internet: http://www.mitpressjournals.org/ doi/ abs/ 10.1162/ comj.2007.31.1.29

Ariza, C. 2006. "Beyond the Transition Matrix: A Language-Independent, String-Based Input Notation for Incomplete, Multiple-Order, Static Markov Transition Values." Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ docs/ btmimosmtv.pdf abstract

Ariza, C. 2006. "The babelcast Information Sheet." Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ docs/ babelcast.pdf

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

Ariza, C. 2005. "Navigating the Landscape of Computer-Aided Algorithmic Composition Systems: A Definition, Seven Descriptors, and a Lexicon of Systems and Research." In Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference. San Francisco: International Computer Music Association. 765-772. Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ docs/ nlcaacs.pdf abstract

Ariza, C. 2005. athenaCL Tutorial Manual. 2nd ed. Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ athenaDocs abstract

Ariza, C. 2005. An Open Design for Computer-Aided Algorithmic Music Composition: athenaCL. Ph.D. Dissertation, New York University. Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ caac.html abstract {amazon}

Ariza, C. 2004. "An Object Oriented Model of the Xenakis Sieve for Algorithmic Pitch, Rhythm, and Parameter Generation." In Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference. San Francisco: International Computer Music Association. 63-70. abstract

Ariza, C. 2003. "Ornament as Data Structure: An Algorithmic Model based on Micro-Rhythms of Csángó Laments and Funeral Music." In Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference. San Francisco: International Computer Music Association. 187-193. Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ docs/ odsammrclfm.pdf abstract

Ariza, C. 2002. "Prokaryotic Groove: Rhythmic Cycles as Real-Value Encoded Genetic Algorithms." In Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference. San Francisco: International Computer Music Association. 561-567. Internet: http://www.flexatone.net/ docs/ pgrcrvega.pdf

Ariza, C. 2002. "A New Language for Computer-Aided Post-Tonal Pitch Analysis: Python and the Open Source athenaCL Project."

Ariza, C. 2001. "athenaCL: Set Class Utility and Algorithmic Composition in Csound."

Ariza, C. 2000. "Stravinsky's Verticals as Set Class Similarity Contours."

Works List

for a complete works list, follow the link below

experimental music

Honors

Fulbright Grant
for research at the Institute of Sonology, The Hague, the Netherlands: 2004-2005

Finalist, 25th Concorso Internazionale "Luigi Russolo"
for "moloch whose name is the mind": 2003

BMI Student Composer Award
for "the square perfected has no corner": 2002

BMI Student Composer Award
for "holy the bop apocalypse": 2001

MacCracken Fellowship, Dean's Fellowship
NYU, 1999-2004

GSAS Student Travel Grant
NYU, 2002, 2003, 2004

John Green Fellowship for Composers
Harvard University, 1999

Hugh F. MacColl prize in Composition
for "comma": Harvard University, 1999