Max Mathews's Influence on (My) Music

Abstract

considerable that he has emerged as a major actor in artistic life today. It is significant that the Groupe de Recherches Musicales (GRM) devoted a volume to among their collection of composers7 Portraits polychromes. To this volume, I myself contributed a 30-page chapter, Max Mathews and the Digital Age, in which I dwelt upon what brought to the field. Much earlier than others, had the vision of personal computers; as a result, he developed tools and concepts for computer music, and he also did pioneering work in human-machine communication, text editing and printing, and dedicated computers. In my chapter, I also speak of my work with it was for me a good fortune and a great privilege. I refer the reader to this Portrait polychrome about (Gayou 2007). In the present article, I am not going to try to repeat or summarize that chapter. I rather wish to concentrate on the specific new possibilities that Max's work brought to the musician's disposal. A substantial body of musical works benefited from the extraordinary tools Mathews developed for music. I myself am considerably indebted to Max. Almost all of my own music works have directly or indirectly taken advantage of Max's tools and concepts: even my purely instrumental pieces have been marked by his influence. I shall discuss the use of the specific possibilities developed by for some of my own pieces particularly Little Boy and Songes, which are