The Microsound Synthesis Framework in the LC Computer Music Programming Language

Abstract

This article describes the design of a framework for sound synthesis in LC, a new computer music language we prototyped, together with concrete code examples. Unlike existing unit-generator languages, LC provides objects as well as library functions and methods that can directly represent microsounds and related manipulations that are involved in microsound synthesis. Furthermore, LC is equipped with traditional unit generators, and these two different abstractions can collaborate seamlessly. Although the framework for microsound synthesis itself is not particularly bound to the entire language design of LC, such seamless unification between the traditional concept of unit generators and LC’s microsound synthesis framework contribute to making LC’s programming model for microsound synthesis simpler and terser in comparison with existing unit-generator languages. These features of LC’s entire sound-synthesis framework can help computer musicians to creatively explore the domain of microsound synthesis and would also be beneficial for further research in computer music language as a design exemplar.