Layers of Unpredictability: Developing the Aesthetic and Identity of a Network-Based Live Coding Ensemble
Mynah Marie, Shelly Knotts, Eldad Tsabary, Melandri Laubscher · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · 2022
Live coding often involves a feedback loop between machine and human performers who understand the code both through the knowledge of the coding language and the embodied understanding of the output, i.e. the action of listening. The unpredictability of live coding is entangled with and heightened by the considerations behind a remote collective practice and the use of a collaborative interface designed to provide three main channels of communication to the collaborators: written characters, sound, and visuals. The ability to navigate multiple layers of unpredictability, combined with a constant awareness of each performer’s individual aesthetic and the accumulation of individual and group experiences are the foundations for an ensemble to develop a group identity. In this paper, we’ll discuss each of these foundational block s through the lens of the authors’ experiences in building such a collective aesthetic within the Supercontinent ensemble.