Music, Technology and Innovation Research Centre

Overview

Music, Technology and Innovation Research Centre (MTIRC) encompasses a broad and continually evolving range of artistic creation and theory focused on innovative application of new technologies to music. The MTIRC emphasises electroacoustic music and sonic art. The MTI programme was established in 1999 and the research centre is acknowledged globally to be a leader in its field. The MTIRC frequently undertakes projects funded by Arts Council England, Arts and Humanities Research Council and the European Commission for Education and Culture.

Current MTI projects include the Compose with Sounds initiative, where the MTI worked with GRM, ZKM and Notam to develop software targeted at young people (11-14 years) and those interested in making music with sounds instead of traditionally making music with notes. This project launch involved 18 schools in 6 different countries.

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Key features

The MTIRC combines Music, Technology and Innovation to provide expertise in the following areas:

Network Music
Performance
Interactivity
Public Art
Collaboration
Sound Diffusion
Cross-Arts, to include Performance art, theatre, dance, new genres, film and video and installation art
Visual Music
Sound Synthesis
Algorithms
Composition
Sonic Art
Electroacoustic Music
Theory
Artistic Creation

Benefits

Most of MITRC’s consultancy and contract research is undertaken in the cultural sector, for the benefit of society. MITRC can provide consultancy and research into innovation and apply new technologies to music to provide benefits directly suited to your organisation.

For commercial opportunities and the benefits the MITRC can provide in this area, please contact us to discuss your individual requirements.

Our experts

Core Members

Prof Leigh Landy - Director. Also affiliated with the Institute of Creative Technologies

Dr Simon Atkinson - Also affiliated with the Institute of Creative Technologies

Dr Peter Batchelor - Also affiliated with the Institute of Creative Technologies

Dr Bret Battey - Also affiliated with the Institute of Creative Technologies

Prof Simon Emmerson - Also affiliated with the Institute of Creative Technologies

Dr John Richards - Senior Lecturer

Prof John Young - Professor of Composition

Associate Members

Dr Craig Vear - Also affiliated with the Intermediality and Performance Research Group, The Digital Opera Research Group and the Digital Humanities Research group, all within the Faculty of Arts, Design and Humanities.

Dr Sophy Smith - Also affiliated with the Institute of Creative Technologies

For a more detailed summary of the staff involved with the MITRC, please click here.

Delivery

The MTIRC has a range of facilities to receive our expertise through, based at De Montfort University Leicester and the surrounding Leicester area.

The premiere facility of the MTI Research Centre is the MTI Research Lab, based at De Montfort University which consists of a 1670 square-foot facility in the Clephan Building which is continually upgraded to meet the developing needs of the researchers. The Lab includes:

Diffusion Lab- A sonically, isolated, floating-construction room for advanced sound diffusion design and experimentation
Audiovisual Lab- a sonically isolated, floating-construction room. It supports audio-visual work and composition through combined video editing and 5.1 surround mixing and monitoring tools.
Sound Art Lab- A flexible sound making space that can be configured for installation work, diffusion practice, visual presentation and self directed study.
An AV Loans service- providing an extensive range of AV equipment on loan, through a checkout system.
Performing Arts Centre for Excellence- located at De Montfort University, providing exceptional performance facilities for dance, music and drama.
Creative Technology Studios- located at De Montfort University, providing industry-standard audio and radio production suites.
Institute of Creative Technologies- located at De Montfort University, providing space for conference events, teaching, presentations and installations.
Phoneix Square Film and Digital Media Centre- located in Leicester, where DMU are a partner. The DMU Cube installation space has been the venue for audiovisual installations and events in association with the MITRC

For further information on the MITRC facilities and a more detailed technical specification, please click here.

Professional fees and charges

Please contact us to discuss your needs and our relevant pricing structures.

Who we have worked with

The MITRC has a number of research partners, including:

Central Conservatory of Music, Beijing
Conservatorio di Musica “Licinio Refice” di Frosinone, Italy
Groupe de Recherches Musicales (GRM), Paris
Ionian University, Greece: Electroacoustic Music Research and Applications Laboratory
Miso Music, Portugal,
National University of Argentina, Lanús
Norsk Senter for Teknologi i Musikk org Kunst (NOTAM), Oslo, Norway
Royal College of Music, Stockholm
Sibelius Academy of Finland
Studio for Electro-Instrumental Music (STEIM), Amsterdam
University of the Arts, Berlin, Studio Für Klangkunst and Klangforschung
University of Montreal Faculty of Music
Université de Paris IV- Sorbonne
Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie (ZKM), Karlsruhe, Germany: Institute für Musik and Akustik
National University of Ireland
Maynooth and Autonomous University of Madrid

Current Projects the MITRC are involved in, include:

EARS: The Electroacoustic Resource Site:

EARS is a structured Internet portal designed to aid those conducting research in Electroacoustic Music Studies. The project is in collaboration with Pierre Couprie and Rob Weale, with the project being funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and Unesco. For more information, please visit here.

EARS II + Composing With Sounds:

This project will offer young people (11-14 year olds) and interested people the chance to become acquainted with music made from sounds. The project offers a complete curriculum focusing on listening, understanding of relevant concepts and making the music of sounds. The project will offer users different forms of navigation so they can follow their teacher’s or their own programme of discovery. This intuitive software includes a host of manipulation, generation and sequencing tools for inexperienced users. This project has been funded by the EU culture programme and involves many of the MTI’s current partners. The launch of Composing with Sounds involves 18 schools in the six countries and culminates in concerts and teacher’s workshops in all six.

New Multimedia Tools for Electroacoustic Music Analysis

This three year research project will develop an analysis software package and an analytical toolbox relevant to the breadth of electroacoustic genres. This will bring together existing methods with the latest interactive and hypermedia tools, applying them to a range of works to compare their strengths and weaknesses. The project will results in being able to better judge which analytical approaches are best suited to gain an insight and understanding of a genre of music. This project was made possible by a grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Council.