Music4
Encyclopedia
MUSIC4 was a computer
music
synthesis software package written by Max Mathews
. The program was an expansion of earlier packages written by Mathews to produce music by direct digital computation, which could be heard by converting samples to audible sound using a digital-to-analog converter
(DAC). MUSIC4 was further expanded by Godfrey Winham
and Hubert Howe into MUSIC4B, and then into MUSIC4BF, a more portable version written in FORTRAN
. It is a precursor to CSound
.
MUSIC4 allows the programmer
to enter a musical score as a text file
and have each note played with a particular "musical instrument
", which is a software algorithm. Some instruments are supplied in the package, but the programmer can supply new instruments in the form of FORTRAN code, to be compile
d and called by the MUSIC4 package to generate output.
As designed, the package was not intended for real-time generation of music as is done by a modern portable electronic keyboard
instrument; instead, entire songs or musical pieces are encoded and processed into a digital file on disk or tape containing the stream of samples. Prior to the advent of low-cost digital audio gear in the late 1980s, the samples were typically sent to a DAC and recorded on analog tape.
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
synthesis software package written by Max Mathews
Max Mathews
Max Vernon Mathews was a pioneer in the world of computer music.-Biography:...
. The program was an expansion of earlier packages written by Mathews to produce music by direct digital computation, which could be heard by converting samples to audible sound using a digital-to-analog converter
Digital-to-analog converter
In electronics, a digital-to-analog converter is a device that converts a digital code to an analog signal . An analog-to-digital converter performs the reverse operation...
(DAC). MUSIC4 was further expanded by Godfrey Winham
Godfrey Winham
Godfrey Winham was an English-born music theorist and composer of contemporary classical music who moved to the United States....
and Hubert Howe into MUSIC4B, and then into MUSIC4BF, a more portable version written in FORTRAN
Fortran
Fortran is a general-purpose, procedural, imperative programming language that is especially suited to numeric computation and scientific computing...
. It is a precursor to CSound
Csound
Csound is a computer programming language for dealing with sound, also known as a sound compiler or an audio programming language, or more precisely, a C-based audio DSL. It is called Csound because it is written in C, as opposed to some of its predecessors...
.
MUSIC4 allows the programmer
Programmer
A programmer, computer programmer or coder is someone who writes computer software. The term computer programmer can refer to a specialist in one area of computer programming or to a generalist who writes code for many kinds of software. One who practices or professes a formal approach to...
to enter a musical score as a text file
Text file
A text file is a kind of computer file that is structured as a sequence of lines of electronic text. A text file exists within a computer file system...
and have each note played with a particular "musical instrument
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
", which is a software algorithm. Some instruments are supplied in the package, but the programmer can supply new instruments in the form of FORTRAN code, to be compile
Compile
Compile may refer to:* Compile , a Japanese video game company founded in 1983 that specialized in shoot 'em up and computer puzzle game genres...
d and called by the MUSIC4 package to generate output.
As designed, the package was not intended for real-time generation of music as is done by a modern portable electronic keyboard
Electronic keyboard
An electronic keyboard is an electronic or digital keyboard instrument.The major components of a typical modern electronic keyboard are:...
instrument; instead, entire songs or musical pieces are encoded and processed into a digital file on disk or tape containing the stream of samples. Prior to the advent of low-cost digital audio gear in the late 1980s, the samples were typically sent to a DAC and recorded on analog tape.