TECHNOLOGY AS AN EMANCIPATORY AGENT IN THE EARLY ELECTROACOUSTIC MUSIC AND SOUND ART

Abstract

This research aims to investigate the influence of technology on expanding the sound palette used in the musical context. In order to conclude, this article focuses on how technology has shaped electroacoustic music and sound art trends since the 1950s. The main focus is technology's impact on the relationship between sound and expanded musical boundaries. Considering music history, technology’s involvement in arts, its influence in music occurred in a short time compared to other movements. Technology accessibility strongly influences its role in shaping musical styles, artistic motivation, and sound crafting methods. For instance, recording technology can alter the identity of sound within the musical context. Also, the methods, equipment, and motivation shape technology's impact on artists' creative processes and acoustic output. In order to explain the influence of technology, a historical approach has been used to discuss the active studios’ similarities, differences and influences over each other and further. The influences of technology and approaches to sound were discussed in four parameters under accessibility. Methods influenced by different artistic practices, their uses in musical practices and their reflections in current artistic practices are also explained under the examined parameters. To conclude, the paper briefly explores the cyclical shifts between retrospective and techno-determinism in electroacoustic music and sound art practices. Under the lens of futurism and modernism, the impact of electricity’s involvement in music and the trends it created are discussed thoroughly.