cfp : The body/technology-instrument/technology paradigm

Contemporary Music Review (Routledge)
Call for papers:
The body/technology-instrument/technology paradigm.

We invite papers from writers reflecting on sound in relation to the
body/technology; from anyone who attempts to define and/or critically
examine
threshold conditions of instrument and performer; writers who are keen to
challenge con- or discontinuities of instrument and performer, be it in the
form of laptop improvisation, interactive sound environments, 3d cave
installations, sonic architecture, or other performance situations.

In an era in which technology has impacted immensely on ways in which
instrumental music is being performed, indeed in which the role of the
instrument, if not notions of the instrument itself, have become radically
altered, we want to examine the instrument's position as well as the role of
the performer.

The body/technology - instrument/technology coupling or decoupling is
something that can be, and needs to be explored from various angles. Such
discussion invariably leads us to think about what we consider an instrument
to be in technologically mediated environments, in particular if we keep in
mind that the word's origin suggests notions of "instruction" (from Latin:
instruere): who instructs or who/what is instructed by whom?

* Do we see the instrument as extension, retraction or subversion of
the
body?
* Is the instrument one that brings the body into existence, or one
that
denies bodily existence?
* What are the implications of technological environments on the
instrument-performer relation?
* Does the body become re-figured and re-inscribed by technology?
These are only a few of the questions that may arise; other exploratory
paths
that elucidate aspects of the body/technology-instrument/technology
paradigms
are highly encouraged.

For this discussion papers may rejoice in the liminal, the erotic, or the
incestuous, they may celebrate touch, if not the self-touch, and may move
beyond notions of the instrument as extension of the body in performance.

Papers from disciplines as varied as music, philosophy, anthropology,
sociology, biology, informatics or architecture will be of interest.

Abstracts of around 300 words should be sent to the guest editor by the 31st
of July 2005.
Full papers will be due at the end of September 2005.

____________________________________________________________
Please note:
Papers are accepted only in English.

Submission of a paper to this journal will be taken to imply that it
represents original work not previously published, that it is not being
considered elsewhere for publication, and that if accepted for publication
it
will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in any language, without
the
consent of the editors and publishers.

All queries should be directed to:

Franziska Schroeder
Guest Editor
Contemporary Music Review:
Email: ranziska@lautnet.net">franziska@lautnet.net