
Morton Subotnick Named 2024 Herb Alpert Visiting Artist for Electronic Production and Design Department A foundational pioneer of electronic music, Subotnick will host a master class with students and give an interview about his seminal career as a composer and educator.
By
Daniel Pesquera
April 3, 2024
Morton Subotnick
Image courtesy of the artist
Electronic music pioneer Morton Subotnick has been named the 2024 Herb Alpert Visiting Artist for Berklee's Electronic Production and Design (EPD) Department. Subotnick will be on campus on April 19 for a master class as well as an interview spanning his seven-decade career.
The master class, open to all members of the media and the public, will take place at 10:30 a.m. in the Steve Heck Room at 1140 Boylston St. Subotnick will be listening, evaluating, and offering direct feedback on the work of students from the EPD Department. This will be followed by an interview with Subotnick moderated by EPD Chair Michele Darling in the Oliver Colvin Recital Hall at 1140 Boylston St.; the interview will include a presentation on Subotnicks historic and influential accomplishments in electronic music and music technology. Students, faculty, and staff will also engage with Subotnick in a series of private events scheduled during his visit.
Mort Subotnick is the embodiment of innovation in the world of electronic music, having pioneered so many of the different aspects of composition, multimedia performance, and interactive music systems that we take for granted today, said Darling. The EPD Department is thrilled to celebrate his long and profoundly influential life as a musician, an educator, and a trailblazer, and our students are delighted for the chance to have their art critiqued by one of the original pioneers of electronic music.
Known informally as the Godfather of Electronic Music, Techno, and the Synth, Subotnick has been a foundational figure in electronic music from the earliest days of the genre's inception. His debut album, Silver Apples of the Moon, released in 1967, was a landmark achievement, becoming the first album to feature a voltage-based synthesizer, the first piece of both classical and electronic music written specifically for the album format, and the first electronic work commissioned by a record company. The album received the rare honor of entering the National Registry of Recorded Works at the Library of Congress in 2009.
Subotnick cofounded the San Francisco Tape Music Center in 1962 with fellow composer Ram n Sender, creating a space that became a central hub for experimental music innovation and technological breakthroughs, including Subotnick's Buchla 100 modular synthesizer (the world's first analog synthesizer). He would use the Buchla Box to release several more groundbreaking records, such as The Wild Bull, Touch, Sidewinder, and Four Butterflies.
In 1969, Subotnick was part of a team of musicians and educators who formed a new path of music education now known as the California Institute of the Arts. Subotnick remained associate dean of the music school for four years and later became the head of the composition program, where he created a new media program that introduced interactive technology and multimedia into the curriculum. Among his many awards and achievements are a Guggenheim Fellowship, three Rockefeller Grants, an American Academy of Arts and Letters Composer Award, an ASCAP: John Cage Award, and an honorary doctorate from the California Institute of the Arts.
It is a deep honor to welcome one of the most foundational figures in electronic music, Mort Subotnick-an innovator whose work has touched so many different corners of music, technology, machine and instrument design, and countless intersecting points in between them, said Brian Sears, assistant director of operations for the Professional Writing and Music Technology Division. In many ways, he is a representation of what we hope to build at Berklee: a platform for visionaries and leaders to push boundaries and bold new ideas that open new creative possibilities for future waves of artists.
In later years, Subotnick became a pioneer of music education for children, developing several initiatives that provide access to musical education and creative tools. He is the author of a series of music education CD-ROMs for young musicians and has developed an internationally available program for classroom learning that is centered around developing skills by composing original music.
Now in his 90s, Subotnick continues to tour as a lecturer and performer, most recently appearing in Los Angeles, Brooklyn, and Knoxville, Tennessee. He is a faculty member at Brooklyn College and an adjunct professor at NYU's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. Previous students include Ingram Marshall, Mark Coniglio, Carl Stone, Rhys Chatham, Charlemagne Palestine, Ann Millikan, Julia Stilman-Lasansky, Lois V Vierk, Betty Ann Wong, and Jeremy Zuckerman.
Related Categories
News
Most Popular
Laufey '21
Gemma Warren
Berklee Alumni and Faculty Win at the 2024 Grammy Awards Laufey, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, Miguel Zen n, and Carla Patullo were among the winners of music's most coveted award.
Latest
Boston Conservatory at Berklee will present honorary doctorates to Lar Lubovitch (left) and LaChanze (right) during the Conservatory's commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 11.
Boston Conservatory at Berklee to Honor LaChanze and Lar Lubovitch at Commencement Ceremony Interim Executive Director Michael Shinn will present honorary doctorates during the Conservatory's commencement on Saturday, May 11.
(Center left to right) Students Carol Gao and Rachel Ray McFarlane were presented with Electronic Arts/Berklee Charting Change Scholarships by (left to right) Berklee Interim Pres
Most recent headlines
13/03/2025
(L-R) Stephanie Suganami, Tatanka Means, John Malkovich, Ayo Edebiri, and Juliette Lewis attend the premiere of Opus at Eccles Theatre in Park City. (Photo by...
13/03/2025
Spotify took center stage at the London Book Fair this week, reaffirming our commitment to the audiobook market and showcasing our impact on the publishing indu...
13/03/2025
At Spotify, we work every day to lift up new voices, giving creators the opportunity to live off their art. Through Spotify Audiobooks, our in-house publishing ...
13/03/2025
Every time airborne law enforcement (ALE) teams fly, they expect their equipment to perform. Whether airborne units are conducting support for ground teams, bor...
13/03/2025
Sunday February 9 saw the annual return of the US' biggest television event, the Super Bowl LIX. Jamie McCombs, Fox Sports Audio Consultant / Sr. Audio capt...
13/03/2025
On Sunday March 2, stars across the film industry gathered at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles for the 97th Academy Awards. Production Sound Mixer Paul Sandweis...
13/03/2025
WUPPERTAL, Germany Riedel Communications will feature its new StageLink family of smart edge devices, Smart Audio and Mixing Engine (SAME) and Virtual Smart Pan...
13/03/2025
TAG Video Systems and Harmonic Partner to Deliver Enhanced Real-Time Monitoring ...
13/03/2025
DigitalGlue Invites NAB Visitors to Experience New Features in Managed Storage P...
13/03/2025
FOR-A America Theme - Connecting the Present, Building the Future - Comes to Lif...
13/03/2025
CTIA, the wireless industry association, has named former FCC Chairman Aji Pai as its President and Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1. He replaces Mere...
13/03/2025
he National Association of Broadcasters is urging the FCC to end its investigation of that controversial CBS interview with Kamala Harris stating there is no ...
13/03/2025
MIAMI CBS News & Stations continues to expand its use of augmented and virtual reality technologies with the planned launch of an augmented reality/virtual real...
13/03/2025
Srividhya Srinivasan, co-founder and chief customer success & innovation Officer at Amagi, tells TVBEurope how staying ahead of the latest trends is essential f...
13/03/2025
WASHINGTON FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced that the agency has launched a massive, new deregulatory initiative that could potentially subject virtually all ...
13/03/2025
SUNNYVALE, Calif. SDVI has announced that it has integrated its Rally media supply chain management platform with the Spectra Vail multi-cloud data management s...
13/03/2025
ATLANTA Gray Media has announced that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted a waiver of its local ownership rules to permit Gray Media to acqu...
13/03/2025
TV Tech: What do you anticipate will be the most significant technology trends at the 2025 NAB Show?...
13/03/2025
Watch Student Naomi Soleils Folk Pop Performance on The Voice The songwriting major sang Stars by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals during the blind auditions.
...
13/03/2025
Roku Debuts NWSL Zone' Within Roku Sports to Spotlight Live Games, Content Feature marks Rokus first women's league-branded zone within service By Bra...
13/03/2025
Pixels, Images, Video, AI - and Us: A Perspective on AI from NDI Inventor Andrew...
13/03/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Lighting Design Group's Steve Brill, Dennis Size ...
13/03/2025
IOC, Comcast NBCU Ink $3B Media-Rights Extension for Olympic Games Through 2036;...
13/03/2025
NCAA March Madness Live Returns with Expanded Availability of MultiView Vertical...
13/03/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Cosm's Devin Poolman on What It Takes To Deliver the Immersive...
13/03/2025
Sky Business, Sky's B2B division, providing connectivity and content to busi...
13/03/2025
Rohde & Schwarz launches R&S NRP140TWG(N) thermal power sensor: A new benchmark ...
13/03/2025
We asked the questions, analysed the answers and now we're excited to share the results of the fifth edition of the ICG Marketing Survey.
Our 2025 survey p...
13/03/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. - March 13, 2025 Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced a breakthrough in video streaming innovation with the launch of new origin capabilitie...
13/03/2025
Haivision Showcases Mission-Critical Video Solutions at SOF Week 2025
Haivision's video wall systems, ISR technology, and DoDIN APL-certified video distri...
13/03/2025
Company Leads the Way with New Software-Based Production Platform, 12G Switcher,...
13/03/2025
A new Apple Immersive concert experience, Metallica, is coming to Apple Vision Pro this Friday, March 14. Filmed in Mexico City during the sold-out second-year ...
13/03/2025
Here is your host, Patrick Kielty!
Shake your Shamrocks, Patrick Kielty will be...
13/03/2025
This St. Patrick's weekend, RT invites you to celebrate all things Irish, showcasing the very best of Irish sport, entertainment and live coverage from the...
13/03/2025
What's next in AI is at GTC 2025. Not only the technology, but the people and ideas that are pushing AI forward - creating new opportunities, novel solution...
13/03/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
By combining T-Mobile's robust network, Thal...
13/03/2025
Bundle up - GeForce NOW is bringing a flurry of Blizzard titles to its ever-expanding library.
Prepare to weather epic gameplay in the cloud, tackling the genr...
13/03/2025
AI is leveling up the world's most beloved games, as the latest advancements...
13/03/2025
PC game modding is massive, with over 5 billion mods downloaded annually. Mods p...
12/03/2025
O Spotify acaba de lan ar o relat rio Loud & Clear deste ano, uma vis o transpar...
12/03/2025
Spotify acaba de presentar el informe Loud & Clear de este a o, una mirada trans...
12/03/2025
Ramadan, a period of profound spiritual significance for Muslims worldwide, is a time for fasting, prayer, reflection, and community. Enrich your experience thi...
12/03/2025
Spotify has just unveiled this year's Loud & Clear report, a transparent loo...
12/03/2025
More than 70% of FAST programming has been produced since 2010, according to new Gracenote report
NEW YORK March 12, 2025 Gracenote, the content data busin...
12/03/2025
GEONA, Nev. Independent digital and linear advertising rep firm Viamedia will adopt cloud-based ShowSeeker Pilot as its primary ad campaign and order management...
12/03/2025
BRUSSELS Mediagenix has announced that Wael Yasin has joined the company as sales director Central Europe....
12/03/2025
LONDON A new study highlights opportunities for shoppable TV and the massive impact online consumer spending is having on the economy, with Omdia predicting tha...
12/03/2025
CUPERTINO, Calif. Interra Systems has announced that Comcast Technology Solutions has integrated recent updates to BATON Version 9 into its operations....
12/03/2025
Nevion announces new 400G addition to its eMerge SDN media fabric offering
Brie Clayton March 12, 2025
0 Comments
High-capacity switch enhances existi...
12/03/2025
DaVinci Resolve Studio Delivers Cinematic Sound for Adam Bol
Brie Clayton March 12, 2025
0 Comments
Feature film relies on DaVinci Resolve Studio for ...