Video games open portals into fantastical worlds where imaginative play prevails. The virtual medium seemingly provides us with ample opportunities to behave and act out with relative safety and impunity. Or does it? Sound Play explores the aesthetic, ethical, and sociopolitical stakes of our engagements with gaming's audio phenomena-from sonic violence to synthesized operas, from democratic music-making to vocal sexual harassment. Author William Cheng shows how the simulated environments of games empower designers, composers, players, and scholars to test and tinker with music, noise, speech, and silence in ways that might not be prudent or possible in the real world. In negotiating utopian and alarmist stereotypes of video games, Sound Play synthesizes insights from across musicology, sociology, anthropology, communications, literary theory, and philosophy. With case studies that span Final Fantasy VI, Silent Hill, Fallout 3, The Lord of the Rings Online, and Team Fortress 2, this book insists that what we do in there-in the safe, sound spaces of games-can ultimately teach us a great deal about who we are and what we value (musically, culturally, humanly) out here.

"GarageBand X - How it Works" from the GEM series (Graphically Enhanced Manuals) explains Apple's popular music production application "GarageBand" with rich illustrations and diagrams that are not found in any other manual (this is the only manual available). This 321 pages letter size book presents this software application in great detail with that easy to understand, visual approach.- What are Graphically Enhanced Manuals (GEM)? They're a new type of manual with a visual approach that helps you UNDERSTAND a program, not just LEARN it. No need to read through 500 of pages of dry text explanations. Rich graphics and diagrams help you to get that "aha" effect and make it easy to comprehend difficult concepts. The Graphically Enhanced Manuals help you master a program much faster with a much deeper understanding of concepts, features and workflows in a very intuitive way that is easy to understand.

The only manual for Logic Remote, covering all the features of this companion app for the new "Logic Pro X." "Logic Remote (iPad) - How it Works" from the GEM series (Graphically Enhanced Manuals) explains Apple's brand new iPad app "Logic Remote" with rich illustrations and diagrams that are not found in any other manual or even in Apple's own documentation. This 68 pages letter size book presents this software application in great detail with that easy to understand, visual approach. This book is in fact the only comprehensive manual for this app.
What are Graphically Enhanced Manuals (GEM)?
They're a new type of manual with a visual approach that helps you UNDERSTAND a program, not just LEARN it. No need to read through 500 of pages of dry text explanations. Rich graphics and diagrams help you to get that "aha" effect and make it easy to comprehend difficult concepts. The Graphically Enhanced Manuals help you master a program much faster with a much deeper understanding of concepts

(Second Edition updated for MAX 6) Structured for use in university courses, the book is an overview of the theory and practice of Max/MSP, with a glossary of terms and suggested tests that allow students to evaluate their progress. Comprehensive online support, running parallel to the explanations in the book, includes hundreds of sample patches, analyses, interactive sound-building exercises, and reverse engineering exercises. This book will provide a reader with skill and understanding in using Max/MSP for sound design and musical composition.

Written in a step by step tutorial style, learning comes as a result of creating a complete dance music track, along with the explanations that follow each stage. You have a computer and a love for dance and electronic music. Maybe you've been to some clubs, and the energy of electronic dance music has you completely under its spell. You see a DJ spinning, and everyone is dancing. It's infectious. You want to make music that affects people that way. Today the open source community has offered you LMMS. Read this book, and you'll be shown a process to creating great dance music. This book is going to connect the dots if you have already started making dance music, and provide a very solid foundation if you are just getting started - no matter what your skill level is.

NEW MEDIA THEORY SERIES EDITOR: BYRON HAWK MICS, CAMERAS, SYMBOLIC ACTION: AUDIO-VISUAL RHETORIC FOR WRITING TEACHERS addresses the current technological challenges and opportunities of writing teachers through a conceptualization of writing and reading that could not have been imagined by many writing teachers at the turn of the twenty-first century. While MICS, CAMERAS, SYMBOLIC ACTION looks forward to emerging writing technologies, it finds its theoretical foundations by looking back to Kenneth Burke's concept of symbolic action. MICS, CAMERAS, SYMBOLIC ACTION situates its pedagogy for engaging the multidimensional rhetoric of audio-visual writing to help new and experienced writing teachers select, create, and engage productive models for designing audio-visual writing assignments and curricula. MICS, CAMERAS, SYMBOLIC ACTION draws upon Erika Lindemann and her pioneering work in A Rhetoric for Writing Teachers, as well as the educational theory of John Dewey, the multiliteracy theory of Stuart Selber, and the design philosophy of Robin Williams. Rather than look to the creation and critique of audio-visual texts as the goal of its pedagogy, MICS, CAMERAS, SYMBOLIC ACTION looks for ways to use the creation and critique of audio-visual texts as a means for realizing a variety of learning goals for writing students. Bump HALBRITTER establishes not only the theoretical foundation for that work but also discusses, in depth, the material demands of working with audio-visual assets that writing teachers have not typically been trained to use: microphones, video cameras, and an array of other peripheral technologies for collecting, storing, and exchanging audio-visual information. BUMP HALBRITTER is Associate Professor of Rhetoric and Writing at Michigan State University and is Editor of CCC ONLINE. His work on aural rhetoric and audio-visual writing pedagogy has appeared in KAIROS, ENCULTURATION, COMPUTERS AND COMPOSITION, COLLEGE ENGLISH, and in the edited collection, DIGITAL TOOLS. Halbritter and Julie Lindquist are co-PIs of the long-term research project LiteracyCorps Michigan, a multi-phase research project that uses digital video to investigate and document the literate lives of college students. "The voice and style are one of the Mics, Cameras, Symbolic Action's great strengths, as they render the subject approachable and readable to those who might not yet consider themselves a part of rhetoric and composition culture. Halbritter makes a compelling argument for why we should become engaged in the (symbolic) action of multimedia composing." - ERIN KARPER

"GarageBand 11 - How it Works" from the GEM series (Graphically Enhanced Manuals) explains Apple's popular music production application "GarageBand" with rich illustrations and diagrams that are not found in any other manual. This 161 pages letter size book presents this software application in great detail with that easy to understand, visual approach.- What are Graphically Enhanced Manuals (GEM)? They're a new type of manual with a visual approach that helps you UNDERSTAND a program, not just LEARN it. No need to read through 500 of pages of dry text explanations. Rich graphics and diagrams help you to get that "aha" effect and make it easy to comprehend difficult concepts. The Graphically Enhanced Manuals help you master a program much faster with a much deeper understanding of concepts, features and workflows in a very intuitive way that is easy to understand.

Even if you haven't used GarageBand for iPhone before, chances are you've heard a lot about it. When this iOS version of Apple's popular GarageBand for Mac application debuted in 2011, rave reviews began rolling in, and Apple has improved its performance and added features since then. If you've ever used GarageBand for Mac, you'll find yourself quite comfortable here -- the two apps have a lot in common. If you haven't, don't worry -- we cover everything you'll need to know in this guide. But, either way, prepare yourself for a unique experience. That's because of the unique touch interface of the iPhone. Apple's GarageBand for iPhone app features several great software instruments that you can play just by touching the screen. This makes the experience of playing a guitar, for instance, or a drum set very natural for anyone who's ever played a musical instrument, and much more fun Let Minute Help show you how

For most of the history of film-making, music has played an integral role serving many functions - such as conveying emotion, heightening tension, and influencing interpretation and inferences about events and characters. More recently, with the enormous growth of the gaming industry and the Internet, a new role for music has emerged. However, all of these applications of music depend on complex mental processes which are being identified through research on human participants in multimedia contexts. The Psychology of Music in Multimedia is the first book dedicated to this fascinating topic. The Psychology of Music in Multimedia presents a wide range of scientific research on the psychological processes involved in the integration of sound and image when engaging with film, television, video, interactive games, and computer interfaces. Collectively, the rich chapters in this edited volume represent a comprehensive treatment of the existing research on the multimedia experience, with the aim of disseminating the current knowledge base and inspiring future scholarship. The focus on empirical research and the strong psychological framework make this book an exceptional and distinctive contribution to the field. The international collection of contributors represents eight countries and a broad range of disciplines including psychology, musicology, neuroscience, media studies, film, and communications. Each chapter includes a comprehensive review of the topic and, where appropriate, identifies models that can be empirically tested. Part One presents contrasting theoretical approaches from cognitive psychology, philosophy, semiotics, communication, musicology, and neuroscience. Part Two reviews research on the structural aspects of music and multimedia, while Part Three focuses on research examining the influence of music on perceived meaning in the multimedia experience. Part Four explores empirical findings in a variety of real-world applications of music in multimedia including entertainment and educational media for children, video and computer games, television and online advertising, and auditory displays of information. Finally, the closing chapter in Part Five identifies emerging themes and points to the value of broadening the scope of research to encompass multisensory, multidisciplinary, and cross-cultural perspectives to advance our understanding of the role of music in multimedia. This is a valuable book for those in the fields of music psychology and musicology, as well as film and media studies.

The only full featured manual for GarageBand for the iPad (not just a quick start guide). - "GarageBand for iPad - How it Works" from the GEM series (Graphically Enhanced Manuals) explains Apple's popular music production application "GarageBand for iPad" with rich illustrations and diagrams that are not found in any other manual. This 117 pages letter size book presents this software application in great detail with that easy to understand, visual approach. This book is in fact the only comprehensive manual for the iPad version of GarageBand. It covers all the features of the apps plus getting into great details about iCloud and iTunes File Sharing.- What are Graphically Enhanced Manuals (GEM)? They're a new type of manual with a visual approach that helps you UNDERSTAND a program, not just LEARN it. No need to read through 500 of pages of dry text explanations. Rich graphics and diagrams help you to get that "aha" effect and make it easy to comprehend difficult concepts. The Graphically Enhanced Manuals help you master a program much faster with a much deeper understanding of concepts, features and workflows in a very intuitive way that is easy to understand.

You've heard of publish or perish. For years this has been the mantra of the academic world. Now it is also true of entrepreneurs. It is a fact Your market is looking for information and the fact is that if you don't give it to them, your competitors are going to and then they'll get there first. This book is a powerful tool that helps you do that. Before buying products, the public wants information. Information is important and as a writer, coach, consultant, entrepreneur, business owner, Internet Marketer, you need to be providing your market with information before your competitors do. When a consumer goes into the grocery store, they read the labels; they want to know what food they're consuming. When they purchase any electronic device, any appliance, clothes, shoes, any item, they want to read about that item so they know what they are purchasing. And the same is true of your business. This book demonstrates ways in which you can provide information to your market with little or no effort in a fast, efficient way.

Even if you haven't used GarageBand for iPad before, chances are you've heard a lot about it. When this iOS version of Apple's popular GarageBand for Mac application debuted in 2011, rave reviews began rolling in, and Apple has improved its performance and added features since then. If you've ever used GarageBand for Mac, you'll find yourself quite comfortable here -- the two apps have a lot in common. If you haven't, don't worry -- we cover everything you'll need to know in this guide. But, either way, prepare yourself for a unique experience. That's because of the unique touch interface of the iPad. Apple's GarageBand for iPhone app features several great software instruments that you can play just by touching the screen. This makes the experience of playing a guitar, for instance, or a drum set very natural for anyone who's ever played a musical instrument, and much more fun Let Minute Help show you how

This book is intended to be an easy-to-use, practical guide to all that Pro Tools has to offer. If you are a beginner, you should have absolutely no problem setting up your system and getting started. If you already use Pro Tools regularly, you should find the answers to questions you have always wanted to know. Either way, the ultimate goal is to give all Pro Tools users a reliable reference guide to any issues they may encounter.

Electronic music instruments weren't called synthesizers until the 1950s, but their lineage began in 1919 with Russian inventor Lev Sergeyevich Termen's development of the Etherphone, now known as the Theremin. From that point, synthesizers have undergone a remarkable evolution from prohibitively large mid-century models confined to university laboratories to the development of musical synthesis software that runs on tablet computers and portable media devices.
Throughout its history, the synthesizer has always been at the forefront of technology for the arts. In The Synthesizer: A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding, Programming, Playing, and Recording the Ultimate Electronic Music Instrument, veteran music technology journalist, educator, and performer Mark Vail tells the complete story of the synthesizer: the origins of the many forms the instrument takes; crucial advancements in sound generation, musical control, and composition made with instruments that may have become best sellers or gone entirely unnoticed; and the basics and intricacies of acoustics and synthesized sound. Vail also describes how to successfully select, program, and play a synthesizer; what alternative controllers exist for creating electronic music; and how to stay focused and productive when faced with a room full of instruments. This one-stop reference guide on all things synthesizer also offers tips on encouraging creativity, layering sounds, performance, composing and recording for film and television, and much more.

The Book of Audacity is the definitive guide to Audacity, the powerful, free, cross-platform audio editor. Audacity allows anyone to transform their Windows, Mac, or Linux computer into a powerful recording studio. The Book of Audacity is the perfect book for bands on a budget, solo artists, audiophiles, and anyone who wants to learn more about digital audio. Musician and podcaster Carla Schroder will guide you through a range of fun and useful Audacity projects that will demystify that geeky audio jargon and show you how to get the most from Audacity. You ll learn how to: Record podcasts, interviews, and live performances Be your own backing band or chorus Edit, splice, mix, and master multitrack recordings Create super high-fidelity and surround-sound recordings Digitize your vinyl or tape collection and clean up noise, hisses, and clicks Create custom ringtones and sweet special effects In addition, you ll learn how to choose and use digital audio hardware like mics and pream

Selling Digital Music, Formatting Culture documents the transition of recorded music on CDs to music as digital files on computers. More than two decades after the first digital music files began circulating in online archives and playing through new software media players, we have yet to fully internalize the cultural and aesthetic consequences of these shifts. Tracing the emergence of what Jeremy Wade Morris calls the "digital music commodity," Selling Digital Music, Formatting Culture considers how a conflicted assemblage of technologies, users, and industries helped reformat popular music's meanings and uses. Through case studies of five key technologies - Winamp, metadata, Napster, iTunes, and cloud computing - this book explores how music listeners gradually came to understand computers and digital files as suitable replacements for their stereos and CD. Morris connects industrial production, popular culture, technology, and commerce in a narrative involving the aesthetics of music and computers, and the labor of producers and everyday users, as well as the value that listeners make and take from digital objects and cultural goods. Above all, Selling Digital Music, Formatting Culture is a sounding out of music's encounters with the interfaces, metadata, and algorithms of digital culture and of why the shifting form of the music commodity matters for the music and other media we love.