Michael Winter

Curriculum Vitae

  • mwinter@unboundedpress.org
  • +49.176.6807.2118
  • www.unboundedpress.org

Education

PhD in Media Arts and Technology, University of California, Santa Barbara, 2010
MFA in Music Composition, California Institute of the Arts, Valencia, 2005
BS in Music Technology, University of Oregon, Eugene, 2003


Teaching

UNIRIO, International Visiting Professor
Feb 2020 – Dec 2020
  • Courses: Graduate and undergraduate seminars (could not commence position in person)
  • Topics: Acoustic ecologies and sound art, computer music, epistemology
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Organized invited guests for weekly seminars, led and moderated discussion, publication on the ethics of access in higher education
University of Southern California, USC Brain Project Lead Developer
Jan 2014 – Aug 2016
  • Courses: Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
  • Topics: Neural networks, computational neuromodelling
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Helped develop and teach the neuroinformatics track of an AI course, assisted with doctoral student projects
The Art Institute of California, Hollywood, Instructor
Jun 2010 – Apr 2011
  • Courses: Logic of Programming, Web Design, Sound Design, Interactive Design
  • Topics: Interactive design, game theory, digital audio workstations, sound design and synthesis, Python, HTML, CSS, history of electronic music
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Curriculum development, grading, faculty and student administration
University of California, Santa Barbara, Teaching Assistant
Aug 2007 – Apr 2008
  • Courses: Transvergance, Digital Audio Signal Processing
  • Topics: Digital architecture, philosophy of art, sound design and synthesis, composition, Java, motion detection, immersive environments, history of electronic music
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Lab and studio management, grading
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Teaching Assistant
Aug 2006 – May 2007
  • Courses: Technosonics, Introduction to Music and Computers
  • Topics: Digital audio workstations, sound design and synthesis, composition, history of electronic music
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Lab and studio management, grading
California Institute of the Arts, Teaching Assistant
Aug 2003 – May 2005
  • Course: Introduction to Electronic Media and Computers
  • Topics: Digital audio workstations, sound design and synthesis, composition, history of electronic music
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Lab and studio management, grading


Lectures

2024
Chintete @ Cantina La Dominica, CDMX
A brief but not necessarily abbreviated history of the domino problem
2023
Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music, Rīga
A few more thoughts on modulations in harmonic space
MPLab, Liepajā
Countercoding: a few thoughts about data ethics and music (or... are your algorithms healthy? - part III)
B-Circle, Berlin
A brief but not necessarily abbreviated history of the domino problem
Centro Nacional de las Artes, Mexico City (with Alex Bruck)
Workshop on Microtonal Practices (5 sessions)
2022
Institut für Mikroelektronik Stuttgart
Challenges of Analog Visual Cryptography: a history of the domino problem
B-Circle, Berlin (with Catherine Lamb)
Total forms and other totalities
Institute of Sonology @ the Royal Conservatory of The Hague
Countercoding: a few thoughts about data ethics and music (or... are your algorithms healthy? - part II)
California Institute of the Arts
Countercoding: a few thoughts about data ethics and music (or... are your algorithms healthy? - part I)
2020
University of California, Santa Cruz
A few things I do
Simpom 6 @ UNIRIO, Rio de Janeiro
A few more thoughts about Leibniz: the prediction of harmonic distance in harmonic space
2019
ELAK, course for electroacoustic and experimental music @ the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien
This is a talk about how things fit together
Trinity College, London (with Robert Blatt)
This talk has a high chance of failure: performer, score, environment, and listener as algorithmic systems
Guildhall School of Music, London (with Robert Blatt)
This talk has a high chance of failure: performer, score, environment, and listener as algorithmic systems
Instituto Internacional en Madrid
This is a talk about how things fit together
Apotheose Series @ Eckartshaldenweg 7, Stuttgart
Artist conversation (with afterparty at Korridor Bar, Stuttgart with DJ Silent Lover)
Engaging with Histories Festival @ Rampe, Stuttgart
A prehistory of the domino problem (lecture / performance)
2018
Haifa University
On modulations in harmonic space
2017
The Box, Los Angeles
On James Tenney’s Changes for six harps
California Institute of the Arts
On James Tenney’s Changes for six harps
Institución Universitaria Bellas Artes, Cartagena
Minimalismo conceptual y la verdad sobre el ruido
Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin
Minimalismo conceptual y la verdad sobre el ruido
Fundación Universitaria Bellas Artes Medellín
Un nuevo virtuosidad
Universidad de los Andes, Bogota
Shape and Structure: a few good ideas on form and detail
Chawpi Laboratorio, Quito
Minimalismo conceptual y la verdad sobre el ruido
Universidad de las Artes de Guayaquil
Cuando cosas va diferente: entre el concepto y la realidad
Sono Centro Cultural de Cuenca
La Guitarra en la Experimentacion Sonora
2016
Università degli Studi di Torino
Over 300 years ago, Leibniz predicted many current trends in music: a lecture / performance
Universität der Künste Berlin
From Leibniz to Tenney: on computability, structure, and harmony
University of Leeds
From Leibniz to Tenney: on computability, structure, and harmony
University of Huddersfield
Over 300 years ago, Leibniz predicted many current trends in music: a lecture / performance
Bath Spa University
On the domain of an open work: cardinality, intersection, and computability
On minimal resources, laziness, and style
Conservatorio de las Rosas, Morelia
On minimal resources, laziness, and style
CENIDIM - Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, Mexico City
Over 300 years ago, Leibniz predicted many current trends in music: a lecture / performance
Universidad de Guadalajara
Combinatorial optimization and art: from Leibniz to Beckett and beyond
California Institute of the Arts
On minimal resources, laziness, and style
University of California Santa Cruz
On minimal resources, laziness, and style
2015
Computer Music Hangout at the Public School, Los Angeles
Graph theory, harmonic space, and combinatorics
University of Southern California
On James Tenney’s Changes for six harps
California Institute of the Arts
A few ways to get from one thing to the next
Universidad del Claustro de Sor Juana, Mexico City
Noise in the system: reading Claude Shannon
2014
Conservatorio de Las Rosas, Morelia
New music for guitars
Universidad de Chile, Santiago
Algorithmic Information Theory, Metabiology, Music
Universidad de Buenos Aires
Algorithmic Information Theory, Metabiology, Music
Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso
Algorithmic Information Theory, Metabiology, Music
Universidade de São Paulo
Shape and Structure: a few good ideas on form and detail
Escola de Música e Belas Artes do Paraná
On community and radicality: a personal survey of dangerous artists and art movements
University of California, Santa Cruz
Several extremely simple ideas
University of California, Santa Barbara
Adapting and applying digital signal processing techniques to high-level music information
2013
Workshop for Algorithmic Computer Music at University of California, Santa Cruz
A few thoughts on musical structure
James Tenney's computer music
Dartmouth College
Where do you get your data from?
The computer in my life
2011
Wesleyan University
My software thinks your software is beautiful: a few words about metabiology, beauty and music
University of California, Santa Cruz
A few words on elegance, creativity and beauty
Dartmouth College
On James Tenney’s Changes for six harps
Three Ideas: 1) sometimes I steal, sometimes I don’t, and sometimes I think I am not stealing but actually am; 2) some thoughts on generalizing graphs and mathematical problems from musical ideas; 3) music, structural metrics and algorithmic information theory
IRCAM, Paris
On generalizing graphs and mathematical problems from musical ideas
2009
California Institute of the Arts
Structural metrics
2008
Columbia University
On James Tenney’s Arbor Vitae for string quartet
2006
State University of New York, Buffalo
Lecture on the machine and music
2005
State University of New York, Binghamton
Lecture on infinity


Relevant Work

Max Planck Institute for the History of Sciences, Research Scholar, IT Architect
Mar 2022 – May 2023
  • Project: Oral Histories in Biomedicine
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Digital humanities specialist, development and deployment of digital collection platform for oral histories, database and website scraping, Big Data management, website and server deployment and administration, code repository management and version control, close collaboration with philosophers, historians, and library sciences researchers
the wulf., Co-founder, Co-director (to 2018), President of the Board of Directors
Aug 2008 – present
  • Project: A 501(c)(3) non-profit arts organization that presents free experimental music performances
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Organizing regular public events in experimental arts; grant writing; audio archive development and maintenance; Python/Django website and server development and maintenance; interfacing with artists, charitable organizations, educational institutions, and private and public partners; managing staff, interns, and volunteers; code repository management and version control; designing governance and policy structure of the organization
University of Southern California, USC Brain Project Lead Developer
Jan 2014 – Aug 2016
  • Project: Neuroinformatics platform connecting large datasets to promote cross-discipline collaborations
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Python/Django development integrating and federating databases of linguistics, primate behavior, and computational neuromodels; database and website scraping; Big Data management; automated video tagging; website and server deployment and administration, code repository management and version control; daily meetings with doctoral candidates in Computational Neuromodeling assisting with individual projects
Wolfram Research, Research Programmer and Consultant
Jun 2012 – Aug 2016
  • Project: Signal processing core system development
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Designing and implementing a real-time audio system for the Wolfram Language, weekly team meetings with the Signal Processing Group, code repository management and version control
Wolfram Alpha, Research Programmer
Apr 2011 – Jun 2012
  • Project: Wolfram computational knowledge engine
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Domain expert for Music, database and website scraping, Big Data management, natural language processing and curation, code repository management and version control, weekly meetings with the Arts and Humanities development and curation teams
Music Mastermind, Developer and Consultant
Jun 2008 – Jul 2009
  • Project: Game engine for generating music
  • Activities and Responsibilities: Designing and implementing algorithmic tools for automatic music creation, implementing Hidden Markov Models in Java, code repository management and version control, weekly meetings with development team


Coding Skills

Expertise in: SuperCollider, Arduino, Python, JavaScript, Lilypond, Java, Mathematica, CSS, HTML, MySQL, NoSQL


Language Skills

English - fluent, Spanish - advanced, German - conversational


Publications

A simplicity bubble problem in formal-theoretic learning systems
with Abrahão, F., Zenil, H., Porto, F., Wehmuth, K. and D'Ottaviano, I. forthcoming.
The simplicity bubble effect as a zemblanitous phenomenon in learning systems
with Abrahão, F., Cavassane, R. and D'Ottaviano, I. forthcoming.
Evolving curricula: reflections on The Quarantine Seminars
with Dantas, P. forthcoming.
Meta+phenomenology: primer towards a phenomenology formally based on algorithmic information theory and metabiology
Doria, F. and Wuppuluri, S., editors. Unravelling Complexity: Life and Work of Gregory Chaitin. World Scientific, 2020.
Liner notes to the album the yggdrasil-soli by Ulrich Krieger
Winds Measures Recordings, 2020.
A few more thoughts about Leibniz: the prediction of harmonic distance in harmonic space (with text to preliminary thoughts)
MusMat: Brazilian Journal of Music and Mathematics, vol. 3, no. 1, 2019.
steady state: a study in taxation
Vriezen, S., editors. nY, vol. 38, 2019.
Liner notes to the album Changes by James Tenney
with Polansky, L. New World Records, 2019.
On minimal change musical morphologies
Pareyon, G., Pina-Romero, S., Agustin-Aquino, O.A., and Lluis-Puebla, E., editors. The Musical-Mathematical Mind. Springer, 2017.
Liner notes to the album Three Pieces for Two Pianos by Larry Polansky
New World Records, 2016.
From Scratch: Writings in Music Theory
Tenney, J. Polansky, L., Pratt, L., Wannamaker, R., and Winter, M., editors. University of Illinois Press, 2015.
Approximating Omega
Carbono (online), vol. 7, 2014.
Chordal and timbral morphologies using Hamiltonian cycles
with Akhmedov, A. Journal of Mathematics and Music, vol. 8, no. 1, 2014.
Relativity and scalability with respect to sound and silence
Lely, J. and Saunders, M., editors. Word Events: Perspectives on Verbal Notation. Bloomsbury, 2012.
A few more words about James Tenney: dissonant counterpoint and statistical feedback
with Polansky, L. and Barnett, A. Journal of Mathematics and Music, vol. 5, no. 2, 2011.
Notes on a new economics for a new music
Experimental Music Yearbook (online), vol. 2, 2010.
LiveScore: real–time notation in the music of Harris Wulfson
with Barrett, G.D. Contemporary Music Review, vol. 29, no. 1, 2010.
Structural Metrics: an epistemology
Doctoral Dissertation, 2010.
James Tenney: Selected Works 1961–1969 (review)
Journal of the Society for American Music, vol. 4, no. Special Issue 04, 2010.
James Tenney biographical entry
with Hanson, S., Streb, C., and Polansky, L. Grove Dictionary of American Music. Oxford University Press, 2009.
On James Tenney's Arbor Vitae for string quartet
Contemporary Music Review, vol. 27, no. 1, 2008.
Mavericks on mavericks: James Tenney’s last courses at CalArts
MusikTexte, vol. 112, 2007.
Automatic Notation Generators
with Barrett, G.D. and Wulfson, H. Proceedings of the 7th International NIME Conference. 2007.


Recordings

Solo Albums
some pieces with sustained sounds one of which is punctuated every once in a while with other sounds. a wave press. Cassette Tape. forthcoming.
Counterfeiting in Colonial Connecticut / a lot of tiles (trivial scan). XI Records. CD. 2022.
single track. Another Timbre. CD. 2021.
preliminary thoughts. Tsonami Records. CD. 2018.
preliminary thoughts. Bánh Mì Verlag. Cassette Tape. 2018.
lower limit: music for plucked strings. New World Records. CD. 2018.
Approximating Omega. Edition Wandelweiser Records. CD. 2017.
Compilation Albums
west coast soundings. Edition Wandelweiser Records. CD. 2014.
featuring small world
rounds. the wulf. records. Vinyl. 2013.
featuring welcome round for larry
Music of Ostrava Days 2009 Live. Ostrava Center for New Music. CD. 2009.
featuring recitation, code, and (perhaps) round
DIY Canons. Pogus Productions. CD. 2005.
featuring Filter IV P.I.X.L. Study No. 1


Residencies and Awards

Musikfonds Grant (STIP-III), Germany, 2023
ADK Initial 2 Grant, Germany, 2022
GEMA Artist Grant, Germany, 2022
Akademie Schloss Solitude, Germany, 2018–2019
GoctaLab, Peru, 2016
La Paternal Espacio Proyecto, Argentina, 2014
Foundation for Contemporary Arts, USA, 2014
Wolfram Alpha, USA, 2014
Atlantic Center for the Arts, USA, 2009
Ostrava New Music Days, Czech Republic, 2007 and 2009


References

Curtis Roads
Professor of Media Arts and Technology, University of California, Santa Barbara
clangtint@gmail.com
Amy Beal
Professor of Musicology, University of California, Santa Cruz
abeal@ucsc.edu
Juan Sebastián Lach Lau
Professor of Composition, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Morelia
lachjs@gmail.com