Crudely translated from Latin as 'god out of apparatus (or mechanism, machine)' Deus Ex Machina is an especially apt statement given that this piece is a work wholly for computer-generated multi-channel surround digital audio. The etymology of the term is from ancient dramaturgy, when the character of a god was lowered by stage machinery to resolve a plot or get the protagonist out of an impossible situation. The phrase deus ex machina describes an unexpected, artifical, or improbable device, or event introduced suddenly in a work to resolve a situation or plot, or any resolution of a story which does not adhere to the internal logic of the story, a resolution so unlikely that it challenges the suspension of disbelief of the reader, or in this case: the listener. I have buried a number of unlikely outcomes within the fabric of the work. The piece uses sonic material from many different sources including a mixture of: granular and FM synthesis, acoustic instruments, and concrete sounds from the real world.

Deus ex machina I is the first piece in a series of works for different instrumental forces and multi-channel digital audio that have common primary source material which is manipulated, re-configured, re-ordered, and re-organized to fit with the instrumental combinations at hand. The piece is in two parts and can be played together or separated by other works on a concert. The multi-channel surround version of piece was first performed live in concert on February 22nd on the angelusnovus.net concert held at the ARRAYMUSIC Studio in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Deus ex Machina II will be for solo bassoon with digital audio (utilizing some of the source material from Deus ex Machina I recomposed and recombined into a new and distinct whole). Future pieces in the series will include: Deus ex Machina III for accordion and audio, and Deus ex Machina IV for Saxophone and audio.

Jason Stanford. [email: jasonstanford (at) excite.com]