Dr Scott Wilson is offering you the chance to improvise music with Birmingham Ensemble for Electroacoustic Research, a laptop ensemble that makes music using live computer coding. A Senior Lecturer in the Department of Music, Scott’s research interests include electronic sounds.
We caught up with Scott to find out more…
What do you do?
I teach and do research on music composition, electronic music – particularly ‘live’ electronic music, laptop performance, and electronics combined with instruments – and audio spatialisation.
What does that mean?
It means that I spend a lot of time exploring what can be done with computers, music, sound and space. While I take my work very seriously, I nevertheless very much enjoy it!
How do you describe your research to your friends?
Slowly! Actually I have some old friends who are engineers or computer science people, and they're usually quite interested in what I do because I'm using a lot of the same techniques and ideas, but for creative purposes, which makes it really exciting.
What is the best part about your role?
Being part of a community of creative researchers, each of whom brings in different things and we all learn from each other. People think of university as being a place where you go to get something, but students actually bring a lot of experience and ideas to the University as well, playing an important role in shaping the place.
What qualities make someone a good teacher?
Being passionate about what you're teaching. Enthusiasm is infectious!
What inspires you?
New ideas, musical or otherwise, beauty in art, technology and nature.
How do you inspire your students?
Hopefully by showing them the things that excite me. Sometimes this sparks something off and takes all of us in a new direction; inspiration is a two way street!
What is the highlight of your life to date?
I suppose I would have to say the birth of my daughter – what kind of father would I be if I didn't feel that way?
Why should we vote to go behind-the-scenes with you?
Because it will be educational, creative and fun: Three things a university experience should always be!
Fun Facts
I have worked at the University of Birmingham for...
Eight years.
When I was younger I wanted to be...
Various things. Often a musician, mostly a guitarist. I did actually study guitar, but ended up moving in other directions within music in the end - that's one of the great things about universities - you can come looking for one thing but find new doors opening that you weren't even aware of.
The three people on my fantasy dinner party guest list are...
I could never only choose three!