Voices in the desert: an ontology of the electroacoustic community

Abstract

When referring to the electroacoustic community, we often picture a set of select institutions whose members are engaged in the process of music making by electronic means. This mythic community is assumed to have a unity of purpose and a common set of be liefs. However, considering the divergence of positions expressed in and around this ‘community’, we are tempted to dismiss the notion of any commonality. If we reframe our thinking and avoid transcendence to be ‘in a pure field of immanence’ (Deleuze 1988b: 7), we have the potential for a new definition of collegiality which may permit a community-in-becoming to emerge within electroacoustics.