NonSeq: John Bischoff

John Bischoff (b. 1949, San Francisco) is an early pioneer of live computer music. He is known for his solo constructions in real-time synthesis as well as the development of computer network music. His recent performances combine hands-on analog circuitry and digital synthesis in open dialog. Sonic attributes in one domain inform music unfolding in the other. The ebb and flow of discontinuity in these systems spontaneously generates form. He has been active in the experimental music scene in the Bay Area for over 40 years as a composer, performer, and teacher. His performances around the US include NEW MUSIC AMERICA festivals, Roulette and Experimental Intermedia in New York, and the Lampo Series in Chicago. He has performed in Europe at the Festival d'Automne in Paris, Akademie der Künste in Berlin, STEIM in Amsterdam, and Fylkingen in Stockholm. He is a founding member of the LEAGUE OF AUTOMATIC MUSIC COMPOSERS, the world's first computer network band, and co-authored an article on the LEAGUE's music that appeared in "Foundations of Computer Music" (MIT Press 1985). He is also an original member of THE HUB, a band he has performed and recorded with for over 3 decades. He was on faculty for many years in the legendary Music Department at Mills College. Recordings of his work are available on Artifact Recordings, Lovely Music, Tzadik, 23Five, Centaur, and New World Records.

(photo: Orpheus Roswell, 2025)
Curated by RM Francis for Nonsequitur's NonSeq series.

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