The Remixician's

Guide to the Triaxis



Welcome to the Remixician's Triaxis!

The Triaxis is a conceptual map and compass designed to help navigate the complex landscape of live electronic music, position the elements and yourself in the context of and merging with the Collective. Consider that is a process-oriented model, so try to focus on verbs rather than nouns, on processes rather than objects, dynamics rather than static rigidity. The Triaxis is interconnected and interdependent on the three axes and their feedbacking into each other through operational and experiential processes.



X-Axis (Blue): Spatiotemporal distribution
- Positive X (Order, Structure & Periodicity): Imagine a grid of city streets, a space where patterns and structures are recognized, and repetition is key.
- Negative X (Chaos, Noise & Emergence): Picture a storm at sea, unpredictable and constantly shifting. Here lies the chaotic, emergent, non-repeating and unexpected twists of live remixing.

Y-Axis (Red): Processual potentials
- Above 0 (Hierarchy): Think of a pyramid, where elements are stacked, each level distinct and clear. This represents musical processes with defined roles and a clear chain of command or distinction.
- Below 0 (Rhizome): Visualize a network of roots or neural pathways, all connected, without a clear start or end. This area celebrates interconnectedness and the equality of musical elements.

Z-Axis (Purple): Individual Agency and Collective Action
- Positive Z (The Collective): Picture an orchestra, each musician contributing to a collective sound. It's the sum of actions that creates a holistic musical experience.
- Negative Z (The Remixician): Envision a soloist, making distinct, individual choices that stand apart, bringing personal flair to the music.

The ORIGO (0): This is the sweet spot, where order meets chaos, hierarchy meets the rhizomatic networks, and individuality meets the collective. This meeting can be conceptually understood as a phase cancelling of the polar opposites into unified moments of novel experience. It's the zero point of optimal creativity through the sonic concrescence.

Operational and Experiential Processing Modalities:
- Operational (Green particles): Focus on the methods and processes, the "how" of the music. These are the technical aspects that sculpt the sound. These undercurrents of signal routing, relational dynamics between elements and instruments, rig design or transductive techniques utilized are not nescessarily as obvious or easily determined without extensive insight into the connections and methods implemented by the performers.
- Experiential (Orange clusters): Look at the outcomes, the "what" you hear. This is the receiving result of the musical element or movement, shaped by the operational processes, yet not nescessarily plotted in the same spot in the Triaxis.



Reading the Model:
- Visualize musical elements or processes as nodes within this space.
- Nodes can exhibit characteristics of both processing modalities, indicated by their color. Green for operational aspects and orange for experiential outcomes.


The Z axis depth degree of the node, from negative extreme - The Remixician - to the positive extreme - The Collective - is indicated by respectively a particle and molecular cluster icon.

Using the Triaxis:
- To place a musical element within the Triaxis, ask yourself: Is it ordered or chaotic? Hierarchical or rhizomatic? Individual or collective? Is your reasoning operational or experiential?
- You can have multiple nodes for the same element, showing different perspectives or interagency aspects through this color coding.

Processing perspectives


The Triaxis model offers two distinct processing perspectives: the operational and the experiential.

These modalities represent the dual lenses through which musical elements and actions can be viewed and understood, and helps differentiate between measurement and perception, or how signal facilitation and procedural mechanisms can generate different experiences.

 

Operational Processing is grounded in the mechanics of music creation. It focuses on the techniques, technologies, and methodologies employed to produce and process sound. This process modality is represented in green, evoking the growth and interconnected systems of the operational aspects of music production.

 

Experiential Processing, signified by the vibrant orange, captures the perceptual results of the musical process - the sensory experiences and emotional resonances that music creates for the listener and performer alike. It focuses on the reception of the musical element, rather than describing the operational groundwork.

 

Both modalities are not just complementary but are intrinsically linked. They can, and often do, overlap in the dynamic environment of live remixing.

 

Within the Triaxis, an element can simultaneously inhabit multiple positions. A modular synthesizer patch, operationally complex and intricate, might situate at a high point on the Y-axis for its hierarchical, controlled nature. Yet, when heard, its experiential effect could be deeply rhizomatic, spreading throughout the soundscape in unpredictable ways, warranting a lower Y-axis placement.

 

The dual icons in the Triaxis -clusters for collective actions and particles for individual actions - aid in visualizing these perspectives. As music unfolds, these icons may shift in placement to reflect the changing nature of both operational processes and experiential outcomes.

 

This flexibility in the Triaxis allows for continuous repositioning and reevaluation of musical choices, underscoring the dynamic interplay between how music is made and how it is perceived.


By recognizing this fluidity, the Triaxis becomes more than a model - it becomes a living map of the musical experience, encouraging users to not only navigate, but also to actively shape the perspective on the map itself.

 

 

 

Example of use

(click to enter)

The conjunctive and disjunctive properties of the Triaxis

The Triaxis model, deeply influenced by Alfred Whitehead's process philosophy, particularly his notions of conjunction and disjunction, offers a flexible lens through which we can explore the dynamic, fluid nature of live remixing in music.


Whitehead posits creativity as the essence of all processes in the universe, a principle that brings forth novelty by transitioning from disjunction - where entities exist separately - to conjunction, where these entities merge to form a new, cohesive whole. This philosophical stance resonates profoundly with the intent behind the Triaxis model, designed to map and navigate the complex interplay of musical elements within the live remixing environment.


The remixician, by manipulating sounds, effects, and textures, engages in a continuous dialogue between the separated (disjunctive) elements of music and the cohesive (conjunctive) outcomes of their interactions. This process is not just a technical manipulation of audio but a deeply intuitive act that channels the inherent creativity of the musical universe. The Triaxis model facilitates this by providing a framework that conceptualizes the musical event space in terms of order/chaos distribution (X), hierarchical/rhizomatic processing (Y), and individual/collective agency (Z) dynamics.

The axes of the Triaxis model encapsulate the transition from disjunction to conjunction. The X-axis navigates between the order and chaos of sonic distribution, the Y-axis explores the perceptual and procedural processing potentials of sound - resulting in and from hierarchical and rhizomatic relations between processes, and the Z-axis balances between individual agency and collective action.

The model seeks to give navigational vectors that reveal dynamic relationships within the fluid, ever-changing nature of improvised music, encouraging remixicians to rely on intuition as much as on technical skill.

 


Thus, the Triaxis model, becomes a tool not just for understanding, but for participating in the ongoing creation of the musical universe. It challenges remixicians to engage deeply with the intuitive, creative potentials of their craft, fostering a space where novelty and togetherness emerge from the complex interplay of musical elements - a true manifestation of creativity as the principle of novelty.

 

The apophatic approach

Alfred North Whitehead’s concept of concrescence is fundamentally a process of becoming, where potential realities come into being through relationships and actualize into concrete experiences. It is a positive, constructive process in which the many potentials of reality come together to create something novel - a unification of diverse entities into a coherent, complex whole.

The apophatic approach, in contrast, is about understanding through negation, peeling away layers of what something is not, to approach an understanding of its essence. It is often used in theological contexts to describe the indescribable nature of the divine, because the divine nature transcends all human understanding and language.

Applying this to the Origo and concrescence: while they might seem at odds, there is a logical harmony in combining these approaches within the Triaxis model. The apophatic aspect of the Origo is not so much a negation of reality as it is a clearing of preconceptions. It negates fixed attributes to facilitate an open, emergent space where novelty can occur through the process of concrescence. It is the point of creative fusion where the potential for novelty exists precisely because it is not limited by predetermined structures.

The apophatic clears the stage for the process of concrescence to unfold in its full creative freedom, unconstrained by preformed patterns. This is how the apophatic aspect and the concrescence complement each other: one sets the conditions of openness and indeterminacy, while the other describes the unfolding actualization of possibilities within that open field.

Interpretation of combinations within the Triaxis

+X, +Y, +Z: Ordered, Hierarchical, Collective action

  • Example: A conducted choir performing a known composition.
  • Explanation: Structure, clear roles, and a unified group action define this combination.


+X, +Y, -Z: Ordered, Hierarchical, Individual action

  • Example: Solo classical musician playing a composed piece.
  • Explanation: Structured and distinct, focusing on individual mastery and expression.


+X, -Y, +Z: Ordered, Rhizomatic, Collective action

  • Example: Audience clapping rhythmically together.
  • Explanation: Cohesive action without clear hierarchy; emergent synchronization.


+X, -Y, -Z: Ordered, Rhizomatic, Individual action

  • Example: Remixician using a sequencer to manipulate collective sound.
  • Explanation: Individual shaping of sound within a set structure; dynamic and integrative.


-X, +Y, +Z: Chaotic, Hierarchical, Collective action

  • Example: Free jazz ensemble where each musician has a set role.
  • Explanation: Unpredictable and spontaneous yet within defined roles; controlled chaos.


-X, +Y, -Z: Chaotic, Hierarchical, Individual action

  • Example: Improvised solo performance with a modular synth setup with probabilistic, unpredictable sequencing, yet retaining clear roles of each oscillator voices.
  • Explanation: Individual, unstructured creativity with distinctive roles for each sound process.


-X, -Y, +Z: Chaotic, Rhizomatic, Collective action

  • Example: Moshpit at a concert.
  • Explanation: Unpredictable, emergent behavior without central control; collective spontaneity.


-X, -Y, -Z: Chaotic, Rhizomatic, Individual action

  • Example: A remixician improvising through random transduction of audio channels without considering the roles of the audio in neither sidechain or destination.
  • Explanation: Individual spontaneity, creating interconnectivity without pre-defined structure or direction.

 

0: The Origo


The zero point in the middle of all axes is the Origo, the critical equilibrium point in the Triaxis model. It represents the perfect balance of all extremes, where order and chaos and hierarchical and rhizomatic perception coalesce to express the Superorganism's highest potential. It can be considered the ultimate aim of a live remix, yet it is notoriously challenging to sustain.


The zone of optimal novelty emergence


In alignment with Whitehead’s idea of the concrescence, where the many become one and are increased by one, the Origo represents optimal conditions for the emergent sonic concrescence. It’s a state where the conjunctive process of unifying disjunctive elements results in the creation of something entirely new.


This novelty is not merely a sum of parts, but an emergent property that arises from the intricate interplay and fusion of these parts. It reflects the principle that true creativity and innovation occur in the space where dichotomies and boundaries are revealed, dissolved and challenged.


The Origo is the transcendent critical point of the musical experience, and requires significant levels of tolerance for tension, adaptability, transformational capacity, control and surrender to achieve. Surrender is not to be confused with passivity, but actively viewing one's creative purpose as becoming a vessel for something greater than oneself. This could mean withstanding disjunctive pressure, daring to diverge from the group mentality, deliberately acting out archetypal roles or simply the embrace of silence.


The push and pull of audience engagement, fellow musicians' changes in pressure and release, our bodies' responsiveness combined with the dynamic surprises of electric, electronic and acoustic musical instruments - can all easily tilt the experience out of this equilibrium. I believe it is this oscillating spiral dance that makes the temporary arrivals in the Origo worthwhile, meaningful and exciting to pursue.

 

Now that we have broken the conceptual ice, let us continue with a theoretical and methodological dive into the foundations and development of the Triaxis.

Next page - Theoretical foundations and methodological approach