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John Chowning, godfather of digital pop: ‘My wife told me: I didn’t think I’d have to compete with a computer’
Both composer and programmer, Chowning invented the way modern synths work and changed the sound of music for ever. Aged 90, he explains why he’s still at it
Chowning soon started teaching conventional music classes at Stanford, but spent evenings in the lab exploring what he called “spatial illusions”: the impression, for instance, that a whisper is nearby or an explosion distant. But his application for tenure was rejected: “The music department chairman said, ‘But that’s just computers!’” Soon afterwards, Stanford welcomed the Hungarian composer György Ligeti, then a superstar after his Requiem featured in 2001: A Space Odyssey. News from pop culture barely reached Chowning, who was immersed in new compositions, Stria and Phoné, delving further into FM’s rich timbral potential.
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