NEANDERTHAL ELECTRONICS
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5 MINUTE NE GINDIM
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THE STARING MASTER
INERTIA CUNOASTERII ASCUNSE
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HITTING PILLOW HITTING
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PRAF DE STELE GINDIREA OBOSITA
AVEM INFORNATIE
INERTIA CUNOASTERII ASCUNSE
An autopoietic machine is a machine organized (defined as a unity) as a network of processes of production (transformation and destruction) of components which: (i) through their interactions and transformations continuously regenerate and realize the network of processes (relations) that produced them; and (ii) constitute it (the machine) as a concrete unity in space in which they (the components) exist by specifying the topological domain of its realization as such a network. [1]
[…] the space defined by an autopoietic system is self-contained and cannot be described by using dimensions that define another space. When we refer to our interactions with a concrete autopoietic system, however, we project this system on the space of our manipulations and make a description of this projection. [2]
Even though others have often used the term as a synonym for self-organization, Maturana himself stated he would "never use the notion of self-organization, because it cannot be the case...it is impossible. That is, if the organization of a thing changes, the thing changes."[5] Moreover, an autopoietic system is autonomous and operationally closed, in the sense that there are sufficient processes within it to maintain the whole. Autopoietic systems are 'structurally coupled' with their medium, embedded in a dynamic of changes that can be recalled as sensory-motor coupling. This continuous dynamic is considered as at least a rudimentary form of knowledge or cognition and can be observed throughout life-forms.
HISTORY OF THE SCRATCH ORCHESTRA
In 1968 the Scratch Orchestra was jointly conceived by English composers Cornelius Cardew, Howard Skempton and Michael Parsons during a class on experimental music at London's Morely College. An outcry against both the traditional symphony orchestra and the hermetic musical avant-garde, the orchestra was to be democratically run by its members and include both amateur and professional musicians. Founded on paper rather than in practice, the group announced itself with the publication of the "Draft Constitution"-- a manifesto penned by Cardew-- in The Musical Times journal (see HERE for this text.)
The Constitution laid out the Orchestra's motives and method: "Definition: A Scratch Orchestra is a large number of enthusiasts pooling their resources (not primarily material resources) and assembling for action (music-making, performance, edification)." A number of improvisation-based exercises were proposed, as well as the stipulation that all members must regularly pen scores of “Scratchmusic” for the group (to "be accomplished using any means--verbal, graphic, musical, collage, etc.”) Announcing the date of their prospective first concert, the Constitution also served as an open call for new members. In the end the group was constituted by a combination of professional musicians, trained and untrained amateurs and a large contingent of performance-oriented visual artists; several members were from Leeds College of Art, including the well-known Fluxus artist George Brecht-- a faculty member there.
The orchestra achieved notoriety in its time-- they performed regularly in England, received government funding, aired broadcasts on the BBC and published a book of "Scratch music" excerpts with MIT Press. Concerts included works by such well-known composers as John Cage, Christian Wolff, Morton Feldman, and Cardew himself. But dissent between the "serious" musicians and Fluxus-inspired performance artists eventually brought about irresolvable tensions within the members. And the group’s interactions with the public sphere were no less thorny-- a controversial performance resulted in a smear campaign, with the press attempting to strip Cardew of his government grant money and tenure at the Royal Academy of Music.
Mirroring the global tendency for communalist leftism to revert to dictatorship, as Cardew's political commitments became more fervent he attempted to use the Orchestra to advance a distinct political outlook-- namely that of the Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist-Leninist.) In reaction to the failure of the groups democratic premise, members started disrupting the group's own concerts through interruptions and protests. Discontent was addressed by the founding of the Scratch Ideological Group, a makeshift book club to study Marx, Lenin and Mao.
Though intended to unify the group's purpose, the Scratch Ideological Group may have been the final blow to the ensemble. The group officially disbanded in 1974.
