Collaborative Musical Expression Through Interactive VR Scores

While the technical affordances of virtual reality (VR) have provided new ways for artists to aestheticize immersion, spectator agency, embodiment and multi-sensory engagement, they have also opened new possibilities for composers interested in exploring how interactive musical scores might become a means through which collaboration itself becomes the locus of aesthetic expression. In this paper, the author will provide an overview of an ongoing project which explores new ways of thinking about musical collaboration in VR through the 3D visualization of interactive, graphic scores adapted from works by composers Earle Brown, Christian Wolff, and Toru Takemitsu. The research demonstrates how VR can transform traditional score interpretation by creating dynamic, interactive environments that enable collaborative musical expression, challenge conventional notation, and offer novel ways of negotiating musical performance through networked, multi-user interactions.