Jag valde att att utföra den här undersökningen för att se hur olika arbetssätt kan förändra min kreativa skrivarprocess när jag komponerar musik. För att ta reda på det komponerade jag två olika låtar på två olika sätt. Ena arbetssättet gick ut på att jag började med helheten, för att sedan arbeta mig in mot kärnan. Andra arbetssättet gick ut på att jag började med kärnan av låten, för att sedan arbeta mig utåt mot helheten. Under den första arbetsprocessen använde jag mig främst av en DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) när jag komponerade, producerade och skrev musiken. Under den andra arbetsprocessen använde jag en DAW mest för inspelning. Studien är kvalitativ och jag förde loggbok under min skrivarprocess. Resultatet av undersökningen blev två helt olika låtar, som satte olika delar av musikskapandet i fokus. Under skrivandet av låten skriven utifrån och in upplevde jag mycket “flow”. Processen gick ut på att komponera i stora penseldrag. Under skrivandet av låten komponerad inifrån och ut så hamnade sångens uttryck och känsla mycket i fokus. Här ägnade jag mig mer tid åt detaljerna, och kände att låten på något sätt “fanns” mer, eftersom att jag kunde spela den utan hjälp av en datorn. Processen krävde också mer fysiskt arbete, vilket gjorde att låten kändes mer levande.

Electro-acoustic music composition makes it possible for composers to manipulate sounds with the computer with either alone or both live and prerecorded sounds. From the end of the 19th century when the first electronic devices for performing music were developed up till today, transformations in music technology keep surfacing and the possibilities with working with sounds have become endless. Electro-acoustic music has the ability to conjure mental images using vast sound manipulation techniques using the DAW(Digital audio workstation) and sound amplification through loudspeakers. Every space in our environment has its unique sound/s. Lost and found through these techniques provides an insight to a space which seems distant by geographical location but closer through sound.

In this thesis, the author explored an alternative way of composing contemporary western art music, being inspired by thoughts regarding post-genre. The composition method incorporated the use of the Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) software Cubase. Musical gestures were recorded with two musicians which where used as samples in the DAW to compose the piece Lines. The role of the score was shifted by moving it’s realisation to after the aural result was completed. The process was inspiring and was perceived to work well for a textural piece of music. Using a DAW when composing contemporary western art music is something that could be explored by classically trained composers in favour of working solely in a notation software. The result was the digitally made recording of Lines and two scores; one aimed to reproduce the recorded version (where only violin and violoncello where used) and another where adjustments where made, mainly in the instrumentation, to facilitate live performances by string orchestras.

There is a lot of research connecting musical expression with well-being, motivation and meaningfulness, especially when introduced in early years. Children should have the opportunity to express themselves through music regardless of motor disability. There is research targeting children with motor disabilities and musical expression but when the projects ends the children are left without the technology. There is a gap in research exploring technologies accessible in terms of availability to buy and use for the children. This thesis take advantage of the evolution of music production technologies where standard digital audio workstations are highly customizable and therefore an option to use as tools to democratize musical expression among children with motor disabilities. Democratize in this context means to make the children able to participate in a musical performance and express themselves in a similar way as fully abled children. To explore the use of music production technologies to promote musical expression among children with motor disabilities a proposed solution of digital audio workstation Ableton Live and beat matched functionalities coupled with various tangible controllers was explored during 3 sessions at a school in Malmö. Four children at the age of 10 with motor disabilities participated together with their music teacher. The result indicates that the proposed solution has great potential to democratize musical expression among the children using available music production technology. The key component in the proposed prototype was the use of beat matched loops and effects which were synchronized to the songs tempo and made it possible for the children to express themselves musically.  The result also show that an important aspect of gaining well-being, motivation and meaningfulness among the children was connected to the proposed prototype ability to generate a musical outcome matching the children's expectations and personal preferences.

Music making and technological development has always been connected. The digital revolution has made advanced music production, writing and distribution tools universally accessible. New intelligent tools built on machine learning are entering the market potentially changing how we create music and interact with creative content.  The aim of this thesis project has been to find alternatives to existing interaction models manifested in modern DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations). Ideas developed through rough sketches and simple prototypes—the outcome consists of three concept videos proposing changes to three moments in the workflow of songwriters and producers. This thesis started with an idea of exploring the borderland between computer generated music and human creativity. Through desk research and interviews I learned that computational creativity exist and that there is a lot of different ways of defining creativity and art. Creating creative computers should not aim to replace humans creative abilities—it is rather about automating and creating tools that enhance our creative abilities.  To understand how songwriters and producers work the subject were investigated through semi-structured contextual interviews. The different ways of working and using tools were mapped out and potential opportunity areas were identified. This thesis have been a project that through sketching, mock-ups and simple prototypes questions how we use digital tools in music production. These concepts and sketches were continuously brought back to experts for feedback. The outcome consists of three concepts. They are presented through three short videos. These videos are now shared with a bigger audience and will act as an conversation starter for people interested in tools for digital music production.  1. Automating parts of the songwriting process and create a collaborative workflow between a you and a computer, through a conversational user interface.  2. A pressure sensitive touch surface that let you manipulate sound. It is an adaptive system that automatically detects active controls in your DAW—it maps these active controls from your computer screen down to a touch pad.  3. The third concept changes the way you organise and look for sound files. It is a automatised process where a software helps you compare different sounds to each other. It takes away most labels and focuses on mapping sound according to its auditory profile.

The aim of this work is to design an architecture of the embedded device that will be used for controlling DAW software in recording studio. First of all, attention is given to a brief summary of the necessary knowledge which is needed to design such kind of device. Af- ter that follows short survey of the existing solutions and description of protocols which can be used for communication with the recording software. Then, subsequent part of the thesis builds upon these foundations and further elaborates the device architecture by me- ans of decomposing it into several modules. In fact, two hardware modules are designed and manufactured, when each of them is conceived on a separate PCB with its own microcon- troller. Then the control firmware has been implemented for each of the modules. At the end of the work an aluminium enclosure, which holds both modules, is designed. The result of this work is a functional prototype of the assembled controller which can be used for the purpose of controlling DAW software.