What factors are important with regards to speaker placement and configurations?
On the presentation end of the process, the architecture of the venue and the size and disposition of the audience are both critical. The specific complement of equipment is similarly critical, and the circumstances of technical setup (how much time, how much staff, etc.) are undeniable practical factors. These are obviously mundane “practical” considerations, but in the U.S. this is often what you have to deal with. On the composition side, spatial design can be as elaborate and symbolically significant as you like. I personally take a pragmatic course. If I’m creating a piece for a particular circumstance I will typically be given a set of constraints, such as speaker type and configuration, and these will partly guide my compositional choices. I may also choose to consider making more than one version of a piece, for different technical setups. 4. Do you have ideas about specific types of sounds and their placement in space? I haven’t worked extensively in this area, mostly for lack
