The Christian Science Monitor quoted USC Thornton faculty member Brian Shepard

The Christian Science Monitor quoted Brian Shepard of the USC Thornton School in an article on how computers are changing the way people make, perform and listen to symphonic music. Shepard said he notices that freshmen are adept at writing complex scores on their computers, but they often can’t comprehend the subtleties that exist between different instruments or even harmonic registers — most likely because they haven’t heard much classical music performed live. Shepard added that digital orchestration is best used not to replace acoustic instruments, but to add new sounds that composers living centuries ago had never imagined. “I love the orchestral instruments, but I also love the sounds that are created electronically,” he said. “I don’t see it as an either/or situation.” Read the article