TidalCycles
{{Short description|Live coding environment}}
{{Infobox software
| name = TidalCycles
| logo = TidalCycles identity.svg
| logo size = 250px
| screenshot = Tidal Code Screenshot.png
| developer = Alex McLean, others
| released = {{Start date and age|2009}}
| latest release version = 1.9.5
| latest release date = {{Start date and age|2024|04|07|df=yes}}
| repo = https://github.com/tidalcycles/
| programming language = Haskell
| operating system = Linux, macOS, Windows
| genre = Live coding environment, algorave
| license = GPLv3
| website = {{URL|tidalcycles.org}}
}}
TidalCycles (also known as Tidal) is a live coding environment which is designed for improvising and composing music. Technically, it is a domain-specific language embedded in the functional programming language Haskell, and is focused on the generating and manipulating audiovisual patterns.{{cite web |last1=McLean |first1=Alex |author1-link=Alex McLean |title=Tidal – Pattern Language for Live Coding of Music |url=http://smcnetwork.org/node/1371 |website=Sound and Music Computing |access-date=22 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015145948/http://smcnetwork.org/node/1371 |archive-date=2017-10-15}}{{Cite news |last1=Bick |first1=Emily |date=March 2016 |title=Pattern Recognition |work=The Wire |issue=385 |pages=16–17}}{{Cite web|url=http://cdm.link/2018/12/tidalcycles-free-live-coding-environment-for-music-turns-1-0/|title=TidalCycles, free live coding environment for music, turns 1.0|date=2018-12-18|website=CDM Create Digital Music|language=en-US|access-date=2018-12-27}} It was originally designed for heavily percussive and polyrhythmic grid-based music, but it now uses a flexible and functional reactive representation for patterns, by using rational time.{{Cite book |last1=McLean |first1=Alex |author1-link=Alex McLean |date=2014 |chapter=Making programming languages to dance to |title=Proceedings of the 2nd ACM SIGPLAN international workshop on Functional art, music, modeling & design |series=FARM '14 |publisher=ACM |location=New York, New York, USA |isbn=978-1-4503-3039-8 |pages=63–70 |doi=10.1145/2633638.2633647 |s2cid=1190832}} Therefore, Tidal may be applied to a wide range of musical styles, although its cyclic approach to time means that it affords use in repetitive styles such as algorave.{{Cite web|url=http://www.asianage.com/life/more-features/090219/grooving-to-algorhythms.html|title=Grooving to Algo'rhythms'|last1=Mollan|first1=Cherylann|date=2019-02-10|website=The Asian Age|access-date=2019-03-01}}
Background
TidalCycles was created by Alex McLean who also coined the term algorave,{{Cite web|date=2019-03-05|title=Opposing forces: Rian Treanor explains how he creates intense yet subtle club music|url=https://mixmag.net/feature/rian-treanor-impact-mix-planet-mu|access-date=2022-01-20|website=Mixmag}} and is a domain-specific language embedded in Haskell, which focuses on generating and manipulating audiovisual patterns. Tidal's representation of rhythm is based on metrical cycles,{{Cite web|last1=Sinow|first1=Catherine|date=2020-09-26|title=Deep Algebra for Deep Beats: The Beautiful Sounds of Musical Programming|url=https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/09/turning-code-into-music-anagrams-open-source-marxism-and-vr-raves/|access-date=2022-01-19|website=Ars Technica|language=en-us}} which is inspired by Indian classical music,{{Cite web|title=Type and jive|url=https://www.theweek.in/theweek/leisure/2020/04/04/type-and-jive.html|access-date=2022-01-19|website=The Week|language=en}} supporting polyrhythmic and polymetric structures using a flexible, functional reactive representation for patterns, and rational time. This programme doesn't produce sound itself, but via the SuperCollider sound environment through the SuperDirt framework, via MIDI, or Open Sound Control.
Tidal is also used widely in academic research, including representation in music AI,{{Cite journal|last1=Stewart|first1=Jeremy|last2=Lawson|first2=Shawn|last3=Hodnick|first3=Mike|last4=Gold|first4=Ben|date=2020-02-05|title=Cibo v2: Realtime Livecoding A.I. Agent|url=https://zenodo.org/record/3939174|location=Limerick, Ireland |journal=Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Live Coding |doi=10.5281/zenodo.3939174}}{{Cite book|last1=Miranda|first1=Eduardo Reck|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p7I2EAAAQBAJ&dq=%22TidalCycles%22+-wikipedia&pg=PA858|title=Handbook of Artificial Intelligence for Music: Foundations, Advanced Approaches, and Developments for Creativity|date=2021-07-02|publisher=Springer Nature|isbn=978-3-030-72116-9|language=en}} as a language in network music,{{cite conference |last1=Ogborn |first1=David |last2=Beverley |first2=Jamie |last3=Navarro |first3=Luis del Angel |last4=Tsabary |first4=Eldad |last5=McLean |first5=Alex |author5-link=Alex McLean |date=2017 |title=Estuary: Browser-based Collaborative Projectional Live Coding of Musical Patterns |conference=International Conference on Live Coding |url=https://iclc.toplap.org/2017/cameraReady/ICLC_2017_paper_78.pdf |access-date=January 23, 2022 |s2cid=195836605}} and in electronic literature.{{Cite journal |last1=Rodriguez |first1=Jessica |last2=Franco |first2=Alejandro |last3=MacLean |first3=Alexander |last4=McLean |first4=Alex |author4-link=Alex McLean |last5=Navarro |first5=Luis |last6=Ogborn |first6=David |date=2020-07-16 |title=Electronic Literature Live Coding Jam/Workshop |url=https://stars.library.ucf.edu/elo2020/live/workshops/3 |journal=Electronic Literature Organization Conference 2020}}
Tidal is widely used at algorave algorithmic dance music events,{{Cite web|last1=Mollan|first1=Cherylann|date=2019-02-10|title=Grooving to Algo'rhythms'|url=http://www.asianage.com/life/more-features/090219/grooving-to-algorhythms.html|access-date=2019-03-01|website=The Asian Age}}{{Cite magazine|last1=Calore|first1=Michael|title=DJs of the Future Don't Spin Records—They Write Code|language=en-US|magazine=Wired|url=https://www.wired.com/story/algoraves-live-coding-djs/|access-date=2022-01-19|issn=1059-1028}} and on high profile music releases.{{Cite web|last1=Crilly|first1=Lyle|date=2020-11-10|title=Richard Devine: A Systic Approach to Acid|url=https://articles.roland.com/richard-devine-a-systic-approach-to-acid/|access-date=2022-01-19|website=Roland Articles|language=en-US}}{{Cite news |last1=Mullen |first1=Mullen |date=26 February 2020 |title=Impossible Forms: Beatrice Dilon |url=https://inverted-audio.com/feature/impossible-forms-beatrice-dillon/ |work=Inverted Audio}}{{Cite web|date=2019-02-08|title=PC Music's Lil Data to release anthology of live-coded tracks|url=https://www.factmag.com/2019/02/08/lil-data-folder-dot-zip-announced/|access-date=2022-01-19|website=Fact Magazine|language=en-US |last1=Wilson |first1=Scott }} It has been featured on BBC Radio 3's New Music Show.{{Cite web|date=2020-02-02|title=New Music Show|url=https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/proginfo/2020/08/new-music-show|access-date=2022-01-21|website=BBC Media Centre|language=en-GB}}
Since January 2022, an official port of Tidal's pattern engine has developed into the web-based live coding environment [https://strudel.cc/ Strudel],{{Cite web |last=Kirn |first=Peter |date=2022-04-12 |title=Musical, powerful live coding in the browser is here with Strudel - child of Tidal |url=https://cdm.link/musical-powerful-live-coding-in-the-browser-is-near-with-strudel-usable-now/ |access-date=2024-12-19 |website=CDM Create Digital Music |language=en-US}} created by Felix Roos and Alex McLean.{{Cite conference |conference=International Conference on Live Coding |conference-url=https://iclc.toplap.org/2023/ |last1=Roos |first1=Felix |last2=McLean |first2=Alex |date=2023-04-18 |title=Strudel: Live Coding Patterns on the Web |url=https://zenodo.org/records/7842142}}
Artists using it
- Richard Devine
- Beatrice Dillon
- Lil Data{{Citation|title=Charli XCX – Vroom Vroom (Lil Data TidalCycles live coding edit)| date=21 June 2019 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNj-I2pZwX8|language=en|access-date=2022-01-19}}
- digital selves {{Cite web|title=Sonic Futures: How Technology is Guiding Electronic Music|url=https://www.factmag.com/2019/10/22/sonic-futures-how-technology-is-guiding-electronic-music/|access-date=2022-01-20|website=FACT Magazine: Transmissions from the underground|date=22 October 2019 |language=en}}{{Cite web|date=2020-06-09|title=Artist DIY: Digital Selves|url=https://www.factmag.com/2020/06/09/artist-diy-digital-selves/|access-date=2022-01-20|website=Fact Magazine|language=en-US |author1=Fact }}
- MIRI KAT{{Cite web|title=Meet the female coders pushing electronic music into the future|url=https://mixmag.net/feature/female-coders-algorave|access-date=2022-01-20|website=Mixmag}}
- Daniel M Karlsson{{Cite web|date=2018-01-25|title=Meet the Artists Using Coding, AI, and Machine Language to Make Music|url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/lists/music-ai-coding-algorithms|access-date=2022-01-20|website=Bandcamp Daily}}
- 65daysofstatic{{Cite web|date=2017-03-30|title=Watch the first exclusive live performance of No Man's Sky's soundtrack|url=https://blog.playstation.com/archive/2017/03/30/watch-the-first-exclusive-live-performance-of-no-mans-skys-soundtrack|access-date=2022-01-20|website=PlayStation.Blog|language=en-US}}
- Benjamin Wynn{{Cite web|title=Deru – Sound and Atmospheres|url=https://www.steinberg.net/stories/deru-interview/|access-date=2022-01-20|website=www.steinberg.net|language=en}}
- Hsien-Yu Cheng{{Cite web|title=Hsien-Yu Cheng & Tzu-Ni Hung / Abyss Zone|url=https://submarine.gallery/performance/abysszone20230625|access-date=2023-06-26|website=submarine.gallery|language=zh-TW}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://tidalcycles.org/ Official website]
- {{GitHub|tidalcycles|TidalCycles}}
{{Haskell programming}}