Lossy Codecs is comprised of some of the Detroit area’s most creative improvising musicians, and this networked performance will include performers from Chicago and New York as well. The group explores original mechanisms of information transfer between composer, director, and performers, utilizing a new system for real-time direction of an improvising ensemble. Using an interface built in the SuperCollider coding environment, Worthington is able to direct the evolution of various musical parameters over time. That information will be communicated visually to geographically distributed performers, coordinating the creation of cohesive and unique musical statements. In person, Lossy Codecs performs regularly around Southeast Michigan, continually developing and expanding the methodology the group employs. This will be the ensemble’s first networked performance, exploring the additional challenges and opportunities of non-local real-time composition.
Derek Worthington is a trumpet player, electronic musician, composer, and improviser based in Detroit. His primary focus is on experimental composition, group improvisation, and the intersection and interaction of the two. Worthington’s work integrates elements of jazz, art music, electronic music, and free and directed improvisation. He is the leader of the large ensemble Lossy Codecs, and co-leader of numerous projects including electroacoustic glitch-jazz duo Says Things, experimental chamber trio Wugtest, and free jazz/rock/Americana quartet the Great Collapsing Hrung. He has performed original work around the country, including Ann Arbor, MI’s Edgefest, Brooklyn’s Golden Fest, and the Detroit Free Arts Festival.