John CS Keston is an award winning transdisciplinary artist reimagining how music, video art, and computer science intersect. His work both questions and embraces his backgrounds in music technology, software development, and improvisation leading him toward unconventional compositions that convey a spirit of discovery and exploration through the use of graphic scores, chance and generative techniques, analog and digital synthesis, experimental sound design, signal processing, and acoustic piano. Performers are empowered to use their phonomnesis, or sonic imaginations, while contributing to his collaborative work. Originally from the United Kingdom, John currently resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota where he is a professor of Digital Media Arts at the University of St Thomas. He founded the sound design resource, AudioCookbook.org, where you will find articles and documentation about his projects and research.
John has spoken, performed, or exhibited original work at New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME 2022), the International Computer Music Conference (ICMC 2022), the International Digital Media Arts Conference (iDMAa 2022), International Sound in Science Technology and the Arts (ISSTA 2017-2019), Northern Spark (2011-2017), the Weisman Art Museum, the Montreal Jazz Festival, the Walker Art Center, the Minnesota Institute of Art, the Eyeo Festival, INST-INT, Echofluxx (Prague), and Moogfest. He produced and performed in the piece Instant Cinema: Teleportation Platform X, a featured project at Northern Spark 2013. He composed and performed the music for In Habit: Life in Patterns (2012) and Words to Dead Lips (2011) in collaboration with the dance company Aniccha Arts. In 2017 he was commissioned by the Walker Art Center to compose music for former Merce Cunningham dancers during the Common Time performance series. His music appears in The Jeffrey Dahmer Files (2012) and he composed the music for the short Familiar Pavement (2015). He has appeared on more than a dozen albums including two solo albums on UnearthedMusic.com.
Novaplanet.com is a broadcast radio station out of Paris that also streams their programming over the internet. This radio station was made for me. Their broad programming is eclectic, funky, never repetitive and even on occasion delves into the avant-garde. One minute they’ll be playing Boards of Canada, and then the next their onto some Pharoah Sanders.
One reason why Novaplanet.com is so good is because of the time difference between Minneapolis and Paris. I’m rarely listening during peak hours. On the few occasions that this has happened I have noticed more advertising, news, interviews and French top 40. If that’s not your thing just check the time in Paris. The good shit starts happening after midnight.
One of the projects that I assign in my audio production class is an exercise on how to import MIDI files into Reason and assign specific instruments to each track. I usually demonstrate this with a random classical MIDI file from classicalarchives.com and end up with a Tomita-esque rendition of Mussorgsky.
However, I do not limit the assignment to classical works. Sometimes, students make clever remixes of popular music, and frequently they choose music from classic video games like this remix of the Lost Woods theme from the Legend of Zelda – The Ocarina of Time by Brandon Sullivan. Brandon creatively chose some unique patches for this piece and then added a drum-n-bass beat to the end of the sequence that elevates the energy and takes the Lost Woods on a wayward yet intriguing new path.
Later I’ll add some more examples to this post. Also, if you have any interesting examples of video game music remixes and would like to share, please post a link in a comment below.
Keston and Westdal’s third album titled One Day to Save All Life (ODTSAL) is currently available for pre-ordering through Unearthed Music. The CD package will be printed on 100% recycled paper and the CD tray is made from 100% post consumer waste. All pre-orders will be shipped on, or up to two weeks before the scheduled release date of March 25, 2008.
A CD release party is schedule on March 29, 2008 at the Minnesota Museum of American Art (MMAA.org). Other artists include Kyle Herskovitz, Cepia (Ghostly International) and Primadonahue. An industry listening party is TBA.
Recent Response to ODTSAL:
A full review of the album has been posted on Properly Chilled, one of the top sites for downtempo reviews, artists interviews, and podcasts.
“This work is quite different than previous and is applauded on every level. [They] have certainly defined a sound that resonates through on this unique work. Westdal’s bass is beautifully morphed and Keston’s keys and digi work have stepped over the horizon with a definable expertise. I think I have listened to it three times already. Bravo!” – Chris Lindsey, Slackline Radio
Have you ever put a microphone down the hallway from the studio then cracked the door on the recording booth while recording drums for a bit of natural reverb? Have you ever used the feedback from an open tuned acoustic guitar placed on a stand in front of a speaker? Have you run a vintage mono-synth through a Lesley cabinet? Use the Processing category to tell us what experiments have worked or not worked for you when processing audio in unique ways.
Good foley studios are littered with everything from sod, gravel, pavement, and other surfaces to garden rakes and kitchen utensils. This category is for the strange, unique, bizzarre, or just plain effective techniques you have used to generate foley sounds.
Novaplanet.com is a broadcast radio station out of Paris that also streams their programming over the internet. This radio station was made for me. Their broad programming is eclectic, funky, never repetitive and even on occasion delves into the avant-garde. One minute they’ll be playing Boards of Canada, and then the next their onto some Pharoah Sanders.
However, I do not limit the assignment to classical works. Sometimes, students make clever remixes of popular music, and frequently they choose music from classic video games like this remix of the Lost Woods theme from the 
Keston and Westdal’s third album titled