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Tech Dissect w/ [M]

29th February 2024

7.30 PM GMT

£8.30 or free for Saffron Members

Saffron, in collaboration with Black Artist Database (B.A.D.) are delighted to announce a three-month series of online music production workshops for women, trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming people worldwide.

Tech Dissect is a regular workshop series that sits as part of Saffron’s digital member’s club, with different guest hosts taking the reins each month to share their production insights. For the B.A.D. residency taking place this January, February and March, sessions are hosted by creators in the B.A.D. network, including Nairobi-based artists Coco Em (31 Jan) and [M] (29 Feb), and B.A.D. co-founder NIKS (28 Mar). 

Sessions are designed to support individuals of all experience levels to build confidence, community and technical understanding of music creation using Ableton Live. Workshops will take place on Zoom and will last 90 minutes. No previous experience using Ableton Live is required. Attendees can download a free version of the software in the sessions here.

SOFTWARE SYNERGY: SONIC PI AND ABLETON

Join [M] as they usher you into the world of music coding using Sonic Pi, a free and open-source live-coding music synthesizer and performance software. In this workshop [M] will give you an introduction to Sonic Pi and explore how it can communicate with Ableton Live.

A note on technical language – Both DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations such as Ableton Live) and music coding software serve the purpose of music creation, but they cater to different approaches and user preferences. DAWs offer a visual, user-friendly environment for music production, while music coding software appeals to those who want to explore music creation through text based approaches. This workshop is designed for those interested in exploring using both.

ABOUT [M]

[M] manifests as one of the most authentic artistic voices to emerge from Nairobi, Kenya. Their understanding of the enigma that is depth and darkness; the beauty of it, within it, is well experienced and connoted in their compositions, mixes and sonic art.

This is what sets them apart, their ability and willingness to traverse the unexplored spaces and translate that into their artistry giving them the edge and feeling that is [M]: from their debut album her [art] (2019), to their recent album Transition (2023), to independent works on Bandcamp and notable experimental music mixes: Rinse FM with Jokkoo Collective, internet public radio with KMRU. 

Despite being a self-taught artist they have carved out their space in prominent music spaces by incorporating experimentation techniques into their compositions using creative coding synthesizers such as sonic pi and hydra, digital audio workstations such as Ableton and FL studio, and samplers such as Koala, earning them the recognition as a progressive experimental music artist and creative technologist.

[M]’s palette: a blend of natural everyday acoustics with electronic sounds, has become a tool to connect with people deeply through music, reflecting their desire for profound human connection. True to themself, they have and continue to craft a world of endless possibilities by research and teaching and are constantly appreciating the boundless connectivity the scene offers.

ACCESS

Access to these sessions is free for members of Saffron’s online community, Saffron Members Club. Saffron Membership starts at just £5.50 per month and provides access to regular online workshops, an online community space, video masterclasses, free music tech tools, discounts and much more.

Join Saffron Members Club 

We never want money to be a barrier to people accessing music tech, so if you are unable to afford a ticket but believe you would benefit from attending these workshops, please email us on members@saffronmusic.co.uk.

Workshops are open to people worldwide, but will be running at 7.30 pm GMT so please bear differences in time zone in mind. If you purchase a ticket but are unable to attend live, you will automatically be emailed a recording of the workshop(s) after the event.

We are committed to making our online events as accessible as possible. We have created a guidance document about this – Click here to view the accessibility document. Alternatively, please email us with any access requirements you may have: hello@saffronmusic.co.uk

GENDER POLICY

The gender imbalance in the music technology industry is well-recognised. While we are absolutely not ‘anti-men’, we see that a shorter-term solution is to provide fellowship and learning environments that are not dominated by the cisgender male perspective. Therefore, these workshops are intended for women, non-binary, trans and gender non-conforming people to attend. While we do not ban cisgender men from attending, we hope that they will respect that this event is not intended for them.

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