Ian has pursued a creative approach to the research, collection and presentation of archive music, film and art from the early post war era. He has assembled special film and radio programmes, created new electronic music to short silent films, and written the book Tape Leaders – A Compendium of Early British Electronic Music Composers.
Expo Worlds
As part of his research into World’s Fairs in the 1950s-70s period, Ian has put together a programme of Expo shorts which were originally intended as silent film documents for home movie audiences. Each one now has a specially crafted electronic soundtrack made using various Hellitron tone generators and reel to reel tape loops. The selection takes in Expo 58, the Seattle World’s Fair 1962, the New York World’s Fair 1964/65, Expo 67 and Expo 70. Please get in touch to screen Expo Worlds.
Ian’s Expo 67 – An Audiovisual Collage takes the viewer on an impressionistic journey through the Montreal fair, and is constructed entirely from stills along with music and sounds from the Expo.
To mark the 50th anniversary of Expo 70, Ian assembled an exhibition from his collection, which included two new collages, plus archive films featuring his specially composed electronic soundtracks.
Practical Electronica
An unfunded hour long documentary on FC Judd and early British electronic music, made over 3 years and completed in 2011. The film tells the story of Fred Judd, and his role in making and disseminating tape sounds and musique concrete across Britain. It was re-edited and updated in 2014, and represents an important contribution to the understanding of early electronic music. Please contact Ian to arrange a screening. PracElextract
The Tone Generation
Ian’s ongoing audio series exploring electronic music – a personal selection drawn from his records and CDs – looks at different themes and compositions in the era of analogue tape and early synthesizer technology. The programmes aim to act as an informative and enlightening overview of experimental electronic music as it developed in many different areas, from the pioneering early days, up to the late 1970s.
The whole series can be listened to here: Tone Generation
The Tone Generation EM chart is a companion to the series, devised around 2005 and updated in 2020. It presents a simplified and selective overview of notable electronic music developments around the world from 1900 to 1970.
