SuperCollider (programming language)

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SuperCollider

Developer:	James McCartney and others
OS:	Mac OS X, GNU/Linux
Use:	Programming language, Music/Audio
License:	GPL
Website:	http://supercollider.sourceforge.net

For the particle accelerator, see Superconducting Supercollider.

SuperCollider ^[1] is an environment and programming language for real time audio synthesis and algorithmic composition. Originating as proprietary software, it was released in 2002 by its author, James McCartney, under the free software GPL license. Since then it has been evolving into a system used and further developed by both scientists and artists working with sound. It is an efficient and expressive dynamic programming language which makes it an interesting framework for acoustic research, algorithmic music and interactive programming.

Contents 1 Architecture 2 Features 2.1 Language Features 2.2 Synthesis Server Features 3 Code examples 4 System requirements 5 Notable users 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Architecture

Since version 3 the SuperCollider environment is split into a server, scsynth, and a client, sclang, that communicate using OpenSound Control.

SC Language combines the object oriented structure of Smalltalk and features from functional programming languages with a C programming language family syntax.

The SC Server application supports a simple C plugin API making it easy to write efficient sound algorithms (unit generators) which can then be combined into graphs of calculations. Due to the fact that all external control in the server happens via open sound control, it is possible to access its functionality from other languages or applications. ^[2]

[edit] Features

[edit] Language Features

• Constant time message lookup
• Real time garbage collection
• Lexical closure
• Functions as first class objects, function composition
• Coroutines
• Default argument values, variable length argument lists and any order keyword arguments
• Both lexical and dynamic scope
• Closure creation via partial application (i.e., explicit currying / schönfinkelling)
• Tail call optimization
• List comprehensions
• Reflective and Literate Programming
• allows to represent properties such as time and pitch in variable degrees of abstraction

[edit] Synthesis Server Features

• OpenSound Control access
• simple ANSI C plugin API
• supports any number of input and output channels
• gives access to an ordered tree structure of synthesis nodes which define the order of execution
• bus system which allows to dynamically restructure the signal flow
• buffers for writing and reading
• calculation at different rates depending on the needs: audio rate, control rate, demand rate

[edit] Code examples

// play a mixture of pink noise and an 800 Hz sine tone
{ SinOsc.ar(800, 0, 0.1) + PinkNoise.ar(0.01) }.play; 

// modulate the sine frequency and the noise amplitude with another sine
// whose frequency depends on the horizontal cursor position
{ 
        var x = SinOsc.ar(MouseX.kr(1, 100));
        SinOsc.ar(300 * x + 800, 0, 0.1) 
        + 
        PinkNoise.ar(0.1 * x + 0.1) 
}.play; 

// list iteration: create a collection of indices multiplied by their values
[1, 2, 5, 10, -3].collect { |item, i| item * i }

// factorial function
f = { |x| if(x == 0) { 1 } { f.(x-1) * x } }

Many more examples are available on the SuperCollider wiki site [1].

[edit] System requirements

SC runs under GNU/Linux and Mac OS X, a beta version is available for Microsoft Windows under the name Psycollider. The GNU/Linux version can easily be controlled from GNU Emacs.

SC is available on a Linux Live CD called pure:dyne (a modified version of dyne:bolic), so this is one way to use it on an ordinary Windows computer by booting into Linux without altering your Windows computer at all.

[edit] Notable users

• Alla Zagaykevych [2]
• Cylob
• Ixi software
• Nick Collins [3] / Klipp AV [4]
• Paul Lansky

[edit] References

1. ^ The name SuperCollider is said to have its origin from the Superconducting Super Collider in Waxahachie, Texas, which was planned, but never built.
2. ^ One example for such a system is rsc, a Scheme implementation for accessing scserver. For other examples see the software listed in the OpenSound Control article.

[edit] External links

• Download SuperCollider from here
• Author's page
• The SuperCollider Swiki
• SuperCollider users mailing list
• Search the SuperCollider mailing lists archives
• cunningham's wiki web
• Location on SourceForge
• SuperCollider 1 presentation (1998)
• Realtime Software Synthesis for Psychoacoustic Experiments (1998)
• Algorithmic Composition Methods for Breakbeat Science (2003)
• Uncertainty and waiting in Computer Music Networks (2004)